Our first audience-attended gig since the COVID crisis began was a great one.  The Tangent Gallery hosted us on their elevated stage, fans kept their distance, the venue staff provided masked service with a smile (we're pretty sure), and the jams flowed from the stage like honey.  It was so great to elbow-bump fans we've not seen for months, and deliver a 3-and-a-half-hour performance worthy of the day before Jerry's birthday.  

The first set featured a fine medley of Bertha into a psychedelic 69-style Good Lovin', which gave way to a pretty Wheel and an intense Unbroken Chain.  Joe led our debut of To Lay Me Down, followed by an out-there Cassidy, a funky Cumberland, and a rockin' Other One.  We were ready to take a break, but got to do one more, and laid down with the Dire Wolf. 

After a great acoustic set from Kyle, we retook the stage for a two hour second set!  Picasso Moon kicked us off, and we inserted Shakedown into the China>Rider sandwich.  Dark Star received its own filling, with our debut of Pride of Cucamonga.  Throwing Stones ended with Drums, and morphed into our first Brent Mydland tune ever - Blow Away.  It's a good guess that the Dead never played that song as long as we did.  We ended the set with Brown Eyed Women, and encored with Not Fade Away and Brokedown Palace. 

It was so good to see our friends and fans and make some physically present booties shake after all these months.  We'll return with two live-streamed shows from Otus Supply - Thursday, August 6 will be Matt Cole and Friends playing Jerry Garcia Band, and Thursday, August 13 will see the return of Raising The Dead to the Otus stream.  

I: Bertha > Good Lovin'* > The Wheel > Unbroken Chain, To Lay Me Down*, Cassidy, Cumberland Blues*, The Other One, Dire Wolf
II: Picasso Moon, China Cat Sunflower > Shakedown Street > I Know You Rider > Dark Star > Pride of Cucamonga* > Dark Star > Throwing Stones > Drums > Blow Away*, Brown Eyed Women
E: Not Fade Away, Brokedown Palace
* = First time played

Who do you know that needs to see this?  We are booking summer and fall dates now!

Last night, Raising The Dead accepted an invitation from Otus Supply to perform in the Parliment room to a crowd of... almost nobody!  While the venue (and restaurant) is not open for business right now, they are launching a series of performances captured by a 5-camera outfit and streamed live to Facebook.  Last night, we took the stage and performed a live show of killer Dead.  Online tips were accepted, (paypal.me/djmmmartin) and hundreds of shares and comments, and thousands of views prove we made some new fans, and got a chance to play for some veteran RTDeadheads. The band was in top form, the video and audio production were pro, and we're proud to share the result for you to see now. Enjoy!

6-18-2020 Otus Supply, Ferndale, MI

I: Jack Straw, Victim or the Crime, Ramble On Rose*, El Paso, They Love Each Other*, Looks Like Rain, Scarlet Begonias>The Eleven>Fire On The Mountain
II: Lost Sailor>Saint of Circumstance, China Doll*, Estimated Prophet>Eyes of the World>Weather Report>Let It Grow, Morning Dew*, The Music Never Stopped, I Shall Be Released
E: Feel Like A Stranger#>Franklin's Tower#, Samson and Delilah#, Althea#

*=First Time Played
#=Not on webcast

Raising The Dead will once again take the stage at Otus Supply in Ferndale, playing for a 5-camera live virtual concert, streaming on Facebook.  We'll be joined remotely by Dead biographer and Tales From The Golden Road host David Gans, who will perform from 7-8pm.  RTD takes the stage at 8 and will play a long set of live Dead.  All tips collected during this free event will benefit workers at Otus Supply. Join us!

RTD 2.0 played our second half of our East Side takeover at the Watermark Bar and Grill.  Having torn down the Cadieux Cafe the night before, we were ready to lay a second night of gooey Grateful goodness on our fans.  

The evening (birthday-eve for our super fan Stephanie, with cake for everyone) began at 8 with Althea, featuring tasty licks and vocals from our new man on stage right, Matt Cole.  Bill took over vocals for Black-Throated Wind, handed them back to Matt for a beautiful So Many Roads, and Dave took us to the Promised Land to end the short, lower-volume set. 

The second set began with Sugaree, and featured the first medley of the evening, Dear Prudence into The Wheel into Unbroken Chain.  After we'd finished, we'd played about 90 minutes of music, which was just 10 minutes short of what we'd play in the epic third set. 

A "sandwich of sandwiches" set, we played Truckin' and He's Gone inside The Other One, which was, of course, inside Crpytical Envelopment.  But rather than stop for a breather, we took it furthur into Eyes of the World, played with the 73 ending (as we always do!).  Eyes melted into ANOTHER sandwich, built around Playin'.  We were so giddy with excitement in Shakedown, we teased both Stayin' Alive and Another One Bites The Dust - both un-rehearsed and un-planned.  Another segue into Uncle John's Band brought us back home to the end of Playin'.  We ended the evening with OMSN, because it was.  

This two show run has shown us the potential our new lineup has to present sparkling 4-part harmonies, dig deep into improvisation, and present composed songs with expertise and an element of surprise.  We can't wait to see what we get into next - and we're glad you're on the bus with us.  Until next time!

2-29-2020 Watermark Bar and Grill, St. Clair Shores, MI
I: Althea, Black-Throated Wind, Row Jimmy, So Many Roads, Promised Land
II: Sugaree, Dear Prudence>The Wheel>Unbroken Chain
III: Cryptical Envelopment>The Other One>Truckin'>He's Gone>The Other One>Cryptical Envelopment>Eyes of the World> Playin' In The Band>Shakedown Street*>Uncle John's Band>Playin' In The Band
E: One More Saturday Night
* Stayin' Alive and Another One Bites The Dust teased

It was an auspicious debut for Raising The Dead 2.0.  The new crew, featuring original members Bill Butler, Max Katz, and Dave Martin were joined by Detroit jam band veterans Matt Cole (formerly of Deadicated) and Joseph Waldecker (formerly of People Movers).  This supergroup weaved its way through two sets of jam-filled goodness, including a 35-minute Liberty>Scarlet>Fire, and a second set Dark Star>St. Stephen>The Eleven>Drums>Samson that went EVERYWEIR. A hundred or so of our friends came along for the ride, and the reviews were unanimous. 

One strength of our new lineup is the ability to feature 4 lead singers.  In the first set alone, we shifted the lead around the band constantly: Dave (Stranger), Bill (Candyman), Matt (Dire Wolf), Joe (Mission), Bill (LL Rain), Matt (Liberty), Scarlet (Dave & Matt), and Fire (Joe).  The harmonies really shined on Candyman, Dire Wolf, Fire, Samson, and Franklin's Tower.  

It's hard to pick a favorite moment of the show, so we won't - the entire show will be published here soon.  But first, join us at The Watermark in St. Clair Shores tonight (February 29) as we complete our leap weekend East side shakedown with a totally different show.  More gigs will be announced very soon!

Cadieux Cafe, Detroit, MI 2/28/2020
I: Feel Like A Stranger, Candyman, Dire Wolf, Mission in the Rain, Looks Like Rain, Liberty>Scarlet Begonias>Fire On The Mountain
II: The Music Never Stopped>Dark Star>St. Stephen>The Eleven>Drums>Samson and Delilah, Help On The Way>Slipknot!>Franklin's Tower, Bird Song, Don't Ease Me In
E: Bertha

These Men in Black will be stealing your face very soon - coming to the Cadieux Cafe on February 28, the Watermark Cafe on February 29 - and lots more to come! Save the date for these soon-to-be-announced shows - March 27, April 4, April 20, and May 9. We can't wait to show off what this new cocktail of musicians has mixed up for you!

With Matt and Joseph on board, Raising The Dead are eager to share what we've been working on in rehearsal, preparing for our gigs at the Cadieux Cafe and The Watermark in February.  We set up a few cameras and made a crispy board recording in our rehearsal studio, and here's the result: 33 minutes of live Dead to melt your face.  Enjoy, and we'll see you soon.

2019 was an exceptional year for Raising The Dead.  With the dawning of the new decade comes change, and we are excited for what the future holds. The announcements for our group today are threefold: 

First, our brother and lead guitarist Jake Vasquez has chosen to move on from our group to pursue new musical adventures. We wish him all the best, and can’t wait to see him on metro Detroit stages for many years to come! 

Second, after an entire year of searching and with invaluable help from fantastic drummers Stephen NyQuist, Brent Nagy, Nick Serocki, and TW Coleman, we are thrilled to announce our new drummer, Joseph Waldecker.  Most recently, Joseph made a name for himself playing with Michigan bands including Feral Ground, People Movers, and Nina and the Buffalo Riders.  He comes to RTD knowing almost every tune we play (and there's a lot!) and taking to new material with confidence and swagger.  One rehearsal was all it took to know he was "the guy!" 

​Third, our new lead guitarist will be none other than the one and only Matthew Cole!  Matt has been working his Cosica guitar and enviable top-notch Jerry rig with Deadicated, and after a hiatus is ready to rock again.  Matt brings with him a deep knowledge of Master Garcia's every twist and turn of melody.  Close your eyes and you might forget it isn't 1977 again!

As always, Bill, Max, and Dave are ready to rock, and can't wait to see the places we'll take our new ensemble.  Thanks for joining us on the bus.  No matter where we end up, at least we're enjoying the ride!

This new lineup will debut at the Cadieux Cafe on February 28, and continue at the Watermark on February 29. We hope to see you there!