Ween at Bonnaroo, 6/12/2016
One of the most heartwarming stories in recent years for music fans who lived through the ’90s (or have heard about it on the internet, at least) has to be the reunion of Ween. Dean and Gene Ween, two of popular music's most finely warped minds, have come out on the other side of struggles with substance abuse and the wear and tear of being in a band together since the Reagan years in generally good health and spirits, and put on a helluva show.
It's fashionable for musicians across a huge range to take advantage of Nashville's expert musicians and studios today, but it wasn't so much in the mid-’90s, when Ween came down to record their fifth album 12 Golden Country Greats. They worked on the record — which pokes fun at country tropes while showing deference to the masterful musicianship — at Bradley's Barn with a slew of ace players including Bobby Ogdin, Charlie McCoy and The Jordanaires, some of whom toured with the band under the name The Shit Creek Boys. Ween and various members of the SCBs have played together on a several occasions, but it's been many years.
If you thought your chances were slim to ever catch Ween and the Boys again, they just got a whole lot fatter: Squeezed in between a couple of dates on Ween's fall Florida Georgia Line Tour is a two-night stand at the Mother Church of Country Music where they'll play 12 Golden Country Greats with The Shit Creek Boys.
The two-night stand is set for Oct. 16-17 at the Ryman. Tickets will run $54.50-$69.50 (or $109-$139 for a two-night package) and they go on sale Friday, Aug. 17, at 10 a.m. Find Oct. 16 tickets here and Oct. 17 tickets here.
