SHARING THE SHOWS
I don’t typically get political on here, but it was nice seeing the boys stick up for women’s rights and the right to choose how you live your life. I can’t write this blog without at least mentioning the travesty that occurred on June 24, the overturning of the historic Roe v. Wade, which had been around my entire life. In preparing for this show, I listened to the one Dead & Company played at Chicago’s Wrigley Field that night, during which they played songs that celebrated women such as “Man Smart, Woman Smarter” (which is a true song because it’s based on science), “Bertha,” “Brown-Eyed Women,” “Althea,” and “Stella Blue.” I’m not supernuts about D & C, but I was getting nostalgic to see my Hampton Roads show crew, and as I’ve been reclaiming my life this year by getting to shows, this had to be part of what I’m deeming the Summer of Craig. It had been three weeks since my last show, at which point I start to jones a bit. I got back to DC last week, and was enthralled to have my own space again. Since driving in the DMV during rush hour traffic is only slightly preferable to getting drilled by the dentist and I’m a city boy now, I did an “urban” thing ordered a ticket from Rally Bus, a crowdpowered service whereby if a certain number of people sign up for a bus ride to the show, that bus will get you there and back. And if you wanna indulge in libations, they’ll let you do that too. Most of the folks on the bus were 20somethings, and they took the opportunity to pregame. I heard interesting talk about all the shows people had been to, and one kid gasped upon hearing I was going to all five nights of Widespread Panic in New York. “That’s a lot! I think I’d be dead after three nights!” I was amused to hear a spry 20something say that, it shows my stamina is just, well, awesome. This exchange was preferable to having to negotiate my way through the commuter traffic, which was present in spades. It was a crawl to the show once we exited the highway, but we made it! There was some drama about the driver wanting to leave at 10:45 (he was quite insistent), but apparently, a few people convinced him to leave 45 minutes after the show (which, to be fair, was advertised on the site). Essentially, this night was meant to be a reunion with my Hampton Roads peeps. Once in the show, I had Maggie, Dan, Mark, and Sheila waiting for me on the lawn, which was a great welcome and homecoming. We did the usual catching up before Mark and Sheila left for the royal seats known as the Pavilion, which Dan, Maggie, and I stayed up on the lawn with the other commoners. Lydia and Jonna (both of whom I met for the first time after being friends on Facebook for years) would join us later on with their people. As far as my current people are concerned, I bumped into John, whom I’ve hung with at DC shows, during setbreak on the way to the bathroom. It took me a second to recognize him, as I’ve only seen him in the darkly lit indoor venues, but it was still nice to see him. “Man Smart, Woman Smarter” opened the first set, during which the “Save Our Rights” sign flashed. A DC-area show would naturally bring some politically charged tunes. So of course we got “Throwing Stones.” I was hoping for some “U.S. Blues” but hey, a show’s a show. I’ve pasted the setlist here. For me, the highlights were “New Speedway Boogie” and “Terrapin Station,” and I even sang into my pen during “China Doll.” Still, it was nice getting together with my suburban crew. Maggie, Dan, Sheila, Mark, Jonna, Lydia, we’ll make it happen again. Johnny Mac, Drew, Gary, sorry I missed you. We’ll make it happen eventually.
1 Comment
Steven Mason
7/18/2022 11:51:44 pm
Photos or videos of bristow va dead and company show phone got wet. Thank you 🙏
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