Show # 5 Bob Weir and the Wolf Brothers

Venue; Sweetwater Music Hall, Mill Valley, CA

Capacity 300

Bob Weir and his stripped down combo, The Wolf Brothers, started their 5 night residency at the Sweetwater Musical Hall on Monday evening. Bob is among the ownership group of the venue which has been a Marin institution since 1972 when it originally opened in an old storefront watering hole called the Office. After relocating to its current spot seven years ago, the Sweetwater is one of the preeminent small music venues in the country. With only 300 tickets per night this was one of the hardest tickets to score and thanks to my daughter, Anja, we have tickets to two nights of the five.

I landed at Oakland International Airport at 5:30 just in time for, you guessed it, rush hour (maybe rush 4 hours in the Bay area)

After a slow hour and ten minute drive to go 22 miles I found my way to Mill Valley. With about five minutes to spare before the doors open I met up with the crew from Southern Oregon who had made the drive down to the Bay earlier in the day. The crew consisted of my daughter, Anja Robinson and her good friends Ryan Flemming and Ellie Chase. Once we had rendezvoused for a quick libation and bite at Bistro 44 it was time to hit the venue.

Bob and the Wolf Brothers hit the stage a little before 8 pm for their first set. The show opened with the classic Grateful Dead song Cassidy. The night really should have been called Bob plays Bob. Over the course of two sets the combo covered 5 Bob Dylan classics (see set list below). The first set closed with a rousing rendition of the classic Jerry Garcia song Deal. After a much needed 40 minute set break Bob and the Wolf Bothers were back at it opening the second set with a Ratdog song Ashes and Glass. The trio proceeded to rip through such classics as Playing in the Band, I Need a Miracle, and Franklin’s Tower. The second set closed with Sugar Magnolia followed by an encore of, yes you guessed it, a Bob Dylan cover, It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue