Jake's Leg celebrates Jerry's birthday at Joe's Cafe!

Jake's Leg comes to Joe's Cafe to celebrate Jerry Garcia's birthday. He would have been 81 if he had made it this far and we want to toast the great man with a great band!

On this night Jake's Leg will go unplugged. It will be back to the roots with those sweet Phil Lesh parts being played with a standup bass by a standup guy. They may have to cheat a bit with the keys as we aren't having a piano delivered for the show, but these days keyboards can sound a lot like acoustic pianos, at least on the surface. With drums and a couple acoustic guitars, it's a show! This is gonna be a spiritual event with the deep bag of tunes these guys have been playing for decades. It will be a special night for those who have followed the band for generations.

The below was shamelessly stolen from the Jack's Leg website.

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Deadheads in St. Louis know Jake's Leg. The band has been providing music for the scene for 47 years, playing thousands of shows to generations of like-minded fans who just wanna keep on dancin'. Maybe you've heard them in some dumpy little bar like the old Twenty North or at Busch Stadium: they've played 'em all and continue to do so on a regular basis. And the band keeps growing.

Started as a duo by guitarists and vocalists Randy Furrer and Tim Fahy in the mid-1970s, lead guitarist Dave Casper soon joined the fold. Players were added and the music grew, friends came and went. Some of them had 10-year-or-longer stints with Jake's Leg, which is a long career for most non-touring rock bands. Bassist Joe Trunko came on board in 1990, followed in 1991 by keyboardist Bill Noltkamper, completing the core four that have been playing and singing together for the past 30 years. Ryan Wilhite, after a short stint as percussionist, took over the drum kit in 2005. The sum of this is one of the longest-lasting bands in the country that plays a whole lot of your favorite songs all over STL.

It's not The Grateful Dead and it's not supposed to be. While they draw mainly on the repertoire of America's favorite psychedelic blues-rock jug band, Jake's Leg naturally bring their own sensibilities to each part. The introspective singer-songwriter, the jazz stylings of an improvising soloist, rock-solid dance grooves, mind-bending jams: all are in play at their shows. The music can take you anywhere you want to go. And with their long-term unity and very capable musicianship, Jake's Leg makes it a great-sounding trip.

What's happening at a show? Music. Joy. Love. Peace. Singing. Dancing. Good Times. Fun. While making the soundtrack with lots of dedication and practice, the band knows that the audience is an integral part of each show. People leave their troubles at the door and get down together in a celebration of life. The audience members come in all ages and from every background, each bringing their own energy to the experience. The band and their audience have an on-going dialogue based in their mutual love of the music. It wasn't planned, it just happened. And it's still happening after 44 years. If you're a fan of the songs of The Grateful Dead, do yourself a favor and see Jake's Leg. Your friends are there, and the music never stops.

POET: Nathalie Flindertje

Normal Joe's rules apply.

• Doors 7pm, show 8pm.
• $15 Eventbrite advanced tickets
• $20 at the door, night of
• Bring your own food and drink.
• Park on Des Peres only.
• No talking over the music.
• Try to be over 25