Sunday, 05/21/1989
Set 1: HoodHarry Hood, Foam, Contact, Mike'sMike's Song[1] > HydrogenI Am Hydrogen > WeekapaugWeekapaug Groove, SOAMeltSplit Open and Melt, Dazed and Confused[2], SlothThe Sloth, YEMYou Enjoy Myself[3] > Ya Mar, BagAC/DC Bag > DividedDivided Sky
Set 2: AlumniAlumni Blues, Possum
[1] Alternate lyrics.
[2] First known Phish performance.
[3] Godzilla vocal jam.
Performers: Trey Anastasio, Page McConnell, Jon Fishman, Mike Gordon
Notes: Before Contact, the band announced that the police were towing cars out on Spear Street. This version of Mike’s Song, known also as “Molly’s Song,” included alternate lyrics. This show marked the only known Phish performance of Dazed and Confused. YEM included a Godzilla vocal jam. SOAM was introduced as being “about a pig.” The setlist for set II is unknown except for Chris Kuroda's guest sit-in on vocals for either Alumni Blues or Possum. It is also possible that Kuroda sat in on both songs. There are no recordings of set II in circulation. Some recordings that circulate are mislabeled as The Front. The set II information comes from phish.com.
This show was part of the "1989 Tour."
Incredibly strong Hood to open, Trey just goes off crazy trilling near the peak. Funny banter about Foam and Contact about Mike and cars being towed, I'm sure someone was bummed. Molly's Song comes next and a wailing Molly taboot. Nice strong 'Paug jam. Early Melt and the debut of Dazed and Confused with Trey trying to play guitar with a bow. Top notch YEM as well. Beautiful Divided to close.
,
attached to 1989-05-21
One word to describe this show: FUN. Kind of like the 8/21/87 Ian's Farm show, it has that sound check kind of looseness born from not being a show with a genuine crowd. Granted, there are some parts here and there that slide from loose to sloppy, for example in Weekapaug and YEM, but the jams are pretty much smokin' from front to back. The Hood builds to a fantastic climax, the 'Paug cooks, the Melt is solid, and the YEM is tremendously hot (especially at the end, that ginger kid can really play). The jams alone push this up close to four stars, but then the fun pushes it well over the top. The YEM vocal jam which morphs from Ufitzi to Zenzile to Godzilla, the aborted Dazed and Confused (complete with mockery from Fish for not being able to get through the whole thing), the alternate lyrics and goofing around in the Mike's Groove, and, of course, the hilarious version of Contact that all fans of Contact should check out, and more. That's right!
This is a really fun, but very sloppy show. Lots of stage banter and general conversations with their friends while they are playing. Half of the set is about Molly and cars being towed. Trey breaks his B string at the end of Melt which is why the rest of the set is off the cuff and sloppy. It seems he borrowed a guitar from Alex? Anyways, its a fun show to hear, but not all that great in terms of tight playing.