This week at Phish.Net, we're going to be counting down the twenty best shows of 1997, as decided by members of the Phish.Net team. Start here if you missed yesterday's post announcing the project, the methodology, and a few shows that didn't quite make the cut. Now, without further ado, Shows 20-16 after the jump... [SP]

Previously: Honorable Mentions

20. 8/16/97 Loring Commerce Centre, Limestone, ME (Brian Levine)

This was that show for me. Sure, I’d been obsessed with this band since my first in Buffalo the preceding fall. Yes, I’d even endured 10 hours of solo bus riding to catch the two New Year’s shows in Boston. And hell, just to get here, we’d driven 16 hours in a Datsun with no stereo (all we had was a tiny boombox—de-emphasis on boom—tied down to the center console) to what might as well have been Newfoundland. But at the conclusion of night one of the Great Went, I finally understood the compulsion to attend as many damned Phish shows as the competing obligations of my life would allow.

From the conclusion of the Clifford Ball’s “Harpua” and the greatest (Type I, at least) “Limb by Limb,” to the jaw-dropping “Wolfman’s” -> “Simple” -> “Odd Couple” -> “My Soul” and “Halley’s” -> “Cities” -> “Llama” segue-a-thons, this show contains an embarrassment of riches. The next day features the best set of the weekend—perhaps of Phish’s career—but picking either show above the other is a far more difficult decision to make.

19. 11/29/97 Worcester Centrum Centre, Worcester, MA (Dan Mielcarz)

Normally one reviews a show in the order it was played, but for this show it would be burying the lede. It’s all about the “Runaway Jim.” I was in the room that night. Honestly, when the first riff of “Jim” started I was kind of disappointed. While it had jammed before (most recently at Shoreline on 7/31) it still was more likely than not to be a warm up tune, and I’m not typically looking for a warm-up song to open set II. Following the composed section, Trey activates a spacey delay loop while Mike switches up to a driving bass line. Mike is a true all-star in the first part of this jam. Trey plays some porno-funk licks over some inventive drum fills from Phish, while Page comps along on the clavinet. Each band member has a time where they lead the jam, which felt like a live version of the improvisation exercises that Trey would talk about in interviews. The jam flows through several distinct themes with very little downtime - this isn’t a noodly space jam at all. Describing the entire jam would exceed the space allotted to the 19th-ranked show, but on that night, fifty-eight minutes of extremely inventive improvisation later, with my brain in a puddle on the floor, I tried to comprehend what I had just seen (for an in-the-moment look at my thought process, check out my incredibly hyperbolic review of the show posted immediately following to rec.music.phish). It ends with a thrilling dip into a “Weekapaug Groove” jam followed by a short rocking outro. All of the jam might not appeal to all of the people all of the time, but the entire thing is a simply amazing achievement in the world of improvisational music. Please do yourself a favor and track down the soundboard recording released as part of Live Bait Vol. 3.

"Runaway Jim" -- 11/29/97 Worcester, MA

While the “Jim” towers over everything else they played that evening, the rest of the show is still pretty great. One of the best “Foams” ever, a rare “TMWSIY” > “Avenu Malkenu” > “TMWSIY”, and a very solid “David Bowie” made the first set an very enjoyable affair. As for the second set, playing “Strange Design” after the insanity that was the “Jim” was pretty much the best placement of that song ever. “Harry Hood” was magical, and “Suzy Greenberg” made her first appearance since March. Topping off the show was one of the best encores of 1997, with the fifth-ever “Buffalo Bill,” an amazing “Moby Dick” and a fiery (ahem) “Fire.” The point of this exercise was to rank the best shows of 1997. With a jam as towering as the historic “Runaway Jim,” and the rest of the tunes easily at or above replacement level, this show justifiably squeaks into the top 20.

18. 7/1/97 Paradiso, Amsterdam, Netherlands (Phillip Zerbo)

There is a lot to love about Phish’s performance on 7/1/97, the first of two nights at Amsterdam’s famed Paradiso; there are also challenges. Take the 22-minute plus show-opening “Ghost.” This “Ghost” sets the tone for the whole show, which is among the most mellow in the band’s history. This version is a top-10 “Ghost” for 1997, but probably toward back end of that tally – not a lot really happens here, especially compared to the myriad explosions this song would witness in the years to come. Glass half-full, this is “low gear Phish,” another flavor of top-shelf improvisation, just a different flavor; glass half-empty, this “Ghost” languishes in a cloud of directionless haze. This laid-back approach certainly has its benefits, chief among them in the first set is one of the best early versions of “Limb By Limb,” where the pace really allows the jam to flower. But it is also an approach with pitfalls – the 17-minute “Reba” is just this side of a train wreck in the composed section, before a meandering jam that eventually pulls it together for a delightful peak.

The when-in-Rome stoner vibe continues in the second set, with Fish offering... a keyboard jam to open? A unique kickoff to be sure, which is oddly reminiscent of Supertramp. The meat of this show is, of course, the “Bathtub Gin” -> “Cities” that occupies the 40-minute heart of the second set. The “Gin” is fantastic in itself, but where the mellow approach really pays off is in the tantalizing patience of the segue into “Cities.” Turning the frenzied excitement of Talking Heads’ original on its head, this beautiful jam is locked in virtual slow-motion. The jam almost comes to a complete stop at one point – leading some obscure setlist archives to bizarrely label it “Cities” > “Jam” – before resuming on a delightfully aimless path through time and space. The “riding the worm” theme that had woven in and out of the show appears again here, giving the “Cities” jam another distinctive flavor, an icing on the hash-infused cake. This segment is minimalist in structure but is the conduit for a flow of ideas that is highly active and engaging. “Loving Cup” seems a bit misplaced, but the “Slave” is best-of-breed for ‘97 and taps into the night’s pace to brilliant effect.

This show is perfect listening for the appropriate moment and mood, and thankfully it is now available as part of the fantastic Amsterdam box set. This is a tough show to judge – it did not make the top 20 of several ballots – but the composite rating is very fair when you consider the powerhouse lineup of shows that was to come. Read on...

17. 7/10/97 Espace Julien, Marseilles, France (Steve Paolini)

Shows like 7/10/97 normally aren't my favorites. Others call a show "fun" and I'm inevitably the grumpy old man calling it "gimmicky" and asking where the nearest 20-minute "Tweezer" is. But 7/10 is more than just a "fun" show. It's original. I really can't think of another show quite like it in 1997 or any other year really. The first set contains three proto-cowfunk jams (calf-funk?) out of "Bathtub Gin," "Llama," (!) and "Wading" (!!!). The "Wading" actually gives birth to a out-of-nowhere "Lizards" jam, in a different key, no less. It all comes together to form a coherent 50-minute suite of music that we rarely get in a second set, let alone a first.

Photo courtesy of Expressobeans.com

As for the second set, there's admittedly not a single jam you would hang your hat on as among the year's best, but the set is dripping with extra Grey Poupon. At the same time, it maintains a casual atmosphere that, at times, almost fools you into thinking you're listening to a soundcheck. The set opening "2001" is appropriately funky and the "Julius," "Magilla," and "Ya Mar" are all incredibly loose, in a good way. There may not be any meaningful type-II improv here, but these sure as hell aren't typical versions of these songs either. The set closes with an underrated version of "Ghost" that morphs into the second (and, to date, last) version "Take Me to the River." Add it all up, and there's more than enough here to compare favorably with the second tier of 1997 shows. If you can still have fun, that is.

16. 11/28/97 Worcester Centrum Centre, Worcester, MA (Eric Wyman)

While the 1997 run of shows in Worcester at THE Centrum are most remembered for their lengthy explorations in the 59 minute “Runaway Jim” from 11/29 and the 30 minute “Wolfman’s Brother” from 11/30, it is the more even experience from the first night that rises as the best show of that weekend. While it lacks a jam of historical significance with regard to length, what it does have is a continuous offering of solid music. Highlighted by a first set “You Enjoy Myself” and not just a “cool, first set YEM” version, but one that is truly one of the best versions ever. Of course everyone knows about the funk-infusion that built over 1997, but this show is so deliberate in its inclusion. Beginning after the tramps segment in YEM, through (the still new) “Black Eyed Katy” and into the second set “Ghost” this show never feels gimmicky with the funk-ladened vibe. The show has a perfect mix of energy levels and the “Ghost” > “Johnny B. Goode” nearly lifts the roof off the venue. The legendary jams from the ensuing nights have a rightful place in the band’s lore, but one-off jams do not make great shows all the time and this is true for the Worcester run in Fall of 1997.

Coming Tomorrow: Shows 15-11

Read more...