“Who the hell is this JRAD I keep hearing about?” I asked my friend, after hearing the acronym used incessantly on Facebook several years ago.

“JRAD, JRAD, JRAD!” What a dumb name, I thought.

She looked at me dumbstruck. “Seriously? Joe Russo’s Almost Dead! Hello??”

“Almost Dead? What are they like? Another ((yawn)) dead cover band?”

“They’re like the Dead, but on uppers” she answered. “Just wait..they’re not to be believed.”

Apparently I had been sleeping under a log as the JRAD train sped away from the station, swooping up new passengers at every stop along the way, gathering momentum among the fan base of Deadheads and other jam-band music lovers.

Joe Russo’s Almost Dead, I discovered, was the hottest thing since…well…just since.

And it’s high time introductions were made.

Ladies and Gentlemen! Without further ado, Joe Russo’s Almost Dead:

Joe Russo, Percussion

Joe Russo: Ian Rawn Photography, w/ perm.

Marco Benevento, Keys

Marco Benevento, Photo by Michael DiDonna

Scott Metzger, Guitar

Scott Metzger, with permission: Andrew Scott Blackstein

Tommy Hamilton, Guitar

Dave Dreiwitz, Bass.

**Dave Dreiwitz, Photo cred unknown. JRAD BASSIST**

Oteil Burbridge, Bass (subbing for Dave Dreiwitz on various dates)

**Oteil, from his Instagram page (no photo cred given)**

As I was checking out the bio’s of the band, I realized with a start that I had actually seen 2 of the 5 members of JRAD way back in April 2005, while attending the Jammy Awards at the Theater at Madison Square Garden. Phil Lesh had hosted the star-studded event, and Joe Russo and Marco Benevento took home the award for “New Groove of the Year.”

They were amazing, as they were joined on stage for a rollicking jam with none other than Les Claypool, Mike Gordon, and classically trained sitar player Gabby Lala. (video below)

The Stars Align

If necessity is the mother of invention, then by all accounts, Joe Russo’s Almost Dead was born unexpectedly in 2013, two years before they were even a twinkle in my eye.

Bassist Dave Dreiwitz shares the whole story of meeting the other members of the future band in a 2018 interview with Live For Live Music. Below, an excerpt:

“Scott [Metzger], Joe [Russo], Marco [Benevento], and I knew each other ten years before Almost Dead. I met them in 2004—it’s all a funny story. I know Scott because he’s from the same town that Ween is from. I met him when he was in high school working in a health foods store, and I come from a jazz background studying at Rutgers and playing upright bass. So I walk into the health foods store and Scott had his guitar out at work practicing jazz tunes. I go up to him and say, “I just moved here after recently joining Ween. We should get together and play some jazz together.”

As luck would have it, later that year, when Ween was playing Jazz Fest, Joe Russo was introduced to Dreiwitz, who casually mentioned that he would love to play some bass with “Bustle In Your Hedgegrow”, the instrumental Zeppelin band that Russo and Scott Metzger occasionally performed in, being serious Zeppelin fans. The trio stayed in touch, playing a few special Bustle shows, creating the foundation for what would become Joe Russo’s Almost Dead (below).

Get Thine Arse to JRAD already!

If Russo/Benevento was any indication, it was high time to check out Joe Russo’s Almost Dead. And I knew just the place: The historic Fox Theater, Oakland, California, 12/12/15. Caught an Alaska Airlines shuttle to one of my best pals in San Rafael for the weekend, and it was on.

I was advised to get a VIP ticket to the Fox, since this enabled early entry to the venue, the most important consideration in terms of positioning oneself in one’s preferred area. (I was never a VIP gal, per se, but I am often one now. Some things are worth it, if you have “it” to spare. Most of my “worth it” designations involve music. And travel. Travel to music; especially worth it.)

So, VIP tickets in hand, hobnobbing in line with the best of them, we sashayed into the Telegraph Room at the Fox, and made ourselves comfortable, eating the ubiquitous Paella, lounging on the comfortable couches, ordering drinks, organizing party favors, and getting situated.

As an aside, it is here that I met my friend Judy Goldberg for the first time, although it had been suggested many a time between mutual acquaintances that we needed to meet. And they were right—Look at that face! And it was the just the first of many googly eye encounters. (see her Stealie on the Santa hat below).

Judy Goldberg and Friends, Telegraph Room 2015.

We eagerly lined the anteroom hallway, and our large group rushed past the ushers to the first loge, draping our coats over the rail, laying claim to our space for the show. Many would be shaking their heads about why we wouldn’t just go straight for the first rail, but this spot enables us to move, dance, have proximity to adult beverages and the sweet spot for sound. All show spots have their advantages, which will surely be examined another time.

House lights dim…voices hush, and then the band walks on to the sound of our excited applause and palpable excitement. Nothing like that rush of excitement and energy in the air.

On With The Show

This was by no means my favorite JRAD show, but it was my first, and deserves praise for breaking my JRAD cherry. Click link below the poster to hear the show:

https://archive.org/details/jrad2015-12-12.cmc621.sbd.matrix.flac16

Set 1: 8:21 pm

Long jam commences, building for 4 minutes until Greatest Story warms us all up together, conversation beginning. building synchronicity., and taking a leap into the great fantastic.
Scarlet: Marco Benevento opens up the retro sound on his keys and steps up those familiar stairs, only he makes them extra funky —>
Fire: Well, hello, fire! What a surprise! :) Jerry-esque wa-wa guitar work, spectral gliding, whole band effort
Dancing: This is where the show opens up big time for me. Great bass solo by Dave leads the band into a seriously funky and fast piece of guitar work by Scotty and Tommy, building into the vocals about 4 minutes in.. This is tight rendition, all the way through, with a bit of an Eternity jam thrown in. Marco adds some Hammond organ pipes, followed by the tinkle of traditional keys, for a good long jam, and for sure some Dylan “everybody must get stoned” licks. Many changing of tempos, and crescendos. If you ain’t dancing during this 18+ minute showcase of wonder, you’re sleeping.
Takeoff is complete as Franklins soars..Marco’s playing his little heart out, and then at about 8 mins, the song totally slows to a single guitar and a bit of snare, for way too long for my taste, until at about 12 minutes, things get a little spooky, with buzzy bass, bending notes, leading us back into a nice Roll Away jam, building into a very high energy almost Dylan-esque punky version of the chorus before ending at 18+ minutes.
And.. we get a Saturday Night to end the set.. sang by Scott, perfectly.

Set 2: 10:20 pm
01. China Cat Sunflower: Starting out Set 1 ever-so-nicely as Marco transitions the band from China to—>

02. I Know You Rider : Hot! Hot! Hot! This tune is played in warp speed..and as Scott and Tommy simply WAIL on their guitars, the audience bounced, wiggled and otherwise lost our minds. I beg you to listen to my favorite organ sound as Marco SOARS with Hammond vintage sound from minute 4:33, joined by screaming guitars at about the 9:00 min mark and just SLAY…until BAM—>

03. Shakedown Street: In the mood to dance like a crazy person? You need to listen to this.

04. Jam ^ —>Slow, kinda eh. but gives one a chance to have a drink, catch yer breath.. until—>

05. Truckin' : Love when Scott sings, and this one’s a party..we’ve got it all, peoples; ragtime, electronica, rock-n-roll, vintage…Don’t believe me? Check out the mid 6 minute mark where the jam BRINGS IT for a good 5 minutes until Joe Russo becomes his beastly self and pounds it out with Marco and Dave…culminating in special effects bringing us back in time and with cartoon like synth voices. Piano brings us gently to —>

06. Terrapin Suite: This 32 minute version, complete with ongoing jams from "Everybody Wants To Rule The World" (Tears for Fears), is a lovely symphony played very, very well, with many movements in the entire suite…showcasing the range of talent for a whopping 32 minutes. The compass does indeed point to Terrapin.

Joe Russo introduces and thanks the band, and is exultant about this being their “first official -like indoor gig in California. My whole life with this music started back in this room in 2009”

Encore: Not Fade Away: More yummy goodness, to end the show, as Joe tells the audience that he is the luckiest guy in the world to get to play music with these guys.

What Just Happened?

From the moment of takeoff to the smooth landing to end the show, discovering this band felt exciting and energizing, in a way that I haven’t experienced with any other Dead-related or jam band. This was the beginning of my utter respect for a band that shines by showcasing and celebrating each other’s immense solo talents, led by Joe Russo’s almost double time tempo. And if you’re anything like me, I’m betting that you can’t stay away.