Grateful Dead bassist Phil Lesh kicked off a run of East Coast shows with Phil Lesh & Friends at Hartford HealthCare Amphitheater in Bridgeport, CT on Friday. He was joined by a stacked lineup featuring Warren Haynes, John Scofield, John Medeski, John Molo, Amy Helm.
The band played relatively succinct set 15-song setlist, with Warren Haynes, Phil Lesh, and Amy Helm sharing lead vocal duties. The first set kicked off with Warren taking the lead on “Althea”, followed by “Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo” with Phil singing lead. The band then offered a pair of covers consisting of the Beatles‘ “She Said She Said” and Bruce Springsteen‘s “Atlantic City”, which was the first song of the night to feature Amy Helm on lead vocals.
Next came “Bertha”, with Warren taking the lead once more before Amy Helm stepped to the mic to deliver a stirring “Black Muddy River”. The band finished set one with the Jerry Garcia classic “Sugaree”, with Warren Haynes on lead vocals.
After set break, Phil & Friends returned to the stage and kicked off set two with a far out but danceable take on “Shakedown Street” that lasted over ten minutes. One of the night’s highlights came next with a cover of Traffic‘s “The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys”. Phil then took the lead on a couple Dead tunes including “St. Stephen” and “Unbroken Chain”. The standard pairing of “Help on the Way” and “Slipknot!” appeared in the penultimate position, leading the band to conclude set two with the always upbeat crowd pleaser “Franklin’s Tower”.
After taking a moment to deliver his signature organ donor rap and introduce the band, Phil Lesh led the band through one last run through Wilson Pickett‘s “In the Midnight Hour”.
Phil Lesh & Friends tour continues on the 4th of July at the Stone Pony Summer Stage in Asbury Park, NJ, where Phil will be joined by a lineup featuring Griffin and Taylor Goldsmith, Trevor Menear, Lee Pardini, Grahame Lesh, and Nicki Bluhm. He has additional shows scheduled in Lafayette, NY (7/8) and Portland, ME (7/10), as well as festival appearances at Levitate Music Festival on July 9th and Sacred Rose in Bridgeview, IL on August 26th, where he will perform with Wilco‘s Jeff Tweedy and Nels Cline as PHILCO. For more information and to purchase tickets, click here.
Setlist: Phil Lesh & Friends | Hartford HealthCare Amphitheater | Bridgeport, CT | 7/1/22
Set 1: Althea (Warren lead vocals), Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo (Phil lead vocals), She Said She Said (The Beatles) (Warren lead vocals), Atlantic City (Bruce Springsteen) (Amy lead vocals), Bertha (Warren lead vocals), Black Muddy River (Amy lead vocals), Sugaree (Warren lead vocals)
Set 2: Shakedown Street (Warren lead vocals), The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys (Traffic) (Warren lead vocals), St. Stephen (Phil lead vocals), Unbroken Chain, Help on the Way (Warren lead vocals), Slipknot!, Franklin’s Tower (Warren and Phil vocals)
Encore: In the Midnight Hour (Wilson Pickett) (Warren lead vocals)
Note: Phil Lesh (bass, vocals), Warren Haynes (guitar, vocals) Amy Helm (vocals), John Scofield (guitar), John Medeski (keys), and John Molo (drums).