[4] Bassist Dave Schools met Bell and Houser in 1984 and first played with them on February 24, 1985, at the A-Frame house on Weymanda Court in Athens.

[7][8] The band played in fraternities and bars regularly before Panic signed a contract with Landslide Records in 1987.

In February 1987 the band played the now-legendary series of one dollar Monday night shows at the Uptown Lounge in Athens and the crucial local press began to take notice—FLAGPOLE & Athens Observer art columnist Shan Clark emphasized Widespread Panic's musical virtuosity, songwriting and professionalism.

In September of the same year, they recorded their first album, Space Wrangler, at John Keane's studio in Athens.

"[9] After Space Wrangler, touring expanded to include additional northeastern dates, along with Texas, Colorado, the west coast, and internationally to Vancouver, Canada.

All of the material included was written specifically for the album with the exception of "Time Waits", a song which John Bell had performed in solo appearances, and "Don't Wanna Lose You", a song John Hermann had performed with his side-project Smiling Assassins.

However, 2004 did see the release of three live albums, engineered by Billy Field: Night of Joy and Über Cobra—both of which were recorded during a November 2003 three-night run of shows at the House of Blues in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina—as well as Jackassolantern, a compilation of cover songs performed during the band's Halloween shows over the years.

In late 2006, Fayetteville, North Carolina native Jimmy Herring joined the band in the role of lead guitarist.

[18] Panic's 7th annual New Year's shows on December 30 and 31, 2007, marked their 15th and 16th sellout performance at Philips Arena.

Mayor John Hickenlooper proclaimed Friday, June 27 "Widespread Panic Day" in the City and County of Denver.

"[27] The band went on to tour steadily throughout 2011, ending the year with their first show at Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Dubbed the Wood Tour, it started in January at the Fillmore in Silver Spring, Maryland and ended at The Belly Up in Aspen, Colorado.

On August 17, the band announced their first scheduled shows after the hiatus, including two nights in Charlotte, North Carolina and a 4-night run in the Dominican Republic.

Between the two short legs that made up the 2012 Wood Tour, the band played a four night run in Mexico, marking their first shows in the country, and beginning what would become an annual tradition called Panic en la Playa.

The first Panic En La Playa was held on the beach at the Now Sapphire Resort in Puerto Morelos, Mexico in 2012.

For 2013 and 2014, The concert was held at the Hard Rock Hotel in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, with the 2014 shows pushed back until March 17–20.

The band returned to regular touring in the spring of 2013 with a run of Mid-West and Southern shows beginning in April.

Previously, Panic had allowed tapers to use audience recording devices to simulcast live shows to fans via the internet.

2014 saw a return of Wood Tour, with the band playing six all acoustic theater shows, as well as a special Wood performance held 333 feet underground in the Volcano Room at Cumberland Caverns in McMinnville, Tennessee for a taping of an episode of PBS' Bluegrass Underground.

The band played an extensive 2014 tour, with three-night stands at Red Rocks, The Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, The Riverside Theater in Milwaukee, and 1stBank Center in Broomfield, Colorado, where they played their well-known Halloween shows.

In April 2016, keyboardist John Hermann announced that the band will stop touring extensively at the end of the year.

However, he said that the band is not breaking up and will continue to make festival appearances and perform shows at select venues such as Red Rocks.

Widespread Panic has the policy of allowing any of their fans to tape, trade, and to a limited extent freely distribute their shows.