Perpetual Groove played their final show before going on an indefinite hiatus last night at the Georgia Theatre in Athens, GA. As previously reported, the band will be taking their break for a variety of reasons, but Adam Perry, Albert Suttle and Matthew McDonald will continue playing music together as Ghost Owl. That new project made their debut last night as they played the opening set.
Before the band could get started on their final show, Georgia Theatre owner Wilmot Greene came out to say a few words. Greene noted that, while hundreds of bands have come through the Georgia Theatre over the years, only a few can be called family. He then thanked Perpetual Groove for “twelve years of music, fun friendship,” before reciting a few of the band’s stats. They played 68 shows at the venue, with 44 of them sold out. This meant over 55,000 tickets sold and 12,000 minutes of music played. Greene also reminded the audience of PGroove’s generosity, as he remembered when the band donated over $7,000 to employees of the Georgia Theatre after a fire destroyed the venue the day that they were supposed to play. It was a heartfelt introduction for a band with a long history in Athens, GA.
PGroove kicked off their first set of their final show with a lengthy “Crowded Tub” before going into “La Casa Bien” and “Stealy Man.” Next, they were joined by Georgia saxophonist Gary Paulo for “Walking in Place,” which was followed by a set closing “Speed Queen.”
The band opened their second set with a few thank yous to their friends, fans, crew and collaborators. They then played “Cairo,” “Robot Waltz,” “Paper Dolls” and “Man With All the Answers” before closing out the set with a back-to-back jamfest of “Teakwood Betz” and “Three Weeks.” PGroove came back out for a half-hour encore that consisted of “Two Shores,” “All My Friends” and “Sweet Oblivious Antidote.”
Last night’s show is already up on Archive.org. You can download the recording here or listen to it below. As previously reported, the Perpetual Groove and Ghost Owl performances will both eventually be released on DVD.
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