got huge cheers as their faces appeared on the video screens. With drummer Bill Kreutzmann, 77, choosing to sit out this tour, Weir and Hart are the last of the original Dead.
Other highlights of the opening set included the rollicking “Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo” and the slow blues of “They Have Each Other.” The fan favorite “St. Stephen,” at 20 minutes, the longest single song of the night, was gorgeous from start to finish, but especially an extended section where Weir and Mayer traded guitar licks back and forth.
You may not be surprised to learn that other things are also on offer throughout the parking lot. From pot – duh, it’s legal here now – to mushroom-infused chocolate to giant balloons filled with nitrous oxide – laughing gas like your dentist used to give you, you could find it. Dead & Company mix up the setlist from night to night more than most bands – most of Friday’s songs won’t be repeated on Saturday – but you are always going to get “Drums” and “Space,” two instrumental songs that for years have given the spotlight to Hart and Kreutzmann and also given a good number of fans to head for the bathroom or the bar.