~from JamBase’s Most Important Shows of the Decade

As far as anyone knew, this was it. By all accounts, Sunday, April 28, 2002 at Pelham, Alabama’s Oak Mountain Amphitheatre appeared to be Widespread Panic lead guitarist and co-founder Michael Houser’s last concert. It was the final night of a brief eight-show spring tour that felt like, and in many ways was, the “Goodbye Houser Tour.” Although not an official word had been uttered, most fans knew that Houser had contracted pancreatic cancer, and one could tell just by looking at him up close onstage that his time was drawing near. Although he would bravely perform seven more shows as he began the spring tour two months later, at this point, Sunday at Oak Mountain looked like the final one.

The venue, set in the heart of Panic Country, was packed with 10,000 serious fans and there was a tension and energy hanging in the humid Alabama air unlike anything I have personally ever experienced. The band rose to the occasion; from song selection (there wasn’t a dry eye during the “Trouble” encore) to execution to the Jerry Joseph guest appearance, it was nearly flawless and one of the best shows of the band’s legendary career. But it was more than just that. It was the way the weather coincided with the music, making it feel like bandleader John Bell had created rain during “Cortez The Killer.” It was the undeniable sense of community. It was the bittersweet, sad-yet-grateful feeling for the opportunity to say goodbye properly and rage it one more time. It was the weight of it all. Standing at Oak Mountain, bitter tears and warm rain washing over one’s face, wrapped in arms from friends both old and new, truly believing this was the final Houser jam, it felt like we were part of history on that day. (Kayceman)

~and a JamBase interview with JB years later

Q: You know there was something I’ve been thinking about for a while, and if it’s none of my business that’s fine, but I was thinking about that Sunday night show at Oak Mountain. For a lot of people who were sort of paying attention, they thought that it could potentially be the last time Mikey played. I mean I thought it was at least a possibility because the tour was ending, and that show was very over the top in my opinion. So I’m curious, what did you guys say to each other before you went on stage? I’m assuming you guys were under the impression that maybe Mikey might not be around for the next tour. Was that in your thought process at that time?

JB: Well, we’d already talked about it, and the plan was that Spring Tour would have been it.

Q: Right, that’s the impression I was under so…

JB: Well I’m not sure if the decision had already been made there, but fairly quickly after that he said, “I want to go out and play as long as I can.”

Q: Right, so leading up to that show, when you guys are going on stage, and there was a chance this might be the last time you’d get to play music with Houser, how does that situation play itself out?

JB: Well, you gotta know we were still… it’s something we’d been doing since ’81.

[Very long pregnant pause. More than what JB said, it was the way he looked – staring out the window, not exactly tearing up, but you could see the emotion in his eyes. This was the most powerful moment of the interview – the moment between words, where the thought was floating in the air, in his mind – between the two of us as we spoke of Houser.]

JB: Playing-wise, I felt no difference except for possibly some things where you just realize that he’s playing great, and you go, “Hey, it’s not just a great night; this could be… you know… this could be… the last great night.” But he’s playing his heart out till the last minute, and he was really on. And then there’d be some songs, I think, probably like, I don’t know, “Ain’t Life Grand” – there were certain tunes. And a couple times I remember him getting a little choked up, or maybe a microphone wasn’t working, who knows, but then I’d be singing it by myself and thinking, “Wow, this is about to happen just like this anyway.” We knew the possibilities. And he had his family out with him, and he was really digging it. I know he felt the most normal when he was playing. He wasn’t listening to his heart beat real fast or getting freaked out or anything. So I think it was like we were taking it as another gig, but now this was something totally different.

Widespread Panic
04/28/02
Oak Mountain Amphitheater
Pelham, AL

Set 1
1.) Let’s Get Down To Business (04:47.25)
2.) Action Man (04:29.27)
3.) Makes Sense To Me (04:19.23)
4.) Pusherman -> (12:46.61)
5.) Diner -> (13:36.66)
6.) Ride Me High* (09:40.47)
7.) Genesis** (08:13.33)
8.) Holden Oversoul (08:09.01)
9.) Conrad (09:20.19)

Set 2
1.) Chilly Water -> (06:19.72)
2.) Visiting Day -> (06:33.35)
3.) Chilly Water (04:47.55)
4.) Blue Indian** (05:32.61)
5.) Driving Song -> (07:18.74)
6.) Breathing Slow -> (04:08.08)
7.) No Sugar Tonight/New Mother Nature North*** (07:07.28)
8.) North*** (12:23.62)
9.) Cortez the Killer*** -> (17:43.17)
10.) Drums**** -> (01:32.40)
1.) Drums**** -> (21:57.52)
2.) Walkin’ (For Your Love) (05:39.13)
3.) Papa’s Home (08:34.35)
4.) Ain’t Life Grand (06:24.28)
5.) Crowd (01:17.51)

Encore:
6.) Trouble** (04:06.06)
7.) Down (04:20.62)
8.) Postcard (10:31.58)

* with John Keane on guitar
** with John Keane on pedal steel
*** with Jerry Joseph on guitar/vocals
**** with Brad Rosen on percussion, Dr. Arvin Scott on percussion

[‘Nicaragua’ rap by Jerry Joseph during ‘North’; Particle opened]

AUDIO SOURCE:
{Schoeps MK41+KC5+CMC6(XY) -> Oade M148} +
{Neumann AK30+LC3+KM100 (split 2′) -> Oade M148} ->
Soundcraft Spirit Notepad 4-Channel Mixer -> mod SBM1
Recorded By Mike Falcon and Ben Morrison
Digitally Remastered and Transfered to CD BY Doug Oade