Dave Grohl is releasing his first and only live performance of “Play” with a 36-minute version. Originally released on Grohl’s 2018 EP Play as a 23-minute instrumental, the extended version is featured on Gov’t Mule frontman Warren Haynes’ The Benefit Concert Volume 20, out December 8.
The performance marked the first time Grohl played the song live and extended it another 13 minutes, along with Greg Kurstin on keyboards, former Jane’s Addiction bassist Chris Chaney, guitarists Jason Falkner, Alain Johannes, and Barrett Jones, and Drew Hester on percussion. Grohl’s performance was also enhanced by the addition Abby the Spoon Lady, an Asheville, North Carolina-based street performer, who plays spoons.
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In addition to his performance of “Play,” Grohl also performed Foo Fighters‘ “Times Like These” with Haynes and “Everlong,” along with Neil Young’s “Rockin’ in the Free World” with Gov’t Mule
Available as a double vinyl in four colors—purple, orange, blue, and red and in CD and DVD and CD and Blu-ray formats, The Benefit Concert Volume 20 was originally recorded on December 7-8, 2018 in Asheville as a collection of performances from Haynes’ 30th Annual Christmas Jam with proceeds going to Habitat for Humanity in the city.
In addition to Grohl and Haynes, other artists featured on the album include Eric Church, Joe Bonamassa, Tyler Ramsey, Scott Murawski, Ron Holloway, Mike Gordon, Marco Benevento, Jamey Johnson, Edwin McCain, and Kevn Kinney.
Launched by Haynes in 1988, the Christmas Jams soon became an annual tradition in the Asheville area and have raised more than $2.8 million for the Asheville Habitat for Humanity and the construction of over 50 homes within the region.
“Although Christmas Jam, the main event, is traditionally a one-night event, there have been three occasions where we felt the need to make it two nights—the 20th, 25th, and 30th Anniversaries—each of which featured extraordinary line-ups,” said Haynes of the annual event in a statement. “The performances being represented in this package are culled from the 30th Anniversary in 2018, which was in itself a milestone for the Jam. Its importance is amplified by the fact that the next year we would take a well-deserved break with every intention of resuming business as usual in 2020, not knowing that 2020 would bring about the COVID-19 pandemic which affected not just the music business, but the entire world.”
Haynes continued “Thankfully, we were able to bring it back in 2022 with a stellar lineup and will continue on this year with another memorable event. It feels great to be back.”
The 32nd annual Christmas Jam will return on December 9, 2023.
Photo: Daniel Boczarski/Getty Images for Harley-Davidson
