It’s almost certain that no musical act in history has produced as many “cover” bands as the Grateful Dead. In nearly every major city in America, as well as countless smaller towns and rural communities, Dead cover bands regularly celebrate the music of that storied band. Some are long-established lineups of cats who gather regularly down under the stars; some are catch-as-catch-can pick-up bands. But in all cases, these ensembles provide an opportunity for gatherings of Deadheads far and wide—including those who experienced shows way back in the '60s, people who got turned on in their college dorms in the “Touch of Grey” '80s, and even kids born after Jerry Garcia died.
There are, I’m sure, hundreds if not thousands of musicians who get on stages in bars and cafes and backyard patios every week across this land to play Dead music. Phil Lesh’s Terrapin Crossroads in San Rafael was a mecca for many of these musicians, including a number of them who got to jam with Phil Lesh. Drummer Danny Luehring’s “Danny’s Live Dead,” a weekly session in west Marin County for almost three years running, has picked up where Terrapin Crossroads left off, giving voice and sound to many of those musicians and a whole lot more.
Since late 2021, “Danny’s Live Dead” has featured shifting lineups including top-flight NorCal jam scene players such as Grahame Lesh (Midnight North), Steve Adams (ALO), Garrett Deloian (Jerry’s Middle Finger), and Sam Grisman (Sam Grisman Project). This week, Luehring invited the Skeleton Krewe Trio to join the fun.
Skeleton Krewe is a dynamic amalgamation of virtuosos featuring Hawaiian slack-key guitarist Stephen Inglis, guitarist/pedal steel player Barry Sless (Bob Weir & Wolf Bros, Phil Lesh & Friends), and keyboardist Rob Barraco (Dark Star Orchestra, Phil Lesh & Friends, The Other Ones). The three longtime friends and collaborators are in the midst of a multi-date tour of Northern California, appearing at times with special guests on board. The trio hooked up with drummer Luehring and bassist JP McLean for this week’s installment of “Danny’s Live Dead” at Peri’s Tavern in Fairfax, CA, Wednesday night for two sets of music.
The Grateful Dead-adjacent associations for these notable musicians are significant. Inglis, a Grammy-nominee, played with Billy Kreutzmann in House of Spirits in Hawaii in the 1990s. Sless has appeared frequently with Bob Weir in his Wolf Bros ensemble and also in multiple Phil & Friends lineups. Barraco is another longtime Phil Lesh cohort. Luehring was tapped by Lesh for several appearances at Terrapin Crossroads. McLean, a venerable Terrapin Crossroads veteran, is a frequent “Danny’s Live Dead” participant. The performance at Peri’s on Wednesday was the quintet’s first time playing together in this unique lineup.
Melding the Skeleton Krewe tour with the “Danny’s Live Dead” experience was sure to be a crowd-pleaser.
Until recently, Luehring’s weekly shows were at the Papermill, one of Marin County’s oldest bars. The Papermill is a notable “dive bar” located in the rural west Marin outpost of Forest Knolls. (Rumor has it that Van Morrison used to drop by the bar for a drink and played songs on the upright piano when he lived in Marin County.) A regular crowd of Deadheads, many of them nostalgic for Terrapin Crossroads, made the scene nearly every week to dance to Luehring & Co’s jams. An antique and somewhat-slanted wooden floor and a cozy wood stove fire in a corner of the barroom added to the ambiance. When my wife and I moved nearby in early 2022, we became regulars too.
Unfortunately, the Papermill shut its doors, at least temporarily, earlier this year. Luehring then relocated his weekly outing to Peri’s in downtown Fairfax. (Fun fact: Peri’s bought the PA system from Terrapin Crossroads after Phil and Jill Lesh closed their venerable venue.) Many of the Terrapin Crossroads/Papermill regulars followed along—and like dozens if not hundreds of bars across America, the weekly Dead night in Fairfax is an occasion to see old friends, make new ones, and dance to the music of the Dead, JGB, Bob Dylan, the Band, etc.
Wednesday night this week was no different. Perhaps a few people made the trek to Fairfax specifically to see Inglis, Barraco, and/or Sless, but the majority of the crowd were regular members of the Danny’s Live Dead crew. They were familiar with the tiny stage at Peri's, the stellar sound system, and the outdoor patio and backyard areas where they could grab a breath of fresh air and stretch out when the barroom crowd gets too thick. (As it often does; Peri’s is not a big room, and there’s a big bottleneck between the stage and the bar.)
The regulars know that no matter who is on stage, Danny Luehring always assembles an ensemble of A-listers who can throw down wicked jams. Reminiscing about the long, strange trip of Danny’s Live Dead for almost three years running, Luehring made note of this himself on stage Wednesday: “I think this is around show 150 tonight, and it’s a good one. We’re really lucky.”
Before the show, Inglis also commented on the resilience and brilliance of Danny’s Live Dead. “It’s incredible. He’s got a great streak going. This will be my fourth or fifth time doing it with him, but my first time doing it at Peri’s; the rest have been at the Papermill.”
The show began with a tasty “Althea,” with Inglis on vocals and a round of solos by him, Sless, and Barraco. Next, McLean came up to the mic for “U.S. Blues.” Throughout the night, Inglis, Barraco, and McLean took turns on vocals.
McLean played barefoot, as he always does, standing on a small piece of carpet in front of his bass amp. Sless began the night standing while playing an electric guitar, but halfway through the first set he took a seat in front of his pedal steel. Even so, he continued playing the six-string electric until switching finally to the pedal steel in the middle of the second set. Barraco was off to the side in a dark corner of the small stage typically reserved for the keyboardist due to the limited space.
Luehring’s kit was set up opposite Barraco, backed by the red drapes that line the walls behind the stage. Luehring is not only one of the most interesting and dynamic interpreters of Grateful Dead music—he’s also one of the most fun to watch. At the Papermill, he liked to keep the lights uber-dim, and it was easy to miss out on seeing his facial expressions as they mimic the energy he puts into his rhythms. The lighting at Peri’s keeps him more in the ostensible spotlight. In jams like “Don’t Let Go” (sung by Barraco near the end of the first set), Luehring drives the energy of the players up and down and thrives on the musical conversations of his cohorts. He does it with his sticks and skins, and also with his expressions. Sometimes it’s like watching an ecstatic hallway dancer tethered to a drum kit.
Inglis’s recordings (for which he has received numerous accolades, including Grammy nominations) are predominantly acoustic. He is an accomplished Hawaiian slack key guitar player, and it’s worth checking out his catalog of mellow, traditional recordings. Trading solos with Sless at Peri’s, Inglis “spoke” the language of Jerry Garcia’s licks, albeit with a significant accent of serious jazz chops. During Sless’s and Barraco’s solos, Inglis’s comp chording was textured, adding a distinctive voice to the familiar compendium of Dead, Dylan, and other classic rock songs.
Like most Wednesday nights at Peri’s, the regulars in the audience included the slow-dancing couple, the “spinner” over by the front door, a wheelchair parked in a reserved spot over by the keyboards. During the set break, the every-week’ers and once-in-a-while’ers mingled—just like at Dead cover band nights in bars and cafes all across America. Danny’s Live Dead is of course only one node of a multi-layered network that provides untold numbers of Deadheads and others with community, connection, and the inspiring, regenerative power of music.
Set two kicked off with a version of Stevie Wonder’s “Higher Ground” that bounced along with an “Estimated Prophet” lilt, made even more Estimated-ish by Sless’s Garcia-like envelope filter during the solo. Sless switched over to pedal steel on Johnny Cash’s “Big River,” adding a country music twang to the mix. During “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds,” a listener could be forgiven for looking over at Barraco during a solo that sounded like a Hammond organ, only to realize it was Sless playing a “Sacred Steel” lead.
A few other notable highlights: Luehring kicking off the aforementioned “Lucy” with just a few punctuation marks on tom-tom and cymbal, then revving up to a four-on-the-floor gear, and finally peeling out with massive drum fills during the closing refrains of the chorus. Inglis switching to acoustic guitar for a spiritual “So Many Roads.” A short tease of Brubeck’s “Blue Rondo à la Turk” before the set-closing “Jack Straw.”
Encores are not expected at Danny’s Live Dead, but this time the still-packed crowd wanted more. The Skeleton Krewe and Co. obliged with “Truckin’.”
Out in the street, a local guy named Tyler stood down the block with a giant hand-held bubble-making apparatus, as he does every Wednesday night. Local bumper stickers say, “Only in Fairfax,” and the nighttime bubbles do their part to set that tone. As the crowd exited Peri’s, they stepped into a street colored with floating psychedelia.
Another week until the next version of Danny’s Live Dead in Fairfax. But not only in Fairfax. The Dead live on in myriad ways and places, and ain’t that grand?
SETLIST
Set 1:
Althea
U.S. Blues
Tangled Up in Blue
What a Wonderful World
Don’t Let Go
Deal
Set 2:
Higher Ground>
>Jam
>Big River
Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds
So Many Roads
Jack Straw
Encore:
Truckin’
