Jazz is Dead guitarist Jeff Pevar cut loose on a solo right out of the box at the Birchmere Tuesday night, unleashing a screaming, diametric opposite to the countrified and noodly streams that were trademark Jerry Garcia. That was kinda the point, though, since JID is all about truckin’ through the Grateful Dead catalogue with a fresh mindset, mostly laying a jazz-fusion tinge on the venerable San Francisco band’s legacy.
The show that JID brought to the Birchmere was “Europe ‘72 Reimagined”, meant to be an exploration of that classic triple live LP, and aside from some histrionic guitar from Pevar, the group enlivened the Dead grooves effectively. Alongside Pevar, the group’s revolving membership for this tour was anchored by drum-legend Billy Cobham, keyboardist T. Lavitz (who once unsuccessfully auditioned for the Dead) and Little Feat bassist Kenny Gradney. Since much of “Europe” is guitar-driven, Pevar acted as leader, defining the grooves to songs like “China Cat Sunflower”, and taking solos that were often evocative, occasionally over the top, but always showcased his phenomenal technique. Lavitz shone on a wonderful, New Orleans-spiced vamp through “He’s Gone”, while Gradney anchored a skeletal pass at “I Know You Rider”. Cobham, behind his massive kit, was a powerful time-keeper and played a wide-open drum solo, long a staple of any Dead show.
The band strayed a bit from the official theme with an encore of “Dark Star”, but Jazz Is Dead proved they remain one of the more enjoyable of the passel of Dead-legacy bands.
Washington Post, 2002
