Sam Holt Band will pay tribute to late Widespread Panic guitarist and co-founder Michael Houser during two special shows next month. Holt, who served as Houser’s longtime guitar tech, filled in on lead guitar with Panic between George McConnell’s sudden departure in the summer of 2006 and Jimmy Herring’s first show that September. His “Remembering Mikey – A Birthday Celebration Honoring the Music, Memory, and Spirit of Michael Houser” shows are slated for Atlanta’s Smith’s Olde Bar (1/6) and Birmingham, AL’s Saturn (1/7). The group promises to “dig deep into the catalog of Michael Houser to bust out some rare tunes that were never or rarely played live.”

Houser’s birthday is January 6. He passed away on August 10, 2002 at age 40.