# Dead and Company at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, December 28, 2015

[Another Planet Entertainment](http://www.deadandcompany.com/events/346263) presents [Dead and Company](http://www.deadandcompany.com/)  
2015-12-28  
[Bill Graham Civic Auditorium](http://www.ticketmaster.com/venueinfo/229433/)  
[99 Grove St, San Francisco, CA .](http://maps.google.com/maps?q=99+Grove+St,+San+Francisco,+CA+.&hl=en)  
7:00 PM, Monday, December 28, 2015

[[2015-12-27|Back to the previous event!]] ☸ [[:#section2015|Up to the 2015 yearbox!]] ☸ [[:2015#December_events|Up to the 2015 event list!]] ☸  [[2015-12-30|On to the next event!]]

## Set One

[7:33 PM lights down]

01. [7:35 PM] Noodling >> [7:36 PM] _The Music Never Stopped_ (B) >> [7:45 PM] _Shakey Ground_ (B) >> [7:48 PM] _Music Never Stopped_
02. [7:51 PM] _Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodle-oo_ (B/J)
03. [8:00 PM] _Candyman_ (J)
04. [8:08 PM] _Me & My Uncle_ (B) >>
05. [8:13 PM] _Tennessee Jed_ (B)
06. [8:22 PM] _Jack Straw_ (B)
07. [8:33 PM] _New Speedway Boogie_ (B/J)  
[set ends 8:44 PM]

## Set Two

[9:31 PM lights down, band out in a minute]

01. [9:33 PM] _Lost Sailor_ (B) >>
02. [9:41 PM] _Saint of Circumstance_ (B)
03. [9:50 PM] _Help on the Way_ (J) >>
04. [9:54 PM] _Slipknot!_ >>
05. [10:02 PM] _Franklin's Tower_ (B/J)
06. [10:14 PM] drums (w/Zakir Hussain) >> [10:17 PM] add Oteil at Billy's kit >> [10:25 PM] BK off >> [10:27 PM] add Mayer & Weir for some space >> [10:28 PM] OB swaps to bass >> [10:29 PM] add BK; drop MH, ZH >> jam >> [10:31 PM] add JC, MH >>
07. [10:36 PM] _Looks Like Rain_ (B)
08. [10:45 PM] _the Wheel_ >> [10:54 PM] (JM teases _Stay_ as the jam veers into reggae) >>
09. [10:57 PM] _Not Fade Away_ (with ZH)  
[11:05 front line off, the set ends 11:06 PM ... crowd keeps up the chant]  
   
**Encore**
10. [11:08 PM] _Brokedown Palace_ (B)  
[show ends 11:14 PM; home exactly one hour later]


## Performers

[Dead and Company](http://www.deadandcompany.com/)

* [Oteil Burbridge](http://oteilburbridge.com/): bass, drums, harmony vox;
* Jeff Chimenti: piano, Hammond B-3 organ, keyboards, harmony vox;
* [Mickey Hart](http://mickeyhart.net/): drums;
* [Bill Kreutzmann](http://www.ocean-spirit.net/): drums;
* [John Mayer](http://johnmayer.com/): guitar, lead and harmony vox;
* [Bob Weir](http://bobweir.net/): guitar, lead and harmony vox.

### with special guest

[Zakir Hussain](http://www.zakirhussain.com): drums, percussion.

## Notes

Tonight's show was a good step up over last night -- more energy from the band, and fewer dragging moments. The basic problem remains that with Weir in charge, we're going to end up with soul-crushing bring downs like the transition from tonight's post drums jam into _Looks Like Rain_, but presumably, the band will eventually find a way to make those moves less jarring.

Overall, the first set was pretty enjoyable -- _Me and My Uncle_ being the lackluster exception tonight -- but as with other sets, I'd have preferred to hear John Mayer singing a few more tunes than he's been given. The insertion of the Temptations' _Shakey Ground_ into the opening _Music Never Stops_ was pretty cool. I'd like the band to take that one into the woodshed and whip it up into a full fledged funk workout -- seems like that would be just the thing to get folks excited -- yay! a new tune! -- and also offer a development path into a musical zone that the band never really explored all that much in the first 50 years of their journey.

I was a little concerned with the opening of the second set that we we're about to enter another low-energy muddle ala [Broomfield](:2015:2015-11:2015-11-28) -- _Lost Sailor_, really? -- but happily, things picked up after that. And to be fair, I enjoyed hearing _Sailor_, but as a slow, introspective tune, it's not exactly the best choice for working up a second set sweat! Tonight's _Slipknot!_ was reasonably well done -- far superior to the wreck we endured in Colorado last month -- and the addition of Zakir Hussain and Oteil Burbridge to the drums segment made for an enjoyable surprise. Interestingly, Mickey seemed to stay away from his electronic toys this weekend except for laying down a simple drone or loop. Yay, lots of actual drumming during drums!

Like _Lost Sailor_, _Looks Like Rain_ has it's own strengths, my biggest beef is with it's placement in the set and the way that the band arrived at that spot. I'd have been far more impressed if Bobby could have steered the band through a gradual come down into the quiet opening. The band's shift into _the Wheel_ was quite nicely done, with an amorphous,  drawn out entry jam that seemed to offer many possibilities besides the obvious choice, signified by the animated wagon wheel spinning in the center video screen. I especially enjoyed the reggae jam on the way out of the tune. As with _Shakey Ground_, the vista of fertile territory for new jams is irresistible! I WANT THEM TO GO THERE NOW! But I guess I'll have to wait until next season...

_Not Fade Away_ was fun, if a bit hackneyed by now, but I'm happy to report that tonight's effort in this set position seemed far superior to last night's try at _Going' Down the Road_. Last chance to get up and dance? Well alright then, let's boogie on down the coast to the Forum!

I should add major thanks to Bob Wynn and John Wood for inviting us to hang out tonight. It's nice to be welcomed into a killer spot, and all that much more fun to spend the evening surrounded by friends instead of strangers. Three cheers for good friends! I'll also add that the house staff was as laid back as ever. Absolutely minimal search heading inside. No big push to sweep us out after the gig ended. And helpful in dragging away the raving lunatics or over-medicated wookies when such assistance was needed. Another round of applausefor the blue-coats!

{{tag>music Dead_and_Company Bill_Graham_Civic_Auditorium Oteil_Burbridge Jeff_Chimenti Mickey_Hart Bill_Kreutzmann John_Mayer Bob_Weir Zakir_Hussain }}

[[2015-12-27|Back to the previous event!]] ☸ [[:#section2015|Up to the 2015 yearbox!]] ☸ [[:2015#December_events|Up to the 2015 event list!]] ☸  [[2015-12-30|On to the next event!]]