I was just getting ready to update my site when I got the news that my old friend Ira Wilkes passed away. It had been a number of years since I had seen Ira. Our lives had taken different directions as lives do. That said thirty years ago he and his family welcomed me into their home in a time when my life was in upheaval. He worked with me on the road for a number of years… and we were friends.

Change had come into my life in a number of ways and for better or worse we found ourselves with less in common. That said, he knew me when I was young and that is something I will always remember. My thoughts and prayers go out to his family. As we all age, our circle tends to get smaller and not larger. Any loss affects us all.

Fair winds and following seas brother… may there always be a wind at your back…

Drone shot by Jorma Kaukonen

We got in from Indiana in time for me to get a drone flight in by the hotel… overlooking the river.

Drone shot by Jorma Kaukonen

Then yesterday a ten mile bus ride to Riverbend on the Ohio side.

Drone shot by Jorma Kaukonen

We got together with Derek and Susan and the gang to rehearse Marty Balin’s great song 3/5’s Of A Mile In Ten Seconds.

Foto by Phil Jacobs

Hot Tuna 34, 2017
The Electric Trio
Jorma Kaukonen, Jack Casady
And Justin Guip
With Tedeschi/Trucks
& The Wood Brothers
PNC Pavilion At
Riverbend Music Center

1. Trial By Fire
2. Sleep Song
3. Talkin’ Bout You
4. Ode To Billy Dean
5. Roads and Roads &
6. 99 Year Blues
7. Come Back Baby

Then I go to sit in with Chris an Oliver Wood for Rev. Davis’ tune, Death Don’t Have No Mercy and subsequently Jack and I joined Derek and Susan for the aforementioned Jefferson Airplane song from Surrealistic Pillow.

Foto by Jorma Kaukonen

I have been thrilled with the way Justin and Jack and I have been playing… and there’s more to come!

Drone shot by Jorma Kaukonen

Another very hot night in the south… but I did get to fly my drone.

Foto by Phil Jacobs

Drone shot by Jorma Kaukonen

Hot Tuna 30, 2017
The Electric Trio
Jorma Kaukonen, Jack Casady
And Justin Guip
With Tedeschi/Trucks
& The Wood Brothers
The Red Hat Amphitheater
Raleigh, North Carolina
Friday, July 14, 2017

1. Roads and Roads &
2. Living Just For You
3. Can’t Get Satisfied
4. Ode To Billy Dean
5. Sea Child
6. Wolves And Lambs
7. Come Back Baby
8. Hit Single # 1

Foto by Jorma Kaukonen

Then to the Mighty Fox Theater in Atlanta!

Foto by Phil Jacobs

This was Tuna’s first time at the Fox. What a trip!

Foto by Jorma Kaukonen

Hot Tuna 31, 2017
The Electric Trio
Jorma Kaukonen, Jack Casady
And Justin Guip
With Tedeschi/Trucks
& The Wood Brothers
The Fox Theater
Atlanta, Georgia
Saturday, July 15, 2017

1. I See The Light
2. Wolves & Lambs
3. Ode For Billy Dean
4. Talkin’ Bout You
5. Watch The North Wind Rise
6. 99 Year Blues
7. Bowlegged Woman

Foto by Phil Jacobs

Then we moved on to Charlotte.

Foto by Phil Jacobs

Hot Tuna 32, 2017
The Electric Trio
Jorma Kaukonen, Jack Casady
And Justin Guip
With Tedeschi/Trucks
& The Wood Brothers
Charlotte Metro Credit Union Amphitheater

1. Living Just For You
2. Wolves & Lambs
3. Can’t Get Satisfied
4. Rock Me Baby
5. Trial By Fire
6. Road and Roads &
7. Funky #7

Then a mere ten hour drive to Indianapolis for a much needed ‘day off!’

Foto by Jorma Kaukonen

Walking around we ran into Derek and Susan and they recommended that we go to St. Elmo Steakhouse.

Foto by Jorma Kaukonen

What a delicious dinner on a great afternoon!

Then back to the hotel for an early evening…

Day after tomorrow we’ll be at Farm Bureau Insurance Lawn with the gang!

Good times!

Drone foto by Jorma Kaukonen

To say it was hot in Virginia Beach yesterday would be an understatement. That said, we had a day off, a chance to go to the beach and a barbecue in the parking lot of the hotel. At the gig, Ross and I both got to fly our drones.

Drone foto by Jorma Kaukonen

Here’s the set list for me and the guys:

Hot Tuna 29, 2017
The Electric Trio
Jorma Kaukonen, Jack Casady
And Justin Guip
With Tedeschi/Trucks
& The Wood Brothers
Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater
Virginia Beach, Virginia

1. Sleep Song
2. Trial By Fire
3. Day To Day Out The Window Blues
4. Talkin’ Bout You
5. 99 Year Blues
6. Living Just For You
7. Funky #7

Foto by Phil Jacobs

Jack and I got to sit in with Derek and Susan for a blistering The Sky Is Crying… Too much fun! After show we drove to Raleigh and actually had a day off, most of which was spent napping. However, I remembered a joint I once ate at with Barry Mitterhoff… Mecca… and there it was around the corner from the hotel.

Foto by Jorma Kaukonen

Home cooking since 1930.

Foto by Jorma Kaukonen

Tomorrow is our gig with Susan and Derek at the Red Hat Amphitheater. Who knows what magic will occur?

More will be revealed.

Foto By Phil Jacobs

Our next stop was the Providence Performing Arts Center… one of those truly beautiful historic theaters.

Foto by Jorma Kaukonen

Hot Tuna 26, 2017
The Electric Trio
Jorma Kaukonen, Jack Casady
And Justin Guip
With Tedeschi/Trucks
& The Wood Brothers
Providence Performing Arts Center
Providence, Rhode Island

1. Been So Long
2. Hesitation Blues
3. Ode To Billy Dean
4. Talkin’ Bout You
5. Good Shepherd
6. Funky # 7

There have been some great sit-ins with Susan and Derek, but frankly I didn’t write them down and now I can’t remember. All I can say is, ‘Good times!’

Foto by Phil Jacobs

Then it was off to Rochester, New York.

Foto by Phil Jacobs

The Rochester show was another outdoor venue, but the weather was beyond perfect!

Foto by Phil Jacobs

Hot Tuna 27, 2017
The Electric Trio
Jorma Kaukonen, Jack Casady
And Justin Guip
With Tedeschi/Trucks
& The Wood Brothers
The Highland Bowl
Rochester, New York
Saturday, July 8, 2017

1. Living Just For You
2. Sea Child
3. Can’t Get Satisfied
4. Come Back Baby
5. Water Song
6. Funky #7

Then it was back across the state to Simsbury, Connecticut.

Drone shot by Jorma Kaukonen

I finally got to fly the drone a little at the venue during sound check.

Drone shot by Jorma Kaukonen

Hot Tuna 28, 2017
The Electric Trio
Jorma Kaukonen, Jack Casady
And Justin Guip
With Tedeschi/Trucks
& The Wood Brothers
Simsbury Meadows Performing Arts Center
Simsbury, Connecticut
Sunday, July 9, 2017

1. Trial By Fire
2. Watch The North Wind Rise
3. Ode To Billy Dean
4. Can’t Get Satisfied
5. Bar Room Crystal Ball
6. Water Song
7. Hit Single # 1

Drone shot by Jorma Kaukonen

Another beautiful day in New England!

Drone shot by Jorma Kaukonen

Not far from where my Mom was born on a farm in 1910. What’s a hundred and seven years to the universe?

Onward!

Foto by Jorma Kaukonen

Last night the Wheels Of Soul Tour was at Wolf Trap in Vienna, Virginia. Jack and I are hometown boys here in the D.C. area so for us it was a powerful homecoming!

Foto by Suzy Perler

I’ve played the Barns here at Wolf Trap, but never the Filene Center. This was a real treat!

Hot Tuna 25, 2017
The Electric Trio
Jorma Kaukonen, Jack Casady
And Justin Guip
With Tedeschi/Trucks
& The Wood Brothers
Wolf Trap
Vienna, Virginia
Wednesday July 5, 2017

1. Ain’t In No Hurry
2. I See The Light
3. Day To Day Out The Window Blues
4. Can’t Get Satisfied
5. Roads And Roads &
6. Bowlegged Woman
7. Hit Single # 1

Foto by Jorma Kaukonen

Foto by Phil Jacobs

Derek asked Jack and Justin and I to sit in with the gang on Keys To The Highway. What a treat!

Foto by Phil Jacobs

Here’s Jack and myself along with Ronnie MacDonald… Ronnie played drums in the Triumphs, our band in high school in 1958/59. Here we are… same guys… a lot older.

Good times!

Yeah man, another good one. Tomorrow we are in Providence at the Providence Performing Art Center. I’ll miss being at the Fur Peace Ranch for pho today, but I have to work too.

We drove to Providence after show last night so we have a ‘day off’ today. I think I’ll find some seafood.

So here we are at Wolf Trap with Susan and Derek. We’re still setting up and a post show wrap up will go up tomorrow. In the meantime, I got to thinking about the goings on at the Fur Peace Ranch. Tomorrow is a Pho Day at the Beatrice Love Kitchen and one of the many things I miss about not being home is the delicious Pho Wednesday and Thursday. Aside from the more than delicious food options, tomorrow’s music will be provided by our very own John Hurlbut and our favorite cowboy poet Rob McNurlin. Needless to say, this will be a treat on all fronts.

Take a trip to the Fur Peace Ranch for lunch Wednesdays and Thursdays and let me know how you liked it.

Wish I was there too!

Drone shot by Jorma Kaukonen

I won’t be flying in the D.C. area, but I got the bird up in Saratoga!

Drone shot by Jorma Kaukonen

The tour with Derek and Susan is more fun than most anything… music, friendship and food!

Drone shot by Jorma Kaukonen

Foto by Phil Jacobs

We’ve been having rally great sets on this run!

Hot Tuna 24, 2017
The Electric Trio
Jorma Kaukonen, Jack Casady
And Justin Guip
With Tedeschi/Trucks
& The Wood Brothers
Saratoga Performing Arts Center
Saratoga, New York
Monday, July 3, 2017

1. Serpent Of Dreams
2. Living Just For You
3. Talkin’ Bout You
4. Come Back Baby
5. In The Kingdom
6. Roads And Roads &
7. Hit Single #1

Foto by Phil Jacobs

A long drive after the show to get here to Tyson’s Corners in Virginia to celebrate the Fourth with the Tedeschi Trucks family!

Foto by Jorma Kaukonen

Foto by Jorma Kaukonen

Selfie by Jorma Kaukonen

Photo by Jorma Kaukonen

We all know that the Fourth Of July is not all about beer and barbecue. We Americans should show love for our country every day… but this day is indeed… a little special.

Happy birthday land of mine!

Onward

Foto by Phil Jacobs

We left the Fur Peace Ranch a little shy of a week ago and started out with a solo show in Westhampton.

Hot Tuna 21, 2017
The Electric Trio
Jorma Kaukonen, Jack Casady
And Justin Guip
Westhampton Performing Arts Center
Westhampton, New York

1. Been So Long
2. Candy Man
3. Ode To Billy Dean
4. Can’t Get Satisfied
5. Second Chances
6. Living Just For You
7. Come Back Baby
8. Talking Bout You
9. Bowlegged Woman
10. Trial By Fire
11. Watch The North Wind Rise
12. Sleep Song
13. Roads and Roads &
14. Funky #7
15. Encore: Hit Single # 1

After the show it was on the bus and off to New Hampshire.

Drone shot by Jorma Kaukonen

A few short hours in the rack and off to the gig where Myron got our gear ready to go on Susan and Derek’s semi.

Foto by Jorma Kaukonen

This gig was at a venue sponsored by the Bank Of New Hampshire and the amenities were off the chart.

Selfie by Jorma Kaukonen

There were all manner of goodies backstage.

Foto by Jorma Kaukonen

Rain was coming so we got our soundcheck done.

Foto by Phil Jacobs

Hot Tuna 22, 2017
The Electric Trio
Jorma Kaukonen, Jack Casady
And Justin Guip
With Tedeschi/Trucks
& The Wood Brothers
Bank Of New Hampshire Pavilion
Gilford, New Hampshire

1. I See The Light
2. That’ll Never Happen No More
3. Ode To Billy Dean
4. Talkin’ Bout You
5. Sea Child
6. Watch The North Wind Rise
7. Bowlegged Woman

Some might think these sets short… but it’s a long evening for all of us and it’s a great show. The dynamic of us opening the show and sliding into the Wood Brothers is magic too!

Then it was on to Vermont!

Foto by Jorma Kaukonen

Our Set:

Hot Tuna 23, 2017
The Electric Trio
Jorma Kaukonen, Jack Casady
And Justin Guip
With Tedeschi/Trucks
& The Wood Brothers
Midway Lawn At Champlain Valley Expo
Essex Junction, Vermont
Sunday, July 2, 2017

1. Been So Long
2. Hesitation Blues
3. Can’t Get Satisfied
4. Rock Me Baby
5. Trial By Fire
6. Sleep Song
7. Funky # 7

Then it was time for Susan, Derek and their gang of superlatives!

Foto by Jorma Kaukonen

A sold out show up here in Burlington!

Foto by Jorma Kaukonen

As the evening moved on in excellence…

Foto by Jorma Kaukonen

Then it was on to Saratoga and SPAC.

Foto by Jorma Kaukonen