Richmond Night 1 Recap (9/12/25)
Listen to the entire show on Nugs or Relisten or Archive.org.
Data mined and explored via Everyday Companion.
The band welcomed fans from all around the land to Richmond and the brand spanking new Allianz Amphitheater, just opened in the summer of 2025. Owned by Live Nation, this slick riverfront venue boasts proximity to the urban core and can hold up to 7500 attendees. Fishwater began the party while it was still light out, the sun was just beginning its low descent into the western sky. For those accustomed to the dirty heat of a slap you in the face Fishwater drop, this was a different approach with some slow building around a neat and tidy three note bass signature from our home town hero. Once we heard Sunny’s trademark whistle, we knew it was on. A solid version with segments from all members getting into their groove, passing around the proverbial mic and all six had a crack at bringing some heat. As far as numbers go, this was the 43rd time in history that a show opened with Fishwater, the 9th time opening in the Herring era, and Duane’s 3rd ever chance to open with this select song from the 1994 album Ain’t Life Grand. At around 13 minutes long, this was a great way to get the crowd all lathered up for the night ahead.
A brief pause and then the comforting familiar beginning of a super classic, fan favorite: Tall Boy. This song was played live starting on 08/03/95, although not released on an album until 2/4/97 as the third track on the band’s 5th studio album, Bombs and Butterflies. One of our guests at the podcast recently told us that back in the ancient times before the internet and cell phones ruined our lives, this song had just begun to be played and tapers that did not know the name called it “Battlefield” and/or “Holy Ghost”. Listen in at about 2:57 (all times correlate to the nugs.net release of this show) when JB gets cute and changes the line from “sippin’ on a tall boy” to “swiggin’ on a tall boy”. Herring flexes his might at about 4:15 and adds some extra swagger to the song, making it a contender for the jam of the set in just the second slot of the run.
For our third selection of the evening, the band chose Walkin’. One of our high level operatives that spent the show just a step back from the rail on JB side said this was the most flawless lyrical execution of this song that she had ever seen. This highly reliable source believes that not a single word or verse was out of place, 10/10 for John Bell. A perfect ten! While the lyrics were being sent down from on high, the man driving the groove and driving the bus on this one was DAS, making his old neighborhood proud with his incredible musicianship and talent. Jimmy and JB were bouncing sounds off each other and the percussion section had things dialed in perfectly.
Dave spoke to the crowd before the next number began “Hello Richmond! You look mighty familiar.” He was smiling wide and bright when he got to greet this home town crowd.
We Walk Each Other Home was on the setlist as the 4th song of the first frame. A two song pair of “walking” songs, perhaps a nod to the legions of fans that were able to get to the venue as flat foot flewzys this Friday night. There are some sacred unifying themes that bond the Panic family at large, one of the most prevalent is how many in our community have a very strong connection to our pets, especially dogs dreaming good old dog dreams and cats topping off the wood pile, breathing slow. In our 7th 2025 showing of WWEH (over the span of 10 runs/27 shows), JB really tugs the heart strings with all his majesty and the emotion was palpable. One didn't have to look far for the sight of fans wiping the dust from misty eyes or bringing the shirt sleeve up to wipe away some hard fought tears. All dogs go to heaven, cats too. Woof, meow.
A tiny pause and then it was time for Jojo to get in on the action, a crisp and bright piano intro launched us into Good People. JB’s voice was tuned up and Jojo had a precise and strong command of his piano for a peppy romp through this dance number. Sunny gets honorable mention for how hard he was beating his bongos. Get it Sunny!
Our first true segue of the weekend led us into the Jojo mini-ballad, Dark Bar. This was only the third Dark Bar of 2025, as Jojo did have a bit of time off from his vocal duties during his healing time since Red Rocks. It was nice to see this song come back, it just seemed right to have it in the middle of Good People. As we all know, everything changes over time. This rule of life applies to the songs our favorite band plays as well. Some songs start as instrumentals and later have lyrics added (e.g. Action Man, Pilgrims). Other songs have original lyrics that change along the way and the old lyrics are left behind and seemingly lost forever (e.g. Papa’s Home, Visiting Day, Bear’s Gone Fishing, etc.). Dark Bar is seemingly a very special and mystical song that has never been released as a studio version, and the original lyrics had a much heavier spin on them. Those early lyrics seem to be buried after going through ongoing metamorphosis as the current version has become a more stable, repeated version talking about our central female character:
“Well she came down from West Baton Rouge, cross around her neck. Hailing Marys from the station, through a cigarette. Eatin’ a sandwich from a paper bag, drinking from a spotted glass; whatever money’s in her pocket wasn’t meant to last. Saw you in a dark bar, same old lines, do you gotta get out? Do you got a ride? I had a dream in Phoenix, got up and floated out of bed. Dancing with the aliens, just like we were little kids. Flying through the night sky, away from the city lights, shooting stars and fireflies, in and out of sight. Saw you in a dark bar, same old lines, do you gotta get out? Do you got a ride?...Well I was dreaming I was flying in the moonshine, a floating spirit in the night. Silhouettes of the faces, the good people in my life. I got thumbtacks on the road map, to remember where I been, maybe it was Utah.”
Let’s transcribe the best we can from the first known Dark Bar (according to our beloved source Everyday Companion). This version was at Red Rocks on 6/28/08.
“The body carried out the door had a rope around his neck. Lay him on the table, come on quick some lime. He came on down from Baton Rouge and shot his woman dead. Hanged him from the pin oak, and the noon was high. I saw you in the dark bar, getting high, do you want to let it go, or do you want to die? I had a dream in Vegas, had a blindfold on my head, my last dying wish was just get me by. Way up the scaffold, had my hands behind my back, it takes one to make war, and two to get it right. I saw you in the dark bar, doing lines. Do you wanna get out, and do you wanna fly?”
The amazing thing is after a deep dive and listening to nearly every version of this song, there are dozens of iterations, each a bit different. Some hit hard and heavy, taking on the imagery of suicide, poverty, hard drug use, sack lunches, murder, cigarettes, and all the things you can find in the very darkest of bars. Thanks to Jojo for being so brave and raw to bring us this ever changing story. Adding to the mystery of this song was the disappearance for 395 shows over the span of 7 years and about 8 months between 02/01/12 and 06/29/19. Rumors swirled that there was an extremely close friend and employee of the band that was lost about a year before the hiatus of this song and it was held back in his honor and memoriam. Check out this Red Rocks Recap for a deeper look into stimulating Dark Bar stats.
It was nice to come up for air with some soaring guitar tones and crowd sing along in the short and strong finish to the three song mini sandwich, with a spirited Good People. Listen as our main man says “we are the good people, the ones your grandma warned you about”.
A stop in the action and a deep breath, then the Panics launched us into a song that seemed to please just about everyone in attendance. From our executive WATLO box seats we saw very few if any heads making their way to the bathroom on this number. Last Straw was released on the 1991 self-titled album aka “Mom’s Kitchen”. This is advanced Widespread, with complex drumming, several tempo changes, and the expert use of Sunny’s triangles. Through the ages of Panic, with the changing cast of characters this song has stood the test of time, although was put on the back burner each time the lineup changed. There was a 190 show gap between Mikey and George, then a 116 show gap before Herring played the song, finally when Duane joined the band we saw a 132 show gap before they brought this incredible song back into regular rotation with the current lineup. This version in VA allowed Duane and Jimmy to both lend their style to the tune while honoring the original arrangement of the song. It sounded incredible and hit a strong peak in the latter half of the song.
Me and the Devil Blues came next, the first cover song of the night. Dating back to first being recorded in Dallas on June 19th, 1937 and credited to Robert Johnson, this is also an oldie for Widespread as they have been covering the haunting delta blues number since 08/07/89. This was the third time they played MATDB this year, the other two stirring versions in Nashville and Morisson. Being the 269th time ever played, they definitely have this one mastered, especially JB: his vocals were polished to a gemstone quality gleam and glow. Each word from our preacherman held space as an individual composition, and at the conclusion of the song he really lets loose and shows us all how a true professional can sing, he is one of a kind. They broke the mold after they made his vocal cords. They will be in the Smithsonian some day, bet on it.
Halloween Face was the 12th song of a 72 minute first set composed of 11 originals and 1 cover song. This was one of two songs from the most recent dual album release, the 5th track on Hailbound Queen. Another new song to appear at 7 of the 10 total runs from this year of 2025, it has now been played 31 times since its debut on (appropriately) Halloween 2021. This song has been described as “heavy metal Panic” and that is not wrong. The first part of the song offers many intriguing and hilarious costume ideas, listen close because its only 7 weeks away when we get to don our “Fettucini hair, Austin Powers teeth, fried chicken thighs, cupcake chests, Frida Kahlo brows, Looney Tooney eyes, Dr. Jekyl hides, Boris Karloff staggers, and Lon Chaney howls”. Get to the Spirit Halloween mega store early because they always sell out of these things first as you must know already. After a proper face melting and head banging session, we had some time to collect ourselves and enjoy the amenities of the new venue. The ladies had an easy breezy time getting in and out of the bathrooms. The fellas were wrapped around the entire venue waiting for what seemed like an eternity - sorry, dudes! The venue architect didn’t consider the 30:1 ratio of men to women at this Panic run…
After about 36 minutes of free time, the band clocked back in at precisely 9PM. Some funky bass and nasty guitar riffs along with power drumming started off the one and only instrumental of the two-day run: Machine. The band kept it true to composition and hit all the marks perfectly, it was clear that they stayed loose during setbreak and were ready to shred in the second set. Sunny especially sounded like he was ready to pounce on his kit like a big cat pounces on a lame baby gazelle. This song is currently unreleased as a studio version. It lives rent free in all our heads.
While not a guarantee, it's a strong likelihood that a Machine will get the nasty drop into a sultry and soulful Barstools & Dreamers, tonight was no different. According to our intern math, going back ten years in Panic history one will only find 8 examples of a Machine followed by something other than Barstools. The most recent example is worth a listen, 1/20/24 from St. Louis when a Barstools preceded Machine and then Machine segued into Surprise Valley. Here in VA, a gorgeous and drippy tempo gave DAS a chance to funk up the bass, there was no hurry by anyone on stage to be anywhere aside from atop a barstool. This version exceeded 13 minutes and was the 726th showing of the track that was released on the album that has come to be known as Mom’s Kitchen. We did not hear any obvious rapping from Emcee JB, although he did slip in a few little extra nuggets here and there. Around the 6 minute mark Jojo sets his keyboard to space mode and Jimmy got jazzy, keeping the crowd moving but in a slow, sexy way. It seemed like they were searching for a bit of a peak here and found it at the 8 minute mark, Schools stayed in the pocket although Jimmy went H.A.M. and shook the place with some solid guitar work. The cool down phase of the song featured a bouncy stop and start and gave JB the room he needed to stay turnt up, his sound sliding to and fro and just making all the sleepers cry. No one can do it like our man John Farmer Bell. You sir are a national treasure.
A pause to let the audience cheer for their heroes, then a Sunny bongo trance to introduce everybody’s favorite rainmaker, Hatfield. A slow and deliberate opening again allowed for JB to be heard and admired while he set the tone with trademark unique sound on his hollow bodied Washburn. From the 1993 album Everyday, this was the 649th time the crowd would get the honor of meeting a large German lady known as Hatfield’s matriarch. This song goes through several phases and tempo changes, and the band did a fantastic job nailing all of them. JB: “Lawd the owners are mad, the owners are lucky, the eyes of the children are wide, wide open” WE ARE THE LUCKY ONES!
JB at 8:44: “One day one day we’s out there playin’ hot hot so hot the last days of the summertime. Oh a little underage Hatfield’s mama came out bringing us frosty colds, we’d sit back lawwwwwwwwd sit back let it flow, can’t stop the way it goes, no one knows, ever flows, time is free, time is not free, time is free” Schools added just a touch of the bass line tease from Time is Free to put a bow on top of this beautifully phrased Emcee JB rap, and then the song ended and we came back to the present moment.
A pause and then some serious ivory tickles from the piano man we call Jojo, and the place got to stomping and hollering as it was a visit from the prehistoric mega fauna known as Big Wooly Mammoth. The keys were jumping and everybody was adding to their daily steps in a ferocious manner. At 1:57 JB adds “Lawd so hot hot on the little toes”. Listen in at 2:15 if you want to hear a power hawk scream from Schools that was mighty fine. This was definitely an upbeat version of this song, which was released on Don’t Tell the Band in 2001. At over 10 minutes there were several noteworthy and scorching segments to this raucous song. Check out the home town reference DAS makes about Richmond being burned to the ground. The April 3, 1865 fire burned much of the city after retreating Confederate forces set ablaze tobacco warehouses and other structures to prevent them falling into Union hands. Those badasses burnt their own city down just so the other guys could not have it? Respect! DAS at 7:11: “It’s never been done before here, has it?? Aw-hooo!”
BWM wrapped up and we had a high octane segue into another song Jojo leads, Bust it Big. The boys smiled at each other with knowing glances as they completely nailed the transition! Bust It Big has only followed BWM one other time (5/25/24) - eye witness reporters claim they rehearsed this one! Always a good reminder to book early and book often for another trip to Mexico to enjoy some Panic en La Playa. This song is in heavy rotation and it shows, the band is tight as Uncle Scrooge's coin purse, and the blistering leads were firing in every direction from the master axe wielder, Jimmy Herring. Not a face was safe. Did you know that when used properly bongos can also melt a face? Tune in at about 3:40 to find out this is the verifiable truth. Granted that Sunny is using wooden beaters to really bring this segment to another level, no one’s hands could withstand such a savage beating. Jojo gets a turn as well to mix it up with Dave and it just all flowed together so well, these guys are good. The boys wasted no time getting to an insane peak at 6:00 and Jojo could tell us more about Rosemary’s baby and the King Baby that builds monuments to himself. There has yet to be a studio release of this song, although there are now 241 live versions in existence.
Another perfect segue brought us into our first cover song of the second set, Trashy. This song is credited to Bloodkin and appears on the Black Market Tango album. The lyrics of this song were again delivered perfectly by the best front man in the business, Mr. Soul. The message and imagery of this song resonates with the Panic fan base about as well as any song in the catalog. In just the 32nd appearance of this song, it already feels familiar like it's been around for decades. At about 7:26 there was a moment when the instruments all seemed to talk to each other and listen at the same time, then move into a slow and peaceful melodic soundscape that magically conjures an image of a yard full with crashed up cars, tall weeds, and a stash beneath the driver’s seat. Clocking in at 11 minutes and 26 seconds, there was a loose and experimental jam led by Jimmy to fill the last couple minutes of this instant classic. We at the HQ are obviously partial to this song as we firmly believe that WE ARE THE LUCKY ONES.
A slower and more deliberate segue led us into a downtempo piano riff to begin King Baby. This was the 21st live version of this chicken song which is disguised as a political statement. Debuted in Colorado on 6/25/23 along with the FTP of Keep Me in Your Heart, KB is the first track on the 2024 release Hailbound Queen. A few nice peaks were witnessed in the span of this song, Jimmy owned this one and he did not showing signs of letting up. Again, a 10+ minute version gave the band time to explore space a bit before another excellent second set segue into the next song.
Pilgrims filled the 8th slot of the 9 song second set, the outro of KB and the first kiss of Pilgrims was as elegant and sublime as a lace doily floating through a cloud of vape smoke. Our hard working intern unearthed the fun fact that Pilgrims ‘s debut was actually as an instrumental on 9/14/92. The second live appearance of this song was on 12/30/92 in Athens, GA and that version had the lyrics added. The song would soon thereafter be released as a studio version on the Everyday album. This sonic journey offered such an incredible opportunity for us all to witness Sunny play a wide and fascinating variety of his myriad exotic and wonderful instruments. We cherish every sound the man makes from tiny little sideways bongos, to goat toes, to vibraslaps, to triangles, to cowbells, and everything in between. We love you Sunny!
We are counting the spacy tiny sonic note between Pilgrims and Space Wrangler as a segue, it was subtle. Mainly hi hat riffles and some faint strums led us into the hug from an old, dear friend, the little wrangler himself. The most played song of this show by a country mile, the only song of the show that has seen four digits of live performance, with this being the 1214th version. Stop and think about that. Incredible to imagine this band has raised a glass in a skol, the coldest beer, and whisky too, that many times. We celebrate our personal milestones in the hundreds, these road warriors are on another level altogether. This was the only song of the night from the band's fateful first album, aptly named Space Wrangler. We were literally just about 5 weeks shy of the 40th anniversary of this song being played live for the very first time, when that wrangler was just a wee baby. If you want to see a setlist full of covers that will never be played again and the first ever Space Wrangler, look up 10/19/85. A perfect version of this song, and a fun way to close the second set and cheers your neighbors. JB: “Thank you very much”
The encore began with a few words from Dave: “Thank y’all so much, [laughter]” (crowd hollers SCHOOOOOOLS!!!) Dave: “Louder, c’mon [laughter]” (crowd, louder: SCHOOOOOOLS!!!!!) Dave: “Thank you so much”. After a good talk between Bass Mountain and his adoring fans, the first song of the encore began. The band chose a cover song, from the Canadian folk/country singer and songwriter Murray Edward McLauchlan. Murray was inducted into the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame in September of 2016. Honkey Red was released on his 1971 album Song from the street. Rumor has it that the person who recommended the band cover this song was Dave Schools’s father. The first ever version was one of the final shows from Todd’s full time with the band, on 4/5/14. In the last 11 years or so, Widespread Panic has played HR 87 times. This was a standard stock version, which is to say it was majestic AF. The way JB crooned and the lights hit just all came together into a moment of magic and glory. Thank you Murray!
A momentary pause and then the last song of the evening began with a viscous bass line from DAS. This was a good warning shot, the crowd had been put on notice. Time to get down and dirty. Red Hot Mama is also a cover song (this time from mid 70’s Funkadelic, definitely a whole different vibe from Honkey Red). Our underpaid intern instantly noticed a “red, red” mini theme, the way we saw a “walking, walking” mini theme in the first set. This song was guaranteed to get all the ladies in the house (some eyewitness said it was about a 30:1 Bro:Chick ratio, yikes) fully shaking it for all it was worth, and even some overgrown frat boys could be seen busting through a proverbial brick wall with hella hot stepping of their own. What an epic way to close an incredible night of some good old Widespread Panic. It was clear that they had plenty of power left to absolutely crush this version. Sunny was a man on a mission and went buck wild alongside Duane, in all honesty the entire septet made it clear that they were saving nothing for Sunday night this time around; you could see, hear, and feel the fury. We at WATLO apologize to the neighbors of all the rowdy crowd that got so wound up way past bedtime. Check in at about 5:30 when the song goes from fully mental to just unchained, Dave was bringing the wood and then he joined JB in a red hot vocalization, straight heat. Some said the strongest song of the night. They finally capped it off in time to honor the curfew and keep Live Nation happy, Dave then said “Thank you Richmond, we’ll see you tomorrow night”. JB sent us off with “Miss Edie Jackson on the signs there! Thank you very much Edie!”