From Tie-Dye Suits to Timeless Tunes: Jerry Garcia’s Music Shines at The Hamilton Live in DC By Dan Rozman Photos by Mark Raker
In the heart of Washington, DC, just steps from the White House, music lovers packed into the cozy underground venue of The Hamilton Live Thursday night to hear Andy Falco and Travis Book play Jerry Garcia songs. The duo, who also play in the Grammy-winning bluegrass band The Infamous Stringdusters, came back for their third annual show at this intimate 600-person concert hall, once again decked out in the tie-dye suits that matched their playful mood.
Over the years, The Hamilton Live has seen plenty of famous faces—from rock legend Chubby Checker to stars like Ed Sheeran and Megan Moroney. But this night belonged to Garcia’s music, played by two guys who couldn’t hide their joy in performing it.
See the full gallery of photos from this night by Mark Raker here.
Right off the bat, and because of the DC locale for the venue, Falco addressed the elephant in the room with a grin. “Hey, did you guys hear there was an election this week? Just kidding. The greatest part of our job is that we get to come to a place and hang out with you all, and we get to just have a few hours of just not thinking about any of that shit.”
Book kept the mood light, joking about the venue’s underground location: “We get to drive down into the basement parking garage. It’s like our little Madison Square Garden moment.” The photo of Garcia on the wall kept a watchful eye on the proceedings all night. “We just do this because we love Jerry Garcia,” Falco told the crowd. “We’re here to celebrate the music of Jerry Garcia, not for you, but with you.” That living room vibe carried through the whole show, with the pair picking songs as the spirit moved them.
They rolled through classics like “China Cat” into “I Know You Rider,” “Scarlet Begonias,” and “Eyes of the World.” They even gave “Wharf Rat” its first-ever spin in their rotation, part of their push to keep things fresh. The duo made sure to mix up their song choices from the previous Hamilton shows, giving fans something new each time.
Book told the story of how it all began, just messing around backstage at Stringdusters shows. “We were just playing Jerry songs waiting for a show to start,” he said. “And we realized we really, really enjoyed it, because the deeper we got into the music of Jerry Garcia and Robert Hunter, the deeper our understanding of all of life really was.”
After beautiful renditions of “Terrapin Station” and “Ship of Fools,” the night took an emotional turn when they remembered Grateful Dead bassist Phil Lesh. “We lost a really amazing musician,” Falco shared. “Phil was never somebody who phoned anything in musically. He was always pushing it all the way.” Book added that he wished they could play “Box of Rain” but admitted learning it was harder than it looked. “You think it’s just gonna tumble right off your lips,” he laughed. “Let me tell you something, people, Phil was a genius.”
They closed with “Black Muddy River,” before wrapping up with “Althea” and “Ripple” for the encore. Through it all, their love for the music was obvious. As Book put it, “We don’t take lightly the responsibility of playing this music because it’s so meaningful to us and to other people.” On this night, Jerry Garcia’s songs were very much alive and well, played by two guys who treated them like old friends rather than museum pieces.
See the full gallery of photos from this night by Mark Raker here.
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