Photo: Nick Langlois
On Wednesday, May 1, Daze Between New Orleans returned for its second and final offering at Faubourg Brewing Company. Amassing electrifying acts that drew in visitors between the former onset of week one and the impending percolation of the secondary block of the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival schedule, which ultimately rendered the same air of excitement, with a lineup that extended to include individual sets from Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe, Galactic, Daniel Donato’s Cosmic Country, Karina Rykman and The Iceman Special, leading to the night’s final billing.
Holding down Daze Between’s final slot was Gov’t Mule, billed to feature special guests such as John Scofield, Chuck Leavell, Ivan Neville, Denson, The Dirty Dozen Brass Band, and Donato, in addition to unannounced faces, who turned up on stage and lent their skills beside Haynes and company. Sticking with a billing of known players, the supergroup of sorts picked up staples “Mule” and “Banks of the Deep End” before kicking it into the title track off Gov’t Mule’s 11th studio LP, Revolution Come…Revolution Go.
On traditional “John the Revelator,” The Dirty Dozen Brass Band added blows over the long-time Gov’t Mule cover, propelled by Haynes’ vocal lead. The aforementioned company stuck around, layering Herbie Hancock’s “Chameleon” before leaving the stage. On follow-up “Same as It Ever Was,” the Grateful Dead’s “Daze Between” was teased during the intro, a fitting nod to the current state of affairs amidst Jazz Fest.
The group closed frame one after “Time to Confess,” resuming their stage time with the onset of fan favorite, the Haynes-written Allman Brothers Band popularized “Solshine” with added help from Donato and former ABB vocalist and piano player Leavell. Perhaps a nod toward today’s Jazz Fest pick-up and the highly anticipated Rolling Stones’ time slot, the supergroup worked through “Wild Horses” with accompaniment from Grace Potter.
Touching on previous team-ups, “Gold Dust Woman” found Haynes and Potter taking on the Fleetwood Mac originator, a feature of The Benefit Concert Volume 20 LP. Duane Betts appeared next, assisting with his father, the late Dickey Betts’ penned “Blue Sky.” On “Dreaming Outloud,” Ivan Neville assisted before swapping spots with other guest musicians Denson and Scofield, who added to “Devil Likes it Slow.” Little Feat’s “Spanish Moon” marked the last song of the second frame, with featured help from Sco, Neville and Denson.
Touching on their shared work, the title track of the 1999 live LP Sco-Mule took the final slot of the night, opening up a conversation on shared time and the elongated history that connected musicians who shared the stage during the final slot at Daze Between New Orleans. After wrapping the event, late-night activities ensued at Tipitina’s with The Daze Between Band, which saw the return of Betts and Leavell and a take on Dickey’s “Southbound Jessica” and “In Memory of Elizabeth Reed.
Also included in after-hours activities was an appearance by New Orleans staple George Porter Jr., who appeared after performing with his trio at Crawfish Festival earlier in the day. During the aforementioned appearance, Luther Dickinson was invited out for a couple of tunes, including the Dead’s “Smokestack Lightning”
Scroll down to view photos from day two of Daze Between courtesy of Nick Langlois.
