If you heard the thunderous roar emanating from the Warner Theatre this weekend, you know it was Tedeschi Trucks Band's annual return to the Warner Theatre.  The highly anticipated yearly event kicked off on Thursday, February 16th, 2023, and carried on for three incendiary nights in downtown Washington, DC. This monstrous, twelve-piece, wall-of-sound band returned to DC to kick off yet another six-night residency.  

Tedeschi Trucks Band has been delighting fans at the Warner Theatre since 2011, and this year was no different.  The question on everyone’s mind this weekend was how they would integrate the twenty-four songs from their 2022 masterpiece album, I Am The Moon, into this residency.

On Friday, the band gave little respite to fans who may have been up until the wee hours of Thursday, seeing Susan Tedeschi, Kebbi Williams, and Ephriam Owens join Midnight North at The Hamilton two blocks away. TTB would continue to integrate new songs from I Am The Moon, including "La Di Da" from I Am The Moon II: Ascension, "Yes We Will" and "Ain't That Something" from I Am The Moon III: The Fall. While Thursday's performance was impressive, Friday night's performance would end with a beyond powerful thirty-five minutes, starting with "Midnight In Harlem" followed by "Made Up Mind" and finally ending with an encore of soulful "Stand Back > Mr. Clean > Stand Back."

On Saturday, the band would show their members are world-class and exceptionally multi-talented. Mike Mattison would come to the front of the stage with his guitar in hand and sing "Fall In" and later in the evening, keyboardist Gabe Dixon would play the drums while drummer Isaac Eady would play the guitar. TTB does not follow a formula where a band member sticks to a single role - the experience and the songs are shared. Within each song, band members pass song leads to one another with invisible passes and seamless handoffs. One never knows where the musical journey will take us. The band delivered thunderous music as they segued musical contributions from one another like a Leslie Speaker or Hammond Organ - welcome to the Church of Tedeschi Trucks. After an hour of unleashing the raw power they are known for, they would end the first set with an explosive "I Want More" and "Soul Sacrifice."

When the second set started the crowd was delighted to see Derek Trucks walk on stage not with one of his Gibson SG guitars but instead with his cherished acoustic 1932 Gibson L-00 guitar and sat beside Susan Tedeschi to perform "I Can See You Smiling" from I Am The Moon IV: Farewell. This was only the third live performance of this song and a special acoustic treat for the crowd. This opening song was followed by two more I Am The Moon songs - a short but up-tempo and gumbo-rich "So Long Savior" followed by "Here My Dear." This last song was the first song released from I Am The Moon I: Crescent, and as Susan Tedeschi beautifully delivered this song as a rotating projection of the moon's phases appeared behind the band.

Later in the evening, the crowd would sway from side to side as they sang the harmony with Susan Tedeschi on John Prine's classic "Angel From Montgomery." The band would then launch into "That Did It" by Bobby "Blue" Bland before deciding to give the audience precisely what they wanted and needed - the final powder keg of the weekend with an over-the-top version of "Bound for Glory" as the band overcame some technical issues to leave the audience still cheering for more. Finally, for the encore, the band would deliver "Show Me" by Joe Tex and would, for the final time tonight, pass around the song lead from one band member to another, all the while as the light show erupted into colors and columns of light-filled and bounced off the art deco features of the Warner Theatre.

After three high-powered performances, this twelve-piece powerhouse band has left their fans exhausted, elated, and exhilarated. Fans were able to see and hear firsthand how songs off of I Am The Moon would integrate into a residency - performing eleven of twenty-four songs from this album. For three unforgettable nights, Tedeschi Trucks Band weaved between their existing catalog and introduced their newest songs. They would perform some of our favorite staples and introduce us to new favorites - and the band is only halfway through their residency.  

Time will tell which of the remaining thirteen songs will be introduced during the second half of their Warner Theatre Residency and what existing songs have yet to be performed. This pursuit and mystery of songs is the joy and the delightful burden for any TTB fan.

Speaking of these remaining performances, tickets are still available for the second half of their residency on March 2nd, 3rd, and 4th. We, like you, are looking forward to seeing what songs will be performed in the remaining shows and how the band intends to end its residency. For those that have tickets, we look forward to seeing you again soon. For those that have yet to purchase tickets, if you've read this far, maybe you're willing to come a little further and join fans in two weeks.

Please see below for audio recordings of all three nights of TTB's Warner Theatre performances and links to upcoming concerts.

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To learn more about Tedeschi Trucks Band, please see the following web resources:

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