Following an hour delay due to severe weather, Joe Russo’s Almost Dead offered up a two-set performance on Sunday night as part of Burlington, VT’s Lake Champlain Maritime Festival without Russo. On Friday night, Russo’s wife gave birth to the couple’s second daughter. On Saturday, JRAD played their first of two shows without Russo at The Peach Music Festival. On Sunday, Marco Benevento, Dave Dreiwitz, Tom Hamilton, and Scott Metzger were joined by drummers JRAD drum tech and Russo’s nephew, Evan Roque, along with John Kimock, the son of guitar wizard Steve Kimock and the current drummer in Mike Gordon‘s solo outfit. Adding to the significance of the unusual performance, and despite the absence of the namesake drummer, this Burlington performance marked the band’s 200th show—199 more than they ever expected to play.
Joe Russo’s Almost Dead opened up their first set in Burlington with “Feel Like A Stranger”, which was followed up by the customary pairing of “Scarlet Begonias” into “Fire On The Mountain”. Backed by Roque and Kimock’s hard-hitting beats, Hamilton and Metzger traded off some red-hot guitar licks at the waterfront venue. The band continued with “Good Lovin'” before closing out the first frame with “New Minglewood Blues”.
Joe Russo’s Almost Dead – “Feel Like A Stranger” > “Scarlet Begonias”
[Video: Josh Daniel]
Following a brief setbreak, Joe Russo’s Almost Dead (No Russo’s Almost Dead?) returned to open their second set with “China Cat Sunflower”, which ultimately segued smoothly into a percussive “Iko Iko”. The band kept on chuggin’ with a pairing of “Brown-Eyed Women” into “Truckin'” before coasting into a tender “Brokedown Palace”. Following a set-closing “Samson and Delilah”, JRAD returned to offer an encore of “Going Down The Road Feelin’ Bad”.
Check out a gorgeous gallery of photos from Sunday night’s show below courtesy of photographer Vic Brazen.
Next up for Joe Russo’s Almost Dead is a performance at Los Angeles’ Greek Theatre on Friday, August 16th. For a full list of the band’s upcoming tour dates, ticketing, and more information, head to Joe Russo’s Almost Dead’s website.
Setlist: Joe Russo’s Almost Dead | Waterfront Park | Burlington, VT | 7/28/2019
Set One: Feel Like A Stranger > Scarlet Begonias > Fire On The Mountain, Good Lovin’, New Minglewood Blues
Set Two: China Cat Sunflower > Iko Iko, Brown-Eyed Women > Truckin’ > Brokedown Palace > Samson and Delilah
Encore: Going Down The Road Feelin’ Bad
