this week in music

DAYLIFE 2014

DayLife block party on Lower East Side welcomes summer season

Orchard St. between East Houston and Delancey Sts.
Sunday, June 1, free, 12 noon – 5:00 pm
www.lowereastsideny.com

The Lower East Side BID welcomes the summer season with a block party on June 1 featuring food, fashion, live music, food, sports, and other activities. Covering three blocks of Orchard St. between East Houston and Delancey, DayLife will include bocce ball, a dance tent (with Scratch DJ Academy and DJ Hurrikeen), fashion booths (Urban Cricket, the Hoodie Shop, Yaf Sparkle, and others), face painting, pet portraits, yoga, live performances (Alcala, Bruce Tantum, Ellen Kaye), and more. Among the more than two dozen food vendors will be Brooklyn Taco, Georgia’s Eastside BBQ, Goodfella’s Pizza, Khao Man Gai NY, Korilla Korean BBQ, the Meatball Shop, Melt Bakery, Mission Cantina, Moscow 57, the Roasting Plant, and Sweet Buttons.

CELEBRATE ISRAEL PARADE: 50 REASONS TO CELEBRATE ISRAEL

The Mideast comes to Midtown as Israel will celebrate its sixty-sixth birthday with a parade up Fifth Ave. on June 1 (photo by twi-ny/mdr)

The Mideast comes to Manhattan as Israel will celebrate its sixty-sixth birthday with a parade up Fifth Ave. on June 1 (photo by twi-ny/mdr)

57th to 74th St. up Fifth Ave.
Sunday, June 1, free, 11:00 am – 4:00 pm
celebrateisraelny.org
2013 parade slideshow

On May 14, 1948, “The Declaration of the Establishment of the State of Israel” proclaimed, “The State of Israel will be open for Jewish immigration and for the Ingathering of the Exiles; it will foster the development of the country for the benefit of all its inhabitants; it will be based on freedom, justice, and peace as envisaged by the prophets of Israel; it will ensure complete equality of social and political rights to all its inhabitants irrespective of religion, race, or sex; it will guarantee freedom of religion, conscience, language, education, and culture; it will safeguard the Holy Places of all religions; and it will be faithful to the principles of the Charter of the United Nations.” Israel’s existence has been fraught with controversy since the very beginning, but the nation perseveres, and on June 1 its sixty-sixth birthday will be honored with the annual Celebrate Israel Parade. This year’s theme is “50 Reasons to Celebrate Israel,” a tribute to the parade’s golden anniversary, as some thirty thousand marchers are expected to make their way from Fifty-Seventh to Seventy-Fourth St. up Fifth Ave. Among the performers will be Hagit Yaso, Chen Aharoni, Howard Leshaw Klezmer & Yiddish Soul, Donny Baitner & the BaRock Orchestra, DJ Mr. Black, the Ramaz Band, and Sandy Shmuely. The grand marshal is Robert Benrimon, with such special guests as Dr. Ruth Westheimer, Ernie Anastos, Becky Griffin, SOULFARM, Ambassadors Ido Aharoni and Sofa Landver, and members of the Israeli Knesset. The day begins with the 4K Celebrate Israel Run through Central Park and concludes with the unaffiliated Israel Day Concert in the Park, a free show in Rumsey Playfield (2:30 – 7:30) featuring Gad Elbaz, Lipa, Edon, Benny Friedman, Ari Lesser, the Shloime Dachs Orchestra, and others participating in what is being billed as “The Concert with a Message” and “The Concert of the Century.”

TICKET ALERT: TOM PETTY AND THE HEARTBREAKERS

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers released its first seven studio albums in less than eleven years, including such classics as You’re Gonna Get It, Damn the Torpedoes, and Hard Promises. It took more than twice as long for their next seven studio records to come out, beginning with the great Into the Great Wide Open in 1991 through their latest, Hypnotic Eye, due July 29 from Reprise. The album, said to evoke the early years of the band, features eleven tracks, including “American Dream Plan B,” “Red River,” “Shadow People,” “Faultlines,” and “Burn Out Town.” (The double-LP version has a bonus track.) Petty and the Heartbreakers, who have consistently put on among the best live shows going back now some forty years, will tour behind the disc, kicking things off in San Diego on August 3 and heading our way for a September 10 show at the Garden. Steve Winwood will again open; the two are likely to play a few tunes together, as they have in the past. The Heartbreakers currently consist of the amazing Mike Campbell on guitar, Benmont Tench on keyboards, Ron Blair on bass, Steve Ferrone on drums, and Scott Thurston on guitar, keyboards, and harmonica. Tickets go on sale to the general public on May 31 at 10:00 am and come with a copy of Hypnotic Eye; members of various fan clubs can start buying tickets now. Petty once declared, “Let me up; I’ve had enough.” Clearly, he hasn’t, and neither have we.

TWI-NY TALK: BRIDGET BARKAN / THE LOVE JUNKIE

Bridget Barkan plays multiple characters in THE LOVE JUNKIE, returning to Joe’s Pub on May 31

BRIDGET BARKAN IN THE LOVE JUNKIE
Joe’s Pub
425 Lafayette St.
Saturday, May 31, $15, 9:00
www.joespub.publictheater.org

Bridget Barkan is a practitioner of the healing power of music, having worked as a music therapist for special-needs children. The native New Yorker, a singer, actor, and Scissor Sisters regular who appeared on Sesame Street as a child and as an adult in such films as Sherrybaby and Everyday People and has a recurring role as a one-legged hooker on Law & Order: SVU, is doing some public healing of her own in her one-woman show, The Love Junkie. In the solo performance, returning to Joe’s Pub on May 31, the fiery redhead and self-described “douche bag magnet” — whose father, Mark, coproduced what might be the first psychedelic album, the Deep’s 1968 Psychedelic Moods: A Mind Expanding Phenomena — employs a mélange of musical styles and genres, including cover songs and originals, while portraying multiple characters to explore recovery from such intimate addictions as love and sex. Barkan, who has been busily posting short “Love Junkie Episodes” on her YouTube channel, recently discussed Times Square, the ’80s, gender roles, and hunting with twi-ny.

twi-ny: You were born and raised in New York City, where you started taking the subway by yourself to school when you were eleven. There are people today who would have your parents locked up for allowing such a thing. What was your childhood in the city like?

Bridget Barkan: Well, taking the subway wasn’t such a huge deal; kids younger than me did and still do. An old man once touched my ass when I was seven and I screamed bloody murder. New York was more edgy. I spent a lot of time going to play pinball or to the movies with my dad in the dirty Times Square, not the Disney version. One time, these two guys tried to mug my dad under some scaffolding, but he was raised in Brooklyn and ended up scaring the shit out of them. It was a very sexually vibrant city and I was excited about it all. It was also oozing with creativity. Sex and art come from the same place, so it makes sense. I think growing up here has given me a real love and connection to many different cultures and sense of openness. I live on the stage of life with no fourth wall.

twi-ny: You got fired from Sesame Street when you were six. What happened?

BB: Well, the rumor is that Bert and Ernie were having a fight in between takes and I came over and tried to fix the problem like I usually did with my parents. But then Big Bird stuck his big head in and Cookie Monster lost his cool. It got pretty messy and for the sake of the show, I took the fall.

No, the truth is, I was apparently bossing the older kids around and a parent complained. I was always an actress, but directing is my real passion . . . haha.

twi-ny: You have a special fondness for the style of the ’80s. What is it about that decade that appeals to you?

Bridget Barkan is looking for love in one-woman show

BB: Well, I grew up in NYC in the ’80s. Damn, I didn’t want to reveal my age, but oh well, I’m already an old hag in this industry anyway. You gotta be twelve years old but look thirty to be of any interest. I believe the ’80s was the last era of real unique expression. Everything that has come after seems to be regurgitated from the past. The ’90s definitely had some moments too. But to me, the real metamorphosis and discovery of hip-hop was a major game changer in the ’80s.

twi-ny: You recently tweeted, “I’ve always been more of the beast than the beauty.” What did you mean by that?

BB: I talk about this in the show, feeling like I’m a hunter. It’s rare that I meet a guy who is coming for my hide with a strong and ferocious intention. I’ve always had the instinct to woo men, shower them, serenade their hearts. Could be attributed to my growing up around three big brothers, having more testosterone. I generally played the boy when playing house or I was the evil witch. Never really the damsel in distress. Maybe I was a dude in my past life or maybe our gender role ideas and concepts are really screwed up. But I’m kind of a closeted hunter. I’ve realized I’m more afraid of going after men the way I used to. I dip my toes in it but I don’t go in for the full attack. I’m like a cowardly lion.

twi-ny: You’ve noted that you’ve wanted to do a one-woman show since you saw Lily Tomlin in The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe. What was it about that show that so deeply affected you?

BB: There was this amazing web of stories. They were all connected so magically, intertwined and mirroring one another. I’ve always loved movies and books that express and highlight how we are all connected. And how a life can be this pure explosion of seeing what other stars you are connected to in your constellation. At the end of the show, this giant mirror comes down, so the audience can see themselves. I was just in tears, and it has stayed with me ever since: The power of art that opens your heart, breaks it, then heals it again.

twi-ny: What was the genesis of The Love Junkie?

BB: I started writing many different one-woman shows over the past years and they were always about heartbreak and failed love. One show started where I played every guy I was with but I could never find an ending, because I kept doing the same thing over and over again. I needed to actually change something in my life so I could write the show I wanted to. I did just that, this time around. I ended a relationship and committed to the relationship with myself.

During the last two years on tour with Scissor Sisters, I researched every artist and show that I loved. I journaled, I wrote weird songs, made tracks, improvised for hours on my computer, danced, did solo photo shoots. I also got lots of advice from [Scissor Sisters] Jake [Shears], Ana [Matronic], Del [Marquis], and Babydaddy, in different ways. Just being who they were inspired me, but they also took time to let me share with them. But it was the actual doing that got me running. I tried out a different performance art piece once a month at an art party called ArtErotica, curated by Dinna Alexanyan. I found a spiritual comedy coach named Alicia Dattner, who guided me through some healing work. She also had been going through love pain as well.

twi-ny: You play multiple characters in the show. Do you have any particular favorites?

BB: I think my favorite character to play is the Old Me, the jaded, lonely, fat, sick, dying, washed-up me. Playing her with a fat suit, cigarette, and cane is a lot of fun. On a personal level it’s like I’m exorcising that idea from my head, that I won’t ever really become her.

twi-ny: You’ll be performing The Love Junkie on May 31 at Joe’s Pub. What are the plans for the show after that?

BB: I love Joe’s Pub; it’s become a real home to me. I would like to have a consistent run of it in NYC, maybe weekly, biweekly, then take it to L.A., London, and beyond! I am looking into spaces and always looking for people to help it grow. I’m excited to let it evolve. Not every show will be the same. It’s an organism in itself. I designed it to be a journey. Maybe this show will be the first step. There could be eleven more. It is a healing experiment for me. So I will walk the road to recovery and see where it takes me.

TRIBECA FAMILY PRESENTS: ALEXANDER AND THE TERRIBLE, HORRIBLE, NO GOOD, VERY BAD DAY

Musical adaptation of classic children’s book comes to TPAC on June 1 (photo by Patrick Dwyer)

Tribeca Performing Arts Center
199 Chambers St.
Sunday, June 1, $25, 1:30
www.tribecapac.org
www.theatreworksusa.org

“I went to sleep with gum in my mouth and now there’s gum in my hair and when I got out of bed this morning I tripped on the skateboard and by mistake I dropped my sweater in the sink while the water was running and I could tell it was going to be a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.” So begins Judith Viorst’s classic 1972 children’s book Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. We were hesitant to bring this up — one of the real-life Alexander’s real-life brothers is an FOT (friend of twi-ny) — but on June 1, Theatreworks USA’s musical adaptation is being staged at the Tribeca Performing Arts Center. The sixty-minute show, appropriate for ages four and up, features music by Shelly Markham, choreography by Cynthia Thole, and direction by Rob Barron; Viorst wrote the book and lyrics. Theatreworks USA’s repertoire also includes musical adaptations of Charlotte’s Web, A Christmas Carol, Junie B. Jones, Peter Pan, The Lightning Thief, and The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, among others, and special study guides accompany each production.

FREE SUMMER DANCE 2014

Trisha Brown’s “I’m going to toss my arms — if you catch them they’re yours” will be performed June 25-26 as part of the River to River tribute to the legendary company (© Laurent Phillipe)

Trisha Brown’s “I’m going to toss my arms — if you catch them they’re yours” will be performed June 25-26 as part of summer-long River to River tribute to the celebrated choreography (© Laurent Phillipe)

The highlight of this summer’s free dance programs is River to River’s tribute to Trisha Brown, including an exhibition, a conversation and Q&A, an open rehearsal, and live performances, taking place on Governors Island and other locations. Among the other festivals featuring dance are Lincoln Center Out of Doors, SummerStage, Hudson River Park’s Moondance, and Celebrate Brooklyn! Keep watching this space for updates as more events are announced.

Saturday, May 24
River to River Festival: Open Studio with Tere O’Connor, LMCC Arts Center at Governors Island, 2:00

Sunday, May 25
River to River Festival: Open Studio with Joanna Kotze, LMCC Arts Center at Governors Island, 3:00

Saturday, June 7
Red Hook Fest, with the Dance Cartel, Dendê and Band, Gallim Dance, Godsell Dance Collective, and Underground System, Louis J. Valentino Jr. Park & Pier, 12 noon – 7:00

Friday, June 13
Bryant Park Presents Modern Dance: Elisa Monte Dance, Buglisi Dance Theatre, Jennifer Muller/The Works, Bryant Park Stage, 6:00

Friday, June 20
Bryant Park Presents Modern Dance: Stephen Petronio Dance, NØA Dance, UnderOneDances, the Dash Ensemble, Bryant Park Stage, 6:00

SummerStage Presents Jason Samuels Smith, All Levels Open Dance Master Class with Jamal Jackson at 7:00, performance by tap-dancer Jason Samuels Smith and composer Owen “Fiidla” Brown at 8:00, Herbert Von King Park

Friday, June 20
through
Sunday, June 29
River to River Festival — Trisha Brown Dance Company: “Embodied Practice and Site Specifity,” exhibition, LMCC Arts Center at Governors Island

Friday, June 20
and
Sunday, June 22
River to River Festival — Eiko: Two Women, duet with Tomoe Aihara, LMCC Arts Center at Governors Island, 2:00

Friday, June 20, 3:00
and
Saturday, June 21, 1:00 & 3:00
River to River Festival — Vanessa Anspaugh: What Was Wasn’t Here, performed by Vanessa Anspaugh, Addys Gonzalez, and Bessie McDonough-Thayer, LMCC Arts Center at Governors Island

Saturday, June 21
SummerStage Presents ChoreoQuest: All Levels Open Dance Master Class with Jamel Gaines at 7:00, performance by ChoreoQuest at 8:00, Herbert Von King Park

Saturday, June 21
River to River Festival Living Room — Ephrat Asherie & Hector Arce-Espasas: Everyday I’m Hustlin’, VBar, South Street Seaport, 9:00

Sunday, June 22
River to River Festival — In Conversation: Susan Rosenberg on Trisha Brown, LMCC Arts Center at Governors Island, 4:30

Sunday, June 22, 7:00 & 8:00
and
Tuesday, June 24, 7:30
River to River Festival — enrico d wey: where we are right now, Pier 15, South Street Seaport

Monday, June 23
through
Wednesday, June 25
River to River Festival — untitled site-specific duet choreographed by Tere O’Connor, performed by Michael Ingle and Silas Riener, Elevated Acre, 1:00

Tuesday, June 24, 3:00
and
Wednesday, June 25, 3:00 & 5:00
River to River Festival — Souleymane Badolo: , of history (Virgule de l’histoire), John Street Church Courtyard

Wednesday, June 25
River to River Festival — Trisha Brown Dance Company: I’m going to toss my arms — if you catch them they’re yours, open rehearsal, Pier 15, South Street Seaport, 7:00

Wednesday, June 25, 2:45
and
Thursday, June 26, 1:45 & 3:45
River to River Festival — Reggie Wilson: …Moses(es), St. Cornelius Chapel, Governors Island

Thursday, June 26
River to River Festival — Trisha Brown Dance Company: I’m going to toss my arms — if you catch them they’re yours, performance, Pier 15, South Street Seaport, 4:00

Thursday, June 26, 5:00
Saturday, June 27, 1:00
and
Sunday, June 28, 1:00
River to River Festival — The Set Up: I Nyoman Catra by Wally Cardona & Jennifer Lacey, 120 Wall St.

Maria Hassabis PREMIERE will move outside to Bowling Green

Maria Hassabi’s mesmerizing PREMIERE will move outside to Bowling Green

Friday, June 27
Bryant Park Presents Modern Dance: Take Dance, Steps Ensemble, BodyStories: Teresa Fellion Dance, Bryant Park Stage, 6:00

River to River Festival — In Conversation: Maria Hassabi, Paolo Javier & Kaneza Schall, Poets House, 7:00

Friday, June 27, 3:00
and
Saturday, June 28, 3:00 & 5:00
River to River Festival — Maria Hassabi: Premiere, Bowling Green

Saturday, June 28
and
Sunday, June 29
River to River Festival — Bronx Gothic: The Oval, Open Studios with LMCC artist in residence Okwui Okpokwasili, LMCC Arts Center at Governors Island, 3:00

Friday, July 4
Bryant Park Presents Modern Dance: Booking Dance Festival Edinburgh, with Art of Motion, Antara Bhardwaj, Barkin/Selissen Project, Buggé Ballet, Dzul Dance, Michael Mao Dance, Rebecca Stenn, Reed Dance, Synthesis Dance, and Compagnie Christiane Emmanuel, Bryant Park Stage, 6:00

Wednesday, July 2
SummerStage Presents Urban Bush Women, Laurie M. Taylor, and Soul Movement, Central Park, 8:00

Friday, July 11
SummerStage Presents Ballet Hispanico’s BHdos, All Levels Open Dance Master Class at 7:00, performance at 8:00, St. Mary’s Park

Saturday, July 12
SummerStage Presents Urban Bush Women, All Levels Open Dance Master Class at 7:00, performance at 8:00, St. Mary’s Park

Sunday, July 13
Moondance: Swing with David Berger Jazz Orchestra, Pier 84, Hudson River Park, lessons at 6:30, live music at 7:00

Wednesday, July 15
SummerStage Presents Ballet Hispanico and A Palo Seco, Central Park, 8:00

Thursday, July 17
Celebrate Brooklyn! Shen Wei Dance, Prospect Park Bandshell, 8:00

Friday, July 18
SummerStage Presents Harambee Dance Company, All Levels Open Dance Master Class at 7:00, performance at 8:00, Queensbridge Park

Sunday, July 20
Moondance: Salsa with Los Hermanos Colon, Pier 84, Hudson River Park, lessons at 6:30, live music at 7:00

Tuesday, July 22
Lincoln Center Out of Doors Brasil Summerfest — screening of Passinho Dance Off: The Movie, David Rubenstein Atrium, 6:30

Tuesday, July 22
Lincoln Center Out of Doors Brasil Summerfest — Behind the Groove: Welcome Party for A Batalha do Passinho, with DJ KS*360, David Rubenstein Atrium, 8:00

Thursday, July 24
Lincoln Center Out of Doors: Rennie Harris Puremovement (Get it, Church, Spirit Migrations, Students of the Asphalt Jungle) and A Batalha do Passinho, Damrosch Park Bandshell, 7:30

Pam Tanowitz’s PASSAGEN is part of Lincoln Center dance program (photo by Yi-Chun Wu)

Pam Tanowitz’s PASSAGEN is part of Lincoln Center dance program on June 25 (photo by Yi-Chun Wu)

Friday, July 25
Lincoln Center Out of Doors: Pam Tanowitz Dance (PASSAGEN featuring violinist Pauline Kim Harris, excerpt from The Spectators featuring FLUX Quartet) and eighth blackbird (Erase by Andy Akiho, Murder Ballades by Bryce Dessner, Counting Duets by Tom Johnson/“Études” by György Ligeti, these broken wings 3 by David Lang), Damrosch Park Bandshell, 7:30

Saturday, July 26
Lincoln Center Out of Doors — Family Day: Baby Loves Disco — A Family Dance Party, Roslyn and Elliot Jaffe Dr., 11:00 am and 2:00 pm; A Batalha do Passinho Dance Class, Hearst Plaza, 1:00; National Dance Day, Josie Robertson Plaza, 4:00

Sunday, July 27
Moondance: Swing with Vince Giordano & the Nighthawks, Pier 84, Hudson River Park, lessons at 6:30, live music at 7:00

Thursday, July 31
Celebrate Brooklyn! Dance Theatre of Harlem and Leyla McCalla, Prospect Park Bandshell, 7:30

Friday, August 1
Lincoln Center Out of Doors: Paul Taylor Dance Company (Fibers, Aureole, Piazzolla Caldera) and Pablo Ziegler’s New Tango Ensemble, Damrosch Park Bandshell, 7:30

Saturday, August 2
Lincoln Center Out of Doors: Camille A. Brown and Dancers (Mr. TOL E. RAncE) and Stew & the Negro Problem, Damrosch Park Bandshell, 7:00

Germaul Barnes of Viewsic Expressions Dance will lead a master class at SummerStage program in East River Park on August 8

Sunday, August 3
Moondance: Salsa with Nu D’Lux, Pier 84, Hudson River Park, lessons at 6:30, live music at 7:00

Wednesday, August 6
Uptown Bounce: Summer Nights at 104th & Fifth — Throwback, with DJ D’Marquesina, DJ Grand Master Caz, breakdancers the NBS Crew, video projections and sidewalk art by the Murcielagos Fumando Collective, and discussion with Perla de Leon, 6:00

SummerStage Presents Spectrum Dance Theater and Sidra Bell Dance NY, Central Park, 8:00

Thursday, August 7
Lincoln Center Out of Doors: Ragamala Dance with Rudresh Mahanthappa (Song of the Jasmine), Kun-Yang Lin/Dancers (Be/Longing 2), and Chinese American Arts Council Dancers (From Chinatown with Love), Damrosch Park Bandshell, 7:30

Friday, August 8
SummerStage Presents Spectrum Dance Theater, All Levels Open Dance Master Class with Germaul Barnes at 7:00, performance at 8:00, East River Park

Saturday, August 9
SummerStage and Valerie Gladstone present Dance Off the Grid, Master Class with Evidence at 7:00, performance at 8:00, East River Park

Sunday, August 10
Moondance: Swing with George Gee Swing Orchestra, Pier 84, Hudson River Park, lessons at 6:30, live music at 7:00

Sunday, August 10
through
Saturday, August 16
Downtown Dance Festival, Battery Park

August 13
Uptown Bounce: Summer Nights at 104th & Fifth — Remix, with DJ D’Marquesina, DJ Grand Master Caz, Kelly Peters and his Generation X Hip Hop Dancers, video projections and sidewalk art by the Murcielagos Fumando Collective, and El Museo founder Raphael Montañez Ortiz in conversation with Chon Noriega, 6:00

Friday, August 15
SummerStage and the Firehouse Present: The Harlem Dance Caravan: Erasing the Boundaries, All Levels Open Dance Master Class with Theresa Lavington at 7:00, performance at 8:00, Marcus Garvey Park

Saturday, August 16
SummerStage and the Firehouse Present: The Harlem Dance Caravan: Erasing the Boundaries, All Levels Open Dance Master Class with Calvin Wiley at 7:00, performance at 8:00, Marcus Garvey Park

PHIL LESH AND FRIENDS

Phil Lesh & Friends will jam in Rumsey Playfield in Central Park on May 28 and 31

Rumsey Playfield, Central Park
Wednesday, May 28, $49.50 – $99.50, 6:00
Saturday, May 31, $49.50 – $99.50, 4:30
www.phillesh.net
www.thecapitoltheatre.com

It’s hard to believe, but it has been almost two decades since the death of Jerry Garcia brought an end to the “long, strange trip” that constituted the never-ending touring cycle of that most distinctive of rock bands, the Grateful Dead. After Garcia passed away in 1995, the other members of the band pursued various projects of their own, as well as combining forces in varying lineups known as the Other Ones, the Dead, and Furthur, all of them building on and continuing the group’s musical journey and evolution. Any number of the musicians shuffling in and out of the band’s roster had their own musical proclivities: Garcia was a devoted fan of the bluegrass and folk music at the roots of the Grateful Dead’s psychedelicized sound. Bob Weir was a rock ‘n’ roll enthusiast. Ron “Pigpen” McKernan lived for the blues, while Mickey Hart’s interests gravitated toward world music and percussion excursions. Through it all, Phil Lesh was an anchor and a constant presence in the Grateful Dead, manning the bass guitar since their days as the Warlocks in mid-1960s San Francisco. Though his repertoire spanned the entire gamut of the group’s musical interests, Lesh’s own musical leanings veered toward the experimental fringe — Karlheinz Stockhausen and Charles Ives are influences — and in his own excursions interpreting the Grateful Dead canon a sense of improvisation and experimentation is always present.

Lesh has stayed active (and then some) since the demise of the original group. Besides participating in the post-GD offshoots with his former bandmates, he has been on the road with his own rotating collection of musical acolytes for the better part of the past fifteen years. These ensembles, Phil Lesh & Friends officially, have featured a veritable encyclopedia of musicians affiliated with any number of styles, from jam-band veterans to blues legends and any number of Lesh’s contemporaries through the years. The M.O. of his performances can vary but usually highlight songs from the Grateful Dead catalog, both obscure and popular and played in the spirit of the original band; set lists vary night to night, and the songs can be interpreted in different ways depending on the performance. Since receiving a liver transplant in 1998, Lesh has made it a point to promote organ donor awareness at his concerts and continues the tradition of playing multiple charity benefits. In recent years, the septuagenerian (yes, he’s seventy-four) bassist has taken a nod to his health and cut back on his relentless touring schedule to operate from a home base in Marin County, where he has established his own venue, Terrapin Crossroads, getting together with his ever-changing cycle of friends and family members. (Both of Lesh’s sons have joined him onstage in recent years.)

Still, an old road horse like Phil Lesh needs to ramble, and he has always had a special affinity for New York City. Last fall, he joined guitarist Eric Krasno and Furthur drummer Joe Russo for a half-hour impromptu set of jazz outside the Sheep Meadow in Central Park, to the surprise and delight of passersby. Now Lesh will bring his latest ensemble to the Rumsey Playfield stage for a one-off show in the heart of Manhattan, presented by Port Chester’s Capitol Theatre, right smack in Central Park, where the Grateful Dead performed way back in 1968 and 1969 in their psychedelic heyday. Central Park was also where Mayor Giuliani banned fans from gathering for a memorial following Garcia’s death.

The “Friends” on hand this time around will include drummer Russo, jazz-leaning guitarist John Scofield, versatile keyboardist John Medeski, and blues-rock ax slinger Warren Haynes, a veteran of the Allman Brothers, the (post-Garcia) Dead, and his own bands, primarily Gov’t Mule. Like a magic elixir or a pot of gumbo, the various elements brought to the table by each unique member in this mix of musicians makes for a different concert experience every time Phil’s Friends convene. No matter what songs the band decides to perform, expect some accomplished jamming, a heady dose of improvisation, and the heartwarming recognition of hearing some beloved chestnuts played loud and true by one of the men who first created them. Expect to be surprised: Phil has been known to pull out long-forgotten nuggets from the deepest reaches of the Grateful vault or, conversely, to perform entire sets consisting of reinterpretations of classic works like the Rolling Stones’ Sticky Fingers or even Ryan Adams songs. Expect Phil to enjoy every second of playing for a crowd that’s wholly devoted to a musical adventure that’s been going on for almost half a century. And expect a rabid and knowledgeable crowd of aging hippies in faded tie-dye. That comes with the turf.

— guest post by Pete Millerman