Dead & Company Announce 11 Additional Fall/Winter Tour Dates September 10, 2015 07:35

Grateful Dead members Bob Weir, Mickey Hart, and Bill Kreutzmann will be joined by John Mayer, Oteil Burbridge, and Jeff Chimenti this Fall for latest Dead-themed side project, Dead & Company.   After the initial announcement of a two-night Halloween run at Madison Square Garden in New York City, the group released eight additional tour dates and have now added 11 more.

The newly added dates come after the previously announced fall run that begins at Times Union Center in Albany, New York on October 29 and concludes at Worcester's DCU Center on November 10. Dead & Company's Fall Tour continues on November 11 at the First Niagara Center in Buffalo, New York and is now slated to run until a pair of shows in Las Vegas at MGM Grand Garden Arena on November 27 and 28. Other newly added dates include visits to Columbus, Ohio; Greensboro, North Carolina; Atlanta; Nashville; St. Louis; Minneapolis and Broomfield, Colorado. Dead & Company end the year with a pair of shows in San Francisco (December 27 and 28) and Los Angeles (December 30 and 31).

A year ago Mayer took to Twitter to share more thoughts about what made the Grateful Dead so special. Then, in February, the guitarist invited Bob Weir to perform with him on CBS's The Late Late Show. Fast forward to June when John played two shows with Phil Lesh & Friends at Terrapin Crossroads in San Rafael, California. Chimenti was not only a member of the Fare Thee Wellband, but he was Weir's longtime sideman in RatDog and also participated in a post-Jerry incarnation of "The Dead."  Burbridge is a newcomer to the world of the Grateful Dead, but has sang many a version of "Franklin's Tower" with the Allman Brothers Band.

An American Express pre-sale for tickets to the newly added shows begins September 16 at 10 a.m. local time (except Nashville which starts at 9 a.m. local time) and will run through September 17 at 10 p.m. local time. Public on-sales start September 18 at 10 a.m. local time.

Watch John Mayer perform "Althea" with Bob Weir on The Late Late Show on February 5th, 2015

Watch John Mayer perform "Truckin'" with Bob Weir on The Late Late Show on February 5th, 2015

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Fare Thee Well: The Grateful Dead's Final Stand at Soldier Field July 9, 2015 09:40

Photo by Phierce Photo of FX Media Solutions

When I awoke and drove in to work on Friday, January 16th, I was already excited and knew that I was in for a long day.  Several of us were heading to the Charleston Pour House for four rotating sets of Phish and Widespread Panic, courtesy of tribute bands Runaway Gin and Machine Funk.  Sometime around noon, my phone started to light up with calls and text messages asking if I had heard the news.  The rumors were officially true: The Grateful Dead were playing a three-night run at Soldier Field over the weekend of July 4th.  To make things even sweeter, Trey Anastasio, Bruce Hornsby, and Jeff Chimenti were all set to round out the lineup.  Any chance at the slightest bit of productivity that afternoon was officially shot, and a hotel reservation in Chicago was made immediately.

In order to honor their creative tradition, the initial ticket offer was made via mail order, in order to ensure that the band's total ticket allotment would be available only to those willing to make the extra effort.  Elaborate, Dead-themed artwork was encouraged on each envelope.  Over 500,000 ticket requests were received, leaving just a ten percent chance of "winning the lottery."  The overwhelming response led promoters to adjust the seating arrangement to accommodate more guests. Peter Shapiro, the event's organizer and head promoter, gave his word that the level of production would provide all mail order ticket holders with an amazing experience.  

On April 10th, more rumors were confirmed when the band announced that their final run would now consist of two additional shows at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA on June 27th and 28th.  It only seemed right that the band make a return to the Bay Area, where it all officially started 50 years prior.  Much debate surrounded the band's selection of Anastasio on lead guitar, as past Dead lineups have included many other amazing guitarists such as Warren Haynes, Steve Kimock, Jimmy Herring, and John Kadlecick in that role.  

FULL STORY: Fare Thee Well: The Grateful Dead's Final Stand at Soldier Field