On Saturday, February 16, 2019, Raising The Dead took the stage at Larkin's Bar and Grill in Westland, MI, and we brought the best American rock and roll has to offer with us.  Playing for a crowd of both appreciative regulars and expectant Deadheads, we worked through 180 minutes of jam rock bliss.  It was a special occasion, as we welcomed back our original drummer, TW Coleman, to hold the Kreutzmann seat for the evening.  He helped navigate us through a ton of double-digit jams, including Althea, Scarlet>Fire and China>Rider, and epic versions of Playin' in the Band>Uncle John's Band>Playin' In The Band and Eyes of the World.  For the first time in a RTD gig, Jake brought out his slide - catch his tasty playing in our Set III closer, The Wheel. 

Thanks to all the fans (especially the Home Shopping Network) who made it out for the gig.  Iy you missed it or want to relive it, you can check out the full-show soundboard audio below, and expect our favorite jams on our YouTube and Facebook pages soon!  

February 16, 2019 - Larkin's Bar and Grill, Westland, MI
I: US Blues, Mama Tried, Loser, Franklin's Tower, Althea, Sugaree, Scarlet Begonias>Fire On The Mountain
II: Truckin'>Jack Straw, Brown-Eyed Women, Touch of Grey, China Cat Sunflower>I Know You Rider, Playin' in the Band>Uncle John's Band>Playin' in the Band
III: Promised Land, Eyes of the World*>Shakedown Street, The Wheel
* = With Mind Left Body Jam and Eyes Coda

Join Raising The Dead as we perform at Larkin's Bar in Westland on February 16!  We'll be playing an evening of Grateful Dead, with plenty of room for shakin' your bones.  RSVP on Facebook. 

Raising the Dead was testing out some new equipment and went LIVE to Facebook from our rehearsal on January 6, 2019.  We did a short set of Grateful Dead tunes including a rockers Jack Straw and Promised Land, a spacey jam-filled Cassidy, high-energy blues tunes Deal and US Blues, and the towering composition Terrapin Station.  We plan to fill more of the days between gigs with more virtual concerts like this one.  Enjoy!

All photos by Erick Buchholz, ©photo punk 2018

On Saturday, December 15, Raising The Dead returned to the Cadieux Cafe to perform an ambitious set featuring 10 song debuts, Dagwood-sized song sandwiches, extended jams, and some of our best playing to date.  This was the first show played with Max's new Hammond organ, and you can hear it shine throughout the set. The setlist featured two signature Dead song splits - Sugar Magnolia was cut short with a segue into Big River, only to return at the end of the set with Sunshine Daydream.  After our setbreak, Playin' In The Band shifted from it's signature jam and segued unfinished into Bertha.  We picked up the end of Playin' after Eyes of the World, which featured the often unplayed Coda section of the song.  We were also excited to debut three fan favorite song segues: Weather Report>Let It Grow, Lost Sailor>Saint of Circumstance (a top contender for the night's audience favorite), and Dark Star>St. Stephen>William Tell Bridge>The Eleven.  We had even planned to debut two more songs we didn't have time to perform!  

If it's not obvious by now, we really enjoy tackling the toughest tunes in the Dead database, and we're thrilled with both the audience reaction and the musical result.  Listen for yourself below!

Cadieux Cafe 12-15-18
Set I: Touch of Gray, Mama Tried, Althea, China Cat Sunflower>I Know You Rider, Looks Like Rain, Jack-A-Roe*, Sugar Magnolia>Big River, Weather Report Suite*>Let It Grow, Don't Ease Me In*>Sunshine Daydream
Set II: Playin In The Band>Bertha, Dark Star*>St. Stephen*>The Eleven*>Candyman, Lost Sailor*>Saint of Circumstance*, Eyes of the World (with Coda*)>Playin' Reprise. 
Encore: Dear Prudence*
*=Song Debut

We've been rehearsing a lot in anticipation of our return to Cadieux Cafe.  Expect a bunch of song debuts, including some of the most iconic and beloved tunes from the Dead's catalog.  Come for the music, the scene, the dancing, the vibe, the family, and the fun!  See you Saturday.  RSVP on Facebook. 

Those Raising The Deadheads who also follow the band Phish are aware of their tradition of covering complete albums on Halloween.  This year, they performed an obscure 1981 album by a Swedish band - that never really existed.  Adding to the hijinks, RTD's Dave Martin recreated one song from this set as he imagined it might have sounded in 1981.  The recording of "Death Don't Hurt Very Long" went viral among Phish fans, racking up 5k views in 2 days.  Now, Relix Magazine has reported on Dave's cover and another recorded by a California musician.  Here's Dave's recording, played almost entirely on a Yamaha SHS-10 Keytar.  

In rehearsal on Sunday, November 11th, we decided to go live to Facebook with a performance of some Grateful Dead songs.  Here's the full video, now enhanced with a soundboard audio mix.  Enjoy, and see you December 15 at Cadieux Cafe!

After the great turnout at our last Cadieux Cafe gig, we were eager to play there again - and we will!  December 15 is the day, and we'll be bringing even more of the great groove, tight harmony, and stunning improv you've come to expect from RTD.  You can RSVP at our Facebook page, and don't forget you can see us before then on November 2 at Larkin's Bar in Westland.  

What a night!  At 9:45 on a cool September Saturday night, RTD took the stage at the venerable Cadieux Cafe for the first time.  We came prepared to roll our own mix of Grateful songs, and you came ready to boogie!  almost 100 heads crowded the Cafe and enjoyed 2 sets of the best music.  The band was eager to prove ourselves - we'll let you be the judge!  

We opened with an intense Feel Like A Stranger, setting the stage for a long, long, crazy, crazy night.  Sugaree shook it, giving way to our debut of Black Throated Wind.  The Marty Robbins ballad El Paso followed, with a pretty Bird Song chasing it.  U.S. Blues brought the rock and roll energy.  The highlights of Set I for the band were the gently jammed Cassidy and our first trip through the Bobby Weir tour-de-force Let It Grow.  After Chuck Berry's Promised Land, we took a break to meet some fans and prepare for the second half. 

Set II was a 100-minute marathon of tunes you'd hope to hear at any Dead show, and contained many of RTD's favorite compositions: One More Saturday Night, Mississippi Half-Step Toodeloo, Brown Eyed Women started things off.  The biggest jams followed with Eyes of The World>Drums>Space. When the atonal cacophony of Space gave way to the Fmaj7 chord that introduces Terrapin Station, shouts of joy erupted from the Deadheads in the crowd.  We followed up Terrapin with the bluesy pair Truckin>Deal.  Just about 12:30, we took a 25 minute jaunt through Help On The Way>Slipknot>Franklin's Tower.  The set ended with Goin' Down The Road Feelin' Bad, but a requested encore of Jack Straw ended the evening, at about 1:10am.  

We can't wait to play at Cadieux again!  Come see us at Larkin's Bar in Westland November 5.

9-22-2018 Cadieux Cafe
​I: Feel Like A Stranger, Sugaree, Black Throated Wind*, El Paso, Bird Song, U.S. Blues, Cassidy, Let It Grow*, Promised Land.* 
II: One More Saturday Night*, Mississippi Half-Step Toodeloo, Brown Eyed Women, Eyes of the World>Drums>Space>Terrapin Station, Truckin>Deal, Help On The Way>Slipknot>Franklin's Tower, Goin' Down The Road Feelin' Bad
E: Jack Straw
* First time played

The full-show soundboard audio was captured on our new Line 6 M20D digital mixer and mixed and mastered in Logic Pro X.  RTD broadcast the entire show to Facebook Live. 

Here's two crispy videos from our July 28 performance at Canterbury Village in Lake Orion.  Enjoy!