Phil Lesh

Under the enchanting lights of the Capitol Theatre, Phil Lesh & Friends embarked on a journey that redefined the very essence of a live music experience. This wasn't merely a concert; it was a bridge between epochs, a melding of the Grateful Dead's storied past with glimpses of a boundless future. The lineup, starring Phil Lesh, Grahame Lesh, Amy Helm, Jason Crosby, Daniel Donato, and John Molo, didn't just perform—they created an aura of enchantment that enveloped everyone present.

In a theater not so far away, where the walls hum with the echoes of a thousand nights, a gathering of cosmic proportions unfolded beneath the watchful gaze of the ever-spinning disco ball. The Capitol Theatre, a vessel adrift in the sea of time, Port Chester, its current harbor, bore witness to the convergence of spirits old and new, as the Philharmonic Orchestra of the Grateful, under the baton of one Phil Lesh, celebrated the maestro's 84th passage around the sun.

In the swirling mists of the jam rock universe, there's a beacon shining bright, pulsating with the deep, resonant vibes of Phil Lesh’s bass. As we orbit around the sun to mark his 84th trip this March 15th, 2024, we embark on a magic bus ride, not just through the spaces between notes, but through the heartbeats of a legacy that's more alive than ever, without ever saying it's a Kesey trip—but feeling it in every word.

On November 10th, 1999, I attended my first ever Phil Lesh & Friends show at the New Haven Coliseum. The venue, affectionately known as 'the old barn,' was just off I-95 in lovely downtown New Haven, Connecticut. It also hosted my second Grateful Dead concert back in May 1978. The New Haven Coliseum did not age well and it was gone shortly after that show in 1999. A young lad, the 20-year-old Derek Trucks, was called in as an emergency fill-in guitarist, hired on the fly.

Please don’t murder me if you think this review of the acclaimed jam-fusion band Jazz Is Dead runs hard to the gushy side. But even after all these years – more than 50 years of concert-going – I’m still a pretty impressionable guy (It’s true. . .) and it was only my first time seeing them.  So there was a lot to take in.

Acclaimed Grateful Dead photographer, Bob Minkin, announces the release of his latest masterpiece, "Just Phil - Phil Lesh Photographed by Bob Minkin." Now available on Kickstarter, this lavish coffee table book captures the essence and the journey of Phil Lesh through the lens of Minkin

Formed in 2012 by singer-songwriters Grahame Lesh & Elliott Peck and taking their cue from the fertile Bay Area music scene, Midnight North has announced their fifth album Diamonds on the Zodiac, a continuation of their musical direction forged during the release of the group’s 2021 record There’s Always a Story. Today, they share the lead single “The Colors Here” which is a direct testament to their rich Bay Area heritage featuring Phil Lesh on bass.

“Welcome home, Terrapin Nation,” Phil Lesh proclaimed on July 9 to the large crowd before him on the expansive, lush lawn of McNears Beach Park on the shores of San Pablo Bay in San Rafael, Calif. Lesh, co-founder of the Grateful Dead and now 83, joined the so-called Terrapin All-Stars for the closing set of a first-ever, one-day Sunday Daydream festival, which began in the early morning with an aptly named Turtle Trot that included 5K, 10K, and kids races.

Goose returned for an epic round two at the legendary Warfield Theatre in San Francisco, CA on April 28, 2023, complete with Phil Lesh as a special guest in the presidential suite overlooking the stage. The band knocked this performance out of the park at this well known and culturally significant venue in the Union Square neighborhood by doing what they do every night: create fresh, exploratory, and creative jams.

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