Pearly Baker: Still going strong

After a two-year residency at The Vault in downtown New Bedford, the Pearly Baker Band has had an amicable split with the venue. For those who have missed the Grateful Dead tribute band during the days of COVID-19, a four-piece version of the group will be playing a free, open-air show at the Custom House Square in downtown on Thursday, July 15th. The music will start at 4 p.m. and conclude at 7 p.m. A Beer Garden will be available. Chairs and food can be brought to the event.

​But while the stage will differ the mission is the same – the Pearly Baker Band is renown for their dancing audiences and their free-style jams that make each song a unique and different rendition.

​“Our fans don’t show up to have fun, they bring the fun with them,” says guitarist/vocalist Mike Mahoney. 

​For 36 years the Pearly Baker Band has performed regularly in the South Coast, most often on their trademark Tuesday nights. Mahoney says the band has “some irons in the fire” regarding a new local venue, but that it’s too early to announce anything, noting that the band is eager to provide for fans as soon as possible.

​The Pearly Baker Band show is another installment in the Summer Sound Series, free Thursday night concerts in Custom House Square from 4 to 7 p.m. The shows are produced by the City of New Bedford and the Zeiterion Theatre. Upcoming shows include the jazz funk of the Monteirobots on July 22nd and nationally-lauded blues guitarist Mark T. Small on July 29th.Shows will be held throughout August and September. 

​The Pearly Baker Band lineup will include Mahoney, guitarist/vocalist Ken Richards, bassist Tim Richmond, and keyboardist Eric Costa. When the band plays electric shows they are teamed with drummers Geoff Fortin and Rob Coyne. Fans can follow the band and its members on the Facebook page, I Love Pearly Baker.

​Acoustic music is not foreign to the Grateful Dead experience. The iconic jamband released the album, “Reckoning,” that included a live, stripped-down performance at Madison Square Garden in New York City in the early 1980’s.

​Pearly Baker Band derives its name from the chocolate coffee martini drink referenced in the Grateful Dead song, “Wharf Rat.”

“Performing any song is essentially like solving a puzzle and we solve the puzzle in a different way each time,” Mahoney says. “If you like to dance and like good music, we have a lot of fun.”