Daniel Donato Offers Grateful Dead Tributes at The Cap

Photo via Daniel Donato’s Facebook page

Daniel Donato’s Cosmic Country made their headlining debut at Port Chester, NY’s Capitol Theater last night. The show fell on the first anniversary of Phil Lesh’s passing and, fittingly, featured an extensive celebration of the Grateful Dead’s music.

Before the show, Donato took to social media to discuss the significance of performing at The Cap–where Phil Lesh has performed more than any other musician and held a years-long residency–on the anniversary of the bassist’s passing. He also mentioned that he was part of the final Phil Lesh & Friends lineup to play the venue on March 16, 2024, where he joined Lesh and his son Grahame, Amy Helm, Jason Crosby and John Molo as the core Friends combo and the members of Joe Russo’s Almost Dead also sat in.

Then, during last night’s encore, Cosmic Country offered a four-song sequence drawn exclusively from the Dead and Jerry Garcia songbooks. First, the group debuted their take on the Jerry Garcia Band classic “Rubin and Cherise.” Next, they moved into two numbers Donato did on the same stage with Lesh during that March 16 show, “Cumberland Blues” and “Loser.” And, finally, the musicians concluded the proceedings with another tune Donato performed with Lesh that night, the traditional “Samson and Delilah.”

While it was his headlining debut at The Cap, Donato has a deep history with the space on his own, having performed in the adjoining Garcia’s space several times, including a mini-residency of his own. Donato also played for a sprawling crowd when he opened for Old Crow Medicine Show at the Ting Pavilion in Charlottesville, VA on Thursday. After Cosmic Country’s support set, Donato also joined the evening’s headliner for the sing-along “Wagon Wheel” and a cover of The Band’s “The Weight” that also featured Cassie McCoy.

Cosmic Country will perform at Bloomington, IN’s The Bluebird on Tuesday, October 28.