For the second consecutive night, Widespread Panic ruled the surrounding Lowlands of Charleston, SC. The veteran rockers hunkered down at Credit One Stadium for a Southern send-off before WSP turns their sights night toward Chicago first and then Colorado as the band’s welcome back tour de force marches onward. With grit and purpose in every note and song, Panic honored many of its idols during Saturday night’s show in South Cackalacky, including Van Morrison, Tom Petty, J.J. Cale, Col. Bruce Hampton, and Jimi Hendrix amid a slew of jam-heavy originals.

John Bell, wearing a backwards cap with the casual coolness of a confident gunslinger, led the swampy six-piece onstage. Breaking away from the seemingly haphazard tuning, Dave Schools teased “Little Lily” before striding into an opening “Walking’ (For Your Love)”. An extended organ-heavy jam was added right before the mountainous peak and subsequent breakdown. JoJo Hermann stayed at the organ side of his multi-tiered ziggurat of keyboards as “The Last Straw” buried the audience in smooth melodies. Jimmy Herring stacked tsunami riffs like waves at high tide that washed ashore amid the briny bayous of “Fishwater”. Sunny Ortiz’s congas blazed the way early, but without splitting the 10-minute tune, everybody had a chance for “More… More…. More!!!”

The versatile vocalist cleaned up any gritty remnants in his voice and presented a rare introduction (“This is a Van Morrison song”) before singing the first verse of “And It Stoned Me”, at first without help. Halfway through the first verse, the fervent audience dedicated their voices to the cause, resulting in a choir-like sing-along. Light guitar strums, organ swirls, and sparse drums drifted through the air and JB’s vocals were immaculate. Last night marked the first time played outside of Panic en la Playa (9 and 10) since 2019 in Brandon, MS.

Widespread Panic — “And It Stoned Me” (Van Morrison) — 5/17/25

[Video: Robbie Massengill]

Good vibes rolled on early as the drums of “Diner” introduced a special nourishment for the soul. Following a soaring guitar solo, JB included an imaginative rap after waking up on a park bench, cold and hungry in the rain, and made the song complete during an improvised Carl Douglas reference: “Five dollar bills / Not a tip though…  Put a few quarters in the jukebox … Everybody was Kung Fu Fighting / those cats were fast as lightning!”

A furious, two-fisted combination of “Papa Johnny Road” and “Junior” beat any unfortunate passerby thoroughly senseless. In Nashville, JB left out the last verse of “Small Town”. In Charleston, he sought redemption to the verse’s inspiration by including Tom Petty’s “Runnin’ Down a Dream” after the last track off 2024 Widespread Panic LP Snake Oil King to close the first frame.

Widespread Panic — “Diner” > “Papa Johnny Road” — 5/17/25

[Video: BRADFORD WALKER]

Back for the second half, JoJo’s piano blazed into a bawdy “Blackout Blues” opener (with JB on slide guitar) before shuffling over to the organ and descending into the sinister underworld of “You Got Yours”. Without hardly stopping, WSP uncorked Dave Bromberg’s circus as “Sharon” swung into the setlist with the grace of a trapeze artist. The saucy frontman improvised heavily with a grizzled “Little this and a little that!” as JoJo scaled up and down his piano in a cascade of notes. The song concluded with a raucous, unanimous confirmation that “The same rowdy crowd that was here last night is back again!”

“King Baby” temporarily declared martial law upon the state of South Carolina during an extended jam that taxied into “Airplane”. The atmospheric jam landed in “Action Man”, which in turn segued into “Gimme” mid-gallop. Not a dry eye in the house as WSP poured a heady brew of heartfelt intoxication.

Stoking the embers, WSP rekindled momentum during an unbroken cover of J.J. Cale’s “Ride Me High” before splitting “Papa’s Home” around Traffic’s “Dear Mr. Fantasy” for a zesty, second set sammy. Not quite yet finished, the Panics punctuated the set with Skip James’ jubilee, “I’m So Glad”, a staple of WSP’s late spiritual advisor, Col. Bruce Hampton.

Making the most of its remaining time, Widespread Panic treated its loyal fans with a three-song encore. Consecutive heavyweights flowed in succession as WSP’s interpretation of Murray McLauchlan’s “Honky Red” and “Postcard” set the stage for a show-stopping cover of Jimi Hendrix’s “Little Wing”. The last time this song closed a show was all the way back on December 1st, 1986, at Uptown Lounge in Athens, GA, per Setlist.fm.

Widespread Panic — “Postcard” — 5/17/25

[Video: Robbie Massengill]

Widespread Panic — “Little Wing” (Jimi Hendrix) — 5/17/25

[Video: Robbie Massengill]

The stunned crowd shuffled out of the venue to bask in the glory they witnessed on one or both nights. That’s Widespread Panic at its best right there. Next stop, Chicago, with Red Rocks Amphitheatre kicking off summer in Colorado shortly thereafter. Travel safe to those returning today, but hopefully y’all took a day to recover on the white sands of Folly Beach and enjoy the flavorful offerings of Charleston. Until next time, we did it again, folks.

Full audio of Saturday’s show is available for free courtesy of the Goodpeople at Panicstream.

Setlist: Widespread Panic | Credit One Stadium | Charleston, SC | 5/17/25

Set One (7:27 p.m.): Walkin’ (For Your Love), The Last Straw > Fishwater, And It Stoned Me (Van Morrison), Diner > Papa Johnny Road, Junior (Junior Kimbrough), Small Town > Running Down A Dream (Tom Petty) (68 mins)
Set Two: Blackout Blues > You Got Yours > Sharon (David Bromberg Band), King Baby > Airplane > Action Man > Gimme, Ride Me High (J.J. Cale) > Papa’s Home > Dear Mr Fantasy (Traffic) > Papa’s Home, I’m So Glad (Skip James) (89 mins)
Encore: Honky Red (Murray McLauchlan), Postcard, Little Wing (21 mins)

– LTP “And It Stoned Me” 1/22/22 PELP (115 shows)
– LTP “Papa Johnny Road” 5/27/23 Brandon, MI (47 shows)
– LTP “Gimme” 3/26/23 St Augustine (56 shows)
– LTP “Little Wing” 6/24/23 Red Rocks (44 shows)