Photo Credit: Dino Perrucci

On June 3, Dead & Company continued their final tour by stopping at Jiffy Lube Live in Bristow, Va. The weekend concert arrived after the musicians–Bobby Weir, Mickey Hart, John Mayer, Oteil Burbridge, Jeff Chimenti and Jay Lane–made a series of appearances in the Southern region of the U.S. Following a Thursday night stand in Raleigh, N.C., the entertainers took an evening to rest their bones before returning to the stage last night and cutting into choice numbers, plucked from across the Grateful Dead’s expansive catalog of music. 

Before the sun had even set over the Old Domino State, Dead & Company considered the season and nodded toward the unofficial launch of the summer months and the start of June with a Mayer-led “Here Comes Sunshine.” Next, they pulled out “Mississippi Half-Step,” which fused with an ensuing rendition of “Mr. Charlie,” a song that brought many concertgoers to their feet as they felt the rhythm of the Robert Hunter and Ron “Pigpen” McKernan-written stinger. 

The tempo shifted with the arrival of “He’s Gone” before building again as the group pivoted into “Brown-Eyed Women.” Next, they tapped into The Beatles songbook, covering “Dear Prudence,” which merged into a set ending take on Bobby “Blue” Bland’s classic “Turn on Your Love Light.” The pair of final songs performed during the first set represented tour debuts for this ensemble of musicians and an opportunity for Chimenti to flex his supreme musicianship. 

After breaking during the halfway point of the night, Dead & Company returned to the stage for their second frame just before 9 P.M., kicking things off with a Mayer-led “Deal,” which ran over into “Scarlet Begonias” prior to the group’s arrival on “Playing in the Band.” “Cumberland Blues” came next and was a fitting choice of the night and the concert’s location, given the tune’s regional influences, which beckoned to Appalachia. 

In continuation of the night’s second set, Mayer and Weir traded lyrics on “Uncle John’s Band” before an instrumental takeover with the arrival of Hart’s second set staple, “Drums” and “Space,” which in time conjured into Miles Davis’ “Milestones.” A high point of the night emerged next as Weir crooned the lyrics to “Days Between,” evoking the singer’s deep sense of emotion. 

The mood lightened as Dead & Company arrived on “Throwing Stones,” the politically infused anthem came before the band closed their second set in proper Saturday night fashion, with Weir charging through the weekend staple, “One More Saturday Night.” After bidding the crowd goodnight, applause and cheers brought the players out for one final tune. For their encore, they added a heartfelt retention of “Ripple” to cap the Southern leg of their Final Tour. 

After last night’s concert in Bristow, Va., Dead & Company will take tonight off the road before arriving at Star Lake, just outside Pittsburgh, Pa., for their next show, on June 5. Tickets remain on sale and can be purchased here.

For those unable to attend in person, livestream the concert via nugs.net.  

Scroll down to view last night’s complete setlist. 

Dead & Company 

Jiffy Lube Live – Bristow, Va. 

June 3, 2023 

Set I: Here Comes Sunshine, Mississippi Half Step > Mr. Charlie, He’s Gone > Brown Eyed Women, Dear Prudence > Turn on Your Lovelight 

Set II: Deal > Scarlet Begonias > Playing in the Band > Cumberland Blue, Uncle John’s Band > Drums > Space > Milestones > Days Between, Throwing Stones > One More Saturday Night 

Enc.: Ripple