Phil Lesh and Friends I sometimes think seeing a member of the Dead family is akin to what folk say about sports like soccer and hockey. You can appreciate them in perfectly-portioned, as-product form on your television, but to be best enjoyed, you need to be there to experience everything firsthand the sleight-of-hand, seat-of-the-pants improvisation; the interaction between players; and the interaction between the players and those who are there to watch them. And if you want to see Dead people, the suitably-sweatbanded Phillip Chapman Lesh is yer man. There's an old Deadhead truism that goes, "If Phil's on, the band's on." Also, keep an eye out for Phriend Jackie Greene, an up-and-coming singer songwriter with a mass of unruly bangs and a penchant for petulant Americana that recalls Ryan Adams (another Phil fan). With The Allman Brothers Band. Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre (Timothy C. Davis)
The Allman Brothers Band If Phil Lesh isn't a reason to check out this concert, then the headliner should be. If you aren't familiar with the Allmans, that's the first reason you should be at this show. The second reason great Southern rock sparked on by the incredible dueling guitar talent of Derek Trucks and Warren Haynes, but that's not to overshadow any of the rest of the boys. Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre (Jeff Hahne)