Ratdog-Mule

There is a magical place on this earth that I stumbled upon many years ago. It’s located at the intersection of harmonious instrumental bliss, and the inexplicable comfort of losing yourself in it. I love it when a show pulls you in, lifts you up, spins you around and makes you forget about everything in the world, even if just for a couple of hours.

The first time I found this place was at my first Grateful Dead concert. I have been there a few times since and I found it again last night at the Ratdog show at Humphrey’s. Everything was just right, perfect weather, great seats in the best San Diego venue, good friends in good moods, and then a fantastic performance by my favorite musicians.

Gov't Mule and Warren Haynes started it up promptly while the sun was still shining. I have seen Mule only a handful of times, but I am more impressed each time. Warren has an incredible voice and it’s even better when he serenades us with familiar songs of the Grateful Dead. Another tasty treat was Cortez The Killer, all I can say is “WOW”.

Bob Weir and Ratdog were also having a good night. The pace or tempo was maybe a little slower than yesterdays, but the band was tight and fueled by lots of good energy. The highlights for me were Althea, Sugaree, Good Morning Little Schoolgirl and The Weight, I couldn’t have asked for a better set.

Bill Walton was once again towering above the crowd, we also saw him last week at the Panic show. At one point he was standing right next to us, I almost said something to him, but I know people say stupid things to him all the time, I didn’t want to be one of them. There was a guy a couple of rows in front of me that I swear was Eric Clapton, did anyone else see that guy? Was it him? I saw him walk backstage at the set break, he must have been someone important.

Between Tom and I passing the camera back and forth, we got some great pictures and some nice video too. See the whole album here. If you get a chance to check out a concert at Humphrey’s this summer, jump on the opportunity. It doesn’t really matter who is playing, the venue is almost worth the price of admission alone.