Over a million people are said to have attended Barack Obamas swearing-in ceremony in front of the U.S. Capitol earlier today. In addition to speeches by a number of noted politicians, the celebration found Aretha Franklin performing My Country Tis of Thee and the quartet of Yo-Yo MA, Anthony McGill, Gabriela Montero and Itzhak Perlmen offering John Williams Air and Simple Gifts. Among the hundreds of notable entertainers and political figures in the crowd were The Deads Bob Weir, Phil Lesh, Warren Haynes, Jeff Chimenti, all of whom were said to have attended the historic event together (members of the group were also spotted at a Huffington Post event last night).
While in Washington, Haynes also performed at Washington Life Magazine’s Inaugural Weekend Kickoff Party at the Fairfax Hotel. The guitarist offered a rare two-set solo performance that opened with a cover of U2s One. Haynes also nodded to the weekends festivities with event-specific songs like Glory Road, Change Is Gonna Come, Raining Pain Down In New Orleans and the grand finale of Hallelujah.