Dead & Company Keep It Lively With “I Fought The Law” Debut, Fast “They Love Each Other” At Sphere [Photos/Videos]

Dead & Company Keep It Lively With “I Fought The Law” Debut, Fast “They Love Each Other” At Sphere [Photos/Videos]

Dead & Company :

For the penultimate performance of their 2025 Dead Forever residency, Dead & Company made a comeback to Sphere last night. The band increased the ante and kept dropping new songs and surprises after starting the weekend with a strong but comparatively subdued performance on Thursday. These included the Dead & Co.’s first performance of “I Fought the Law” and a sped-up rendition of “They Love Each Other” performed at the original 1973 tempo.

However, it began with the first and (presumably) only cover of Bob Dylan’s “When I Paint My Masterpiece” by Bob Weir, John Mayer, Mickey Hart, Oteil Burbridge, Jeff Chimenti, and Jay Lane. The slow tempo of the song seemed to set the stage for a laid-back opening set, but they surprised everyone with an exciting rendition of “Playing in the Band.” They sounded looser and more free than the night before, even though they essentially followed the song’s structure. Mayer skillfully transitioned from the jam section back to the final chorus, while Oteil’s fingers were burning hot, pounding out fast rhythms.

Mayer’s soulful soloing continued during “Althea”, even drawing enthusiastic cheers from the crowd as the song reached its peak before the last bridge. A pre-planned hard transition carried the band right into “The Music Never Stopped”. The band continued to loosen up during an extended 3/4 waltz jam, ultimately shifting back to the main groove with masterful precision. Chimenti used a funky, wah-wah clavinet sound—a rare choice for him—before switching to the more familiar sound of his electric piano.

The band then defied its reputation for slowing songs down with an uptempo take on “They Love Each Other”. Introduced by the Dead in 1973, the song had a quicker tempo for about a year before settling down to its now-standard, laidback reggae feel. It was not the first time Dead & Company played the song at its original 1973 tempo, but it was still a welcome surprise.

Declaring, “We’ll be right back,” he pretended to be part of the audience before joking, “We’re back,” and starting into another song. The already outstanding first set would be difficult to top, but “Deal” once again picked up the pace and brought the set to a happy conclusion. Before departing the stage for a set break, Weir declared, “We’re taking a break for real now.”

Dead & Company returned and opened set two with “I Fought the Law,” another surprise. Sonny Curtis of the Crickets wrote the original song, which the Bobby Fuller Four made popular and which The Clash famously covered. Later, the Dead performed it live several times between 1993 and 1995, when Jerry Garcia passed away.

The fact that Dead & Co. are still releasing new songs on the seventeenth night of their eighteen-show residency is astounding. It demonstrates the band’s dedication to ongoing development, experimentation, and careful planning.

Mayer put his guitar pick in his mouth and slapped the strings to create ethereal harmonics as the song transitioned into a spacey jam called “Dark Star.” The band dusted off “Spanish Jam” after, so to speak, floating through the transitive nightfall of diamonds, and then landed in “St. Stephen,” which prompted enthusiastic applause from the audience. By the time they got to the jam section, the entire band—especially Mayer—was on fire, but Weir was locked in right next to him.

Remarkably, fans also cheered enthusiastically when “Sugaree” opened. At the height of his solo, Mayer’s fast-paced picking enthralled the audience, and at the song’s climactic end, he sang bluesy vocal licks.

As usual, “Drums” was a highlight. Before concluding the segment on the Beam, Mickey got the in-seat haptics rumbling with Lane and Burbridge and beat the toms with a flawless wax on wax off technique, looking as elegant as a ballerina.

Chimenti, Weir, Mayer, and Burbridge had some lovely interplay in “Space,” which was followed by a strong “Stella Blue.” Before the drums entered to add more rhythmic definition, the Weir-led ballad had a light feel. Weir brought the song’s poignant lyrics to life, bringing calm conviction and a soulful presence to each word. Mayer and Chimenti’s delicate melodic interplay elevated the song to a new level.

READ MORE : Mariska Hargitay Reveals the Identity of Her Biological Father: ‘Living a Lie’