Dave Matthews Band Lights Up Lake Tahoe

View a photo gallery below.

I don’t know if the place was sold out or not, but it was packed. The crowd shuffling in was like ants marching, but I think that’s a typical situation for a DMB show. They pull in the big crowds, as they should. The Dave Matthews Band came together in 1991 and still has most of the original members in it. This is a great group of musicians.

They had an amazing stage setup at Harvey’s Outdoor Amphitheater, Lake Tahoe to go along with the fantastic music. Behind the band was a video screen that I would estimate at about 40 to 50 feet tall and 20 or so feet wide. Flanking it from the ground up and side to side were multiple horizontally arranged video screens. Check it out in the photo gallery included here, below. I can’t do it justice with words.

True to their style they played a set that could best be described as a combination of jam band, jazz, rock, alternative rock, and polka (just seeing if you’re paying attention).

The crowd response was to be envied by any performer. DMB’s fans are deeply connected to them, and they are a pleasant crowd. As a concert photographer I’m sometimes verbally assaulted by fans if I block their view even for a second to get the shot.

With the stage at Harvey’s being at least 5 feet high, and directly in front of me, I had no choice but to raise my camera over my head frequently and even stand on the barricades cross members (separating the crowd from the ‘pit’) to get shots of those further back on the stage than Dave and not once did I get any grief from anybody in the crowd.

When the Dave Matthews Band comes to town it’s more of an event than just a concert. It’s not for everybody, but nothing is. That’s why we have so much variety. I once read that they were considering disbanding several years ago, but the loss of founding member and saxophonist LeRoi Moore in 2008 caused them to reassess their commitment, and it was a good thing. There are obviously more songs to be played.

The Band

• Dave Matthews – Guitars, Vocals
• Carter Beauford – Drums
• Stefan Lessard – Bass
• Tim Reynolds – Guitars
• Rashawn Ross – Trumpets
• Jeff Coffin – Saxophones
• Buddy Strong – Keyboards, Vocals

Set List

(Unlike most bands, their set list is different for almost every show)
41
You Never Know
Funny The Way It Is
Come Tomorrow
Lie In Our Graves
Satellite
Can’t Stop
Grace Is Gone
So Much To Say
Anyone Seen The Bridge
Too Much
Fly Like An Eagle
Crash Into Me
You Might Die Trying
Samurai Cop (Oh Joy Begin)
Rhyme and Reason
The Song That Jane Likes
You & Me
The Last Stop
All Along The Watchtower

Kill The Preacher
Why Am I
Don’t Drink The Water