Useless & Firm at The Gorge in George, WA on June 7 and eight, 2019 ~ Live performance Pictures Journal

Right here Comes Sunshine

When Useless and Firm introduced their summer time tour it was stunning there have been no Canadian dates. Simply kidding; it will be a shock if there have been. Useless and Firm consists of a few of the Grateful Useless unique members: Bob Weir, Invoice Kreutzmann and Mickey Hart; becoming a member of them are John Mayer, Jeff Chimenti and Oteil Burbridge.

Being a Pacific Northwest resident (from Canada), it was a straightforward resolution to attend the Gorge Amphitheater in George, Washington for the Friday June seventh and Saturday June eighth reveals, though the Pacific Northwest is thought for chilly rain and generally snow. We received fortunate with heat days and funky nights.

Prankster Alert! Strolling down Shakedown Avenue, earlier than the primary present, one of the vital fascinating cubicles was the one with Zane Kesey, son of Ken Kesey – creator of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Zane, sporting tremendous enjoyable tie dyed coveralls, and manning his sales space of tie dyed t-shirts, bathroom seats, (Sure! Tie dyed bathroom seats! As you’ll hear Deadheads say, “It’s not simply concerning the music.” He additionally gave me some cartoon artwork blotter paper, which he stated was a medicinal placebo. Zane gave some to my pal Justin too, who popped all of it in his mouth. Nobody has seen Justin since. Rumor is he’s on a ranch someplace in La Honda, sporting a bushy beard and a jean jacket with the sleeves lower off, blowing bubbles, banging on a drum and taking part in the finger cymbals 24 hours a day.

Whereas ready for the Friday present to begin, there was a candy second when Oteil’s cute son Nigel waved to the group a number of instances; after all all of us waved again to him. The Boys had been in high quality type and ready for the chilly wind. John Mayer got here out sporting a stylish trench sort coat with camouflage pants, Invoice Kreutzmann wore a Useless and Firm bolt hoodie and he really pulled the hood half over high of his hat for further heat, Mickey Hart was bundled up in a full zipped up jacket, Bob Weir had a white cowboy hat with a feather in it that threatened to blow away within the fierce wind and Oteil wore his intricate face paint. John tucked his face into the highest of his jacket a pair instances to maintain heat. They opened the present with “Really feel Like A Stranger” and continued with favorites: “Cumberland Blues”, “Dire Wolf”, “Free Lucy” and debuted a phenomenal rendition of “It Should Have Been The Roses”, which was positively a spotlight of the two day venue. Throughout set break there was a surprising Gorge sundown on the way in which to the restroom.

Wow! What a tremendous backdrop to the Useless and Firm live shows!

The second set opened with” Right here Comes Sunshine”, “Darkish Star” and one other favourite, the full of life “Scarlet Begonias.” We’ll all get outdated earlier than Scarlet. The second set closed with “Casey Jones”; Bobby’s rowdy vocals received the group all riled up, and there was a young “Ripple” encore.

The Saturday night time was hotter and The Boys dressed accordingly: John, Mickey and Billy sporting sun shades, Bobby sporting a hat once more, wanting like an increasing number of like Crambone.

We received a “Bertha” opener full with an brisk and bouncy Mayer. The second music “Me and My Uncle” (a John Phillips cowl) had a western cowboy really feel, becoming in effectively on the Gorge. YEE-HAW! “I Want a Miracle” was a reminder of the Miracle Seekers on Shakedown earlier that day, strolling by the group with a pointer finger within the air, the signal that they’re in search of a miracle ticket to the present that night time. Hope they received that ticket as a result of the present was really epic.

We received to listen to Oteil’s honey clean vocals on “Comes a Time”; the group seemed peaceable and completely happy listening and watching intently. How will you not love Oteil! (Is that this the place I can brag about discovering Oteil’s guitar decide within the pit after the present ended?) Nobody had to make use of any STFU (Shut The F*** Up) playing cards throughout this music.

The Boys got here again after a brief break; Weir hatless and displaying off his splendidly wild hair (Insert 10 hearth emojis right here). The second set opener was “Enjoying within the Band” the place John and Jeff continued their bromance with some cute PDA (Public Show of Affection).

The second music was “Uncle John’s Band” the place Jeff actually blew the mud off his keys, with a “Enjoying within the Band” reprise. Throughout “Enjoying within the Band” a drone appeared above the group and Weir gave us a Drone Rap, “Uh, so there’s a… there’s a drone. Anyone’s working a drone and it’s getting dangerously near the group, and near the blokes right here, and in case you don’t knock it off, we’ve got to stop the present, okay. So, whoever you’re, park that factor, okay.” Sure, Bobby!

“Deal” was among the best Offers they’ve ever performed. Throughout Drums/Area Mickey picked one thing out of the air. Magic. Subsequent was a tremendous model of “The Wheel”; Jeff’s cool voice and John’s and Bob’s refined falsetto harmonies had been an ideal match with the Nineteen Fifties/Mexican/Reggae vibe close to the top. We received a Dylan cowl of a “Arduous Rain’s A-Gonna Fall”; Bobby Weir singing Bobby Dylan is all the time a deal with. Weir’s voice is robust and regular, considerate and melodic. Weir has been figuring out and sharing his pictures on Instagram with photograph credit score to the Gymnasium Security Advisor. You may see his sturdy guitar weapons when he’s on stage and his voice has a brand new energy. The Bobby Howl and his outstanding voice management offers you shivers. Somebody within the crowd yelled, “Bust out the quick shorts, Bobby!” Okay, possibly that was me.

Mayer’s fiery guitar licks and stylish, mellow vocals have received him many Deadhead followers.

Michael from Portland stated, “He’s killin’ it!” about John Mayer and referring to Eyes of the World within the second set, Michael stated “I can’t imagine what I simply heard! Mayer and Chimenti grabbed that music and BLEW IT UP!”

The Boys performed “One Extra Saturday Night time” and we received a “Contact of Gray” encore; the favored music that introduced the Grateful Useless into the tie-dyed limelight in 1987 with the MTV video, a lot to the chagrin of some Deadheads.

It was a phenomenal finish to a phenomenal weekend and the recollections can be treasured without end.

The weekend was stuffed with enjoyable. Love the stuff you hear at a Useless present; these are a few of the remarks heard at The Gorge:

1) When did Bobby begin rising his beard?

2) Oh My God! When did Billy flip his hat backwards?

3) Did you see John’s face? (Heard many instances throughout a present)

4) Benefit from the magical afterglow (We nonetheless are.)

It’s positively greater than the music within the Deadhead tradition. The camaraderie the band has created with and throughout the followers over the previous 50+ years is extraordinary. Watching the group and seeing the pure pleasure on their faces as they sing and smile; and you understand how the music goes…”Nothin’ left to do however smile, smile, smile.”