11/13/2007 Setlist, Photos, and Reviews

RatDog

Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Mahaffey Theatre
St. Petersburg, FL

Reviews

great venue, great sound (nice and loud), i could hear every note every member played and sang. there were many, many high points- it reminded me of a 70's dead show in some ways. though the set lists don't look that good on paper, it was a very thoughtful and beautifully executed show. the vibe was very loose- the staff was pretty much leaving people alone and a good old grateful dead time was had by all. it seemed to me, bob's theme tonight was jerry- the music never stopped, he's gone, to lay me down, ripple, etc. great show!

Bruce Wallace, Sarasota, FL
What an awesome Jerry show, I agree that it was dead-heaven with KIMOCK=The Man with all the same sounds as Jerry!
We loved it and can't wait to see another 'Dog show...Hey Now!

Mark Zannoni, Pompano Beach,FL
Definitely a show with a lot of Jerry. Which is fine by me. Kimock is a wizard. Beautiful venue with lax staff. Runnin gout of beer before setbreak was a drag...

Jeff, Tampa
What a show!! Jerry was smiling down on the Mahaffey Theater last night. It felt very much like an old familiar Dead show... Still can't believe they jammed so awesome on every song, and especially with Eyes of the World! Great sax solos. What an incredible night. Ratdog has really grown into a super-jammin' band, and it was really appreciated by the sold out crowd, no doubt. peace.

Fran, Sarasota
What everybody said. Nice lax venue w/ no hassles. Parking lot was a nice scene. - and they didn't run out of beer..
The show was loose. nice sailor>Saint, which was appropriate for Tampa BAY. We are home to lots of nautical kinda folks. 2 Dylan songs, back to back was nice, as was $ for gas and a smokin' eyes. Stuff was more structured then I've seen before- fragments of worked out music in a sea of jammin' . very nice.
Ripple as an encore sent us home feelin' good.
See ya in mouselando

Rick, Bradenton
Great show Great time. The jams were amazing. Kimock all I can say is sweet. As far as the venue I thought I was going to miss seeing a show at Janus Landings I thought wrong.

Tom, Port Richey
After many a dog show I finally got to see/hear how Kimock fit in. I saw the Kimock band in '04(?) and was blown away! He's a much crisper,cleaner axe driver than MK, but is so much more jazz oriented, and it really came out in the show tonite. At times he seemed lossed and missed alot of entries. But it's not his fault. I blame the band in general for not spending some of their free time practicing as a whole. Keys and sax had to hold up so much of the lead guitar duties that the show was like a jazz quartet.
Don't get me wrong, it was a very enjoyable show. By midway through the second set I found myself in the back row of the balcony sitting comfortably with my feet draped over the back of the seat in front of me, enjoying the slow and jazzy vibes. It was too much of a struggle to dance through much of it. Can Maggie's Farm be played any slower? Thanks Kenny and Jeff for bearing such a "Heavy Load"!

Erik, Ft. Myers
Absolutely great Eyes. Loved the back-to-back Dylan. Acoustics at the Mahaffey are stellar in a very comfortable and intimate setting (but put somebody else in charge of ordering beer).

JP, Sarasota
This band is a band of brothers. We miss you Mark and it was quite obvious your band was missing you too. It is amazing how Kenny and Jeff & Jay picked it up and kept it on in the absence of the other one. They played their hearts out in your honor, without a doubt. Play this cancer like you do your best show and it will work itself out one way or the other. Thank you for so many wonderful and uniquely Karan Jams... Keep dialing and smiling.
With Love & Hugs

Shelley Hamilton, Memphis/Tampa
Excellent Show and Great Crowd last night in St. Pete! Incredible Sound at a Cool Venue! Highlights for me were He's Gone, Throwing Stones and Not Fade Away.
That being said, I do have to admit that the overall setlist was a bit too mellow for my taste. A little too jazzy and drawn out at times. (I always preferred the Weir driven Dead shows in the '70's)
I like Mark Karan better on guitar, and their show last Nov at Jannus Landing really rocked, and was far better than last night!
Played 3 songs last night that they did last year, including Ripple?!
But Hey, A jazzy mellow night of RATDOG is still a Wonderful Night!!!
Hope they return to St. Pete this Spring with Mark!!
Wayne, Bradenton

Wayne, Bradenton
I enjoyed last nights show. Money for gas was very good as was alot of the songs. I can not understand how you could compare that mess to the vintage Dead. I am afraid Ratdog fans are so young they just do not know what they missed,and they want to believe Ratdog is as good or better than the Dead. Sorry no! . The overall volume was too loud and I like loud . The sax was brutal. Bob is great and I will see him as often as possible. I think that as good as some of it was it does not compare to the Jannus shows of the last two years. See you all Saturday

james, Bradentucky
Great show. Killer 2nd set. Kimock is awsome! cant wait till fri and sat.

Graeme , Orlando
There were a lot of us up in the balcony talking about how slow the show was. On the way out everyone I headr was complaining about the same slowness. Great show if you were on downers. Otherwise it was a strugle to get into it.
Hope when they come back to town the tempo is picked up a bit. Oh yea, the sax player sounded like he was killing an elephant.

Chris, Tampa
Show eleven this year and I naturally want to compare it to the others. To me it had it's moments, but it left me wanting for more. I guess that is why we go to so many. Steve is great. Music never stopped was excellent. Maggies Farm had it's moments, but just didn't seem to get rockin like it could have. Baby Blue was most excellent The highway is for gamblers, well, you better use your sense. Man that was georgous. E>O>D good jammin just not my favorite songs, but glad for the people who really like it. Rest of the first set again good jammin by some obviously great musicians, just left me wanting for more. Second set acoustic always like KC moan Gonna love my woman like I never loved before. FOD always nice. Money, this is my wifes song she loves it so I was happy caught off guard by the placement. He's gone, always makes me think of my dad who passed on last year. Self reflection begins at that point with the he's gone, eyes, to lay me down. That brought about some heavy focus. Throwing stones-NFA some hate it I love it. great energy. Ripple great song more thinking of my dad. This sure felt like one of those shows that is a tribute to those in our lives that are a fond memory to cherish for ever. Sometimes it is good to have those memories evoked to bring the past back into focus. There is a road, no simple highway
Between the dawn and the dark of night
If you go, noone may follow
That path is for your steps alone
Onward to Orlando, Boca and beyond.

Tim, New Port Richey
Beautiful clear, breezy night for my first Dogness in five years, since the excellent Dickie Betts/Dog/Phil show in West Palm. Only negative on the venue was running out of beer; security was completely nonexistent and it was anything goes inside. What were some people smoking in there? Toenail clippings? Old tires? Jesus, there was some funky combustion in my vicinity! Sound was clear and loud without being ridiculous. And unlike the Phil & Friends show in Tampa last year, it was a true Deadhead crowd: no sitting, lots of dancing and lots of those wafting clouds of horrendous body odor that can only be experienced at a Dead family show. Ah, the memories! Musically, it was all good for me; I just don't see enough shows to be that comparatively critical anymore. And as far as Ratdog being such an inferior experience to the GD, well, that depends upon the Dead period in question. Both Bob and Phil are curently making music that is infinitely more interesting than the Dead were capable of in their final years. Once Bruce checked out after spring tour '92 it was never the same again IMHO. So enjoy your Dog and Phil everyone: it's hot, it's tight, it's real, and it's now.

Dan, Tampa
Good songs! Generally good people (perhaps a couple having a bad day)! Good musicians!!!!!!!!! = Superb time! Wish I could say I was hitting the rest of the FL run. Hey and more sax. I thought it was as always great! Reminds of this cat named Marsalis; remember him? It definitely adds to the jam...for me. Three night stand at Jannus next year? Thanks Ratdog!

Jason, Tampa
What a way to start a show in a great bay-Area venue. Great Jamm>Music>a very funky Maggie's. Both sets were like waves---a lot of high adn lows, but the quality of the songs were amazing. It was by no means my favorite Dog show but it was still a great time. The sound might be as good as the Tampa Theater but its much newer and has its own vibe to it. It sort of looks like a European opera house of the 1800s. The staff there though, was the best. Nobody was out of line in there and the staff was singing and dancing along by the time 'Ripple' encored and let you do whatever you wanted----and I did:). When all is said and done, it was still Ratdog and that ain't all bad on a Tuesday night in St. Pete.

Teebone, Tampa
Great show! I needed it in a bad way. Been listening to lots of 70s GD shows recently, and kind of went preparing to be dissapointed, but by the end of the 1st set I was cryin. Perfect sound, definately was able to get lost in some of the Kimok leads, the band was super tight and Bobby was on point! ...And the wife and I got our song- aint no place I would have rather been!!!! Every now and then you remember that rock and roll can STILL be a religious experience. Even better, we got our tix by supporting our Community radio. Yeah WMNF! power the the people!

Jeff, Tampa
Totally beat show in my opinion. Not even in the same league as last year at Jannus - better setting, WAY better playlist. Suggest you buy that CD and compare and then tell me how GREAT this show was. If I had been on downs I would have gone to sleep! I love the Dog, but this is one I could have missed. Also 25 minutes in line for beer then they ran out. Good crowd as always. Get em back to Jannus Landing next year!

Dave, St. Peterburg, FL
Two Comments to add to my earier rewiew. First, to James in Brandentucky (I guess a reference to Redneck Bradenton). My comments were about the set list not a comparison to the 70's Dead Shows. Of which I saw 20 plus shows from 1971 to 1980 in Philly, Watkins Glen, Englishtown, ect!
Second, I Agree with Dave from St Pete. I also listened to the Jannus show from last Nov after this show,and TOTALLY agree! Last Year's Show at Jannus was Epic! Let the music speak for itself! -- Let's Hope They Reurn to Jannus with MK!! -- Wayne, Bradenton

Wayne, Bradenton
Terrific show! Had a very groovy vibe. The Mahaffey Theater is an awesome place to experience a show. The sound was crisp. Highlights for me were Music Never Stopped, Tennessee Jed, Lost Sailor, & Eyes. That guitar solo in Eyes was truly cosmic. Definitely a Jerry theme to the show. I was at the Jannus shows the past two years and enjoyed this just as much.

Jon , St Pete
saw 3 shows this tour. st pete, hob, mizner. although i pray for MK's imediate return was interested to see SK play with bobby again. first set they dropped the music never stopped which was ok, maggies farm has some mistakes, baby blue (bathroom and beer). even so (ok get it over with for the florida stretch). chilin in my seat, 10 row (the 80 yr security coudnt stop anyone, that was funny). oct qu of course, went to bar for beer. waiting with my wife i started to hear/feel something building. i bolted back to my seat and caught sweet jam out of oct queen. they were raging, it was awesome. the deep end was played with passion, these guys were kicking it. ten jed, NICE, getting better. shade of grey was hot, lost sailor/ saint of circumstance were sublime. 90 min monster set!!

kc moan, good, the winners??? seemed alright, FOTDD, everyone sang, it was fun. money for gasoline, really like the song and it was welld done, having lots of fun! he gones, well done, eyes was absolute insanely good, sk and kenny were just going crazy. Stuff was that 70ish jam from eyes and it was neat to hear. to lay me down (nice, my first) that was cool. throwing stones, very strong, loved it. NFA, blah. E ripple ( played that last yr in saint pete was surprised he did it again) it was ok.

very interesting show from oct queen through throwing stones. the cds sound great.

mark, tampa, philadelphia
This show for me was all about the ending. Sure the rest of it had some great moments--Music was more rockin' than I'd heard it in Santa Fe, Eyes was wonderful, but the last few songs were just right. I was so happy they closed up the set proper. No reprises or ending with a ballad here. It was Throw> Away as it should be!! I loved it!!

Scott Probeck, Boulder. CO
great show, loved hearin maggies farm, crowd s awesome but running out of beer was a bummer. last time i saw RD was in Austin TX back in '92 sounded just about the same. If anyone know when they're coming back to Tampa area, please post it. I can't find tour dates anywhere

richard, tampa