On January 18, while presenting a collective “rainbow full of sound,” Greensky Bluegrass and Railroad Earth left no doubt that they still possess the character, proficiency, relevance, and charisma that have kept them among the most notable of the so-called “jam bands” in the land for the past 20-plus years. The two veteran alt-bluegrass bands, both in the midst of long tours that have included particularly varied set lists from show to show, touched down for a one-off shared show at the ornamental, 2,800-capacity Fox Theater in Oakland, Calif.
Both bands, one established in Kalamazoo, Michigan (Greensky Bluegrass), and the other in northern New Jersey (Railroad Earth), have thrived for about 25 years, not so much on their studio recordings but by gathering national support through their live performances, including especially their frequent festival appearances. On this night, each band pushed the bluegrass boundaries, offered solid, substantive sets, and weaved songs and improvisational arrangements that prompted ubiquitous head-nodding and waves of freeform dance. Greensky Bluegrass’ performance was more rooted in traditional bluegrass, while Railroad Earth’s sound drew from bluegrass, folk, and Americana. The evening included a few sit-ins.
Railroad Earth started the proceedings, with the septet offering “Black Elk Speaks,” which segued into “Mighty River,” one of the band’s most enduring pieces of music. The group, including founding members Todd Sheaffer (lead vocals, acoustic guitar), John Skehan (mandolin, bouzouki), Tim Carbone (fiddle, guitar), and Carey Harmon (drums), along with Dave Speranza (bass), Matt Slocum (keyboards), and Mike Robinson (pedal steel, banjo, acoustic guitar), exuded poise and virtuosity throughout. Multi-instrumentalist Andy Goessling, a popular founding/core member of the band, died in 2018.
Railroad Earth’s set moved on to lengthy, resplendent versions of “Chasin’ a Rainbow” and “Bird in a House” (marked by Sheaffer’s soaring lyrics and dating back to the band’s early days), followed by the foot-stompin’ “Dandelion Wine,” characterized by Carbone’s fiddle prowess and Slocum’s rapid piano plinking. The 75-minute set’s second half included the dreamscape ballad “Captain Nowhere” (“Whipped by winds / Gripped by tides / Through the dangerous depths / The freedom ship rides”), followed by “Where Songs Begin.”
Sheaffer then shared with the shining, smiling audience, “Sure is nice to be here with our buddies, Greensky Bluegrass. We’re gonna borrow Anders for this one.” Greensky Bluegrass’ dobro specialist Anders Beck then joined the band for an extended version of “Elko.” Railroad Earth’s set-ender, one of the most compelling moments of the evening, was the band’s third (or so)-ever performance of the Grateful Dead’s “Box of Rain,” presumably in tribute to its songwriter, Phil Lesh, the Dead’s bass player, who passed away about three months prior. Odin Berkelman-Rosado, a singer/songwriter and audio producer who lives in San Francisco, was moved by that final tune. “For me, that was the highlight of the night overall,” he said, “and you could see and feel the emotion in the crowd in such a beautiful way. It’s just one of those things that shows how powerful live music can be.”
After a short break, Greensky Bluegrass reignited the festivities, with the all-strings quintet firing on all cylinders as they offered their unique fusion of progressive bluegrass and rock ‘n’ roll psychedelia. The band consists of original members Paul Hoffman on mandolin and lead vocals, Dave Bruzza on guitar and vocals, and Michael Bont on banjo, as well as Beck on dobro, and Mike Devol on bass. Song performances typically started with a rootsy bluegrass essence that flowed into unscripted, cosmically exploratory jams. First out of the gate was a duo of tunes exuding traditional (and quick and nimble) bluegrass grooves: “Demons,” followed by the traditional bluegrass chestnut “Little Maggie,” recorded by the Stanley Brothers in 1946.
Thereafter, following “Reasons to Stay” and “Room Without a Roof,” Hoffman welcomed Railroad Earth’s Sheaffer to sing “The Hunting Song,” a Railroad Earth song that Greensky Bluegrass has only performed a few times. “Run or Die” came next, then “200 Miles From Montana.” The second half of the set kicked off with an epic version of the lightning-quick-paced instrumental “Broke Mountain Breakdown,” which included a quick Deep Purple “Smoke on the Water” riff to boot, that eventually led into “Worry for You.”
“For me,” said Berkelman-Rosado, “the highlight was GSBG’s instrumental composition and jam ‘Broke Mountain Breakdown.’ I think that song showcases everything that makes GSBG what it is... they take a very traditional-sounding bluegrass progression that sounds very authentic while also being composed intentionally and arranged beautifully, and then steadily build that further and further out into the stratosphere utilizing modern effect pedals that tap into hints of Grateful Dead ‘space’ segments, psychedelia, trance EDM, and eventually something seemingly far away from bluegrass – funk.”
Next, Greensky Bluegrass offered a grand version of “One Way Out” (Sonny Boy Williamson / Elmore James / Allman Brothers Band), before they invited keyboardist Holly Bowling to the stage. She had fun rocking a keytar (a small keyboard worn around the neck and shoulders) with the band on “Solstice.” Bowling, who is based in San Francisco, has collaborated with the band several times, including on recordings and performances in Iceland in 2023 and on the band’s most recent full album, 2022’s Stress Dreams.
“Fixin’ to Ruin” followed, and the set ended with Railroad Earth’s Skehan and Carbone guesting on a long version of “Don’t Lie.” Notably, Greensky Bluegrass’ 2006 album, Tuesday Letter, was produced by Carbone. The band encored with their enduring “Burn Them,” which hadn’t been performed much, if at all, in the past nine years.
Berkelman-Rosado, who first saw Greensky Bluegrass in 2017, was happy to describe what stood out to him in Greensky Bluegrass’ performance, in addition to “Broke Mountain Breakdown.” “‘The Hunting Song’ with Todd Sheaffer of Railroad Earth sitting in on lead vocals and guitar; the Allman Brothers version of Sonny Boy Williamson’s ‘One Way Out’ with some fiery blues picking and singing that would make Gregg, Duane, and Dickey proud; and a super-jammed-out ‘Don’t Lie’ with more members of Railroad Earth sitting in that clocked in just under 19 minutes.”
Railroad Earth set: Black Elk Speaks, Mighty River, Chasin’ a Rainbow, Bird in a House, Dandelion Wine, Captain Nowhere, Where Songs Begin, Elko (with Anders Beck), Box of Rain
Greensky Bluegrass set: Demons, Little Maggie, Reasons to Stay, Room Without a Roof, The Hunting Song (with Todd Sheaffer), Run or Die, 200 Miles From Montana, Broke Mountain Breakdown, Worry for You, One Way Out, Solstice (with Holly Bowling), Fixin’ to Ruin, Don’t Lie (with John Skehan, Tim Carbone). Encore: Burn Them.
