The travelling musical circus that is Dead & Company arrived at New York’s Citi Field last night, and they brought a special guest and some serious jams with them. As the band emerged to tune their instruments and settle in for the beginning of the first set, Donna Jean Godchaux emerged and took a spot on stage between Oteil Burbridge and John Mayer. After joining the band for the first time for an incredible, festival-closing performance at Bonnaroo, Deadheads wondered if they’d see Godchaux again, and it turns out she is a secret-weapon of sorts for when Dead & Company plays to larger audiences. Citi Field’s spacious capacity of 45,000 qualifies as huge, so when the band hit the first notes of a show-opening “Shakedown Street”, it was met with a huge roar and a wave of dancing fans.

After the fun “Shakedown” opener, the band switched gears to powerful versions of “Jack Straw” and “Althea”. Mayer’s guitar prowess was on full display during this opening run, as he absolutely destroyed every opportunity he had to make his mark, soloing his way through all three songs like a true champion of improvisation and sending the crowd into a frenzy multiple times as a result.

Watch Dead & Company rip through “Jack Straw,” below.

“Loose Lucy” and the plodding “Ramble on Rose” were up next, giving the crowd a big sing-a-long moment with Bob Weir, who was in great spirits all night, as he passionately lead the band as they jammed throughout the evening. Perhaps the highlight of the first set, however, was a sultry, swampy take on “Sugaree”. Mayer has really made this song his own while playing with Dead & Company, as the song is an excellent fit for his vocal range, and the bluesy tune is perfect for his style of guitar playing. 

Set One came to a conclusion with the band’s second-ever performance of “Passenger” and a rockin’ “Casey Jones” that turned on the the heat towards the end, and left the crowd excited for the fireworks that were on-deck for set two. Before walking off stage, Bob Weir made sure to mention Headcount and their Participation Row initiative taking place on D&C tour, as Weir told the audience to find their desk inside the stadium to register to vote.

Set two started with the spacey, floating opening of “Dark Star,” and the band turned in a relentless, wild version of the famous jam launchpad. The trio of Mayer, Burbridge, and organist Jeff Chimenti were incredible together, weaving through the song with excitement as they built it to a climax. Suddenly, the band was playing “Friend of the Devil”, and the intensity of “Dark Star” turned into a huge moment for fans to catch their breath and sing along with the band. It was good timing, as the legendary “Scarlet Begonias” -> “Fire On The Mountain” combo was up next, and it certainly didn’t disappoint. The night’s energy reached a peak as the band transitioned between the two songs, and the band performed the duo of classics with passion. The band built “Fire” up and out of nowhere a thumping beat started, and it was time for “Drums” > “Space.” The famous percussive segment started out with a bumping beat, which eventually dissolved into a Bill Kreutzmann and Mickey Hart-led musical freakout.

Out of the wild “Space” segment, the percussive opening of “The Other One” could be heard breaking through the madness, and Weir then led the band through the intense tune.

After a beautiful version of “Wharf Rat”, Dead & Company closed out the show with a band debut from the Dead’s catalog, Weir’s classic political rocker “Throwing Stones”. The song was met with jubilation, and the “ashes, ashes all fall down” lyric could be heard being howled into the sky by the huge crowd.

Dead & Company returned to the stage for a two-song encore that perfectly showcased the band’s diverse style. As Mayer emerged from the backstage with an acoustic guitar and, to the delight of the hometown crowd, a Mets jersey, the band played the beloved ballad “Ripple” to open the encore. After a final sing-a-long moment, the band closed things out with an up-tempo version of “One More Saturday Night”, which wasn’t exactly a surprise, but still left fans dancing wildly, given one last opportunity to dance before the unforgettable night came to a close.

Dead & Company return to Citi Field this evening to complete their two-night-run.

Setlist: Dead & Company at Citi Field, New York, NY – 6/25/2016

Set One: Shakedown Street, Jack Straw, Althea, Loose Lucy, Ramble On Rose, Sugaree, Passenger, Casey Jones

Set Two: Dark Star -> Friend of the Devil, Scarlet Begonias -> Fire on the Mountain, Drums -> Space -> The Other One, Wharf Rat, Throwing Stones

Encore: Ripple, One More Saturday Night

Check out a full gallery of photos from Chad Anderson Photography, below.