I only caught the day after in Vernon Downs and Lemonwheel on this tour. Great times, as the band was having fun with new covers almost every night. I wish I had hoped on a show earlier and caught this night, however. I'm not sure why it doesn't more attention, but this Runaway Jim is probably the best jam of '98, and I'd wager the best Jim ever. About 30 minutes of pure bliss that sees Trey pull off a few of those magic galactic licks that sound better ever time you hear them. Definitely one of the record books by the time they bring it back to the Jim finale. I haven't listened to the rest of the show in a while.

Great news! This morning's news inspired me to write a show review.

As I've written before here on .net, fans on tour were all riding a huge high coming off the madness of maryland/virginia beach (and a great tour). This show was alot of fun as a result. The lots were extremely positive ... more than normal random high fiving and lots of "can you believe it" conversations. Kinda like the Phish community had turned a corner, and we all knew it.

The debut cover of Bob Marley's "Trenchtown Rock" to open the show was just perfect. Followed with a standard but nice version of Julius set the mood for the show. The Wolfman's jam into the bust-out of Little Feat's "Time Loves a Hero" (over 1000 shows) was awesome. To date, the only version of "Bittersweet Motel" I actually don't mind listening to (the crowd's reaction to the line "halfway between Erie and Pittsburgh" always makes me smile). The remainder of the set was a mix of standards in Sloth and the closer Sample, some nice bluegrass in Ginseng Sullivan, a nice distinctly summer '98 take on Fee, and soaring versions of Reba & Maze.

The second set opens with a very exploratory Runaway Jim, including a sublime tease of "Maria" (by Trey) from the musical West Side Story - which I had absolutely no idea what it was at the time. It's similar in ambition to the Worcester '97 Jim. Although I prefer the Worcester Jim, this one is unmistakably summer '98 and was/is a wonderful listening experience in extended open improv (35 mins). The return to the Jim theme is glorious after the sonic journey. The boys follow it up with exactly what is called for: a couple new tunes (Meat and LxL) which would later be featured on Story of the Ghost (Fall '98). The start/stop of Meat was playful and the crowd appreciated it. For a few moments it threatened to get elastic in that summer '98 kind of way, but coming off the monster Jim, a straight ahead version was called for. I especially like how it finished/went into LxL (which I used to say at the time was Reba dressed up in a Taste drumbeat). If you like Reba and Taste (who doesn't), it's hard to dislike LxL. A gorgeous "When the Circus Comes" (Los Lobos cover) fit in well after the SOTG tunes in what was emerging as the mid/late second set ballad position in the setlist (think Bug, Mtns in the Mist, Velvet Sea, etc.). A straight-forward rocking version of DwD closed the second set in similar fashion to Atlanta, five days earlier.

Depending on your point of view, nothing too exciting tonight for the encore (pretty much impossible to top Sabotage/Terrapin Station), although Wilson had some lyrical variations from Trey which I can't identify, but it's clear, he was in good spirits. Golgi ended a very satisfying show that well represents Phish in Summer '98: well played yet playful, occasional bust-outs, debut covers, rocking out and taking risks. There's better shows in my opinion from Summer '98 but as an overall document on the tour, Burgettstown '98 is a solid, yet welcome/unexpected choice for the next official dvd. Looking forward to the December release!

TrenchTown ROCK opener!! need I say more?? This was a really good show, don't know why some people have rated it so low. The Wilson Golgi encore was sick, Runaway Meat LxL and DWD in the 2nd set!! yes the first set was a little relaxed beside the encore.. but the show overall was really good!!

I was in attendance but the tapes play better than my memory. The highlights include "Trenchtown," "Wolfman's>Hero," "Jim," and "Meat," but "Fee" stands out in particular for the weird little minimalist jam that closes it. I haven't heard every version "Fee," but I've never heard one anything like this performance.

This was my second show. Went with my buddy, Mike.

You dont have to say too much about this one. Epic Jim and only version of Trench Town.

Need I say more?

I was there about two deep off the rail...I went to college at Carnegie Mellon in Pittsburgh and I believe my entire heady-ass class was there; great time. Arguably the best Jim ever played and the Starlake lot scene back then was nutz! This is worth anyone's collection. LISTEN NOW!

Very nearly a "slice your nipple" medley in the first set.
Damn you Ginseng Sullivan!
Amazing show.