Widespread Panic Open Tour by Closing Bonnaroo

In their home territory and, thus, in front of their people, Widespread Panic opened the first night of their tour on Sunday night by doing one of the things they do best -- closing out Bonnaroo. In years past, Panic employed special guests for the closing ceremony, including Steve Winwood and Herbie Hancock. Inside their backstage practice trailer, hours before their set, keyboardist John "JoJo" Hermann told Spinner, "There's stuff that's going to happen tonight that we don't know about yet."

By the time they took the main stage around 9pm, they had at least some of it figured out: They brought their own horn section (the Mega-Blasters) to assist on a number of songs, including a cover of the Band's 'Chest Fever.' Notably, Levon Helm, a founding member of the Band, performed a crowd-pleasing set the afternoon before -- a fact that members of Panic discussed with Spinner before the show.

Panic also invited pedal steel guitar hero Robert Randolph out for a four-song segue that included an entirely improvised jam somewhere in the middle. Following the wake of Kanye West, Metallica, Pearl Jam and Death Cab for Cutie, Panic was trying to make Bonnaroo feel like Bonnaroo again. And, in some ways, they succeeded.

"Really, it's like what can we do after these fans of music have been here for four days and three nights in a sweaty, dusty, muddy field?" asked Schools, rhetorically. "Let's give them something good to go home with. Let's let them drive out of here saying, 'That was a really good festival.'"

In the end, Panic probably wasn't Bonnaroo's biggest highlight. But they were right about one thing -- that was a really good festival.

PS: Backstage, School's admitted he had a fanboy moment when he saw Robert Plant walking around: "Did you see that? Robert Plant is walking around in shorts!" Schools said. Catching himself, he added, "Well of course he is -- it's hot, you idiot!'"