My Morning Jacket and Fleet Foxes teamed up for a mini co-headlining run of three shows including two nights at Berkeley’s historic Greek Theatre. With the bands swapping out opening slots for the epic double-header, the first night at the Greek found My Morning Jacket with the opening honors, taking the stage at 7PM in front of a packed house.
While some might argue that playing so early with the sun far from setting felt a bit weird (especially for a co-headlining show), but those lounging on the lawn way in the back likely had a different perspective as Karl the Fog rolled over San Francisco to the left of the stage, the sun set over Marin to the right and a sliver of waxing red moon hung between.
Of course, none of that seemed to matter for My Morning Jacket which quickly slipped into a groove with merely a wave and a smile to greet the crowd. It wasn’t until several songs in that James finally addressed the crowd, “magic is in the air tonight,” before bringing Robin Pecknold from Fleet Foxes on stage for some epic harmonies on “Wonderful (The Way I Feel)” and Gillian Welch’s “I Want To Sing That Rock and Roll.” And as the sun finally set, the stage lights built in intensity as the 1 hour and 36-minute performance crescendoed with the giant mirrored disco ball suspended above the stage finally being put to its intended use.
With a 45-minute set change and a significant rejiggering of positions in the crowd, Fleet Foxes finally took the Greek stage. Clearly in it for the long haul—Fleet Foxes had seating and hydration within arms reach as Uwade Akhere kicked the set off with “Sun Giant.”
In contrast to MMJ’s sometimes frenetic performance, Fleet Foxes kept the lights low and focused on delivering those trademark vocals. But that didn’t mean that we wouldn’t get more of Jim’s energy as he returned Robin’s earlier favor by joining Fleet Foxes on a cover of Buffalo Springfield’s “Expecting to Fly.”
With a perfect pairing, it’s no surprise that Fleet Foxes and My Morning Jacket were able to pull off a two-night stand in front of an adoring Berkeley crowd.
FLEET FOXES
MY MORNING JACKET SETLIST
Feel You
I’m Amazed
Compound Fracture
Circuital
Steam Engine
Hopefully (Jim and Carl acoustic)
Wonderful (The Way I Feel)
I Want To Sing That Rock and Roll
Least Expected
Love Love Love
Gideon
Only Memories Remain
Smokin’ From Shootin’
The Way That He Sings
Mahgeetah
FLEET FOXES SETLIST
Sun Giant
Wading in Waist‐high Water
Sunblind
Can I Believe You
Ragged Wood
Your Protector
He Doesn’t Know Why
Featherweight
Third of May/Ōdaigahara
Phoenix (Big Red Machine cover)
White Winter Hymnal
Bedouin Dress
Mearcstapa
Mykonos
Montezuma
Maestranza
Cradling Mother, Cradling Woman
Blue Ridge Mountains
Grown Ocean
Blue Spotted Tail
Expecting to Fly (Buffalo Springfield cover)
Going-to-the-Sun Road
Helplessness Blues
