On Saturday, October 3rd, Grateful Dead bassist Phil Lesh took part in Democracy Comes Alive, a one-day, nonpartisan virtual music festival aimed at channeling the power of music to make a critical impact on civic engagement in this November’s elections and beyond. For his Democracy Comes Alive performance, Phil rounded up a group of close “Friends” for a run through “Casey Jones”.
From a scenic California rooftop, Phil gathered Stu Allen (guitar/vocals), Grahame Lesh (guitar/vocals), Alex Koford (drums/vocals), Jason Crosby (keys/vocals) for a take on the closing track off the Dead’s lauded 1970 album, Workingman’s Dead.
Like all good Casey Joneses, this one benefitted from a gradual increase in tempo, building to a break-neck pace before pulling gracefully into the station for its final coda. From the train horn that starts the clip to the approving chuckle from Phil as the video fades out, this brief performance feels like seeing an old friend.
The world may be a crazy place these days, but 80-year-old Phil Lesh is safely playing music and laughing with his friends on a roof somewhere, so all is not lost. Watch Phil Lesh & Friends perform “Casey Jones” at Democracy Comes Alive below:
Phil Lesh & Friends – “Casey Jones” – Democracy Comes Alive
Phil Lesh & Friends joined 50+ performers and 10+ other speakers as part of Democracy Comes Alive, presented by Live For Live Music in partnership with voter registration nonprofit HeadCount. The 10-hour streaming event, powered by Nugs.TV and Plus 1, generated $40,000 and counting in funds for HeadCount as well as the participating artists, who remain out of work as the pandemic continues. In addition to the funds generated, Democracy Comes Alive led thousands of people to HeadCount’s tools to check your voter registration status and register to vote. For more information, head here.