I'd previously listened to the 8/1/99 show without any strong reaction, but the recent remastered official release of this show makes for a pleasant listen, particularly the 2001 > Bowie combo. About ten minutes into the Bowie the boys take one of their patented left turns into a brief major-key jam, which gives way (too) quickly to a sprightly groove in the standard Bowie key - but the digression has opened up some possibilities, and the fellas perform a series of sidesteps and skip-hops and (aaaaaaah) key changes and - huh - even a brief dance-beat interlude reminiscent of the marvelous 2/26/03 Stash before bringing it all home.A 25-minute Bowie? Nice; but 'silent jam' notwithstanding, this is in most ways a 'Type I' performance, its side passages accenting or punctuating the (conventional) main jam rather than breaking new ground. You'll notice its length rather than its depth, I suspect.
The Simple jam is certainly memorable though: after doing weird things with his effects rig throughout the show, Trey just goes *off* with a crazed effects-laden solo statement during this standalone encore version. It's not particularly tasteful or cohesive, but there are other aesthetic virtues after all - sheer commitment and brazenness among them - and Ernesto Anastasio III possesses no shortage of those.
Score: 1
