Joe Russo’s Almost Dead returned to the familiar confines of the Westville Music Bowl on Saturday for the band’s 13th career show at the outdoor tennis stadium in New Haven, CT. Among the highlights of the Joe Russo’s Almost Dead weekend finale was the band’s first-ever take on Allman Brothers Band classic “Black Hearted Woman”.
Musical pranksters Joe Russo, Scott Metzger, Marco Benevento, Dave Dreiwitz, and Tom Hamilton immediately got down to doing what they do best, starting the show with an “Eyes of the World”-style jam that took a hard left turn into Bob Dylan‘s “Tangled Up in Blue”. That momentum kept going through a “The Music Never Stopped” which devolved into a delightfully chaotic, atonal jam before JRAD came back to reality for a thrilling “Help” > “Slip” > “Feel Like a Stranger” and Hamilton closed the set with “Althea”.
Taking a deep plunge down the mine with a second-set opening “Cumberland Blues”, JRAD dug in with a disco-tinged “Dancing in the Street” that took its time and developed into the show’s longest single jam. A deceptively jovial “Cold Rain and Snow”—made euphoric through Benevento’s organ work and Metzger’s blissful major-key soloing—threw it back to the Grateful Dead‘s earliest days, feeding right into avant psychedelic centerpiece “Dark Star”. Joe Russo’s Almost Dead played only the first verse before diving off into the improvisational deep end, with Beneveto’s B3 organ work launching this jam vehicle into the outer reaches of the solar system. Coming back to Earth, JRAD docked at “Terrapin Station” ahead of a rowdy “I Need a Miracle” second set closer.
Taking the Westville Stage once more, Joe Russo’s Almost Dead utilized its dual lead guitarists Tom Hamilton and Scott Metzger to their utmost potential with “Black Hearted Woman” by the Allman Brothers Band. Taken from the seminal Southern rock band’s self-titled, 1969 debut album, “Black Hearted Woman” got straight to the point with a hard-hitting blues jam that ultimately rolled into a rollicking instrumental “The Other One” to finish off the weekend.
Check out videos and audio from Joe Russo’s Almost Dead at Westville Music Bowl, including the Allman Brothers Band debut. JRAD will return to the Northeast next month for headlining dates in Hampton, NH (6/12) and Hyannis, MA on Cape Cod (6/13) before headlining All Good Now at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, MD (6/14). Find tickets and a full list of tour dates here.
Joe Russo’s Almost Dead — “Althea” (Grateful Dead) — 5/24/25
[Video: grad Gd]
Joe Russo’s Almost Dead — “Dancing In The Street” (Martha Reeves And The Vandellas), “Cold Rain and Snow” (Traditional) — 5/24/25
[Video: lauren’s videos]
Joe Russo’s Almost Dead — “Black Hearted Woman” (Allman Brothers Band) — 5/24/25
[Video: lauren’s videos]
Joe Russo’s Almost Dead — Westville Music Bowl — New Haven, CT — 5/24/25 — Full Audio
[Audio: nico11104]
Setlist: Joe Russo’s Almost Dead | Westville Music Bowl | New Haven, CT | 5/24/25
Set One: Eyes of the World Jam > Tangled Up in Blue (Bob Dylan) > The Music Never Stopped, Help on the Way > Slipknot! > Feel Like a Stranger, Althea
Set Two: Cumberland Blues > Dancing in the Street (Martha Reeves and the Vandellas), Cold Rain and Snow (Traditional) > Dark Star [1] > Terrapin Station, I Need a Miracle
Encore: Black Hearted Woman (Allman Brothers Band) [2] > The Other One [3]
[1] First verse
[2] FTP
[3] Instrumental