Bob Weir continued his experiments with the Grateful Dead canon this week with a pair of concerts alongside the Chicago Philharmonic. The shows on Sunday and Monday at Chicago’s Auditorium Theatre saw the Grateful Dead guitarist joined by his Wolf Bros bandmates Don Was, Jay Lane, Berry Sless, and Jeff Chimenti along with The Wolfpack string and horn section.
After debuting his orchestral arrangements in 2011 for a one-off benefit with the Marin Symphony Orchestra in Weir’s native California, Bobby has pursued these classical engagements with renewed vigor in the past two years. Following a four-night stint with the National Symphony Orchestra at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. in 2022, Weir and his various Wolf bandmates have gone on to perform with local orchestras in Virginia, California, and Georgia. This past week saw him take the symphonic experience to Cincinnati, OH, followed by two nights in Chicago. The series will wrap with a pair of concerts on Friday and Saturday in New Orleans.
Alongside conductor John Morris Russell, Weir, the Wolves, and the Chicago Philharmonic staged some of the Dead’s most orchestrally ornate compositions. With original arrangements by Weir’s longtime orchestral collaborator Dr. Giancarlo Aquilanti—who contributed the original “A Grateful Overture” which started each night—the augmented lineup performed the full “Weather Report Suite” and “Terrapin Station” on Sunday and Monday nights, respectively.
Unlike Weir’s previous run with the National Symphony Orchestra, the Chicago Philharmonic played with the band for the entire concert. Each night saw a mix of weighty songs that gained additional gravitas from the orchestra (“Wharf Rat”, “Morning Dew”, “Black Throated Wind”, “Days Between”, “Brokedown Palace”) along with time-honored fan favorites (“China Cat Sunflower” and “I Know You Rider”, “Sugar Magnolia”, “Shakedown Street”, “Touch of Grey”). The world-class orchestra did not shy away from wading into the deep end of the Dead’s trademark experimentalism, stitching together “Playing in the Band” > “Uncle John’s Band” and “Dark Star” before deftly reprising the songs in reverse order to close the run on Monday.
“These songs are visitors, that they’re living critters and they’re visitors from another world, another dimension or whatever you want to call it, that come through the artists to visit this world, have a look around, tell their stories,” Weir told NPR following the 2022 Kennedy Center run. “I don’t know exactly how that works, but I do know that it’s real.”
Watch Bob Weir’s concert with the Chicago Philharmonic in videos by Nunupics Zomot. Bobby’s orchestral series concludes this weekend in New Orleans with the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra. After that, Weir and the Wolf Bros and Wolfpack will finish 2024 and start 2025 with a six-show residency in Fort Lauderdale, FL. Find tickets and tour dates here.
Bob Weir & Wolf Bros, Chicago Philharmonic — “Weather Report Suite”, “Let It Grow” — 11/17/24
Setlist: Bob Weir & Wolf Bros | Auditorium Theatre | Chicago, IL | 11/17/24
Set One: A Grateful Overture (Giancarlo Aquilanti) [1], China Cat Sunflower, I Know You Rider (Traditional), Wharf Rat, Weather Report Suite, Let It Grow
Set Two: Sugar Magnolia, Row Jimmy, Shakedown Street, Cassidy, Brokedown Palace
[1] Orchestra only
Full show with Chicago Philharmonic
Setlist: Bob Weir & Wolf Bros | Auditorium Theatre | Chicago, IL | 11/18/24
Set One: A Grateful Overture (Giancarlo Aquilanti) [1], Touch of Grey, Black Throated Wind, Lady With a Fan > Terrapin Station > Terrapin Transit > At A Siding > Terrapin Flyer
Set Two: Playing in the Band > Uncle John’s Band, Dark Star, Days Between, The Other One, Dark Star > Uncle John’s Band > Playing in the Band
[1] Orchestra only
Full show with Chicago Philharmonic