Hadn't had much more to drink on Friday than I normally do, but it had been a long, stressful day and, not surprisingly, was followed by a really bad night's sleep on a small bed with a noisy HVAC system. The Hampton Inn breakfast was disappointing too, but whatever! We played a board game to pass the time, and then went out for a walk on a warm, sunny, late-Winter day.
We went back to the Tarrytown Lakes Park, where we'd had a great walk a few years ago, and had another great walk. It was a lovely day and, though the parking lot was pretty full and there were several people on the easy trail, we then went into the woods and saw no one for the next couple of hours. The trees and vines were starting to bud and the winding trails led to some curious old stone structures and some huge old trees. We saw five deer on that walk, though Tarrytown is an old, thoroughly settled, almost urban town, and the immensely busy Tappan Zee Bridge is not that far away. No soccer ball out on the field for us to kick around this time, but a just-right walk in the woods for the late morning of an otherwise exhausting weekend.
From there we drifted down the hill into crowded downtown Tarrytown, finally found a parking space, and went back to the Sweet Grass Grill, where we'd had an excellent lunch in 2021. We must have hit it at the right time because we got a table right away, though it was packed soon after that. Had a "Kittens & Canoes" APA and a farmer's salad, and some fun people watching. There were sure lots of them, one guy had a very nice purse, and one woman was wearing so many jewels she was bent over. There were lots of touristy-types too.
Back to the hotel for a nap, another board game, and a little TV. Dave downloaded a pretty good audience recording of the previous night's concert. And then we were off for Port Chester again! Kiosko was much more crowded and much more noisy tonight (someone was apparently playing a medley of greatest Mexican tuba hits on the jukebox). But we had another fine meal and then waited through a short line and quick search at the Cap. This time we'd gotten seats in the the fourth row of the balcony, but over more to the right.
Geez, it sure looked like the same setup as the night before, but then we noticed a few tweaks. There was another guitar amp between Grahame's and Amy's stations, and instead of Gordon's bass tower to Phil's left there was another single guitar amp over there. And in the back was something that might have been a guitar holder, or maybe a percussion station. Anyway, the crowd was much more delayed than it had been on Friday night, but soon everyone came rushing in (it was another sellout) and soon after that the same band came out on stage, tuned up lazily, then lit into the first set.
- Dire Wolf
- Cumberland Blues
- Cold Rain and Snow
- When I Paint My Masterpiece
- Candyman
- Jack Straw
What a great start to the might, with Donato doing a squeaky, bouncy Dire Wolf, followed by a masterful, Phil-powered Cumberland. And then one of my favorite-ever songs, CR&S, though Phil turned in a bit of a confused vocal. Amy was up next and made up for it on Masterpiece with a sly, Dylan-esque take. Then it was Daniel's turn again to channel Jerry with a beautiful, perfectly timed Candyman. And the ensemble then knocked us all over with the Jack Straw of death, that featured a long entrance, apocalyptic bombs from Phil, and wave after wave of powerful group vocals.
Phil again promised a different format for the second set, but we weren't fooled this time when the same band came out. Daniel started it off again with:
- Loser
- Not Fade Away
- Dark Star
- Morning Dew
- Samson and Delilah
- Uncle John's Band
Donato got a little confused on the first couple of choruses of Loser, but all in all was just so impressive. As I say, perhaps he was a little too Garcia-esque at times, but he was successful in interpreting Garcia while showcasing his own strengths as a musician. I've got to listen to more of his stuff.
The guys scratched their asses after that, but then Molo took over and pounded out a raucous introduction to NFA, which sure got the crowd going. Some setlists have NFA > Dark Star (instrumental) > NFA > Dark Star (second verse), but that's not the way we heard it. There were some Dark Star teases during NFA, but nothing concerted until they really ended the Buddy Holly stuff and started spacing out. We were a little surprised that they just sang the second verse of the song, but this may have just been Phil being forgetful.
Anyway, they went deep into space there and then eventually calmed down, leaving us all on a distant moon. Phil started looking serious now, and you knew what was coming, and then he and Grahame started on that awesome, thundering introduction. Then Amy slid up to the mike and started asking delicately if someone could take her out in the Morning Dew, and Grahame told her that no, it was too late.
Wow, that was a great one, and after Donato did a long guitar crescendo and the song would normally come to an end, Grahame and Amy went back into the chorus and did a beautiful, descending duet coda. OK, it was time for Molo to start pounding again, Daniel stepped up for another fun vocal, and we all rocked to an excellent, fast Samson. As I say, they were doing the Bobby repertoire without him being there. Then it was time for a great, set-closing UJB, with sparkling ensemble vocals.
Phil was sitting down by that point, and starting to look and act a little cranky, but now it was time for the fun to really begin! He mumbled something in the mike again (actually, he probably said something coherent, but the crowd was cheering too much for us to hear him), and the boffins starting moving things around. Didn't take long for me to realize that they were swapping out drums in Molo's kit, and then they rigged a vocal mike up over that that looked just like ... it was!
It was Joe Russo's setup and he came out on stage, and then there was Tommy Hamilton, and there was Marco Benevento, and there was Scott Metzger! Yes, it was PhilRAD all over again!! When we were trading wild guesses at who would guest with Phil, I'd mentioned JRAD, but never really thought that we'd get the whole enchilada (excepting Dave Dreiwitz that is). What would they play?? Well, Scott stepped up and started us off at the top of the heap and they just went up from there, "Truckin', got my chips cashed in." Geez, as good as Phil's band had been, these guys could blow away anybody. No wonder Bobby stayed away. And then they followed up Truckin' with Touch Of Grey, masterfully sung by Tommy of course.
Phil was beaming, who wouldn't be? He did a classic Donor Rap, while they swapped drums back to make it Molo's kit again. Joe moved over to what was now revealed as a percussion stand (he played the congas with sticks), Jason came out and sat in front of the baby grand while Marco moved over to the B3 (they were sitting close and made a cute couple), Amy came back and shared the mike with Tommy, and Daniel came back out at far right and yukked it up with Scott. Phil finished his rap, and they all lit into GDTRFB with everyone in the theatre singing along. Toward the end of this, Tommy ripped off a great lead, Daniel responded with an even better lead, and then Scott topped them with a lead of his own! This was really exciting.
Phil had a plan for ending it of course, and got Molo pounding away at the NFA beat. But then he quieted down all of a sudden and Phil led us all in a long, closing chorus with a neat little final ending. What a show! They all unplugged with more or less difficulty and gathered at center stage for a huge group bow, with audience members throwing roses at their feet. Someone picked one up and handed it to Phil. He was dog-tired but still beaming, and gave the rose a sniff before handing it to his roadie, who took him by the elbow and led him off stage, lighting the path with his flashlight. Goodbye, old man, hope to see you again!
Sat down for some final swigs at the water bottle and then made it outside and back up the street to the car, under a beautiful quarter moon. Will we return to the Cap? You never know, but this was not just a tiring weekend for Phil, it was two days of incredible fun for me, but exhausting!
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