Dave Matthews Band returned to Madison Square Garden last night and welcomed surprise special guest Béla Fleck at the group’s second consecutive sold-out show in two days at the world’s most famous arena.
Originally scheduled as the tour closer for DMB’s fall run, the show wound up being the second of three nights at The Garden for Matthews after the addition of tonight’s (also sold-out) SOULSHINE: A Benefit for Hurricane Relief and Recovery featuring Warren Haynes, Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats, Goose, Trey Anastasio, Mavis Staples, and more. For fans without tickets for the benefit, though, Saturday proved to be a special event thanks to an appearance by Fleck.
Following Friday’s Warren Haynes sit-in, the banjo virtuoso’s guest spot was especially surprising since he is not on Sunday’s lineup. The unannounced collaboration came late in the set, with Fleck joining in on two fan favorites, “Ants Marching” and “#41”. His exquisite finger picking proved a perfect match for Carter Beauford‘s complex rhythms during the explosive solo section of “Ants Marching”, marking his first non-acoustic sit-in on the tune since 2008, according to The Pod That Jane Likes (A Dave Matthews Band Podcast). Later, he returned during the encore to help finish the tour’s final stop with “The Last Stop”.
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Check out fan-shot videos Béla Fleck sitting in with Dave Matthews Band at Madison Square Garden and click below for additional highlights.
DMB returns to The Garden tonight for SOULSHINE. Tune in to a free livestream here or on YouTube via the band’s channel. Viewers tuning in will have the chance to donate and support the relief efforts of various non-profits, as well as purchase exclusive event merchandise. Net proceeds from the concert will benefit the SOULSHINE Concert Fund at the Charlottesville Area Community Foundation, supporting Habitat for Humanity’s 2024 Hurricane Recovery Fund. Among the beneficiaries are local charities Arts AVL, Habitat Fall Hurricane Fund, Manna Foodbank, Beloved Asheville, Asheville Area Habitat for Humanity, WORLD CENTRAL KITCHEN, Always Asheville Fund, WNC Tip it forward, and Rebuilding Together Tampa Bay. Donate directly to the concert fund here.
Dave Matthews Band With Béla Fleck – “Ants Marching” – 11/23/24
[Video: Chim and Kad]
Dave Matthews Band With Béla Fleck – “#41” – 11/23/24
[Video: Buffalo Slices]
Dave Matthews Band With Béla Fleck – “Last Stop” – 11/23/24
[Video: Ben Krause]
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Setlist [via DMB Almanac]: Dave Matthews Band | Madison Square Garden | New York, NY | 11/23/24
Set: Squirm, The Maker (Daniel Lanois), The Stone (“Can’t Help Falling in Love”), Sweet, Walk Around the Moon, Grace Is Gone, The Only Thing, Black and Blue Bird, Funny the Way It Is, #27, Let’s Dance (David Bowie), The Ocean and the Butterfly, Ants Marching (with Béla Fleck), #41 (with Béla Fleck), You Might Die Trying, Stolen Away on 55th & 3rd, Minarets, Grey Street
Encore: Sister, The Last Stop (with Béla Fleck)