Saturday at Peach Fest. Quite possibly, the largest day of the whole festival. Arriving early in the afternoon, yours truly was excited to find out what each set would have in store.
The first band I saw, was new bluegrass group, the Infamous Stringdusters. Now, I LOVE bluegrass, if it's done right. These guys, surely had the spirit of it. But, it still leaves me scratching my head. A lot of the new bluegrass, is based more on jam rock than it is on the tradition of bluegrass started by people like the late, great, Bill Monroe, Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs, Dr. Ralph Stanley, or, The Del McCoury Band. The spirit of the music is there. But, the vibe, is totally different. It isn't the plaintive, lonesome wail that calls from the Appalachian Mountains.
It was fun to hear, and I enjoyed the Infamous Stringdusters, and have gotten into some other, similar bands, who do new bluegrass such as The String Cheese Incident or Leftover Salmon. But, there's something missing, definitely, as it does not resemble (except for the instruments used), real, true, bluegrass music. People will improvise on bluegrass, and do a great job playing it. But, the old masters, are still the best ones to listen to in my book.
Onward to the serious stuff. Gov't Mule came on around 5:00 P.M. I saw them five years ago as well. But, their set at Peach Fest, was completely different. Warren Haynes on guitar, Danny Louis on keyboards, Jorgen Carlson on bass, and Matt Abts on drums, tore through a set that mostly included tracks from their two most recent albums. 2013's "Shout", double album, and, 2009's, "By A Thread". The Mule was as powerful as ever, charging out of the gate, and jamming to their hearts content, pleasing everyone in the crowd.
The synchronicity of the band is really tight, and Warren Haynes' vocals and guitar work, really drive the songs... not to mention Danny Louis' keyboard work, and the might of the rhythm section with Carlson and Abts. The Mule's full set list from the Peach Fest, is:
1. World Boss
2. Broke Down On The Brazos
3. Tributary Jam
4. Banks Of The Deep End
5. Time To Confess
6. Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood (Nina Simone/The Animals cover) (feat. Gabor Presser: keyboards, & Ron Holloway: tenor saxophone)
7. Done Got Wise
8. Railroad Boy
9. Stoop So Low (Outro 2)
10. Sco-Mule (feat. Karl Denson: saxophone) w/"Oye Como Va" & "Smoke On The Water", teases
11. Bring On The Music
After, The Mule, the Trey Anastasio Band came on for their second set of the weekend. This set, compared to Friday, was FAR more jam heavy, and entertaining. No jangly folk rock here. Yours truly really enjoyed the third song on the list, "Night Speaks To A Woman", which is a Phish number. Incredible jam! There were actually a few Phish covers on the list, and the show was very well done. Here's the list.
1. Cayman Review
2. Pigtail
3. Night Speaks To A Woman
4. Alaska (Phish cover)
5. Burlap Sack And Pumps
6. Drifting
7. Gotta Jibboo (Phish cover)
8. Tuesday
9. Plasma
10. Bounce
11. Clint Eastwood (Gorillaz cover)
12. First Tube (Phish cover)
Then, it was indeed time, for the magic to happen. The Allman Brothers took the stage, and played the whole of their classic, epic, "Eat A Peach" record, live. This is the record for which the Peach Festival, is named. The whole band was in fine form. But, this was a mere warmup for what was to come. Yours truly is not sure the boys laid all the cards on the table in this set. But, it was great to hear.
At one point, during the epic, "Mountain Jam", I will admit, I had lots of emotion come to me, and tears in my eyes. I was crying during "Mountain Jam", which is something I rarely do at a concert. But, the tune moved me so, and they were tears of pure and utter joy. To be truthful, I didn't know whether to cry or laugh with joy, and I was doing a bit of both.
1. Ain't Wastin' Time No More
2. Les Brers In A Minor
3. Melissa
4. Mountain Jam
5. One Way Out
6. Trouble No More
7. Stand Back
8. Blue Sky
9. Little Martha
Encore:
10. That's What Love Will Make You Do (Little Milton cover) (feat. Danny Louis: piano)
11. Black Hearted Woman
One more day of Peach Fest 2014 to write about. The Sunday finale. Stay tuned for that report, coming, tomorrow.
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