Well, the New York City Marathon is over, and for a change the winner wasn’t a Kenyan runner—it was Phil Lesh & Friends’ fans, who reveled in the group’s just concluded ten-night marathon at the new Nokia Theatre on Times Square.
On this last leg of their fall tour, the band pulled out a number of new tunes, and also welcomed a couple of special guests along the way: Ryan Adams played at two different shows (11/2 And 11/5); singers Amy Helm (of Ollabelle) and Theresa Williams turned up on 11/2, and Los Lobos keyboardist/saxophonist Steve Berlin (who is also Jackie Greene’s producer) laid down some cool riffs on the first set of 11/5. The cavalcade of new tunes began with the wild Halloween show, which included Jackie’s “Don’t Let the Devil Take Your Mind,” Screamin’ Jay Hawkins’ menacing “I Put A Spell on You,” Phish’s “Story of the Ghost,” The Who’s “Boris the Spider,” Jimi’s “Voodoo Child,” the Stones’ “Sympathy for the Devil” and, of course, Warren Zevon’s “Werewolves of London” (which was also the encore at RatDog’s show the same night!). Other songs introduced at Nokia were a new Jackie tune called “Like A Ball and Chain,” the Louvin Brothers’ “Lorene,” the Stones’ “Dead Flowers” (the last two during the acoustic set 11/2), Pink Floyd’s “Eclipse,” Jackie’s “Downhearted,” The Band’s “Chest Fever,” The Beatles’ “Revolution,” Bill Monroe’s “Jerusalem Ridge” and a bunch from the Dead repertoire—“Beat It on Down the Line,” "Peggy-O," “One More Saturday Night,” “Till the Morning Comes” and “Attics of My Life.” Wow—good times!
A slew of MP3 and FLAC downloads are available for sale from phillesh.net, and you can audition audience recordings of most shows from the tour at archive.org. Next up for Phil & Friends: Jackie Greene’s Birthday Celebration at the Warfield Theater in SF on November 27!
SET LISTS
10/31/07 Nokia Theatre, NYC
Shakedown Street> Loose Lucy, Don't Let The Devil Take Your Mind, Candyman, I Put A Spell on You> jam> Story of the Ghost> Casey Jones
Jam *> Cryptical Envelopment> Boris The Spider> Caution (Do Not Stop On the Tracks)> Voodoo Chile> The Other One> Cryptical Envelopment> New Speedway Boogie> Fire On The Mountain, Sympathy For The Devil> I Know You Rider, E: Werewolves Of London
* Offstage, Phil reads from Poe’s “The Pit and the Pendulum”
11/01/07 Nokia Theatre, NYC
Friend Of The Devil, Gone Wanderin’, Deep Elem Blues, Ball & Chain, Deal, Seven Jealous Sisters, Alabama Getaway
Jam> China Cat Sunflower, Althea, I’m So Gone> Cumberland Blues> Uncle John's Band> Don't Let Me Down, Help On The Way> Slipknot> Franklins Tower, E: Ripple
11/02/07 Nokia Theatre, NYC
Jam> Birdsong> About Cell Block #9, Dire Wolf, Midnight Rider, Passenger
(acoustic) Friend Of The Devil, Lorene, Cry Yourself Dry, Big Mon, Dead Flowers, Mama Tried
Wharf Rat> Franklin's Tower> Stella Blue> Fire On The Mountain> Dark Star> Eclipse*> Terrapin Station> Sugar Magnolia / Feedback jam> Darkstar> Box of Rain
Third Set with Ryan Adams. * with Amy Helm and Theresa Williams, vocals
11/03/07 Nokia Theatre, NYC
Good Lovin'> Downhearted, Pride of Cucamonga, This Wheel's on Fire, Mississippi Half-Step> So Hard to Find My Way, Big Boss Man
Playing in the Band> Spots of Time> The Wheel> Loan Me a Dime> Jack Straw> Unbroken Chain> St. Stephen> The Eleven> Lovelight / Casey Jones
11/5/07 Nokia Theatre, NYC
Brown Eyed Women , The Golden Road+ ,Viola Lee Blues*> Operator*> Viola Lee Blues*> Next Time You See Me*> Viola Lee Blues*> Chest Fever*> Sugaree*
+ Steve Berlin on keyboards
* Steve Berlin on saxophone
Happy Birthday Ryan, Eyes of the World> Scarlet Begonias> China Cat Sunflower>
Bird Song> Goin’ Down the Road Feeling Bad> Ripple> I Know You Rider> Uncle Johns Band> Dark Star> Franklins Tower> Dark Star / Wharf Rat
Set two with Ryan Adams
11/06/07 Nokia Theatre, NYC
Bertha, Deal, Big River, Gone Wanderin', Just Like Tom Thumb’s Blues, The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down, Cosmic Charlie
Brown Sugar, Shakedown Street, Revolution, Beat it On Down the Line> Cryptical Envelopment> The Other One> Death Don't Have No Mercy> The Other One, Brokedown Palace / Not Fade Away
11/08/07 Nokia Theatre, NYC
Passenger, I'm So Gone, Mexican Girl, Pride of Cucamonga, Deep Elem Blues, Bird Song, Alabama Getaway
Playing in the Band> Althea, Cold Black Devil, Caution (Do Not Stop On The Tracks)> New Speedway Boogie> Jam> Unbroken Chain, Scarlet Begonias> Fire on the Mountain / A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall
11/09/07 Nokia Theatre, NY
Loose Lucy, Mississippi Half-Step, So Hard to Find My Way, Cold Rain and Snow, Tell Me Mama, Loan Me A Dime, Goin' Down the Road Feeling Bad
Ball and Chain, Next Time You See Me, Lovelight, Down in the Valley Woe, Don't Let Me Down, Mountains of the Moon> Terrapin Station> Viola Lee Blues> Mason's Chidren / Johnny B. Goode
11/10/07 Nokia Theatre, NYC
Good Lovin', Friend of the Devil, Spots of Time, Dire Wolf, Operator, Beat It On Down the Line, Shakedown Street
China Cat Sunflower, Jack Straw, The Wheel> Eyes of the World, China Doll, St. Stephen> The Eleven> Help on the Way> Slipknot> One More Saturday Night> Franklin's Tower / Box of Rain
11/11/07 Nokia Theatre, NYC
Golden Road to Unlimited Devotion, Chest Fever> Brown Eyed Women, Candyman, Bird Song> Sugaree
(acoustic) Attics of My Life, Till the Morning Comes, Jerusalem Ridge, Deep Elem Blues, Ripple
Peggy-O *, Cumberland Blues> Uncle John's Band> Cryptical Envelopment> Dark Star> Morning Dew> I Know You Rider> The Other One> Cryptical Envelopment> Dark Star> Sugar Magnolia / Unbroken Chain
* with Theresa Williams, vocals