From May to August of 2024 Dead & Company, the Grateful Dead spinoff band comprised of core members Bob Weir (rhythm guitar, vocals) and Mickey Hart (drums) alongside John Mayer (lead guitar, vocals), Oteil Burbridge (bass, vocals), Jeff Chimenti (keyboards, vocals), and Jay Lane (drums), mounted their inaugural 30-show Dead Forever residency at Sphere, the high-tech concert venue attached to The Venetian Resort in Las Vegas, NV. [Find tickets for the 2025 Dead & Company Sphere residency here.]
Spanning ten non-consecutive three-show weekend runs, the 2024 Dead Forever residency paired the band’s longstanding format (two-set concerts featuring different setlists on each night of a given run) with an elaborate aesthetic journey that began nightly in Haight-Ashbury, launched into outer space, and wound through a revolving repertoire of enveloping looks before returning home. As Dead & Company begins an 18-show 2025 round of Dead Forever this week, get prepared with this deep-dive recap of the 2024 Sphere residency including stats, highlights, videos, photos, and audio links for every show.
Related: Get Tickets To Dead & Company’s 2025 Sphere Residency
FINAL TOUR, YES. FINAL SHOWS, NO.
When Dead & Company played the last three shows of their 29-show Final Tour in July of 2023 at Oracle Park in San Francisco, it was generally understood that the tourâs title left the band wiggle room for further shows. At the same time, U2âs 25-show residency to open the brand-new Sphere was only two months away, and it didnât take tarot cards to predict a possible Dead & Company residency at Sphere. We actually remember a couple different conversations at the Oracle shows where people speculated exactly that, and just over six months later in February 2024 Dead & Company announced their initial residency of 18 Sphere shows. By that time U2âs residency had extended to 40 shows, and Dead & Companyâs residency would ultimately extend to 30 shows, or one show more than 2023âs entire Final Tour.
Related: Dead & Company âThe Final Tourâ 2023 Recap: Highlights, Stats, & Top Shows
THE VENUE
Sphereâs LED-covered exoskeleton (aka the Exosphere) towers 300 feet high against the Las Vegas skyline. Inside, five levels of seats hold 18,200 people who face a planetarium-style, wraparound screen rising above the crowd and stage, with audio provided by 167,000 speakers nestled into Sphereâs framework. Go here for an unofficial tour of the venue and how it all works.
WAKING UP IN VEGAS
The Grateful Dead only played four shows in Las Vegas during the first 25 years of the bandâs 30-year career that lasted from 1965 to 1995âone Live Dead era show at the still-standing Ice Palace in March 1969, and single shows at the Aladdin Theater in the long-gone Aladdin Hotel in 1981, 1983, and 1984. Itâs a city based upon legal gambling in enormous, garish casino hotels on or near the Las Vegas Strip, and hedonism of all kinds, even kinds that remained illegal elsewhere, was always not just permitted but actively encouraged. For decades a weirder, darker âadultâ vibe hovered over everything, with the saying âWhat happens in Vegas stays in Vegasâ being a widely used advertising catchphrase until the internet and cell phones made the statement untrue. And even though Deadheads have historically never been shy about their own chosen hedonistic pursuits, the city was not really a natural fit for the traveling scene that followed the band from show to show.
But necessity intervened when the Grateful Deadâs fanbase doubled after a second generation of fans discovered them via 1987âs In The Dark album and its Top 10 single âTouch Of Greyâ. The resulting âover-successâ made the band and its accompanying scene too big for many of its then-perennial venues and cities. But Las Vegas was there to take it all on with aplomb, and from 1991 through 1995 the Grateful Dead played 14 sold-out shows at the 32,000-capacity Sam Boyd Silver Bowl just outside town.
While the Las Vegas Strip will never be a comfortable fit for many Deadheads no matter what it does, over the last few decades the casinos and the city have spent time and effort turning the Strip into a far more family-friendly locationâa wider variety of shows on and off the Strip, shopping malls, restaurants, day-trip excursions, spas, play areas for kids, and so on. And just like it always could, the Las Vegas Strip can still swallow up the scene of any gathering of 20,000 people like it was nothing. If someone wasnât near the Venetian Hotel during the Dead Forever residency, they might not even know Dead & Company was in town unless theyâd seen the giant Steal Your Face logo drifting across Sphereâs light-covered exoskeleton.
MONEY MONEY
While the announcement of Dead & Companyâs Sphere residency did confirm the band was still active, the venue and the location got a decidedly mixed reaction. Apart from the contingency of Deadheads who just arenât that into Las Vegas, most Deadheads were looking at a flight or two to get there, an unwelcome change for a fanbase long accustomed to driving to and from shows each year. This was such an important concept for the Grateful Deadâs business model that Peter Shapiro chose Chicago as the host city for 2015âs Fare Thee Well reunion shows in part because the city is less than a two-day drive for 80% of the U.S. population.
And that was before factoring in the cost of tickets. While the overall price of top-tier concert tickets has skyrocketed over the last 25 years, the prices for Dead Forever tickets at Sphere would cost about twice what Dead & Company charged for tickets on The Final Tour. Sphereâs ticket prices, which remained uniform for all musical acts playing there in 2024, started at $149 for seats in the highest level and topped out at $395 for the best seats, excluding the hundreds of dynamically priced âPlatinumâ seats for each show that cost hundreds more.
Many proverbial pearls were clutched, many angry social media posts were made, and then many people bought tickets, some of which were packaged with Vegas Strip-priced hotel rooms at The Venetian. By the time the shows happened, the venue was near capacity on most nights but only a few shows sold out completely, and with the exception of those few nights anyone willing to pay face value for a $295 or $395 ticket could easily get one at or near showtime. (For what itâs worth, Sphere Entertainment Co. did spend an astonishing $2.3 billion to build Sphere Las Vegas, so theyâve got a long way to go before breaking even.)
THE VISUALS
No small part of each Sphere ticketâs price goes toward paying for the visual accompaniments created for each act, with a different visual playing during every song. But unlike U2âs UV Achtung Baby production, the visuals created for Dead & Company were not produced for use with one specific song, enabling the Dead Forever production to use different visuals with different songs each night.
Each night the visuals that played over the show’s first two songs and final two songs were the only ones that appeared every night in the same slots. In between them, over 20 different visuals could appear. While a handful of the visuals were nearly static throughout, most contained dynamic aspects and featured locations and milieus such as Egypt and The Great Pyramids, psychedelic oil-style light show patterns, a paint-by-numbers cartoon wilderness setting with rainbows and cabins, Gary Gutierrezâs animated âUncle Samâ motorcycle-riding skeleton from 1974âs The Grateful Dead Movie travelling over land and air, snow-covered mountains with dancing bear overlays that morphed into a black-light kaleidoscope spiral, flower petals falling from above and gradually âfillingâ the screen, a time-lapse construction of the Grateful Deadâs 1974 âWall of Soundâ PA that often transitioned into a beam of light that eventually became a ring around the planet Saturn (this one was our favorite), a drift through space before landing on a red, Mars-like planet, grainy western film footage with screen credits and Technicolor processing, journeys through iconic venues that held Grateful Dead shows such as Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Winterland Ballroom, Madison Square Garden, Barton Hall, and Hampton Coliseum, a seaside flyover before an underwater dive to a sunken ship, a moving wallpaper of Grateful Dead tickets and backstage passes, and several more.
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LIFTOFF AND LANDING
The signature visuals of Dead Foreverâs 2024 production appeared at the beginning and end of each show. As concertgoers entered the space, they saw steel framework that appeared to be the internal structure of Sphere, and the band took the stage each night and played their opening song in this setting. But then the real show would start, as huge âsteelâ doors rumbled open to place the viewer in front of the Grateful Deadâs old house at 710 Ashbury Street in modern-day San Franciscoâthe steel framework had been a projection the entire time.
As the music started, the viewer would slowly start to âflyâ directly upward from the Haight-Ashbury district, vertigo be damned, and over the span of six minutes, be launched into space. First was a rapid rise above the Bay Area and the California coast, then passing through cloud cover at around two minutes in, then dodging the International Space Station three minutes later, and then watching the Earth recede from view completely.
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The biggest problem here is that words can’t do justice to this visual, and neither do videosâonly seeing it in person truly does the trick. The best example we can give of how powerful this experience could be was the guy directly in front of us on one of the nights that the band played âTruckinââ during the liftoff. When he realized what was happening, he boldly jutted his arms out like an in-flight superhero as his eyes and his grin got wider and wider and wider, and well, weâre about 99% sure the late Owsley Stanley would have been very proud of him for seizing the moment so boldly. His ongoing reactions to the showâs visuals would continuously boost the collective energy of his friends and around a dozen others in his vicinity throughout the night.
On the flipside, during the second-to-last song of each showâs second set, Earth would drift back into view, and over the next six minutes the viewer would retrace the journey from deep space back down to 710 Ashbury, this time landing in 1967 when the Grateful Dead were still living there. Dead & Company often played a slower, gentler song as the soundtrack to this landing, and the journey was nearly as stunning (but oddly very comforting) on the way back down.
The trick here was that the production team would have to make their best guess of when there were six minutes left in the chosen song and activate the visual, so the touchdown coincided with the songâs conclusion. Then after a brief ânews itemâ from a 1967 broadcaster, “Dead Forever” appeared on the screen to launch the nightâs final song, usually an upbeat rocker, played over an evocative montage of Grateful Dead band photos, with Snooky Flowersâ photo of a euphoric Robert Hunter being a favorite.
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SONG STATISTICS
Overall, Dead & Companyâs variety of songs remained about the same as it was during the touring era. The band played 104 unique songs during the residency, with the repertoireâs biggest and best songs getting the most action. Each three-show run was treated as its own entity and no song was ever repeated on that weekend, and ten of the bandâs most popular songs appeared during all ten weekends: âAltheaâ, âBrown Eyed Womenâ, âChina Cat Sunflower”, “I Know You Riderâ, âEyes of the Worldâ, âScarlet Begoniasâ, âSt. Stephenâ, âTerrapin Stationâ, âBerthaâ, and âFranklinâs Towerâ.
Over 30 shows, 16 different songs opened the first set, 12 different songs closed the first set, 16 songs opened the second set, 15 songs came out of âSpaceâ, and nine songs appeared in the encore slot.
Notwithstanding the usual variety of the Grateful Deadâs repertoire, song choices were tightened up for the crucial âliftoffâ and âlandingâ slots each night. During the liftoff visual, eight different songs were performed over 30 shows, with six go-to songs comprising 27 of the 30 performances. âMississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodelooâ was the liftoff song on six occasions, âFranklinâs Towerâ got the liftoff nod five times, and âShakedown Streetâ, âTruckinââ, âThe Music Never Stoppedâ, and âEyes of the Worldâ were each played four times in this slot. âPlaying in the Bandâ also got two turns as the liftoff song, and âJack Strawâ got one.
During the landing visual, the song choices tightened up even further. Seven different songs were performed, but four songs comprised 25 of the 30 total performances. âMorning Dewâ was the most common, getting seven plays during the landing, while âKnockinâ On Heavenâs Doorâ, âThrowing Stonesâ, and âBrokedown Palaceâ were each played six times. âBlack Muddy Riverâ got three airings in the landing spot, and âDark Starâ and âEyes of the Worldâ each got one.
Following the âDrumsâ segment, a short âSpaceâ interlude served as the introduction to the next song, and in nearly every case that song was one of the bandâs slower ballads: together âStanding on the Moonâ, âBlack Peterâ, âStella Blueâ, âDays Betweenâ, âWharf Ratâ, âDear Prudenceâ, âDeath Donât Have No Mercyâ, and âLazy River Roadâ combined for 22 of the 30 song choices in this slot. Weirâs âLooks Like Rainâ appeared there twice, while âThe Wheelâ, âUncle Johnâs Bandâ, and four different Bob Dylan songs each appeared there once.
âChina Cat Sunflower” > “I Know You Riderâ was played on all ten weekends and its placement remained consistent. The pairing opened the second set on six occasions, and on the remaining four occasions it consisted of the second and third songs in the second set.
âHelp on the Way” > “Slipknot!â were played eight times together, but only twice did they transition into the traditional third song in the suite, âFranklinâs Towerâ. The remaining six versions dropped into âEyes of the Worldâ, âCold Rain & Snowâ, âDealâ, âAltheaâ, and âTerrapin Stationâ (twice).
âScarlet Begoniasâ was played on all ten weekends, but it only transitioned into its usual song partner âFire on the Mountainâ five times. On the other five occasions, it led to the âSunshine Daydreamâ reprise of âSugar Magnoliaâ, âHeâs Goneâ, âFranklinâs Towerâ, âSt. Stephenâ, and âViola Lee Bluesâ.
âPlaying in the Bandâ aired eight times during the run, and four versions were unbroken âfullâ versions containing the reprise, as the Grateful Dead initially played it from 1971 through 1974.
On the other end of the statistics, given their frequency during Dead & Companyâs touring era, it was a little surprising to see âCumberland Bluesâ only getting four plays during the residency and jamming vehicle âThe Other Oneâ only getting three, and some notable two-offs were âMan Smart, Woman Smarterâ (both as show openers), âTouch of Grey (both as encores), and âBird Songâ (played opening night and then only once more afterward). Twenty-five songs were only played once during the 30-shew residency, and each of those occurrences is noted in our recaps of each weekend below.
DRUMMING AT THE EDGE OF HAPTICS
Back in April 1978, the Grateful Dead more or less formalized the concept that each of their showâs second sets contained a âDrumsâ section where Mickey Hart and Bill Kreutzmann were left alone onstage to improvise a drum duet on their kits and other percussion instruments. The concept has stuck around ever since, and while itâs now the one thing thatâs pretty much guaranteed to happen each night, itâs also remained the most fully improvisational section of each show.
During the Dead & Company era, âDrumsâ has usually been a trio (Hart, Burbridge, and Kreutzmann or Lane) until the others leave Hart to transition to the showâs âSpaceâ segment via use of the Beam, a long metal beam with 13 bass piano strings strung across it and tuned to create a low D monochord. Depending on how Hart manipulates the strings, the Beam can drone, bang, surge, or recede, all to hypnotic and relaxing effect.
At Sphere, the âDrumsâ and Beam sections had a little something extra to help it alongâalmost everyone on the 200-, 300- and 400-level seats were in chairs with haptics installed, meaning the seats pulsated and vibrated in synchronization with the music. While folks in the 100-level seats didnât get to experience the haptics, bolder Deadheads in the GA floor section each night were spotted spreading out unworn layers of clothing on the floor before laying on them to feel the segmentsâ effects more fully.
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MUSICAL GUESTS
There were only two sit-ins during the 2024 Dead Forever residency, on weekends one and three. Santana percussionist Karl Perazzo joined the band for âCumberland Bluesâ, âThe Other Oneâ, and âDrumsâ on May 17th, and legendary percussionist Zakir Hussain joined for the âDrumsâ segment on May 31st. The Grammy-winning tabla legend had collaborated with the Hart and the Grateful Dead on live shows and studio projects for over 50 years, but this would be his final appearance at a Dead-related show before passing away on December 15, 2024 at age 73.
THE PRIVATE SHOW
On Tuesday, June 18th Dead & Company played a private show at Sphere as part of Palo Alto-based IT giant HPâs annual convention. The single-set show eliminated the âDrumsâ and âSpaceâ segments and started directly with the liftoff sequence, and the setâs biggest jam was the âHelp On The Way” > “Slipknot > “Franklinâs Towerâ trio. Weâre sure most folks had fun, but Nick Paumgartenâs well-written piece (LINK) for The New Yorker on his Dead Forever weekend revealed that at least one attendee was disappointed that HP hadnât booked Imagine Dragons instead.
One of the biggest differences between Dead & Companyâs existence as a touring act and as a Vegas residency is that there was no informal vending scene in the Venetian hotel and casino or the parking lots surrounding Sphere, owing to Las Vegasâ strictly enforced laws against unlicensed vendors doing business in and around the Las Vegas Strip. However, by this point, the Dead & Company âShakedownâ scene had evolved into a robust organism of its own anchored by professional vendors, and several of them forged a solution to the location issue.
A mile and a half away, at the nearby Tuscany Suites & Casino, vendors collectively rented a large ballroom in the hotel on a not-for-profit basis and arranged for shuttle buses to run the ten-minute drive between The Venetian and Tuscany on show days, making access from the venue location as easy as possible. We have to admit it felt unusual and even a bit âformalâ at firstâthere were no on-foot vendors, flying frisbees, outdoor grills, or teams of guys selling ballons of nitrous oxideâbut admittedly it was nice to check out goods in an air-conditioned setting instead of the searing 110-degree desert heat.
Meanwhile, back at the Venetian, the Dead Forever Experience allowed folks to purchase original paintings by Mickey Hart alongside a wide variety of official merchandise, and the Grateful Dead Channel on SiriusXM radio also used the location to have David Gansâ and Gary Lambertâs âTales From the Golden Roadâ and Steve Parishâs âBig Steve Hourâ broadcast shows in front of a live audience. The nearby Animazing gallery also got in on the proceedings by hosting photographers Jay Blakesberg, Chloe Weir, Josh Hitchens, and other Dead-related photographers whose prints were on display to purchase. Inside Sphere, the official limited edition poster for each nightâs show sold out almost every night, with the most popular ones gone within an hour of doors opening.
Basketball legend Bill Walton was a fixture at Grateful Dead shows from 1967 onwards, and he was generally pretty easy to spot with his 6â11â frame and his arms frequently raised like goalposts. Heâd essentially become the worldâs most famous Deadhead while also becoming close friends with the band, and he displayed seemingly endless levels of kindness and grace toward the many people who approached him at shows over the decades.
Walton passed away on May 27, 2024, three days before weekend three of Dead Forever, and heâd receive fitting honors during its duration. Most of weekend three, night one’s two-hour second set was a tribute to him, and at the conclusion of each show a large illustration of Waltonâs jersey nameplate and his number 32 was projected onto the screen. The next weekend the NBA followed suit before Game 1 of the NBA Finals, when the Boston Celtics (Waltonâs final pro team) wore matching shooting shirts with Waltonâs name and number during warmups before a moment of silence in his honor was broadcast live on national TV.
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A SWITCH IN TIME SAVES NINE
âHey guys, I have an idea for a Dead Forever plot twist. What if John Mayer slammed the index finger of his fretboard hand in the door of his truck the week before he has to play three shows at Sphere, but instead of canceling he figures out how to play with nine fingers? Yes, thatâs totally the finger heâd need the most. Oh, and just hear me out hereâŠwhat if the first night he had to play with nine fingers was also Jerry Garciaâs birthday, because Garcia only had nine fingers too! Thatâd be perfect!â
No staff writer worth their weight would have ever pitched this scenario in a TV writersâ room because it would be swiftly dismissed for being too on-the-nose and melodramatic. But amazingly, this actually happened. When Mayer announced the injury on the day of the first show of weekend nine, it immediately led to one really big question: how on Earth is he going to pull this off and play through?
As it turns out, heâd rely on his blues chops, his timing, the addition of smaller chords throughout his breaks, and other on-the-spot maneuvers to replace the loss of his speediest lead runs. It all worked seamlessly, and Mayerâs playing over the final two weekends of Dead Forever would be an exceptional display of adaptability on a very steep learning curve.
CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE
One last unique thing happened after the final encore of the residencyâs closing night. Instead of the large âsteel doorsâ drifting shut with a deep clang, the screen maintained its starry setting. After the band left the stage, the credits for the entire Dead Forever production appeared, and those who stayed to read them saw the names of almost 170 people. Along with the six members of the band, people from eight companies and over 25 different departments were credited, providing an illuminating look at just exactly how many people it takes to stage a production like Dead Forever. And while several busy folks were accorded two credits, only two people were accorded threeâJohn Mayer (Band, Produced By, Creative Director) and Derek Featherstone (Audio Design, Tour Director, Produced By). Ee imagine that the late Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas author Hunter S. Thompson would surely have appreciated that no fewer than seven lawyers were credited.
HIGHLIGHTS AND LINKS TO AUDIENCE RECORDINGS FROM EVERY SHOW
Thanks to the help of the folks who took the time and effort to continue the longstanding practice of making unofficial audio recordings of Dead & Company shows and uploading them to Internet Archive, below are audio links to all 30 shows of 2024âs Dead Forever residency along with our highlights from each weekend. Enjoy.
Folks who saw Thursday nightâs opening show were the first to experience the liftoff visual (to âMississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodelooâ), and their reaction was so intense that it nearly threw the band off their performance. They also saw one of only two versions of âBird Songâ played during the 30-show residency, they got to be the first to experience Sphereâs seat haptics during âDrumsâ, and got to be the first to experience the landing visual to âKnockinâ On Heavenâs Doorâ. As Napoleon Dynamite once said: âLucky!â
Fridayâs show featured the rarely played âCrazy Fingersâ in the first set, and after Weirâs âEstimated Prophetâ in the second set, drummer Karl Perazzo joined the band for spirited takes of âCumberland Bluesâ, âThe Other Oneâ, and âDrumsâ. On Saturday night, âTruckinââ got the nod as the liftoff song and led to the sole âSmokestack Lightningâ of the residency, and the second setâs opening sequence of Dead perennials âScarlet Begonias” > “Fire on the Mountainâ, âEyes of the Worldâ (complete with Burbridgeâs signature bass solo spot) and âTerrapin Stationâ was a winner.
Weekend two opened with a slower version of âI Need A Miracleâ to precede âThe Music Never Stoppedâ in the liftoff spot, and the first set later contained the sole âMama Triedâ of the residency. The second setâs opening sequence of âPlaying in the Band” > “Dark Star” > “St. Stephen” > “Let It Growâ coincidentally comprised the same four songs at Dead & Companyâs first-ever Las Vegas show in November 2015 in a different sequenceâan under-the-radar highlight from the bandâs initial tour and their âpre-nugsâ era.
On Friday, the residencyâs sole version of âMaggieâs Farmâ (and D&Câs first since 2016) highlighted the first set, âShakedown Streetâ appeared in a now-unusual position as the second set opener, and the closing run of âBrown Eyed Womenâ and âHell In A Bucketâ kept things moving before âThrowing Stonesâ appeared in the landing spot. Saturdayâs show featured âFranklinâs Towerâ in the liftoff spot, âFeel Like A Strangerâ as an effective first set closer, and an appearance of âAll Along The Watchtowerâ early in the second set. But the set-closing run of âWharf Ratâ, âCold Rain & Snowâ, and âU.S. Bluesâ before âMorning Dewâ in the landing spot would be the peak sequence of the night.
WEEKEND THREE â MAY 30âJUNE 1
Thursdayâs show deployed âEyes of the Worldâ in the liftoff slot, and the entire show from âDrumsâ onward became an extended tribute to basketball legend and worldâs tallest Deadhead Bill Walton, who had passed three days earlier, and included âStanding On The Moonâ, âKnockinâ On Heavenâs Doorâ, and âFire On The Mountainâ. Fridayâs show featured âNew Speedway Boogieâ, a full version of âPlaying in the Bandâ and the residencyâs sole âDonât Ease Me Inâ in the first set, while the second set contained an hour-long voyage consisting of âDark Star” > “Drums” > “Space” > “Stella Blue” > “Terrapin Stationâ. Saturdayâs show delivered Weirâs pairing of âLost Sailorâ and âSaint Of Circumstanceâ to great effect in the first set, while the second set led off with âSugareeâ and âSt. Stephenâ and later featured âScarlet Begoniasâ sandwiched in between âSugar Magnoliaâ and its âSunshine Daydreamâ coda before the âBrokedown Palaceâ landing.
âNew Minglewood Bluesâ opened the weekend four before a superbly chosen âPlaying in the Bandâ in the liftoff spot, with its arrangement and jam serving as such an ideal complement to the visuals that itâs surprising it only happened twice in 30 shows. The second set featured one of only three versions of âThe Other Oneâ played during the residency, and the show also contained four songs whose sole residency performances were on this night: âPeggy-Oâ, âHere Comes Sunshineâ, âDeath Donât Have No Mercyâ, and âJohnny B. Goodeâ.
The Friday night show featured 11 consecutive Garcia/Hunter-penned songs to start, including a âHelp on the Way” > “Slipknot!” > “Eyes of the Worldâ to close the first set, but following the âDrumsâ segment a pair of Weir/Barlow classics, in the forms of âLooks Like Rainâ and âThrowing Stonesâ, framed the Weir-sung, band-written âTruckin’â during an effective closing segment. Saturdayâs show featured the sole âWest L.A. Fadeawayâ of the residency and a distinctive pre-âDrumsâ run of âLet The Good Times Rollâ, an unusually placed version of âSugar Magnoliaâ (minus its âSunshine Daydreamâ coda), âAltheaâ, and âTerrapin Stationâ. âDealâ was the late-set highlight before âKnockinâ on Heavenâs Doorâ accompanied the landing visual.
âAlabama Getawayâ launched the opening night of weekend five before âTruckinââ served as the liftoff song. After another powerhouse version of âAltheaâ closed the opening set, the band steered âScarlet Begoniasâ into âFranklinâs Towerâ and âDear Mr. Fantasyâ/âHey Judeâ before âDrumsâ, which led to the D&C debut and sole residency performance of Bob Dylanâs 1985 song âIâll Remember Youâ.
Fridayâs show featured the residencyâs sole âBlack Throated Windâ in the first set, while the second set yielded one of the best start-to-finish setlists one could hope for, highlighted by a six-song pre-“Drums” segment of âShakedown Street”, âHelp on the Way” > “Slipknot!” > âCold Rain & Snowâ, the residencyâs sole âChina Dollâ, and âTerrapin Stationâ. Saturdayâs show started with an effective trio of âI Need A Miracleâ, âEyes of the Worldâ, and âDancing in the Streetâ, but the showâs peak came from the closing segment of âThe Days Betweenâ, âViola Lee Bluesâ, and âU.S. Bluesâ preceding the sole occasion where âDark Starâ appeared in the landing spot.
Thursdayâs first set featured the sole âDire Wolfâ of the residency and the first D&C version of âGreatest Story Ever Toldâ in five years before an epic âSugareeâ set closer. On paper the second set looked like it could have been a Grateful Dead set from late 1982, but in an ever-so-slightly different sequence: âChina Cat Sunflower” > “I Know You Riderâ, âHeâs Gone” > “The Other One” > “Drums” > “Space” > “The Wheel” > “Franklinâs Towerâ, âU.S. Bluesâ, âThrowing Stonesâ, and âTurn on Your Lovelightâ.
Fridayâs show contained the sole âEasy Windâ of the residency and a surprise version of âThe Weightâ in the first set, right before âLost Sailorâ and âSaint of Circumstanceâ. The second set consisted solely of Garcia/Hunter songs, including âScarlet Begonias” > “Fire on the Mountainâ into âDrumsâ, âEyes of the Worldâ in the landing spot for the first and only time during the residency, and a âTouch of Greyâ encore. Saturdayâs first set contained the residencyâs sole performance of Bob Dylanâs âWhen I Paint My Masterpieceâ, while the second set was highlighted by an early-set recreation of the âSt. Stephen” > “Morning Dewâ pairing made famous by the Grateful Deadâs show at Cornell Universityâs Barton Hall in 1977.
Dead Foreverâs 2024 Independence Day show started appropriately with the sole âLibertyâ of the residency, along with the expected versions of âJack Strawâ and âU.S. Bluesâ. Other first set highlights came from âFeel Like A Strangerâ and closer âAltheaâ, while the pre-âDrumsâ segment featured extensive jams inside each of âScarlet Begoniasâ, âSt. Stephenâ, and âHelp on the Way” > “Slipknot!â.
Fridayâs show featured one of the residencyâs best start-to-finish setlists, including its sole performance of âNext Time You See Meâ preceding âCassidyâ and âDealâ to close the first set, and a second set pre-âDrumsâ of âChina Cat Sunflower” > “I Know You Riderâ and âPlaying in the Band” > “Dark Starâ. Saturdayâs first set contained the residencyâs sole âBig Railroad Bluesâ and âOne More Saturday Nightâ as the closer, while the second set started with a distinctive pairing of âGreatest Story Ever Toldâ and âMr. Charlie.â Later, the extended closing sequence of âUncle Johnâs Bandâ, âCumberland Bluesâ, and âHell in a Bucketâ preceded a âMorning Dewâ during the landing visual before âSugar Magnoliaâ got a rare turn in the encore slot.
WEEKEND EIGHT â JULY 11â13
Thursdayâs show contained a winning three-song sequence of âThey Love Each Otherâ, âBird Songâ, and âCasey Jonesâ in the first set. After the intermission, âDark Starâ preceded âDrumsâ and âSpaceâ before a âlate-’80s Deadâ trio of songsââStanding on the Moon” > “Dear Mr. Fantasy” > “Hey Judeâ before the timeless âTruckinââ.
Fridayâs show featured âCrazy Fingersâ and âShip Of Foolsâ in the first set, while the second set was anchored by a strong pairing of âEstimated Prophet” > “Terrapin Stationâ and the residencyâs sole version of Bob Dylanâs âA Hard Rainâs Gonna Fallâ. Saturdayâs show started with a bang when the band opened with the residencyâs sole version of Wilson Pickettâs âMidnight Hourâ, which was also the bandâs first since New Yearâs Eve 2019. âOne More Saturday Nightâ launched the second set, and later the Dead & Company debut and sole residency performance of Bob Dylanâs âItâs All Over Now, Baby Blueâ preceded âBerthaâ and âSugar Magnoliaâ.
The first set of Dead & Companyâs first-ever show on the late Jerry Garciaâs birthday was not only highlighted by John Mayer demonstrating he could still play alarmingly well without use of his fretboard hand’s index finger, but also by the D&C debuts of Marvin Gaye‘s âHow Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)â (a longtime staple of the Jerry Garcia Band repertoire) and âLazy River Roadâ. The two-hour second set featured a long, complex âPlaying in the Bandâ that led directly to âDrumsâ, and the closing run of âHeâs Gone” > “Truckinâ” > “Knockinâ On Heavenâs Doorâ and âNot Fade Awayâ was the clear tribute to the Grateful Dead band leader.
Fridayâs show was anchored by a 75-minute pre-âDrumsâ segment consisting of just four songs: âDark Star” > “Estimated Prophet” > “Eyes of the World” > “St. Stephenâ, while Saturdayâs second set consisted almost entirely of songs considered to be among the best Garcia/Hunter copyrights: âScarlet Begonias” > “Fire On The Mountainâ, âTerrapin Stationâ, âDays Betweenâ, âBrown Eyed Womenâ, âU.S. Bluesâ, and âRippleâ. Only Bonnie Dobsonâs set-closer âMorning Dewâ was a cover, but even then, the Grateful Deadâs slower, epic arrangement remains the best-known version of the song.
John Mayer played five of the final weekendâs six sets with nine fingers, with Thursdayâs first set highlighted by âEyes of The Worldâ, âPlaying in the Bandâ, and âLet It Growâ. The second set launched with the residencyâs sole version of âPassengerâ (and D&Câs first since 2018) before âSt. Stephenâ and âUncle Johnâs Bandâ. Fridayâs set first only contained five songs but still ran almost an hour, complete with a strong âCassidyâ opener and âTruckinâ in the liftoff slot. The second set sandwiched âEl Pasoâ between the two verses of âDark Starâ before âScarlet Begonias” > âFire on the Mountainâ, with âDear Prudenceâ providing the late-show highlight.
Saturdayâs show, the 30th and final of the residency, kicked off with the long-effective pairing of âFeel Like A Strangerâ and âFranklinâs Towerâ, and later another excellent âAltheaâ to close the set. Mayer then ditched the splint and played with all ten fingers for the second set, which was highlighted by the sequence of âHelp on the Way” > “Slipknot!” > “Terrapin Stationâ. As a departing gesture, the band added âRippleâ as a second encore before the screen displayed the names of 170 people involved in the Dead Forever production instead of the usual âsteel doors closingâ video.
Dead & Companyâs Dead Forever residency resumes in 2025 with 18 shows from March 20th through May 17th at Sphere Las Vegas. Get tickets here.
