Umphrey’s McGee Bust Out “Help > Slip” in San Diego

March 24, 2025

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Photo Credit: Brian Stollery

On Thursday, March 21, Umphrey’s McGee continued its trek along the West Coast for the penultimate performance in the first leg of the 2025 Cruising Altitude Tour. At San Diego’s Observatory North Park, the genre-bending jam pathbreakers paid tribute to the Golden State’s singular music history with a long-awaited bust-out, bringing the Grateful Dead’s “Help on the Way” and “Slipknot!” back after more than a decade.

Umphrey’s McGee set off its San Diego set with the Asking for a Friend highlight “Small Strides,” which commenced a segued medley into “Made to Measure,” “Turn & Run” and “Seasons.” After wrapping the first frame with more setlist staples, the band returned for the second set with longtime fan favorite “Slacker,” followed by further live essentials like “Booth Love,” before treating the fans to a rare performance of the Zonkey mashup “Life During Exodus.”

UM closed out the second set with the newer entry “Out of Focus,” then brought the crowd to a roar when they returned to the stage for an encore with the Dead’s “Help on the Way.” When they merged into the ripping instrumental of “Slipknot!,” the band had officially closed a 13-year, 1045 show gap in performances of the “Help > Slip” medley, which was a touring favorite for UM–who are generally less inclined to honor the Grateful Dead than their scene contemporaries–in ‘98 and ‘99. Just as in those early years, the band did not continue the progression into “Franklin’s Tower,” though just the first two spots of the beloved Blues for Allah trio were enough to finish the show on a high note.

Umphrey’s Mcgee will return for the next leg of the 2025 Cruising Altitude Tour with UMBowl XI, presenting at Nashville, Tenn.’s famed Ryman Auditorium on April 4 and 5. For tickets and more information on the band’s full tour itinerary, visit umphreys.com/tour/.

Read on for the setlist from Thursday night.

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Umphrey’s McGee
Observatory North Park – San Diego
3/21/25
Set I: Small Strides > Made to Measure > Turn & Run > Seasons, Make It Right, Cemetery Walk, Cemetery Walk II
Set II: Slacker, Booth Love > The Floor, The Crooked One > Life During Exodus, Out of Focus
Encore: Help On the Way+ > Slipknot!+
Notes:
+ LTP 2012-10-31 (1,045 shows)