Photo Credit: Stuart Levine

After ushering in the New Year with a pair of shows on Dec. 30 and 31 at Denver’s Mission Ballroom, The String Cheese Incident trekked down to Runaway Bay, Jamaica, for their annual destination concert event, The Jamaica Incident, at Jewel Paradise Cove Resort. The international occasion brought forth many memorable musical moments, from rarities to bust-outs and the inclusion of a first-time cover. This year’s iteration of the island affair exemplified the band’s ability to keep their audience intrigued and on their toes from start to finish. 

The event got underway on Jan. 20 with an acoustic bonfire set that began with “Dudley’s Kitchen” prior to a pairing of “Missing Me” and “Hobo Song.” The previously named tune served as a bust out, last performed on Sept. 29, 2019. Next, “Look at Where You Are” and traditional “Rollin’ In My Sweet Baby’s Arms” appeared before “Born On The Wrong Planet,” a number birthed out of a roaring jam. The acoustics continued with a run-through of the Grateful Dead’s “Brown-Eyed Woman,” followed by “Shantytown,” and a set closing take on “San Jose.” For their encore, the group played a cover of Harry Belafonte’s “Jump the Line.” 

After the first night of music, the band followed up on Saturday, Jan. 21, with their first full-fledged concert, which included two packed sets. The show began with “Water” before moving into a pairing of “Lend Me Your Hand” and “Restless Wind,” which was performed as a stunning sequence. Then, keeping with the beachy theme, the jammers covered “Suntan” before concluding their first frame with “Eye Know Why” into “Big Shoes.” 

After a break, the ensemble returned to the stage and cut into the second half of their Saturday show, which included the Jason Hann penned “Manga,” which ran over into “Little Hands” and “Big Sandy River.” SCI didn’t pause before jumping into “Close Your Eyes,” “Stay Through,” “Miss Brown’s Teahouse,” and the final song of the frame, a cover of New Grass Revival on “Can’t Stop,” which beckoned to the event’s guest, Sam Bush. 

The good time continued on Sunday, Jan. 22, when the ensemble welcomed Bush on stage for the entirety of their first frame, which ensued with the rarity “Reach” before following with bust out “Stingray.” The previously mentioned number was written by Bush and last performed by SCI on March 11, 2017. Then, bust-outs carried on with covers of the New Grass Revival and Townes Van Zandt. Next, a take on Josef Zawinul’s written “Birdland” flowed into Bill Monroe’s original, “Wheel Hoss.” A high point of the event occurred next when SCI busted out Bob Marley’s “One Love” for the first time since 2014. Then, the band capped their set with the traditional “Rivertrance” and their original, “Colorado Bluebird Sky.” 

“Let’s Go Outside” kicked off the second set before the group of musicians worked through a cover of Keller Willams’ “Best Feeling,” which ran into the Marley-written “Exodus.” After a return to the Williams number, the group added a cover of Peter Rowan’s “Sweet Melinda” before returning to originals to cap the Sunday night frame. For their encore, SCI delivered “Joyful Sound,” which dripped into the final song of the evening, “Rumble.”

The last stand of the band’s Jamaica Incident took place Monday, Jan. 23, and began with the title track from String Cheese Incident’s 2005 studio LP. Then, the band paired “Galactic” with “Search.” After a quick pause, they cut into 2022’s “Dragonfly” and followed with the fan favorite “Sirens.” Monday’s initial set brought forth a “Dream Jam” position with “Bhangra Saanj.” Then, the jammers closed frame one with a take on “Howard.” 

The final full set at The Jamaica Incident saw a “Group Hoot” start which ran into a cover of The Stanley Brothers’ “How Mountain Girls Can Love.” Next, the Bob Dylan original, “The Mighty Quinn,” was accompanied by a jam that ran into “Valley of the Jig” and “Into the Blue.” Finally, “Get Tight” arrived before “Jellyfish” and a set-closing rendition of “Colliding.” A roar of applause brought the band back to the stage to dig into their final encore, which consisted of a debut take on “Take Me Home, Country Roads (Jamaica Version),” which marked a fitting end to the multi-day musical excursion. 

After the String Cheese Incident’s island fun, they will return to the stage to participate in the Gem & Jam Festival in Tucson, Ariz. For tour information, visit the band’s official website. 

Scroll down to view setlists from The String Cheese Incident’s Jamaica Incident. 

 

 
 
 
 
 
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The String Cheese Incident 

Jewel Paradise Cove Resort – Runaway Bay, Jamaica 

Jan. 20, 2023

Set I: Island Jam > Dudley’s Kitchen, Missin’ Me > The Hobo Song, Look At Where We Are, Roll In My Sweet Baby’s Arms, “Fire” Jam > Born On The Wrong Planet, Brown-Eyed Women, Shantytown > Beach Jam > San Jose’

Enc.: Jump In The Line (Shake, Senora)

The String Cheese Incident 

Jewel Paradise Cove Resort – Runaway Bay, Jamaica 

Jan. 21, 2023 

Set I: Water, Lend Me A Hand > Restless Wind, Suntan, Eye Know Why > Big Shoes

Set II: Manga > Little Hands > Big Sandy River > Close Your Eyes, Stay Through > Miss Brown’s Teahouse > Can’t Stop Now

Enc.: Hi Ho No Show

The String Cheese Incident 

Jewel Paradise Cove Resort – Runaway Bay, Jamaica 

Jan. 22, 2023 

Set I: Reach, Stingray, Revival, White Freightliner, Birdland > Wheel Hoss > Birdland, One Love, Rivertrance, Colorado Bluebird Sky

Set II: Let’s Go Outside, Best Feeling > Exodus > Best Feeling > Jam > Sweet Melinda, Can’t Wait Another Day, Johnny Cash > Desert Dawn

Enc.: Joyful Sound > Rumble

Notes:

The entire first set featured Sam Bush on mandolin, violin and vocals

The String Cheese Incident 

Jewel Paradise Cove Resort – Runaway Bay, Jamaica 

Jan. 23, 2023

Set I: One Step Closer, Galactic > Search, Dragonfly, Sirens > Dream Jam > Bhangra Saanj, Howard

Set II: Group Hoot > How Mountain Girls Can Love, The Mighty Quinn (Quinn The Eskimo) > Jam > Valley of the Jig > Into the Blue, Get Tight, Jellyfish > Colliding

Enc: Take Me Home, Country Roads (Jamaica Version)+

Note:

+ Live debut 

All setlist via The String Cheese Incident’s official Facebook account.