Night two of The String Cheese Incident‘s three-day run at the Fox Theater in Oakland, California saw an extended sit in from Peter Rowan, some beloved classics from the band’s catalog, and some deeply funky jams. Cheese has been making music for 30-some-odd years now, and while they’ve developed proficient in numerous genres, they got their start as a bluegrass/Americana string band. It’s only fitting then that a well-rounded weekend celebrating the band’s music contains some healthy nods to the genre, such as an extended visit from a legend like Rowan and some of their own iconic tunes in that flavor. This was an obvious delight for fans at the Fox and, with some help from nugs.net, listeners around the world.

Upon taking the stage, Bill Nershi noted this was the band’s 30th year of making music together, and it seemed surreal that it’s been three full decades. Setting the table for the night to come was a tasty, joyful one-two of “Close Your Eyes” > “‘Round The Wheel” with the onset of “Wheel” showcasing a particularly bouncy bass intro from four string stalwart Keith Mosely with some help from his percussive partners Michael Travis on the drummer’s stool stage right and Jason Hann dancing away in his hand drum stage left. Nershi added in some wonderful harmonizing along with multi-instrumentalist Michael Kang and the ever-grinning keyboardist Kyle Hollingsworth.

Not wanting to waste any of their special guest’s precious time, SCI quickly welcomed Peter Rowan and banjo specialist Tony Furtado to the stage. Nershi said bluntly that he hoped the fans enjoyed it, but that the collaboration was really a special treat for the band. Nershi and Rowan exchanged heart warming bromides about their many times sharing the stage before launching into an ode to the marijuana strain “Panama Red”.

Dipping into the Old & In The Way songbook for “The Hobo Song”, Cheese happily played the parts of Jerry Garcia, mandolin legend David Grisman, and world-class fiddler Vassar Clements. Rowan, in his own trailblazing way, was never one to shy away from genre exploration, a trait he shares with his hosts who specialize in such gleeful mishmashing.

Working in a pair of Bob Marley classics, “Concrete Jungle” and “No Woman No Cry”, alongside a couple of Rowan’s own songbook highlights, “Sweet Melinda” and the set closer “Midnight Moonlight”, with one more O&ITW stand-out, “In The Land Of The Navajo”, injected in the middle, Rowan and his hosts had the crowd in a sort of dance frenzy that only stopped when the music did. Taking pity on the now slightly exhausted audience, Cheese and their friend slipped off to a much deserved rest between sets.

Hollingsworth and Travis got the second set opener, “Trip The Light Fantastic”, going  as the rest of the band filtered out to join their jam, already in progress. Following that with another tune from their latest album, title track “Lend Me A Hand”, SCI then went back to the beginning with a fun “Shine” before welcoming back Tony Furtado for a extra bluegrassy take on the Grateful Dead‘s arrangement of “I Know You Rider” that was pure fun.

Another highlight of the set was when Kang got his electric, psychedelic fiddle groove on “Enjoy The Ride”, and from there, it was an enjoyable “Bolly Munster ” before entering the show’s sonic endgame. Closing out the second set of the second night with the strong pairing of “Jellyfish” into “Rosie” pretty much sealed the deal when it came to fan service. The storytelling and general hilarity of the lyrics of “Jellyfish”, with its attendant jams, and the swirling jams of “Rosie”, both beloved by fans, brought ear-to-ear smiles to everyone in the room.

The encore served as an after-dinner mint, with the next night’s full-on extravaganza, including the annual spectacle of the midnight “Whole Shebang,” set to serve as a musical New Year’s feast for the senses. Hollingsworth made sure to promote the fun to come before starting in on a flowing and dense “Shakin’ The Tree”, and Nershi bracketed that thought when he reiterated it afterwards, promising that the band would be capping the run in style.

For tickets to tonight’s show, visit The String Cheese Incident’s website, or tune in to the livestream on nugs.net.

The String Cheese Incident – “Close Your Eyes” > “‘Round The Wheel” – 12/30/23

Setlist: The String Cheese Incident | Fox Theater | Oakland, CA | 12/30/23

Set 1: Close Your Eyes > ‘Round The Wheel, Panama Red (Peter Rowan)*, The Hobo Song (Old And In The Way)* > Concrete Jungle (Bob Marley)* > Sweet Melinda (Peter Rowan)*, In The Land Of The Navajo (Old & In The Way)*, No Woman No Cry (Bob Marley)*, Midnight Moonlight (Peter Rowan)*

Set 2: Trip The Light Fantastic, Lend Me A Hand > Shine, I Know You Rider (Grateful Dead)**, Enjoy The Ride, BollyMunster, Jellyfish > Rosie

Encore: Shakin’ The Tree

* with Peter Rowan and Tony Furtado
** with Tony Furtado