On Friday night, Bob Weir and Wolf Bros continued their early-2019 prowl with a performance at the newly renovated and reopened Metropolitan Opera House Philadelphia. The show featured a handful of Wolf Bros debuts in addition to guest spots by local hero Tom Hamilton (Ghost Light, JRAD) and a nod to International Women’s Day.
Philly at @themetphilly with Tom Hamilton on guitar & vox. Three song debuts. Women are Smarter x 2 because we know what day it was! #InternationalWomensDay #IWD2019 pic.twitter.com/OBE65Rs0V9
— Bob Weir (@BobWeir) March 9, 2019
The performance kicked off with a pair of proven fire-starters in “Hell In A Bucket” and “Bertha”. Bob Dylan‘s “Queen Jane Approximately” came next, followed by the first-ever Bob Weir and Wolf Bros rendition of the Memphis Jug Band‘s “K.C. Moan”, a song Bob Weir and Jay Lane frequently played during their RatDog days.
Next, Weir, Lane, and Don Was welcomed a fourth member to their City of Brotherly Love party: local native guitarist Tom Hamilton. Hamilton helped the group through a rendition of “Gonesville” (from Weir’s 2016 solo record, Blue Mountain) and an uplifting reading of Daniel Lanois‘ “The Maker” (a Wolf Bros first) before ceding the stage back to the trio for “Black-Throated Wind”, “Corrina”, and “Deal” to cap set one.
When the Wolf Bros returned to the stage for their second set, they clearly had International Women’s Day on their mind. Weir, Was, and Lane kicked off set two with another Wolf Bros debut, “Man Smart, Woman Smarter”. The set continued with a seamless run of jams including “Scarlet Begonias”, “He’s Gone”, RatDog’s “Two Djinn”, “New Speedway Boogie”, “The Other One”, and “Days Between”. As “Days Between” faded out, Tom Hamilton returned to the stage to help lead the group into a reprise of “Man Smart, Woman Smarter”, followed by a set-closing rendition of “Not Fade Away”. When the band returned for their encore, Hamilton joined them once again, augmenting a beautiful “Brokedown Palace” to help send the Philly faithful home happy.
Below, you can watch a selection of videos from the performance:
Bob Weir and Wolf Bros – “Hell In A Bucket” [Pro-Shot]
[Video: nugsnet]
Bob Weir and Wolf Bros – “Man Smart, Woman Smarter” [Pro-Shot]
[Video: nugsnet]
Bob Weir and Wolf Bros w/ Tom Hamilton – “Not Fade Away” [Partial]
Bob Weir and Wolf Bros w/ Tom Hamilton – “Brokedown Palace” [Partial]
Bob Weir and Wolf Bros tour continues tonight, Saturday, March 9th, with a performance at the State Theatre in Portland, ME. For a full list of Wolf Bros’ upcoming tour dates, head to Weir’s website here.
Setlist: Bob Weir and Wolf Bros | Metropolitan Opera House Philadelphia | Philadelphia, PA | 3/8/19
Set One: Hell In A Bucket, Bertha, Queen Jane Approximately, K.C. Moan, Gonesville*, The Maker*, Black-Throated Wind, Corrina, Deal
Set Two: Man Smart, Woman Smarter, Scarlet Begonias > He’s Gone > Two Djinn > New Speedway Boogie > The Other One > Days Between > Man Smart, Women Smarter (Reprise) > Not Fade Away
Encore: Brokedown Palace