Dead & Company guitarist John Mayer was the guest on yesterday’s installment of Tales From The Golden Road, a weekly series that airs on SiriusXM’s Grateful Dead channel. Mayer chatted with hosts David Gans and Gary Lambert about D&C’s recent tour and upcoming appearances at this weekend’s Lockn’ Festival in Arrington, Virginia.

The guitarist felt Dead & Company’s second night at Citi Field in New York City was a highlight of this summer’s tour. He also mentioned the band’s visit to Eugene was “great” and that there were a number of shows in which he would turn to bassist Oteil Burbridge and say “That’s the best we’ve ever done that!” Mayer added, “We clocked some new high scores on songs that may not have been first string songs.” John discussed how the sextet is reaching heights that just weren’t possible until they had a handful of tours under their belts.

Mayer was asked about the change in the stage setup in which Oteil and keyboardist Jeff Chimenti swapped spots for the last three shows of the tour. John confirmed it was Bob Weir’s call and helped Weir’s “user experience.” He added that the switch prevented the band from getting burnt out at the end of the run. “I think he wanted to relate more to Oteil’s playing physically,” the guitarist said about Weir’s decision to have Burbridge and Chimenti swap positions.

John Mayer took questions from fans during his appearance on Tales From The Golden Road and was asked if he had ever played with Trey Anastasio before. Mayer said he hasn’t but he had a great experience meeting Trey at the Fare Thee Well shows. He also revealed he pays tribute to Trey during a certain portion of “Throwing Stones.”

It appears John Mayer plans to make the rounds at Lockn’, “My guitar will not be in its case very much, while that festival is going on. If I go to Lockn’ and stay in my hotel room the whole time, pardon my French, but I’m just a dick.” He went on to say, “Lockn’s gonna get it. We’re hot and rested. We’re the best combination of being crystal hot and being rested, and our ears are rested.” Dead & Company headlines on Saturday and Sunday.


Head to the show’s website to listen to the entire interview or tune in to SiriusXM’s Grateful Dead channel at 1 a.m. ET on Wednesday morning.