Widespread Panic retook its throne in the courtyard between buildings 5 and 6 at the Hard Rock Resort in Riviera Maya on Thursday to help usher in the back half of the band’s annual Mexican bacchanal.
Wasting no time, the band soared into an opening “Pigeons” before galloping into “Action Man”. John Bell swapped lyrics in favor of “wings of steel” here, perhaps a callback to the opening tune.
Once the dust settled, JB and bassist Dave Schools guided the rowdy crowd in wishing guitarist Jimmy Herring a “Happy Birthday!” from overseas prior to launching into Sonny Boy Williamson’s “Good Morning Little School Girl”. A saucy JB improvised the sweet nothings, “I don’t know if it’s sunrise or sunset… I’m gonna buy me an airplane / & fly all over this town.”
A heartfelt “Pleas” set up a soul-crushing “Don’t Wanna Lose You”. The song was written for founding guitarist Mikey Houser after he lost his battle with pancreatic cancer, but as Bell and JoJo Hermann traded verses all thoughts were with the birthday boy, who is currently out of the active lineup while he continues to undergo treatment for throat cancer.
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The crowd was still reeling when the band introduced Jerry Joseph’s “Chainsaw City” (“No bad vibes, caballeros”) but interim guitarist Nick Johnson soon invigorated the courtyard with white-hot guitar licks during “The Last Straw” and an organ-heavy, set-closing “You Got Yours”.
Widespread Panic – “Don’t Wanna Lose You”, “Chainsaw City” – 1/22/26
[Video: BRADFORD WALKER]
Igniting the second set with barrels of gunpowder and fistfuls of dynamite, an opening “Little Kin” moved into Bloodkin’s “Makes Sense To Me” before blasting into orbit with “Space Wrangler”. Of note, JB rearranged the verses during the Bloodkin cover, singing verses two and three before closing with a slightly modified opening verse. (“Rather have some memories than a crutch.”)
A voodoo-infused cover of New Orleans legend Dr. John’s “I Walk on Guilded Splinters” opened the floodgates for a sequence of sonic tidal waves that continued relentlessly until the end of the set.
An improvised jam bottomed out into a succinct “Drum” battle between Duane Trucks and Sunny Ortiz. Eventually, the rolling drums built the foundation of “Diner”. From there, JB took care of the rest, laying out a colorful spread with a “Highway to Heaven” rap at the tail end: “Come in and get away from the snow / I opened a little early to get away from it all / we got coffee and donuts / coffee and donuts / take some money and put some quarters in the jukebox / play some of that church music / highway to heaven … / sunlight sledding down the rooftop / keep my coffee cup a little warmer, a little longer.”
JoJo steered through the uncharted waters of another transitioning jam and into the first half of J.J. Cale’s “Ride Me High”. Nick Johnson and Dave Schools rode that current into “Tie Your Shoes” before returning to “Ride Me High” to complete the jam sandwich. With Johnson still in peak form, WSP rode off into the sunset of the second set on a bouncing “Love Tractor”.
Reminiscent of a lyric in an earlier song (“They tell me it takes sorrow / To help you feel the joy), Widespread Panic juxtaposed the emotions of “I’m Not Alone” (“I’m just blue”) with the euphoric celebration of Skip James’s “I’m So Glad”. The closing selection, a staple of the late Col. Bruce Hampton, was most apropos considering his relationships to Jimmy Herring, Nick Johnson, and Widespread Panic as s whole.
Widespread Panic – “I’m So Glad” – 1/22/26
[Video: BRADFORD WALKER]
Afterwards, Circles Around the Sun kept the party going until well past midnight on the Stairway to Heaven Stage. And now, a bittersweet realization: Panic en la Playa’s last day of music and bliss comes with the approaching sunset. Make it last, Goodpeople. We will never be here again as we are. Cheers!
Below, check out the setlist and a selection of photos from night three of Panic En La Playa Trece. Revisit our coverage of night one here and night two here.
Setlist [via HomeTeam.FM]: Widespread Panic | Panic En La Playa Trece | Riviera Maya, MX | 1/23/26
Set One: Pigeons, Action Man, Good Morning Little Schoolgirl > Pleas > Don’t Wanna Lose You, Chainsaw City, The Last Straw > You Got Yours (67 mins)
Set Two: Little Kin > Makes Sense To Me, Space Wrangler, I Walk On Guilded Splinters > Jam > Mini Drums > Diner > Ride Me High > Tie Your Shoes > Ride Me High > Love Tractor (84 mins)
Encore: I’m Not Alone, I’m So Glad (13 mins)
Notes – ‘Highway to Heaven’ rap during ‘Diner.’ Without Jimmy; Entire show w/ Nick Johnson on guitar
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