Photo by Harrison Ezratty
Widespread Panic kicked off their first of five sold-out nights at the Beacon Theatre on Thursday, serving up a slew of fan favorites as well as covers of legends like Curtis Mayfield and Tom Petty.
A fast "Porch Song" opener was a sign of good things to come, as was the following "Rebirtha"> "Greta"> "Stop Go"> "Jam"> "Little Liy" segment.
Later, a rocking "Bust It Big" arrived in the middle of a "Proving Ground" sandwich. The tune - led by keyboardist Jojo Hermann - gave a nod to the Big Apple as the entire venue sang along with the lyric "Rosemary's Baby is a New York City kid."
A full-throttle "Action Man" put a bow on the band's first set of their extended run, but it wasn't long before the Athens, Ga. band returned to the historic stage.
Set two highlights included a trio of "Blight"> "Help Me Somebody"> "Fishwater" as well as an emotive "Pilgrims" and a groovy version of Curtis Mayfield's "Pusherman."
The second surprise cover of the evening came in the encore. Following a set-closing "Conrad," WSP honored the late Tom Petty with a take on the Wildflowers cut "You Wreck Me."
The show ended with arguably the band's most rowdy tune, the always-amplified "Tall Boy."
Widespread Panic will continue their Beacon Theatre run each night through Monday, March 2.
Watch a clip of "You Wreck Me" (via YouTuber henry bisco) and check out the full setlist - as it appears in our Box Scores section - below:
Widespread Panic
Feb. 27, 2020
Beacon Theatre New York, NY
Set I: Porch Song, Rebirtha > Greta > Stop Go > Jam > Little Lilly, Proving Ground > Bust It Big > Proving Ground, Action Man
Set II: Steven’s Cat > Solid Rock Jam > Walk On, Blight > Help Me Somebody > Fishwater, Pilgrims, Pusherman, Conrad
Enc: You Wreck Me, Tall Boy
Source: Panicstream.com
