Dead & Company returned to Sphere last night for the penultimate show of their 2025 Dead Forever residency. After kicking off the weekend with a solid but relatively tame performance on Thursday, the band ramped up the energy and continued to roll out new songs and surprises, including the Dead & Co. debut of “I Fought the Law” and a fast version of “They Love Each Other” played at the original 1973 tempo.
First, though, Bob Weir, John Mayer, Mickey Hart, Oteil Burbridge, Jeff Chimenti, and Jay Lane opened the show with the residency’s first and (presumably) only cover of Bob Dylan‘s “When I Paint My Masterpiece”. The song’s slow tempo seemed to set the tone for a relaxed first set, but they defied that expectation with an adventurous “Playing in the Band”. Despite basically sticking to the song’s form, they already sounded looser and more free than the previous night. Oteil’s fingers were ablaze, thumping out quick rhythms, and Mayer reinterpreted the melody in a minor key before smoothly returning from the jam section to the final chorus.
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Mayer’s soulful soloing continued during “Althea”, even drawing enthusiastic cheers from the crowd as the song reached its peak before the last bridge. A pre-planned hard transition carried the band right into “The Music Never Stopped”. The band continued to loosen up during an extended 3/4 waltz jam, ultimately shifting back to the main groove with masterful precision. Chimenti used a funky, wah-wah clavinet sound—a rare choice for him—before switching to the more familiar sound of his electric piano.
The band then defied its reputation for slowing songs down with an uptempo take on “They Love Each Other”. Introduced by the Dead in 1973, the song had a quicker tempo for about a year before settling down to its now-standard, laidback reggae feel. It was not the first time Dead & Company played the song at its original 1973 tempo, but it was still a welcome surprise.
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The band slowed down the groove but kept the energy high during a bluesy “New Speedway Boogie”. Weir’s vocals sounded particularly strong, especially his high falsetto range and effortless vibrato.
He faked out the crowd, announcing, “We’ll be right back,” before quipping, “We’re back,” and launching into one more tune. It would be hard to improve on the already impressive first set, but “Deal” picked up the energy once again and ended the set on a joyous note. “We’re taking a break for real now,” Weir said before leaving the stage for set break.
Upon returning, Dead & Company kicked off set two with another surprise, debuting “I Fought the Law”. Originally written by Sonny Curtis of the Crickets, the song was popularized by the Bobby Fuller Four and famously covered by The Clash. The Dead later played it live a number of times from 1993 until Jerry Garcia‘s death in 1995.
It is remarkable that Dead & Co. are still rolling out new songs, even on night 17 night of their 18-show residency. It highlights the band’s commitment to constant growth, experimentation, and meticulous preparation.
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Segueing into a spacey “Dark Star” jam, Mayer put his guitar pick in his mouth and slapped the strings of his guitar to produce ethereal harmonics. After floating through the transitive nightfall of diamonds, so to speak, the band dusted off “Spanish Jam” before landed in “St. Stephen”, which elicited enthusiastic cheers from the crowd. The band was totally on fire by the time they reached the jam section, especially Mayer, but Weir was locked in right alongside him.
Surprisingly, the opening notes of “Sugaree” also got an enthusiastic cheer from fans. Mayer whipped the crowd into a frenzy with rapid picking at the peak of his solo and sang bluesy vocal licks when the song reached its climactic conclusion.
“Drums” was a highlight as usual. Mickey beat the toms with a perfect wax on wax off technique, graceful as a ballerina, and got the in-seat haptics rumbling along with Lane and Burbridge before finishing the segment on the Beam.
“Space” featured nice interplay between Chimenti, Weir, Mayer, and Burbridge, ultimately giving way to a powerful “Stella Blue”. The Weir-led ballad began with an airy feel before the drums came in to provide more rhythmic definition. Weir breathed life into the song’s emotive lyrics, fully inhabiting every word with calm conviction and soulful presence. The subtle melodic interplay between Mayer and Chimenti helped take the tune to another level.
The energy rocketed back up with opening notes of “Cold Rain and Snow” and remained focused throughout an emotional “Morning Dew”. The crowd cheered when images of Jerry Garcia and Phil Lesh appeared on screen. Much like “Stella Blue”, Weir sang the ballad beautifully while spiral galaxies whizzed by as the Sphere shot through the cosmos en route back to the milky way, ultimately setting sights on earth and descending back down to the Grateful Dead’s former home at 710 Ashbury.
Wilson Pickett‘s “In the Midnight Hour” ended the night on a joyous, celebratory note while winding down the energy, leaning into its original R&B soul essence over a rock ‘n’ roll edge.
With that, Dead & Company brought night 17 of their 18-show residency to a triumphant close. That leaves just a single show to go—one more Saturday night, if you will.
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Check out photos from Friday’s show and click below to watch a collection of fan-shot videos. Scroll down to view the full setlist.
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Dead & Company – “When I Paint My Masterpiece” (Bob Dylan) – 5/16/25
[Video: Mark Drakk]
Dead & Company – “I Fought The Law” (The Crickets) – 5/16/25
[Video: Steven Leitman]
Setlist: Dead & Company | Sphere | Las Vegas, NV | 5/16/25
Set 1: When I Paint My Masterpiece (Bob Dylan), Playing in the Band, Althea, The Music Never Stopped, They Love Each Other (Jerry Garcia), New Speedway Boogie, Deal (Jerry Garcia)
Set 2: I Fought the Law (The Crickets) [1] > Dark Star, Spanish Jam, St. Stephen, Sugaree (Jerry Garcia) > Drums > Space > Stella Blue, Cold Rain and Snow (Traditional), Morning Dew (Bonnie Dobson)
Encore: In the Midnight Hour (Wilson Pickett)
[1] Dead & Company live debut