Red Rocks Amphitheatre
Morrison, CO
For the 14th volume of Porch Songs, we kiss the mountain air we breathe at a three night Red Rocks performance. Still considered by music fans worldwide as the best natural outdoor venue on our planet, Red Rocks is indeed a sacred place that, for both Widespread Panic and its fans, feels just like home…if you can find your way home…which sounds like trouble a-brewin’!
Coming right after the 2001 Santa Fe run (Porch Songs Vol. 2), these three nights at Red Rocks beg for a bit of analysis cause it’s filled to the brim with some unexpected happenings, guest artists and inspired playing. Check this out…
- The first “Don’t Tell The Band”
- The first “Swamp” in over a year
- Luther and Cody Dickinson of the North Mississippi All Stars…and that electric washboard
- First set the first night was a random mix of the album “Ain’t Life Grand”
- First “Action Man” with lyrics
- First “L.a.” in eight months and not again for another year…that segued into the first “Raise the Roof” in a year and what became the last one ever
- Cecil Daniels adding his brand of butter to the spread
- First “Me and The Devil Blues” in about a year and not again for about another year
- First ” Trouble” since the previous New Year’s and followed by the much sought after and only time played “Driving Song > Can’t Find My Way Home > Driving Song”…with that “CFMWY” not showing up since the previous November
- The only “Boogie Chillen”
- Need more? There’s plenty of nooks and crannies all in these shows…just give it a listen
The pilgrimages to Red Rocks have certainly been life-changing for both Widespread Panic and their fans. As fans, we seem to be innately aware of our great fortune of being able to continually fuel our dreams with great music, old and new friends, and the fantastic scenery of an incredible venue. Those trips are never complete though without at least one pause during the run to check in on reality and discover that…Yes, I really am at Red Rocks…and so is my band. Again. And I still don’t ever, ever, ever want to leave!
Order your copies of the June 22, 23 & 24, 2001 Red Rocks shows here: 6/22 | 6/23 | 6/24
As always, keep in mind that when listening to these Porch Song releases, what you’re really hearing is a recording of what came through the house speakers the night of the show…so there is no post-show engineering opportunity to dial in each instrument and vocal to perfection as there is with the Widespread Panic Multitrack Releases. So, what you’ll occasionally find on these Porch Song recordings is a bit of digital noise, static and maybe even a quick drop out resulting from the onstage recording process and/or the ravages of tape degradation. For this release, we’ve selected a show that’s once again pretty damn clean…except for the third night where we had to cut the Pleas opener and deal with a couple of random spots later on…but to get there…as always, we’ve preserved what we could, doctored up what we’ve been able to…and, in this ongoing process, have refused to let a minor blemish or two prevent the spreading of this amazing music. So, sit back, settle in and let Widespread Panic take you on another incredible journey.
Feedback is always welcome and I really do listen…all of the time, so drop me a line at archives@widespreadpanic.com