Bob Weir and RatDog | RatDog.Org

guys last sept. i was diagnosed with cancer of the larynx. i got radiation therapy, and so far so good. i went to my 1st dead show in 1976 and have been to over 300 until jerry passed. a friend finally got me to see ratdog a few years ago. i was hooked. not the dead but next best thing. even in the dead days there were sons that got my juices running, and some i didnt care for. the dead played at foxboro mass on the 4th of july 1 year. bob dylan was supposed to b the opener. turned out the dead played backup band for dylan.i walked out of the only show i really hated.
you get a million points for 0 dylan covers last night.
now im going to get critical of your song selections yet again.
stranger = ok casey = ok- easy = i could pass catfish = no corrina = ok+ as do althea and ashes muddy = definite pass and its too slow china cat/ i know u = i wish i was there. over all glad i didnt work at hard labor to pay to see this setlist

It was a run of 12 songs.....started with a Stranger and than KC Jnes and than Easy........the band was strong and tight and Bobby was on top of his game....next was RR Blues into Catfish....next was an acoustic Corona.......it was just out of this world..........into a sweet jam.......ala Athena.........into Ashes and Glass.....drums........black muddy river.........and than an enlighteneing China Rider into Evolution...........it is a show to remember.........the crowd was so solid and kind..........like days gone by and times to come... and most important........was another........RATDOG WONDER IN THE FINGER LAKES......PEACE

China cat Iknow the riders, love love you all, so ahppy o be theone playing and pushing you all on th radio, when it was needed, almanns love love love everyone behaved, love love

China cat Iknew you Rider, My goodness, and everyone behaved, beacuse we were, well whatever, a Huge wino distributor ? and you cant buy wine , do you know ? Thanks for Statesboro and Bobby wondermous Easy to Slip and all The Littele Feat stuff... kisses.....XXXX mmmmmmm

hey MARK, nashua, n.h.,

Just wonderin' how you can grade or be critical of a show you didn't even attend? So I'm hearing you say, you only really LOVED China / Rider, and 3 others an OK + ?

What is your grade on the Beatles cover encore?

Wow! I have been blessed to have seen over 250+ Grateful Dead related concerts in my life. I saw my first GD show in 1983. I have also seen Clapton, The Stones, The Who, Phish(many times), & even Millie Vanilli once with a high maintanence girlfriend back in the late 1980's. Last night was one of the top 5 musical performances I have ever seen! It amazes how good Rat Dog has become. In the words of Jim Carrey in the movie, "The Mask", last night was S-C-H-M-O-K-I-N!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is my first time reviewing a show on this site. I witnessed many fine Grateful Dead shows, and, surprisingly, last night's show had the same amazing quality. Black Muddy River, China Cat>I Know You Rider, Revolution were glorious. These guys brought it last night! Magic.

A great, great set by any measure. I was there with 3 of my sons, and the 4 of us have never attended a show together. All night, karma was nothing but reward.
I actually was shocked there was no Dylan, but Easy to Slip more than made up for it.
I don't understand what folks have been criticizing lately, particularly when the band:

1. Starts early
2. Goes to the vault (Catfish John, Revolution)
3. Gives everything

Nothing but gratitude here. One of the best Ratdog shows I've been to, and can't wait to hear what they'll do to top it.

Mike

Smoking show last night.
No one is mentioning Warren Haynes coming out for the Beatles encore :Revolution....not "evolution" dude....and

NO BODY IS MENTIONING

Bobby joined Allman Brothers for a Franklin's Tower that just slit wrists!

Kick ass show guys, Thanks Again Ratdog!!

Awesome show last night!! Woo Hoo! The bands were great, the crowd was great, security was there and did their job but they were not harsh. Thanks to our friends Chris and Linda Terra (their first time at that venue) that got us free tickets to the show!! What a way to start out my vacation/birthday week! Thank you....for a real good time!

WoW I Have To say very tight show,one of the top shows i have been to .this was my 20th dog show best sound yet.to bad all the cops in tie die wrecked it for some not a good scene,I saw many under cover arests ,not a venue i will return to. good show .

What can you say about last night other then I was blown away! Saw RD in Cleveland and Syaracuse in the spring and was a little let down but last night was off the charts!! Great jams and song selection. Thought the band was really on fire right from the start with the Stranger opener and it just kept coming.

Thanks Bobby for the music. Hope to see you guys at the Townballroom for the fall tour!!

My friend andI saw the GD many times in the 70's and 80's. Ratdog is soaring this tour, so, if last tour tired you on them, or if you don't think you can be sparked anymore by the music, get a ticket. They were wonderful in Canandaigua and Bethel.

Great show last night. Started a couple min. early but got in during Stranger. Good crowd, easy going security. The band was on, Bobby looked great and a great song selection. Casey, Catfish John, China->Rider and Revolution were the highlights(for me of course). Bobby did join Allman's for Franklins and Mark came out for The Weight, both of which were highlights of the Allman's set for me. My faith in the Dog is restored :) See you in the Fall!

Simply Splended Dreaming is real . What a great show .

Excellent show. I been to six ratdog shows over the years and this one was the best. Feel like a stranger started the night of right. Great Casey Jones and Corrina. It was awesome hearing Catfish and Revolution for the first time. Bob coming out and playing Franklin's tower with the brothers was just icing on the cake.

In short, RD were outstanding last night. I have seen some post GD shows by the various members' bands over the years, but not a ton. RD is a far cry from some of the less than spectacular performances (in my opinion) that I saw of Weir and Wasserman, Phil and Friends, Dead, etc. This performance will keep me coming back.

The band truly rocked, the setlist was outstanding and the energy was great. The show took me back to some of my favorite GD moments of the 200+ shows I attended way back when.

As for the A-Bros., I hate to say it, but they stunk the joint out. After many years of enjoyable Allmans shows, I fear they are done. At least I am done with the Warren Hanes, guitar wank that I witnessed. Derek showed some good stuff, but the kid should now move on. Warren played on top of him all night. Of the few songs Greg sang, after Statesborough, his voice was shot. Very lame.

On the bright side, to my surprise, RD were worth the price of admission and more. Go Bobby!

ben anderson
im commenting on song choices. as i said about mansfield/i hate maggies farm, but the band played it extremely well. after 300 dead shows in 30 yrs. i have songs i really want to hear and see played. its getting hard to afford 10 shows a year in hopes of not missing that 1 nite where they play a setlist to die for, and play them smoking hot. because of health issues which surfaced in the last yr im not sure how much time i have left to see my dream show. my feelings about rd doing dylan will never change. i was always a gigantic fan of the beatles music, so 1 cover a night is just fine with me, but i wouldnt want a whole show of them done by any band than paul mccartneys. as 4 writing these reviews/ AS A LONG TIME CUSTOMER OF 30 + YEARS I JUST WANT THE BAND TO KNOW WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO HEAR, AND WHAT I DONT.

We sat in the Front Row for this show and I can tell you that the sound was excellent. One Note: Bob played Franklins Tower with ABB, that is not listed on this site. It was very slow and groovy. Bob and Otiel traded lyrics and I thought it was great.

ABB Setlist:

Don't Want You No More
Not My Cross To Bear
Statesboro Blues
Les Brers in A Minor
Old Before My Time
Woman Across The River
I Ain't Superstitious
Stand Back
Franklins Tower ~ with Bob Weir (this was funny Otiel was singing in normal tempo then Bob took a verse and slowed the lyrics to Bobby RatDog sing a verse play out a verse then sing a verse etc. Then Otiel comes back ot sing and does it bobby style LOL)
The Weight ~ with Ratdog keyboardist Jeff Chimenti & guitarist Mark Karan (Bob wasn't on stage for that one)
One Way Out
JaBuMa (Oteil was on Butch's drum kit & Butch was on the big kettle drum then went back behind Oteil & played another set of those wooden drums)
One Way Out
Revival


All in all a very good show with a Masterful Catfish John and Black Muddy River.

;-)

Zipster

great 1 setter. Smokin from the start to finish with minimal down time, which was great. Somebody said that they had lax security, i dont know what venue he was at but there was HEAVY security in the lot and throughout the show. There were undercover 50s busting people left and right. They wouldnt let us dance in the top isle part (kind of reasonable but, comon' ya know?) where we could see the band a lot better. Other than lame security - FANTASTIC SHOW! one of my favorites of what ive seen

Super show. Highlights for me were the smoking Catfish John, Easy to Slip, Black Muddy (last song i saw the Boys play) and Revolution encore. Having Bobby on stage with the ABB and jamming a crisp, funky Franklin's will not be forgotten. The ABB playing the Weight was flabbergasting. Is that a word? Prob not, but that's what i felt.

Well-played show but sluggish setlist for a Friday night with 10,000 people ready to party. Decent to listen to at home though. Catfish John was a nice highlight.

Fantastic Show and a fantastic venue! The sound was perfect and the band was tight. Everyone has their opinions but after seeing 50+ Dog Shows this ranks in the Top 5 easily! They keep on getting better each show. We need to be GRATEFUL that we ALL can still enjoy the scene and songs thanks to Bobby and the Boys.

Black Muddy River made it all worth while!!!!!

Thanks again Bobby for a great time!

my best rat-dog show to date. great set list, lots of dancing and good friends. met a friend from highschool i havent seen in years (thanks for the miracle, you know who you are) catfish john,black muddy,easy to slip,china-rider,casey jones, i mean come on guys what more could a head ask for. THANKS BOBBY, KEEP THE FAITH!!

Great show, I thought the band played excellently, really in tune with the venue and crowd. My 15 yr old son (no fan of ratdog or the dead) went with me and loved it, he even bought a cd of the show.

All of which leads me to my next comment. People who are critical of the set lists, performances, dylan covers etc are missing the point. The music is created to be heard and enjoyed in that moment, shared with friends and strangers and remembered. It's meant to inform your soul in one way or another, for good or sometime for bad.

Don't fall into the trap that the music exists solely to make you happy, to validate your yearnings. Every night is an experiment, some fail, some reach incredible heights. All are great experiences upon reflection.

I was moved by ratdog last friday night, and I hope bob and the boys continue to make music that keeps changing and evolving for many many more years for me, you and everyone else to enjoy.

Best show I've seen RD perform, and they've all been fantastic! As far as I'm concerned, it's a GD concert w/o Jerry. Love the website, also, with the WebCams. It's like going to a GD/RD concert every day. Keep up the magical music!!

First time there i loved the view-BEAUTIFUL place! Great time they started early YAY! i loved CATFISH JOHN YAY! My hushand loved EASY TO SLip!!! AWESOME SHOW. CU in Obama Campiagn;) ~peaceLove~

Went to the Finger Lakes with a few good friends, colleagues, and relatives and left the place wanting more. Both bands served up a few classics and introduced the neophytes to some new experiences. Thoroughly enjoyed the mix and match Revolution, Weight, and Franklin's. We all now know the lyrics to Catfish and have a good laugh whenever we relive the night on CD. Once in a while you get shown the light...