Umphrey’s McGee plays Roanoke for the first time in 27 year career

Umphrey’s McGee plays Roanoke for the first time in 27 year career
by Marlon Edgar

January 21, 2025

27 years later and Umphrey’s McGee, one of the great touring bands of the jam scene’s golden age, is still hard at it, making new inroads while playing the first hometown show for a dedicated collective of long-time Roanoke Umphreaks. The show at the Jefferson Center’s gorgeous Shaftman Performance Hall was sold out and packed tight with a dense crowd of fans stagefront and in the aisles, dancing raucously to a progressive discourse of seasoned players leaping unexpectedly through fresh gardens of sound. And it was most certainly the band’s first appearance in Roanoke, as confirmed by keyboardist Joel Cummins, who, as front man Brendan Bayliss quipped, “could recite the time, day, year, and what he had for dinner had we played Roanoke before.” 

The show opener “Rocker 2” was followed by a “Nemo>Great American>Nemo” sandwich, topped with a searing take on their classic “Prowler.” Other first set highlights include a wildering version of “The Linear,” a cover of Led Zeppelin’s “That’s the Way,” and a grooving, zany spin through the “Cemetery Walk” suite to cap a first set well played. 

The second set took off at top speed, featuring a heavy hitting “Bridgeless” jam that was left unfinished, as the band veered into the old school fan favorite “Partyin’ Peeps.” The set also featured a standout “Small Strides” jam, an explorative “Believe the Lie” lasting nearly 20 minutes, and an extended run through the set closing “The Bottom Half.” After a short break, the band returned to encore The Pixies’ “Where is my mind?,” before concluding the show by finishing the second set opener “Bridgeless.” 

Star of the show | Kris Myers, drummer
Song of the night | “Small Strides” 
Biggest surprise | “That’s the Way” (Led Zeppelin), first time played since 2016 <>

Photo credit: Kimble Creative