[We would like to thank @VermontCowFunk a.k.a. Oliver Pierson for recapping last night’s show. -Ed.]

Summer Phish, no make that Summer Tour Opener, in New Hampshire? When’s the last time that happened? I was one of the many New Englanders who was thrilled to learn that Manchester was on the list for some live Phish in summer 2025, and immediately took to planning a Manchester Phish Adventure. At that stage of the summer tour planning process, I am always reminded of a quote from Jerry Garcia in a 1980 Relix Magazine Interview, in which he’s asked about whether following the Dead on tour is a healthy thing:

Jerry: Well, it’s obviously very important to them. And more than that, it’s giving them an adventure. They have stories to tell. Like, “Remember that time we had to go all the way to Colorado and we had to hitchhike the last 400 miles because the VW broke down in Kansas.” Or something like that. Y’know what I mean? That’s giving them a whole common group of experiences which they can talk about. For a lot of people, going to Grateful Dead concerts is like bumping into a bunch of old friends.

Read more...