Spiral Light Continue to Illuminate Florida with Music
The Grateful Dead tribute band Spiral Light have announced four upcoming Grateful Dead Night shows. Three of those are monthly at Terra Fermata in Stuart, Florida, beginning January 28. They will also play Grateful Dead Night at Crazy Uncle Mike’s in Boca Raton in February.
Spiral Light feature Brown Eyed Women lead guitar player Joni Bottari, Nick Landess on keyboards and vocals, Mike Camacho on bass and vocals, and Scott Costa on drums.
We caught up with them at Florida’s Grateful Gathering in November. At the time, we wrote:
Spiral Light make their home on Florida’s east coast, with Joni Bottari on lead guitar; Nick Landess on keyboards and vocals; Scott Costa on drums; and the indomitable Christian Walker sitting in on bass and vocals! John Hanrahan also guested on drums with Costa.
[Bottari had played earlier in a collaboration titled Joni Bottari & Friends; it was superb.]
They opened with a dreamy “Eyes of the World,” Bottari and Landess in perfect sync. They kept it low-key through “Like a Bird.” (I would love to hear that paired up with “Cold Rain and Snow.”) Next up was a tune I didn’t not know, “My Brother Esau,” with the riveting lyrics wrapped around “Shadowboxing the Apocalypse.”
They launched into the slowest and funkiest “Shakedown Street” imaginable, which picked up tempo as it rolled down the tracks. Bottari blew out a brilliant wah-wah guitar solo before the song morphed into “Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2,” everybody digging deep.
It took them playing “Terrapin Station” for me to remember where the band gets its name:
Counting stars by candlelight
All are dim but one is bright
The spiral light of Venus
Rising first and shining best
On, from the northwest corner
Of a brand new crescent moon
While crickets and cicadas sing
A rare and different tune
Terrapin station
“China Cat Sunflower” blossomed before the band explored around the segue to come into… “Mountain Jam”! After a brief exploration there, the band twisted the jam into… “I Know You Rider.” Landess was brilliant on piano here. Finally, they shut down the set with a nice take on “Stella Blue.”
Two hours of Joni Bottari FTW!
[SPIRAL LIGHT 11.19.22: Eyes of the World, Like a Bird, My Brother Esau, Shakedown Street > Another Brick in the Wall Part 2, Terrapin Station, China Cat Sunflower > Mountain Jam > I Know You Rider, Stella Blue]
You know you could use a Grateful Dead Night out!
SPIRAL LIGHT
01/28 Grateful Dead Night | Terra Fermata | Stuart FL
02/24 Grateful Dead Night | Terra Fermata | Stuart FL
02/25 Grateful Dead Night | Crazy Uncle Mike’s | Boca Raton FL
03/25 Grateful Dead Night | Terra Fermata | Stuart FL
SPIRAL LIGHT
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