It was a perfect Michigan August weekend in Lake Orion - sunny with temperatures in the low 80s, tons of kind people, and sweet music from the greatest American band of all time.  Celebrating the days between Jerry's birth and release from this world, we played 4 sets of music - over 5 hours - without repeating a song.  

During those 5 hours, we touched upon every corner of the Dead catalog - from the psychedelic 60s (Dark Star, The Other One) through the wall-of-sound 70s (Help On The Way, Weather Report Suite, Jack Straw), into the shakedown lot 80s (Lost Sailor>Saint of Circumstance,Touch of Gray), and the best of the stadium scene 90s (Liberty, So Many Roads).  We covered early rock and roll (Promised Land), cowboy country (Big River, Me and My Uncle), and let the moment carry us away with a ton of sprawling jams (Slipknot, Let It Grow, Bird Song, to name just a few).  In short, it was everything a Deadhead could want from a pair of  shows - everything except more! 

Playing two days in a row (with a third to come on Monday), we became experts at setting up our sound system, and spoke wishfully about the day when we might have a road crew to do it for us!  In other gear news, Max was excited to debut his new Fender Rhodes Mark I Stage 73 for the gig, and the sound was as heavy as the piano itself.  

While Raising The Dead is still searching for our "forever drummer," we are fortunate to have been joined this weekend by two of the mitten's best tub thumpers.  Brent Nagy held down the beat with style and precision on Saturday, and Stephen NyQuist brought the rolling thunder on Sunday.  We are so grateful for their musicianship and professionalism!

Last year's Hippies at the Village was where we first met many of our biggest fans, and we're excited to have made many more this weekend.  Big thanks go out to the Hippies at the Village founder and organizer, Tina Wooley.  As we pack up our gear, we are ready to head off to Comerica Park, playing for the Detroit Tiger's Grateful Dead Night on Monday, August 5th. 

August 3, 2019 Hippies at the Village, Canterbury Village, Lake Orion, MI
Set I: Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo, Me and My Uncle, Shakedown Street, Black-Throated Wind, Sugaree, So Many Roads, Cassidy, The Wheel, Scarlet Begonias>Fire On The Mountain
Set II: One More Saturday Night, Help ON The Way>Slipknot>Franklin's Tower, Weather Report>Let It Grow, Big River, Jack Straw, Terrapin Station, Truckin'

August 4, 2019 Hippies at the Village, Canterbury Village, Lake Orion, MI
Set I: Feel Like a Stranger, Playin' in the Band>Uncle John's Band, Promised Land, Brown-Eyed Women, China Cat Sunflower>I Know You Rider, Touch of Grey, Lost Sailor>Saint of Circumstance, Bird Song, Liberty
Set II: Unbroken Chain, Estimated Prophet>Eyes of the World>Dark Star>St. Stephen>The Eleven>Candyman, Drums>The Other One>Playin' reprise

Raising The Dead will be playing the official Detroit Tigers Grateful Dead night on Monday, August 5! The show beings at 5:30 until 6:30, and the game is at 7:10. Best of all, if you purchase your ticket via this link, you also get the Detroit Tigers Grateful Dead tye-dye t-shirt! We can't wait to rock out at Comerica park - see you there!

​UPDATE: the ticket link says "sold out" but that refers to the T-shirts ONLY. Get a regular game ticket, and you can still come to see the show at 5:30. Sorry, we didn't know they would sell out so soon! Here's the link for tickets! https://bit.ly/2MpFVD3

What a cool event! Hundreds of people, dozens of vendors, live glass blowing, an awesome stage and live music - all to benefit arts education. When we arrived to perform our 8:30-10pm set, Sam Grisman (son of David Grisman) was performing with his band, and the scene was like a big shakedown - tents with tons of vendors as well as those inside, and an amazing array of art to browse and purchase. We were really excited to see the awesome stage and sound crew, because we love when we can rely on pros to make sure the show sounds great.

Unfortunately, just as we loaded the stage, a storm was about to bear down on us and we tarped our gear and waited. As luck would have it, the storm flew all around us, but we didn't feel a drop! We took the stage about an hour late and delivered a slightly shorter-but no less psychedelic-set of Grateful jams. Aided by Stephen NyQuist on drums and vocals, we tore through Stranger, took a breath, then unleashed Estimated Prophet>Eyes of the World (with coda)>Playin' in the Band>Liberty. Each featured some fantastic improvisation, and Liberty showed off sparkling 3-part harmonies. We ended the night with two of our favorite pairings, Lost Sailor>Saint of Circumstance, and Weather Report>Let It Grow. We had planned to end with Me and My Uncle and Terrapin, but the late start caused us to end things early.

It was a great night for a great cause, and we hope to return next year to do it again! 

7-16-2019 Michigan Glass Project, Russell Industrial Center, Detroit, MI
Feel Like a Stranger, Estimated Prophet>Eyes of the World>Playin' In The Band*>Liberty**, Lost Sailor>Saint of Circumstance, Weather Report>Let It Grow
*=unfinished
**=first time played

Photos by Mike Chojnowski and Dave Martin

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Wave that flag!  On a hot and steamy July 3rd, Raising The Dead took to a (thankfully) tented red white and blue stage at the Gibraltar Fair and laid down two sets of groovin' Grateful Dead.  We swapped hour-long sets with Full Speed Ahead, a double-guitar, double-keyboard, yacht rock powerhouse featuring some incredible players and singers.  Full Speed Ahead is our Bass player/lead singer Bill Butler's "other" band, so he held down the low end all night long. 

This summer has been a great one for us so far, and the shows seem to keep getting better and better. A big part of this is thanks to the fresh energy of the drummers we've had sit in: T.W. Coleman (at the Psychedelic Shack), Nick Serocki (who played at Trixie's), Brent Nagy (The Watermark), and now Stephen NyQuist.  Stephen is known as the long-time drummer for the Saginaw band Sprout and the Orange. He took over the Kreutzman seat with expertise and gusto in Gibraltar, and showed off his groove mastery as well as his excellent voice.  We were jazzed to play with him, and look forward to having him join us again soon. 

On to the show: Shakedown was energetic and fun, Row Jimmy featured a cool calypso breakdown at the end, and we played our best rendition of the epic Unbroken Chain yet.  The Wheel showcased our 3 part harmonies, and gave way to a great Terrapin.  We ended our first set with  an irresistible melody for even the non-deadheads in the crowd, the Dead's biggest hit, Touch of Gray,

The second set was filled with high energy rockers.  Sugar Magnolia was quick and intense, Jack Straw came on like a freight train, and the Cryptical>Other One>Cryptical sandwich satisfied with an intense jam.  We shifted into crowd favorite Truckin, and brought the blues hard.  Uncle John's Band showcased some of our best harmony ever, and the jumpy jam got pretty (as in pretty far out) before returning to the song.  We finished our time with a up-tempo China Cat>I Know You Rider, and left the crowd wanting more.

We're taking next week off from performing, but Raising The Dead will rise again at the Michigan Glass Project on July 19.  See you there! 
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7-3-2019 Gibraltar Fair, Gibraltar, Michigan
I: Shakedown Street, Row Jimmy, Unbroken Chain, The Wheel>Terrapin Station>Touch of Gray
II: Sugar Magnolia, Jack Straw, Cryptical Envelopment>The Other One>Cryptical Envelopment>Truckin>Uncle John's Band, China Cat Sunflower>I Know You Rider 
First show with drummer Stephen NyQuist

Raising The Dead returned to the Watermark in St. Clair Shores for our first show on their dock, and it was a long, crazy, crazy night!  We played 3 sets of music from 8 to midnight, and spiced our show with some of the Dead's most challenging and fun-to-play songs along with a healthy heap of exploratory improvisation.  We were excited to see so many of our most faithful fans there - including Sydne, Stephanie, Erik, Michael - and their energy and excitement helped propel us through our set.  We were also joined by the excellent drummer and human being Brent Nagy for this gig, and he laid down a fat and funky groove all night long. 

Set I started with the crowd pleasers Black Throated Wind, Brown Eyed Women, and Row Jimmy, got some 2-step action with Jack-A-Roe.  Brent helped fill in the third harmony with The Wheel and So Many Roads, and Cassidy closed the set with an exploratory jam that made our intentions for the evening clear.  After a short break, we retook the stage with a rockin' Jack Straw, followed by one of our current favorite compositions, Unbroken Chain.  Big River was our funky mid-set reset, and then we really let it go with Weather Report>Let It Grow, which featured some crazy Moog-on-Strat action.  Dave almost forgot to play Touch of Gray, which seems... Appropriate? 

It was the third set that really showcased our improv skills, as we navigated some of the Dead's best vehicles for getting "there."  Help>Slip>Frank, a 18-minute Dark Star, the Raising The Dead debut of Estimated Prophet, and a beautiful Eyes of the World that melted into Uncle John's Band all featured some of our best playing yet.  We topped the cake with the perfect pair of pairs, Sailor>Saint and Scarlet>Fire.  As the evening drew to a close, we wiped the fish flies from our equipment and packed up satisfied in a gig well done.  Thanks to everyone who came out and danced on the dock.  We'll be back Labor Day weekend to do it again!  In the mean time, come to Gibraltar on July 3rd to wave that flag and enjoy the fireworks both on stage and after dark.

6-27-2019 Watermark Bar & Grille, St. Clair Shores, MI

I: Black Throated Wind, Brown Eyed Women, Row Jimmy, Jack-A-Roe, The Wheel, So Many Roads*, Cassidy
II: Jack Straw, Unbroken Chain, Big River, Weather Report Suite>Let It Grow, Touch of Grey
III: Help On The Way>Slipknot>Franklin's Tower, Dark Star, Estimated Prophet*>Eyes of the World>Uncle John's Band, Lost Sailor>Saint of Circumstance, Scarlet Begonias>Fire On The Mountain
*=First time played

Photos: Sydne Kasle and Michael Chojnowski

On a beautiful summer solstice, Raising The Dead returned to Trixie's in Hamtramck for an evening of Grateful favorites. We were joined again by Nick Serocki, who most Detroit Deadheads recognize as 1/2 of the drum duo from Deadicated. The show was attended by some of our favorite frequent flyer fans including Sydne, Stephanie, and John.

Together, we worked our way through an 80-minute first set, with standout versions of Sugaree, Looks Like Rain, and Terrapin Station. Set 2 always includes fewer songs than we plan - because once the jams take over, playing the song we're on takes precedence over playing the song we planned to do next. Still, we laid down a big Shakedown, gave the Mississippi solos their due, and spaced out a pretty Bird Song. The highlight of the set is a energetic, drum and bass fueled Playin' in the Band - if you listen to just one song, that's the one.

We hope to return to Trixie's soon, but in the mean time, our summer concerts continue this week at The Watermark in St. Clair Shores. We hope to see you there!

6/21/2019 Trixie's Bar, Hamtramck, MI

I: Bertha, Althea, Dire Worf, Sugaree, Scarlet Begonias>Fire On The Mountain, Looks Like Rain, Brown Eyed Women, Terrapin Station
II: Shakedown Street, Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo, Goin' Down the Road Feelin' Bad>Bird Song, U.S. Blues, Me and My Uncle, Playin' In The Band, Deal

We're playing out a lot this summer, come dance with us! RSVP on facebook page. 

Hippies, hipsters, psychedelic art, vegan cuisine, a treehouse, kids, cats, dogs, and a goat - this was the scene at the Psychedelic Healing Shack and Vegetarian Cafe last night when Raising The Dead setup for a house-party to remember.  

The music started at 9pm, with a country-western flavored selection of Grateful favorites, punctuated by an energetic Sugar Magnolia.  We approached halftime with Uncle John's Band, and set expectations for the rest of the night with a 10 min jam that had attendees howling with joy.  

After a short break, we played what we'd planned for one hour and fifteen minutes over the next one hour and FIFTY minutes.  Shakedown was hot and funky, Bird Song got lost in some pretty exploration, Half-Step and Promised Land rocked, and Wharf Rat made its first appearance in an RTD show (after having been cut from the end of setlists 3 times!)  The final stretch featured Eyes of the World, with the Dead's signature composed Coda, including the 7/8 riff that seems to come out of nowhere (and blew superfan Sydne's mind).  Eyes gave way to Playin, which evolved into a crazy drums/space featuring an impromptu percussion appearance by Joeseph from the People Movers Band.  Space gave way to The Wheel, that turned round to a precise and epic Terrapin Station.  The set ended with a segue back to Playin' and a rockin' US Blues to end the night. 

The band was joined by guest Drummer TW Coleman, who was the original drummer for RTD.  Thanks everyone, for a real good time!

Set I: Touch of Grey, Sugaree, Mama Tried, Brown Eyed Women, El Paso, Looks Like Rain, Me and My Uncle, Row Jimmy*, Sugar Magnolia, Uncle John's Band
Set II: Shakedown Street, Bird Song, Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo, Promised Land, Wharf Rat* > Eyes of the World > Playin in the Band > Drums > Space > The Wheel > Terrapin Station > Playin reprise, U S. Blues
*first time played

Photos: Sydne Kasle

Due to a last-minute change, Raising The Dead will not appear at Trixie's in Hamtramck on Friday, May 24 - instead we'll be at the Psychedelic Healing Shack and Vegetarian Cafe at 18700 Woodward Ave., Detroit.  We will still play from 9-midnight, and there will be a $5 cover charge (door starts at 8).  A full menu of vegetarian items will be offered and of course, we'll be serving some of the greatest music ever written!  We hope you'll join us for a fun evening!  We will return to Trixie's on Friday, June 21st.