Click here to see the photos. (There are more than normal in this set since it was my  first time photographing DMB)

Dave Matthews Band played the Hershey Stadium located at Hershey park in Hershey, PA on 07-09-2010. The opening band was Grammy the award winning Zac Brown Band.  Dave Matthew Band have played Hershey 13 times since 1996 (once every year except 1997 and 2007) and as always, they played yet another great show in the wonderful chocolate town.

It must be summertime, Dave Matthews Band is hitting every market once again on their never ending streak of touring. Well, scratch that….. The touring juggernauts are taking next year off from touring for the first time in 20 years. Most bands do not last 20 years let alone constantly tour for that long.  That is a feat that few bands can claim and certainly not to the intensity of their schedule at which they toured.

I have seen the Dave Matthews Band countless of times over the years and have seen them nearly every year since my first time I ever saw them on 10-07-1996 in University Park, PA.  From their initial rise in fame to their eventual plateau, through sunburned and rainy concerts, through good albums and bad, and unfortunately through the loss of a band member I have returned to their shows year after year.  It will be odd not seeing them next year and hope they return to touring even stronger as a band than they are now.

Dave Matthews Band have been busting out great setlists this tour knowing that their fans are going to want something good to last them for another year.  The setlist for the night was very solid but had an odd trend of playing songs off Dave Matthews’ solo album.  They ended up playing a total of four songs from “Some Devil” which made it the first time more songs have been played from Some Devil than from any other album at a full band show.

One of the more humorous “Dave Speak” of the night was when Dave Matthews talked about how scaring people is his favorite thing to do in the world and that he will stalk someone for hours to scare the sh*t out of them……  On the day of the show, a popular  Dave Matthews Band online forum was reporting where the band was staying and when they had arrived, etc.  I am not sure if the band members or their crew read the forums or if they had a bad experience that day, but it seemed to be poking fun at “stalkers” in general or at least politely sending a message to those that follow their whereabouts.

With a vast catalog of songs and their appetite to make setlists vary each night, it is remarkable that the Dave Matthews Band are not known to have a lot of flubs during the concerts. This is a testament to their great musicianship and their ability to gel as a group night after night.  However, when Dave Matthews performed Some Devil solo he accidentally hit a wrong note in the beginning that made everyone cringe. He made an awkward face, stopped the show and said, “Let’s see if I can recover from that.”.

Without a doubt, the two greatest highlights for me were the nine and a half minute version of Warehouse and the Recently > Corn Bread > Recently (reprise) sandwhich which lasted for over fifteen minutes.  Both songs were scorchers and were enough to keep me happy until the next time the band decides to tour again.

The setlist for the night was as follows:

Everyday
Pig
Stay Or Leave
Big Eyed Fish >
Say Goodbye
Grey Street
Gravedigger
Lying In the Hands of God
Still Water
Don’t Drink the Water
You & Me >
Water Into Wine (Tease)
Recently >
Corn Bread>
Recently (reprise)
Eh Hee
Warehouse
Stay (Wasting Time)
Ants Marching

Encore
Some Devil (Dave Matthews performed solo)
So Damn Lucky >
Shake Me Like a Monkey