Words by: Chad Berndston

Images by: Scott Harris

Jerry Garcia Symphonic Celebration Featuring Warren Haynes :: 8.8.16 :: Central Park SummerStage :: NYC

Put aside the question of would Jerry Garcia have liked this — you’d never really know anyway. But it’s fun to speculate that Jer would have at least cracked a smile at the beautiful confluence in it — music against the backdrop of a classic, just-about-comfortable-and-still-hot New York night in the park — and the subtly subversive points, like the decision to drop a serpentine section of the “Slipknot!” build into an otherwise straightforward “Terrapin,” or that after the orchestra had been saluted, thanked and bid goodnight, there was more than a half-hour of cake icing in the form of boogie-heavy workouts on jammy, Jerry-associated tunes.

Typically, produced shows like these — in which a famous musical catalog is set to full orchestral accompaniment — are either overdone or underdone. Either the swelling strings, buoyant brass and armada of musicians overwhelm what should be nimble, pliable music, or they’re relegated entirely to a color and shading role — doubling up certain keyboard parts, for example, or putting a little extra punch under the percussion. Credit good ol’ Warren Haynes, then, for having found, if not quite a sweet spot in between, enough of a balance to show that in the playground of the Grateful Dead, the orchestra kids, the rock ‘n’ roll kids, and the R&B kids can play well together.

This final night of the current Jerry Garcia Symphonic Celebration tour stuck mainly to the script, as you knew it would — there are only so many Warren-esque surprises to tuck into shows where composed sections, and scores of musicians landing on the right note at the right time, are key to making things work. But then, they preserve something organic, too; the way Warren threw an appreciative grin at singers Jaclyn LaBranch and Jazmine Muhummad after a particularly stunning set of harmonies, or the way drummer Jeff Sipe and bassist Lincoln Schleifer lit into an aggressive rhythm under “Lady With A Fan,” knowing that the orchestra would provide the pretty lilt and they could get a bit greasier than they otherwise might. Warren himself kept things easy and graceful, choosing his spots for intensity: “Morning Dew,” “West LA Fadeaway” and “China Doll” really stood out as vocal highlights, and, yep, his playing of Tiger throughout the show left its intended mark.

Does a show like this achieve liftoff? Depends on what you mean. In the balls-out, Grateful Dead sense of the word, with deep space explored, hot jams the rule, not the exception, and a sense of adventure — of Americana myth — pervading all…no. But what you do get is all those gorgeous moments where the idea of setting this music to a full orchestra sounds like a really, really good one: “Crazy Fingers,” bouncing along as a philosophical exchange, Warren’s own “Patchwork Quilt,” mesmerizing with strings, and, stunningly, “Blues for Allah,” which was the night’s best marriage of band and orchestra, and had the crowd swooning as Warren, Jackie and Jazmine built the “under eternity” chant-singing sections with slow boiling vocal heat.

You wanted to hear about the encore, which, as in Red Rocks, featured a gaggle of guests up for a tasty finish after the orchestra had concluded its business. The subject was primarily Jerry Garcia Band-associated songs, though the highlight was “Fire On the Mountain,” which had ripping solos from Eric Krasno and conductor Rich Daniels (a saxophone ace who’d also slid in, one hour earlier, to color a “Space” section after the drum solo). This was the gravy, though. All of Warren’s guests were in fine fettle; it was a beautiful night, there was low-stakes, high-reward music to be played, and the solo baton was going around. It felt good, definitely.

Photos by Scott Harris

Videos (Captured by btragal)

[That’s What Love Will Make You Do]

[Shakedown Street]

[Scarlet Begonias]

[China Doll]

[Fire On The Mountain]

Setlist

Set One: Dark Star > Bird Song, Crazy Fingers, Shakedown Street, China Cat Sunflower, Scarlet Begonias, Morning Dew

Set Two: Uncle John’s Band, West LA Fadeaway, Touch of Grey, Doin’ That Rag > Drums > Space* > Blues for Allah, Terrapin Station > Slipknot! > Terrapin Station

Encore: Patchwork Quilt, China Doll

Encore2**: Road Runner, That’s What Love Will Make You Do* > Fire On the Mountain*, Don’t Let Go