Chuck Leavell Adds Magic To Widespread Panic’s Long-Awaited Boston Return

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Watch the sextet and the legendary keyboardist give J.J. Cale’s “Ride Me High” the spacey jam treatment in Beantown.

Widespread Panic kicked off a three-night stand at Boston’s MGM Music Hall at Fenway on Thursday, a run which marks the band’s first performances in Beantown since 2015. The Rolling Stones keyboardist Chuck Leavell helped welcome the sextet to town by sitting in on a pair of tunes during the second set.

Panic was initially scheduled to return to Boston, and make their MGM Music Hall at Fenway debut, last August, but the shows were canceled while guitarist Jimmy Herring underwent treatment for tonsil cancer. The Georgia-based rockers loaded last night’s concert with classic originals and threw in a smattering of recent fare and a handful of choice covers.

Keyboardist JoJo Hermann led his bandmates through “One Arm Steve” to begin Panic’s first Boston show in a decade. Guitarist John Bell then fronted “Pleas” before bassist Dave Schools lit into the thumping bass line that starts WSP’s cover of “Bowlegged Woman, Knock Kneed Man.”

Next, “Bear’s Gone Fishin’” gave way to “Shut Up And Drive” ahead of “Tall Boy.” Panic then worked “Cease Fire” into their take on “Fixin’ To Die” and punctuated the frame with a bombastic “Imitation Leather Shoes.”

The six-piece covered James Taylor’s “Knockin’ Round The Zoo” to open set two. “Contentment Blues” followed along with a pairing of “Small Town” and “Tackle Box Hero.” Panic brought out Leavell after the ensuing “You Got Yours.”

Chuck Leavell has made several guest appearances with Widespread Panic dating back to 1991. The band’s fellow Georgian most recently sat-in at all three Red Rocks shows in June.

Panic and Leavell started their latest collaboration by taking J.J. Cale’s “Ride Me High” deep for a +17-minute excursion. The seven musicians went well beyond the song’s normal borders as they showed off their improvisational prowess. Chuck Leavell stayed out for the subsequent “Ain’t Life Grand.”

Watch fan-shot footage of Chuck Leavell performing “Ride Me High” and “Ain’t Life Grand” with Panic below:

After Leavell’s appearance, WSP treated fans to their first cover of Neil Young’s “Don’t Be Denied” since June 23, 2024. Recently debuted original “King Baby” then bled into a set-closing “Chilly Water.” The sextet came back for a lone “Life During Wartime” encore.