Bobby Weir & Wolf Bros. Celebrate New Year’s Eve with Three Sets in Fort Lauderdale

Photo Credit: Bill Kelly

Last night, Dec. 31, Bobby Weir & Wolf Bros. returned to the Broward Center for the Performing Arts in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Before Sunday’s concert, the ensemble had turned up at the venue for two previous concerts, building up a layer of excitement for what was to come when the clock struck midnight. 

The three-set delivery commenced with a solo Weir stepping out for “Loose Lucy,” followed by the arrival of two more players for added instrumentation during “The Winners.” Staying true to the Grateful Dead guitarist’s current first-frame trend, he added a fourth musician on the Sunday night classic, “Samson & Delilah,” and a fifth for “Hell in a Bucket.” Next, they multiplied, presenting as a decet for the combined “Silvo” and call-and-response favorite “Tequila”

With a comfortable number of players on stage, they cut into the Ace epic, “Black Throated Wind,” inevitably closing out their initial set on a soaring “Birdsong.” After a break, Weir and company returned, starting the second frame with “Cassidy,” which ran into “Estimated Prophet” and “Eyes of the World.” The jammed-out start merged with Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On?” and back into the “Eyes of the World.”

After a pause, the band picked back up on “The Wheel,” which sandwiched “All Along The Watchtower” featuring a complete layer of “Stella Blue” on the other side. For the final song of the second set, they set the party atmosphere into full gear with an adaptation of Chuck Berry’s “Around and Around.” 

For the midnight celebration, the band, crew, and their families took the stage to welcome 2024, accompanied by modern dancers, dragon-suited actors, and good ol’ Father Time–hitting on the traditional Grateful Dead New Year’s arrival, once played with frequency by Bill Graham, and reprised by Weir’s manager, Matt Busch during the latest event.

The countdown to 2024 busted into “Sugar Magnolia,” with streamers flooding the theater and collapsing onto the dancing audience. The aforementioned number ran into “Scarlet Begonias,” further extending into an elongated jam with sister tunes “Help on the Way” into “Slipknot!” The third frame continued with upbeat numbers “Franklin’s Tower” and “Sunshine Daydream.”

From the festive approach to the night, Weir looked inward, delivering an emotive “Brokedown Palace” for the night’s finale. After this weekend’s New Year’s run, Weir will take a short break from the road before resuming his schedule on Jan. 12, which marks the start of Dead Ahead, taking place in Riviera Cancún, México. 

Scroll down to view last night’s setlist via Bobby Weir’s official Instagram account.

Bobby Weir & Wolf Bros. 

Broward Center for the Performing Arts – Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

Dec. 31, 2023

Set I: Loose Lucy, The Winners, Samson & Delilah, Hell in a Bucket, Silvio > Tequila, Black Throated Wind, Bird Song

Set II: Cassidy > Estimated Prophet > Eyes of the World > What’s Goin’ On?, The Wheel > Watchtower > Stella Blue, Around & Around 

Set III: NYE Countdown > Sugar Magnolia > Scarlet Begonias, Help on the Way > Slipknot!, Franklin’s Tower, Sunshine Daydream 

Enc.: Brokedown Palace