On Saturday, December 26th, 50+ artists and hundreds of thousands of viewers around the world came together for Georgia Comes Alive, a virtual music festival aimed at promoting voter participation in Georgia’s critical Senate runoff elections on January 5th, 2021.
One of the many world-renowned acts to take part in the nine-hour livestream was none other than Phil Lesh & Friends, who treated viewers to a rendition of the fan-favorite Workingman’s Dead classic, “Uncle John’s Band”.
Just as the Grateful Dead bassist had done for his virtual performance of “Casey Jones” during Democracy Comes Alive earlier this year, Lesh and his band—comprised of guitarists Stu Allen and Grahame Lesh, pianist Jason Crosby, and drummer Nathan Graham—set up their gear outside (Graham joined in remotely) for their Georgia Comes Alive performance. Like so many live renditions by the Dead over the years, Lesh and his band took “Uncle John’s Band” on a little ride with a brief but exploratory jam segment following the song’s bridge section before returning to the a-cappella harmony part to close things out.
Revisit Phil Lesh & Friends’ performance of “Uncle John’s Band” for Georgia Comes Alive below. If you enjoyed the show and have the means, consider donating to Georgia grassroots voter organizations via GeorgiaComesAlive.com.
Phil Lesh & Friends – “Uncle John’s Band” – Georgia Comes Alive
Phil Lesh & Friends joined 50+ other performers and speakers as part of Georgia Comes Alive, presented by Live For Live Music in partnership with voter registration nonprofit HeadCount. The marathon streaming event, powered by Nugs.TV and Plus 1, generated more than $160,000 in funds for organizations like CivicGeorgia and Georgia Coalition for the People’s Agenda that are putting in work on the ground to get Georgians out to the polls. For more information, head here. For more information on Georgia Comes Alive, or to donate to CivicGeorgia and Georgia Coalition for the People’s Agenda, visit GeorgiaComesAlive.com.