Last March, Widespread Panic was .. ih the tail end of a two-week run at Paris' Chesterfield Cafe. As the band walked on stage for the final show, keyboardist Jojo Hermann was wearing, what's that, a Bon Jovi T-shirt? "We were in France," Hermann said with his infectious laugh. “It was the only French T-shirt I could find. You know 'bon' means 'good' in French. I thought they were a French band. That's why I wore it-to stay in the theme of things."

Even with increasing sardom — the band re...