Toy Factory Project returned to Wilmington, N.C. last night to cap off their two-night engagement at the Greenfield Lake Amphitheater. During the second show of their four-show Spring Tour, the Southern rock supergroup honoring the late Toy Caldwell took the Marshall Tucker Band’s catalog for another spin, this time tacking on a live debut of a Grateful Dead classic.
Toy Factory Project lit into night two with “Hillbilly Band,” drawn from the Marshall Tucker Band’s 1973 self-titled debut. Throughout 18 essentials from the legendary band’s expansive catalog, they largely stayed true to the tribute format they introduced at the 52nd annual Telluride Bluegrass Festival last year and honed during their residency at Port Chester, N.Y.’s The Capitol Theatre in February; last night’s show reshuffled the setlist from Monday night and added “See You Later, I’m Gone,” also from the group’s first album, and “You Ain’t Foolin’ Me,” from their 1974 follow-up, A New Life. In lieu of the tribute band’s take on the Grateful Dead’s “Fire on the Mountain,” frequently paired with the MTB original of the same name, the group introduced a different Dead hit with “Franklin’s Tower,” and the Blues for Allah centerpiece gave the ensemble a chance to stretch out with some instrumental extemporization.
Toy Factory Project is led by Paul Riddle, the Marshall Tucker Band’s founding drummer, and renews the legacy of that groundbreaking act with an all-star cast of Marcus King on guitar and vocals, Oteil Burbridge on bass, Charlie Starr on guitar and vocals, Josh Shilling on keys and vocals, percussionist Jimmy Rector and special guest Sam Bush on fiddle and mandolin, filling in for Billy Contreras on the spring tour. The band will head off to Richmond, Va.’s Music at Maymont tonight then wrap the tour with a headline set at Delfest on Thursday, May 21, at its longtime home of Cumberland, Md.’s Allegheny County Fairgrounds. Find tickets and more information at toyfactoryproject.com…