Bob Weir and Wolf Bros. Continue Capitol Theatre Residency

Last night, Bobby Weir continued his four-night residency at The Capitol Theatre in Port Chester, N.Y. The performance marked the second of four shows, which will continue on Friday, Dec. 15 and Saturday, Dec. 16 and, like the opening evening, included Wolf Bros., The Wolfpack and saw a sit-in with prolific jazz bassist Ron Carter.

Much like the evening prior, Weir stepped out solo, using each song in the first set to expand the ensemble. After opening the show with Little Feat’s “Easy to Slip,” the ensemble expanded to a three-piece for Marty Robbins’ “El Paso” and then Bob Dylan’s “Queen Jane Approximately,” which featured four bodies on stage. With each addition, the volume of the sound became fuller, and the individual talent of each artist became more apparent.

The first Grateful Dead cover, “Hell in a Bucket,” saw the four-piece become a quintet and having popped the cork on the Grateful Dead’s discography, it was clear everyone was ready to get into the groove. The five members of the Wolfpack joined on stage, expanding the band to 10, unleashing “The Music Never Stopped” into Rob Wasserman’s “Easy Answers,” which was followed by a reprise of “The Music Never Stopped.” The opening set was rounded off with one more addition: Carter, who joined for a pairing of “Dark Star” > “Scarlet Begonias.”

With the framework established in the first set, the second frame was a nonstop jam. Things took off with “Throwing Stones,” which gave way to “Viola Lee Blues” by the Memphis Jug Band. Without pause, they jammed into “Corrina,” then a thumping cover of The Beatles’ “Come Together,” during which the horn section teased “Eleanor Rigby.” Next came “China Cat Sunflower” > “I Know You Rider,” which flowed into one more pairing of “Wharf Rat” into “Sugar Magnolia.”

To put a final cherry on top of a setlist that was truly a delicious and well-thought-out collection, Bob Weir and Wolf Bros. dropped Robert Hunter’s “Liberty” as a single song encore.

Bob Weir and Wolf Bros.

The Capitol Theatre – Port Chester, N.Y.

Dec. 13, 2023

Set I: Easy to Slip (Little Feat cover), El Paso (Marty Robbins cover), Queen Jane Approximately (Bob Dylan cover), Hell in a Bucket, The Music Never Stopped > Easy Answers (Rob Wasserman cover) (> ”The Music Never Stopped’ reprise), Dark Star (with Ron Carter) > Scarlet Begonias (with Ron Carter)

Set II: Throwing Stones > Viola Lee Blues (Memphis Jug Band cover) > Corrina > Come Together (The Beatles cover) > China Cat Sunflower > I Know You Rider ([traditional] cover) > Wharf Rat > Sugar Magnolia

Enc.: Liberty (Robert Hunter cover)