Photo Credit: Kinsey Haynes 

Over the weekend, Widespread Panic returned to The Riverside Theatre in Milwaukee, Wis., for their anticipated three-night stand at the picturesque, 2,450-capacity venue. After heating things up on Friday night, the band kept the flame dancing into Saturday and Sunday with hot takes on fan favorites and covers ranging from Tom Waits to Tom Petty. 

Widespread Panic began their run on Oct. 21, on a day otherwise known as Widespread Panic Day in Milwaukee, Wis., a holiday which began in 2021 in honor of the groups musical accomplishments and influence on the arts community. Thus, in celebratory spirit, “Greta” kicked off the multi-night affair and segued into “Give.” The ensemble followed up with “A of D” off Miss Kitty’s Lounge before dipping into the first cover, a take on Beanland’s “1 x 1.” The first frame brought forth other renditions of borrowed tunes, including BloodKin’s “Quarter Tank of Gasoline” and “Sometimes” by fIREHOUSE. The latter came before a set ending, “Bust It Big,” off 2004’s Night of Joy.

Friday night’s second set kicked off with “Old Neighborhood,” which bled into “Little Lilly” and a cover of Vic Chestnutt’s “Sleeping Man.” Then, “Cotton Was King” was played ahead of “Driving Song,” which flowed into BloodKin’s “Mercy Train to Bogart,” which was capped with a “Driving Song” reprise and a cover of J.J. Cale’s “Travelin’ Light.” After a handful of originals, the group concluded the second frame with “Ain’t Life Grand” before returning to the stage for the night’s encore. 

After the success of night one, Widespread Panic returned to the stage on Saturday and began their stand with a take on Michael Stanley Band’s emotionally infused number,  “Let’s Get The Show On The Road.” “Pleas” arrived next and ran into a cover of BloodKin’s “Henry Parsons Died.” After a few more numbers were plucked from the group’s personal catalog and presented to the packed audience, the band invited their tour manager, Steve Lopez, to the stage to add some percussions to a cover of War’s “Slippin’ Into Darkness” before pulling out the Todd Nance penned “Down,” as a homage to the late founding drummer.

Set two got underway with “Porch Song” and “Party at Your Mamas House,” which kicked off a powerful segued section of mainly original music, with a few exceptions, including brute.’s “Blight” and Tom Wait’s “Goin’ Out West.” “Space Wrangler” flowed into a set ending “Blackout Blues.” Then, Widespread Panic dug into the Tom Petty number “Honey Bee” and Skip James’ “I’m So Glad” for the night’s encore. 

Following the excitement of the initial concerts, Widespread Panic took their final stand on Sunday, Oct. 23. For the first number of the night, the ensemble worked their way into Roebuck “Pops” Staples’ “Hope in a Hopeless World.” Then, after sprinkling in some self-written songs, the group landed on a cover of the Grateful Dead’s “Cream Puff War.” Next, they added in “Contentment Blues” and “This Part of Town” before working into BloodKin’s “Can’t Get High.” 

The second set brought additional covers, including Little Women’s “Chainsaw City,” Van Morrison’s “Send Your Mind,” Allen Toussaint’s “On Your Way Down,” Buffalo Springfield’s “Mr. Soul,” and a set ending take on Warren Zevon’s “Lawyers, Guns and Money.” Last night’s first encore began with “Pilgrims,” followed by Neil Young’s “Last Dance.” Then, as a bonus, for their third and final stand, the group returned to the stage for a second encore, busting out Motörhead’s “Ace of Spades,” for the first time since 2017.

After this weekend’s fun, the band will make their way to Savannah, Ga., for a two-night Halloween stand at Enmarket Arena on Oct. 28 and 29. Livestream options are available for those unable to attend the shows in person. Learn more here. 

Scroll down to see the setlists from this weekend’s concerts. 

Widespread Panic 

Riverside Theatre – Milwaukee, Wis.

Oct. 21, 2022 

Set I: Greta > Give, A of D, 1 X 1, Time Zones > Quarter Tank of Gasoline, You Got Yours, Sometimes, Bust It Big

Set II: Old Neighborhood > Little Lilly > Sleeping Man, Cotton Was King > Driving Song > Mercy Train to Bogart > Driving Song, Travelin’ Light > Papa’s Home > Imitation Leather Shoes, Ain’t Life Grand

Enc: Nobody’s Loss, No Sugar Tonight / New Mother Nature

Widespread Panic 

Riverside Theatre – Milwaukee, Wis.

Oct. 22, 2022 

Set I: Let’s Get The Show On The Road, Pleas > Henry Parsons Died, Up All Night, Shut Up And Drive > Stop-Go > Slippin’ Into Darkness, Down, Love Tractor

Set II: Porch Song, Party At Your Mom’s House > Blight > Flicker > Bear’s Gone Fishin’ >Cease Fire > Blue Indian, Going Out West > Space Wrangler > Blackout Blues

Enc.: Honey Bee, I’m So Glad

Widespread Panic 

Riverside Theatre – Milwaukee, Wis.

Oct. 23, 2022 

Set I: Hope In a Hopeless World, Weight Of The World, Holden Oversoul > Cream Puff War > Holden Oversoul, Contentment Blues, This Part Of Town, Can’t Get High, Hatfield > Climb to Safety

Set II: Chainsaw City, Second Skin > Rebirtha > Send Your Mind, On Your Way Down, Proving Ground, Mr. Soul > Drums > Saint Ex, Tall Boy > Action Man, Lawyers, Guns, and Money

Enc. I: Pilgrims, Last Dance

Enc. II:  Ace of Spades

For additional details about the setlist, follow this link.