The gig was scheduled, and it kind of started as a joke in the band group chat.  Joe was still on tour with Nina & The Buffalo Riders in New Orleans.  He'd just fly in, right?  Well, we decided to make it happen after all, especially because the gig was on the 1 year anniversary of the passing of Joe's dad, affectionately known as Pops.  And then we invited Joe's brother and fellow former People Mover guitar man James Waldecker to join us on stage.  The result was some excellent Dead-flavored rock and roll.  Check out the St. Stephen Special - sandwiching Not Fade Away and Ramble On Rose into the Stephen>William Tell>Eleven triptych. 

The live stream was hosted by TheFunkShop.com, and is available for streaming still.  While the in-person audience was only 10, the show had almost 2k live views and over 450 comments, and we're loving the size of the audience we're finding online.  Stay tuned for summer gig announcements, coming soon!  We can't wait to see y'all in person. 

Oh, and one more thing - Max has sat out the last couple of gigs, but no worries, he'll be back this summer!

Otus Supply 3.25.2021
Cold Rain & Snow, Saint of Circumstance>Looks Like Rain, Brown Eyed Women, Cassidy*, Deep Elum Blues*, St. Stephen*> Not Fade Away*> St. Stephen*> William Tell Bridge*> Ramble on Rose*> The Eleven*> Morning Dew*
E: Touch of Grey
* w/ James Waldecker on guitar

The news was exciting - Joe was going to be back in town, and we had the opportunity to do a live-streamed gig at our favorite venue for Valentine's Day!  While the whole band wasn't available, Bill, Matt, and Dave were, and we set out to do something special, with help from Otus Supply owners Thom and Yorg.  So on Saturday, February 13, the RTD Quartet met at The Parliament Room at Otus Supply in Ferndale to perform a stripped-down acoustic set of Dead classics.  The guest list was held to 10, we kept our masks on, and we were joined by Chris and Michael of TheFunkShop.com, engineering the sound and webcast.  We made our way through a 2-hour set of stripped down classics, marked by patient jamming and sparkling 3-part harmonies. 

By the end of the night, Facebook had registered over 2000 views, and counting. Here's the setlist, give it watch if you missed it! 

2-13-2021 Raising The Dead Quartet Otus Supply, Ferndale, MI 

Uncle John's Band>
Playin In The Band>
The Wheel>
Terrapin>
Estimated Prophet>
He's Gone>*
Bird Song>
Dark Star>
Wharf Rat>
Throwing Stones
Jack Straw>
Sugar Magnolia>
Ripple

Here's our entry to the yearly Dead Covers Project hosted by Dead.net.  It's our set closer I Know You Rider>Terrapin Station from the 10/1/2020 Livestream from Otus Supply in Ferndale, MI.  Give it a "thumbs up" on YouTube, and it may end up on the Dead.net curated playlist!  

Hey RTDeadheads - despite everything, 2020 was a huge year for our band of merry musical pranksters.  Matt Cole, Joe Waldecker, and Laurie Lester all joined the band.  We played 5 times at Otus supply, live streaming 4 of them, did a set of hits at The Beats Go On in Royal Oak, returned to The Cadieux Cafe and Watermark, and played our first gig at the Tangent Gallery.  Each of the band members has selected a favorite song or sequence from 2020 to share with you once more.  Enjoy these performances until we meet again in 2021.

Bill Butler’s choice for his favorite moment of 2020 comes from our October 17 “Raising Jerry” show, which featured mostly songs from the Jerry Garcia Band repertoire.  In the second set, we played the Hunter/Garcia penned “Gomorroah.”  Listen carefully at the conclusion of the vocal, and you’ll hear the chord changes shift, as the band crescendos into a Joe Cocker style chorus of The Beatles’ “With A Little Help From My Friends.” 

Laurie Lester joined the band in the spring, but her favorite live moment of the year was on the October 1st Otus Supply live streamed show.  The sumptuous series of segues has something for every Deadhead:  Bird Song>The Music Never Stopped>Eyes of the World>I Know You Rider>Terrapin Station. 

Dave Martin’s favorite moment on stage in 2020 was on October 17 at Otus Supply, performing My Sisters and Brothers>Tangled Up In Blue.  As soon as the song began out of the Mississippi Half Step tag, the feeling in the room shifted and everyone began to dance.  It was an amazing feeling - and when the song segued into the Dylan classic, the energy jumped yet another level. 

Max Katz’s choice for the best of 2020 is the Crazy Fingers>Uncle John’s Band from our outdoor Cadieux Cafe performance on September 19, just as a chilly fall weather began to set in.  This was our first time tackling Crazy Fingers, a harmonically challenging tune that led to some great soloing and an energetic climax and a seamless segue into UJB.  The jam in Uncle John goes into deep space and returns triumphantly. 
​

Joe Waldecker chose a moment from our very first show of 2020, February 28 at The Cadieux Cafe.  Here’s what he has to say about that gig: “It was hard to pick just one moment of this year but I'm going to go back to the very beginning for this choice. I'm going with the first set closer segue of Liberty>Scarlet>Fire from my first gig with RTD. Truth be told, it took multiple people reaching out several times before I was willing to try and play this music again. I probably hadn't played a Dead tune since September and hadn't picked up a pair of sticks since November. I just wasn't sure that I wanted to play music anymore, but Dave and Sydne and Laurie and the rest of gang were quite persistent. I agreed to try out and got the gig! I was anxious to play, as you can tell by some of these tempos, but it was pretty tight. I remember looking out at all of these familiar faces and falling in love with playing live music all over again. Liberty was a nice way to kick this off and find our groove. Scarlet was bouncy, really a lot of fun the whole way through. The jam into Fire was a hoot, as we were really starting to figure out each others playing in real time. FOTM has always meant a lot to me, and to get to play and sing it again infront of my friends (old and new) and family was bringing me close to tears. Laurie isn't on stage for this one, but she is in the building smiling back at us. What a Night!”

One more Halloween night, the Otus tent was filled with the Greatest of the Grateful.  As costumed revelers twirled between the vibrations, Raising The Dead spun another web of sonic bliss, this time with a strong Halloween theme: Werewolves, Hell in a Bucket, Candyman.  We debuted our first Phish tune, Wolfman's Brother, and gave our first performances of Bucket and the Laurie-led anthem presciently written for 2020: New Speedway Boogie ("This darkness got to give!").  Stephen NyQuist once again joined us on the Waldecker throne, to much acclaim.  We must get those two on the same stage, someday...

Asked for a show review, RTD superfan Sydne Kasle says: "Thom Bloom knows how to throw a party. The chill to the air was hardly a concern with the hot melty jams coming from inside the tent. The vocals were sublime. And the band played on!"

10-31-20 Otus Supply Ferndale, MI
I: Werewolves of London, Hell in a Bucket*, Candyman, Cassidy, Shakedown Street > Good Lovin', Althea, Picasso Moon
II: Pride of Cucamonga, Lost Sailor > Estimated Prophet > Crazy Fingers > The Other One > The Eleven > New Speedway Boogie* > Saint of Circumstance, Wolfman's Brother*
E: Bertha, Feel Like a Stranger, Franklin's Tower
*1st time played

We were prepared for a chilly October evening - layers of clothing, fingerless gloves, and hats - but despite temps in the low 50s, the tent at Otus Supply in Ferndale was cozy and comfy - and perfect for an evening of "Raising Jerry." We had prepared an evening of music consisting mostly of Jerry Garcia Band songs, and had an awesome time sharing it with our socially-distanced capacity crowd.

We were joined by frequent RTD guest drummer Stephen NyQuist, who held down the upstage throne with skill and style. He'll be with us for our shows at Tangent Gallery on October 30 and back at Otus on Halloween. For the first time, Dave played acoustic guitar with the band, adding a rhythm guitar to material Jerry mostly played without one. Lead vocals were swapped among Dave, Matt, Bill, and Stephen, and Laurie led the sparkling harmonies that RTD is becoming known for.

The show was live-streamed by the outstanding Restream team, and resident Otus sound engineer Chris made sure the sound was crisp and clear for the musicians (all wearing in-ear monitors), the audience, and the online streamers.

We're sorry to see the weather start to change and the relative safety of outdoor shows start to go away, but we're not quite done yet. See you Halloween weekend!

10-17-2020 "Raising Jerry" Otus Supply, Ferndale, MI
I: The Way You Do The Things You Do*, They Love Each Other, Mission in the Rain, Cumberland Blues, Uncle John's Band, Everybody Needs Somebody*
II: Catfish John*, Gomorrah+, Keep Your Day Job, Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo>My Sisters and Brothers*, Tangled Up In Blue*, Touch of Grey, Ripple
E: Iko Iko
*=first time played
+=with With A Little Help From My Friends tag

This October, we are taking advantage of the outdoor venues offering heaters and tents to keep audiences and the band warm, while providing the relative safety of outdoor gathering.  Bring your masks and your dancing shoes!  For each of these shows, we'll be joined by one of our favorite people, drummer Stephen NyQuist.  We'll see you then!

• October 17: Otus Supply, 345 E. 9 Mile, Ferndale, outdoor tent - A Very Special Evening "Raising Jerry" with members of Raising The Dead 7:30pm, free, table reservations accepted. 
• UPDATE: RTD Will not play 10/30, the show will feature Royal Grand instead. October 30: Tangent Gallery and Hastings Street Ballroom, 715 Milwaukee St., Detroit, outdoor show - Royal Grand and special guest Pajamas.  Show starts at 8pm, $5 cover. 
• October 31: Otus Supply, 345 E. 9 Mile, Ferndale, outdoor tent - a Halloween with Raising The Dead, 7:30pm, free, table reservations accepted. 

What may have been our finest show yet was live streamed at The Parliament Room at Otus Supply on October 1st.  The show was significant not just for its setlist (which featured 4 new songs for us), the 5-camera live stream (we were the band who begun Otus' live streaming series), but because it was the last show for a while for our Drummer/singer/maestro Joe Waldecker.  Joe's soon embarking on a tour with Nina & The Buffalo Riders, and we wish him well!  Fear not, Raising The Deadheads, for Joe will be back in the spring to rock Detroit stages again.  In the mean time, enjoy this awesome stream and soundboard audio (including the encore) from the gig.  As always, you can also find it on our Archive.org page. 

10-1-2020 Otus Supply, Ferndale, MI
Alabama Getaway*, China Cat Sunflower > Viola Lee Blues* > Samson & Delilah, Loser, Big River, Deep Elem Blues*, Bird Song > The Music Never Stopped > Eyes of the World > I Know You Rider > Terrapin Station, It's All Over Now, Baby Blue*
E: Help on the Way > Slipknot! > Franklin's Tower
*first time played

Raising The Dead performed at The Beats Go On in Royal Oak, MI on September 6, 2020 in this pro-shot video.  It will premiere at 8pm on 9/30/2020. 

We are excited to help raise funds for the Arts Beats & Eats Musician's Fund! If you donate to Raising The Dead via the links below, all donations will be matched by Oakland County and put towards the ABE Musician's Fund. The fund benefits professional musicians whose livelihood has been hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic shut downs and cancellations. Thanks for giving!

Paypal: Shinyheadmusic
Venmo: @ShinyheadMusic
CashApp: $Shinyhed

Raising the Dead made our first two-set show as a 6-member ensemble one to remember!  Playing the Cadieux Cafe always seems to bring out our best.  Last February we were inside, pre-COVID, and featured the debut of Matt and Joe, with an unforgettable second set featuring an intense medley of The Music Never Stopped > Dark Star > St. Stephen > The Eleven > Drums > Samson and Delilah.  This time, we debuted no less than 6 songs, took our full band improv next-level, and really showed what having 5 great singers in the band can sound like. 

The crowd was masked and distanced and ready to move. We brought 2 subwoofers to make sure Bill's new Eden amp and stack got their due.  The neighbors complained before the setbreak and we toned it down a bit, without decreasing the intensity.  Some highlights of the night: we debuted our first Laurie-led songs, the Pigpen classics Big Boss Man and Midnight Hour, Dave preached on Throwing Stones, Max worked out his Crazy Fingers, Joe led a soulful Wharf Rat, Bill sang a well-harmonized Uncle John's Band, and Matt led the out-there improv on Playin' in the Band.  

Relive the show below, with crispy soundboard audio and video, with a Healy-inspired wide mix, rhythm guitar and keys panned hard.  

Oh, two more things: Day Job isn't really Matt's favorite song, and no, you can't play Joe's drums.

9/19/2020 Cadieux Cafe  Detroit, MI

Set I
Help on the Way > Slipknot! > West LA Fadeaway* > Throwing Stones, St. Stephen, Jack-a-Roe, Big Boss Man*, Crazy Fingers* > Uncle John's Band
Set II
Day Job*, Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo > Wharf Rat > Deal, Playin' in the Band > Iko Iko* > Slipknot! > Franklin's Tower > Playin' in the Band, Midnight Hour*
Encore
Sugar Magnolia > Casey Jones > Sunshine Daydream
*first time played