Photo Credit: Jeremy Williams

The String Cheese Incident delivered their final pairing of concerts at the fabled Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colo., on July 16 and 17. The dynamic jammers kicked off their three-night run on Friday, July 15, with a two-set performance that included a sit-in by the night’s openers, Yonder Mountain String Band. The band followed up on their second night by welcoming Leftover Salmon, who joined on a cover of the Robert Hunter penned “New Speedway Boogie.” Then, for the group’s final stand, they brought out Billy Strings, who replaced Phil Lesh as the night’s special guest after he tested positive for COVID-19. 

After a jammed-out first night on the rocks, The String Cheese Incident continued to bring the heat during Saturday’s performance. After an introduction by Jack Menton, the group kicked off the night with “On The Road,” which came before a four-song segue that began with Michael Kang’s “These Waves” into “Djibouti Bump,” which flowed into a cover of the Talking Head’s seminal number, “This Must Be The Place (Naive Melody)” and ended the jam on “Bhangra Saanj.”

The first set continued with Keith Moseley leading the ensemble through the classic tune, “Joyful Sound,” which flowed into “Beautiful.” Next, the night’s guests joined in on the Grateful Dead’s “New Speedway Boogie.” For the cover, founding member of Leftover Salmon, Vince Herman, led the lyrics. Then, on the final song of the first set, the lively ensemble landed on the New Grass Revival-recorded “Reach,” with Drew Emmitt offering a mandolin solo on the number. 

The second set continued with a message of well-wishes for Lesh before they moved through Kyle Hollingsworth’s “Trip the Light Fantastic,” followed by a pairing of “One Step Closer” and “BollyMunster.” Next, The String Cheese Incident landed on “Lend Me A Hand” before their classic number, “Jellyfish,” which ran into “Land’s End” and Traffic’s “Dear Mr. Fantasy.” Finally, they capped the night with an encore performance of Bob Marley’s beloved track, “Could You Be Loved.”

The String Cheese Incident kept the fire roaring on the final night at Red Rocks, opening the evening with “Lester Had a Coconut” before bringing out the night’s surprise guest and fill in for Lesh. Strings started the night by assisting the band on a cover of Dolly Parton’s “Those Memories of You.” They followed with a take on Nitty Gritty Dirt Band’s “Lonesome Fiddle Blues.” Next, the ensemble visited String’s repertoire on “Dust in a Baggie” before taking on “The Remington Ride,” which came before “Missin’ Me.” An illustrious jam occurred next and segued into Peter Rowan’s “Panama Red.” Finally, they closed the set on The Stanley Brothers’ “How Mountain Girls Can Love.” 

Set two was a complete Grateful Dead-infused spectacular, which began with “Jack Straw” and was followed by the classic cover of “Cold Rain and Snow.” They continued with “Brown Eyed-Women,” the tradition turned Dead staple “Peggy-O” arrived before they unleashed the final songs of the set that bled from one to the next. They began with “Estimated Prophet” > “Eyes of the World” > “The Other One,” which led to a jam, and ultimately the set ender, “Shakedown Street.” 

Sunday night was capped with a five-song third set that began with just The String Cheese Incident taking on “Can’t Wait Another Day,” then Strings joined once more for “Black Clouds” and “Rivertrance,” which segued into a cover of Black Sabbath’s “Paranoid.” The set concluded on “Texas.” For their encore, Strings assisted his hosts on the final Grateful Dead cover of the night, “Bertha.” 

Watch a clip of the Strings sit in below.

The String Cheese Incident 

Red Rocks – Morrison, Colo.

July 16, 2022 

Set I: Jack Mento Intro, On The Road, These Waves > Djibouti Bump > This Must Be The Place (Naive Melody) > Bhangra Saanj, Joyful Sound > Beautiful, New Speedway Boogie*, Reach*

Set II: Trip the Light Fantastic, One Step Closer > BollyMunster, Lend Me A Hand, Jellyfish > Land’s End > Dear Mr. Fantasy > Glory Chords > Rosie

Enc.: Could You Be Loved

Notes:

* With Leftover Salmon

The String Cheese Incident 

Red Rocks – Morrison, Colo.

July 17, 2022 

Set I: Lester Had a Coconut, Those Memories of You^, Lovesome Fiddle Blues^, Dust in a Baggie^, The Remington Ride^, Missin’ Me^ > Jam^ > Panama Red^ > How Much Mountain Girls Can Love^

Set II: Jack Straw^, Cold Rain and Snow^, Brown-Eyed Women^, Peggy-O^, Estimated Prophet^ > Eyes of the World^ > The Other One^ > Jam^, Shakedown Street^

Set III: Can’t Wait Another Day, Black Clouds^, Rivertrence^ > Paranoid^ > Texas^

Enc: Bertha^

Notes: 

^ With Billy Strings