Hootie & the Blowfish at Madison Square Garden

R.E.M.'s Mike Mills (left) joined Darius Rucker (right)
and Hootie & the Blowfish at Madison Square Garden

Guitarist Mark Bryan was impressed when he heard Darius Rucker singing in the dorm showers they shared in the mid-1980s as university freshmen in Columbia, South Carolina. The pair began playing cover tunes as the Wolf Brothers, but by 1986 they formed a band and adopted the name Hootie & the Blowfish, the name being a conjunction of the nicknames of two of their college friends. Jim Sonefeld replaced the original drummer and since 1989 this quartet has remained the core of the band. Hootie & the Blowfish won the Best New Artist award at the 1996 Grammy Awards. The band's major-label debut, Cracked Rear View (1994), went on to become the 19th-best-selling album of all time in the United States, and in May 2019 was certified platinum 21 times. Hootie & the Blowfish went on hiatus in 2008 so Rucker could pursue his solo career as a country music performer, although the band reunited several times for special occasions. This year, the band reunited for the current Group Therapy Tour to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the release of Cracked Rear View. The band's sixth studio album, Imperfect Circle, will be released on November 1, 2019.

On the first of two headlining nights at Madison Square Garden, Hootie & the Blowfish was all about having a good time. The band performed all of its better-known feel-good hits from the 1990s, introduced a new song, and partied through a playful choice of cover songs. What has changed since the last time the band toured roughly 10 years ago is that in the interim Rucker became a country music success; a taste of twang now permeated much of the performance, with the help of touring musicians from Rucker's solo group, Peter Holsapple on mandolin and Gary Murray on banjo. Rucker told the audience that Holsapple had played acoustic guitar on the original version of the next song the band was going to play, then announced they would perform a tribute to R.E.M. with guest guitarist, Mike Mills of R.E.M. Rucker and Mills bgan by trading lead vocals on R.E.M.'s "Losing My Religion." Mills then spoke about seeing a then-unknown Hootie & the Blowfish playing in a South Carolina bar in the 1980s and being impressed that the band was performing an R.E.M. song.  Mills then led the band in R.E.M.'s "Don't Go Back to Rockville." Hootie & the Blowfish kept the show fresh by frequently interrupting its string of hits with covers and mash-ups, some of which featured members of the opening act, Barenaked Ladies. Hootie & the Blowfish really knew how to make a comeback.

Setlist:

1. Hannah Jane
2. State Your Peace
3. I Go Blind (54-40 cover)
4. Sad Caper
5. I'm Goin' Home
6. Hold My Hand
7. Wishing
8. Let Her Cry
9. Hey Hey What Can I Do (Led Zeppelin cover)
10. Will the Circle Be Unbroken? (Ada Ruth Habershon & Charles Hutchinson Gabriel cover)
11. Desert Mountain Showdown
12. I Hope I Don't Fall in Love With You (Tom Waits cover)
13. Alright (Darius Rucker song)
14. Running From an Angel
15. Losing My Religion (R.E.M. song, with Mike Mills)
16. (Don't Go Back to) Rockville (R.E.M. song, with Mike Mills)
17. Time
18. Rollin'
19. Wagon Wheel (Old Crow Medicine Show cover)
20. Old Man & Me (When I Get to Heaven) / Fight the Power (Public Enemy cover) / Freaks of the Industry (Digital Underground)/ Shining Star (Earth, Wind & Fire cover)
21. Immigrant Song / With a Little Help From My Friends (The Beatles cover, with Barenaked Ladies)

Encore:

1. Goodbye
2. Go and Tell Him (Soup Song)
3. Only Wanna Be With You (With "Get Down On It" snippet by Kool & the Gang)