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Chico State's independent student newspaper

The Orion

Chico State's independent student newspaper

The Orion

7 Walkers perform with original Grateful Dead drummer

Published 2010-04-09T00:00:00Z”/>

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Lindsey Woychick

“Dead Heads” were out Tuesday for the tour-opening concert of the 7 Walkers in the Big Room at Sierra Nevada Brewery.

Grateful Dead T-shirts, tie-dye, floor-length skirts and flowing hair were all present among the audience. The majority of the crowd, in its 50s, dined and drank at the Big Room’s table seating prior to the show.

With un-tucked shirts and beers in hand, people flooded the dance floor as the lights dimmed and 7 Walkers stepped on stage for what would be a continuous three-hour performance.

The band opened with an instrumental piece, which had the crowd swaying.

The band brings, “New Orleans funk with a little sprinkle of Grateful Dead,” said Bill Kreutzmann, drummer and co-founder of the Grateful Dead.

Malcolm “Papa Mali” Welbourne of New Orleans, delivered vocals that were pleasingly rough but filled with blues. Donning a white fedora complete with a black feather, Mali had his hand climbing up the guitar neck, while Kreutzmann brought energy with percussion.

Alongside the two was trumpet, harmonica and keyboard player Matt Hubbard and bassist George Porter Jr., who had heads bobbing and feet hopping. Porter recently took the place of Reed Mathis as the band’s bassist.

Despite being familiar with only some Grateful Dead songs, Porter dove into the group.

His good musical ear eliminates song familiarity as an obstacle for him, he said. For Porter, the job is about fun.

“If we aren’t havin’ fun doing what we do, we should go out and get a real job,” Porter said. “One that pays better.”

Both Porter and Mali have performed in front of Chico crowds before.

Mali was pleased by the audience approval, he said. After previously performing at City Plaza, Mali knew what he could expect from the audience.

“Chico is such a great town,” Mali said. “The vibes are real good and the people are real good.”

As empty pitchers of Sierra Nevada beer were quickly refilled, the crowd sang along to Grateful Dead classics like, “Sugaree” and “Turn On Your Love Light.” However, the majority songs from the show were from 7 Walkers unreleased album.

The album was written by lyricist Robert Hunter, who previously wrote songs for the Grateful Dead and has had a long history working with Kreutzmann.

While the 7 Walkers songs may have been unfamiliar, the energy was persistent from the crowd and band alike throughout the show. Without so much as an intermission, 7 Walkers ended the night after a final encore.

For Deborah Crawford, a Chico resident, the concert brought back the memory of attending a Grateful Dead concert 18 years ago.

The enthusiasm of the 7 Walkers show was memorable and would be worth seeing again, she said.

“I just love to see everybody get together and have a really great time and open up,” Crawford said.

Lindsay Woychick can be reached at<a href= “javascript:void(location.href=’mailto:’+String.fromCharCode(108,119,111,121,99,104,105,99,107,64,116,104,101,111,114,105,111,110,46,99,111,109)+’?subject=re%3A%207%20Wlakers%20perform%20with%20original%20Grateful%20Dead%20drummer’)”>[email protected]</a>

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