Thanks everyone for the comments! Just wanted to chime in on a few:

1. @bertoletdown: Yes, in the 7/8/12 Twist, Page teases In-a-godda-da-vida pretty obviously several times (he quotes it) and Trey toys around with it (teases it) as well. But I also hear "overtones" of Oye Como Va in the jam, largely driven by Fish and Trey. Not quite enough for a musical quote, but overtones.

2. @Jacculus: With respect to your question ("My one question for all Phish historians/aficionados is this: When, if ever, will we begin truly appreciating the band's "3.0" style of staccato/plinko style jamming in relation to other era's lauded styles i.e. the fast paced jazz of the early 90's, the psychedelic rock of the mid 90's, the funk of '97-'98, and the ambient jams of the late 90's??" , it inspired me to do some research of my old "reviews" in order to back up what I'm about to say.

I appreciate the staccato/plinko jamming style (I just dislike the term "plinko" . I think it's particularly wonderful in the 12/30/10 Tweezer and 8/6/10 Cities (which is among my favorite improvisations in Phish history, even though it's short). So I don't know if your comment is directed at me or not. I "truly" appreciate it. Period. That said, in my opinion, it is not really a "3.0 style." Yes, it has made a number of appearances in the modern era to be sure, but not so much in 2009 (right?), but more importantly, Trey's employment of a staccato-like style in his solos goes back quite a ways. For example, check out the following:

(a) 4/21/92 Hydrogen (listen at 2:25, even though it ain't pretty);

(b) 11/4/90 YEM (staccato-esque noodling in the early part of the jam);

(c) 4/23/93 Weekapaug (Trey's playing is similar in part to the "plinko" style, especially around 6:40 into it);

(d) 8/7/93 Mike's Song (listen to Trey around 10 mins into it, during the so-called "Irish Diddy" section);

(e) 12/1/95 Mike's (beginning at 10:20 or so, and then for several mins);

(f) 7/9/99 Mike's (listen to Trey during the tramps segment(!));

(g) 7/25/98 Tweezer (listen to Trey, briefly, around 10:45, for some Manteca-esque "plinko" playing);

(h) 11/14/95 Stash (Trey's playing in a staccato-like manner in the composed section and in the first mins of the jam segment);

(i) 7/15/99 YEM (listen to Trey around 12-14 mins in);

(j) 7/23/97 YEM (Trey around 12:30-13:30);

(k) 11/28/97 YEM (Listen to Page after 20 mins..).

Anyway there are some examples. I just don't think it's really correct to refer to the so-called "plinko-style" as a "truly" "3.0" phenomenon. Just my two cents of course.

3. @mellifluouslife: Thanks so much for the wonderful comment, and for quoting Greenhaus -- he's a great writer, not just about Phish, of course!

4. @Andrewrose: Yes, I agree. I prefer the Dick's "Tweezer" and Gorge "RnRoll" from last year to any of this year's greatest hits. But my excitement for Leg Two hasn't waned one bit.

5. @jpetsis: Thank you, but your comment has left me stunned. The 7/21/97 "Piper" is four minutes and fifty-one seconds or so, and does not jam. At all. There's even a flub or two. If we put that in the "Piper" jam chart, we'd have to put every version in, which kinda misses the point of having the chart in the first place (although, admittedly, for some tunes, we have every single version listed in the chart, because there just haven't been that many of them). In any event I am perplexed by your request. But thank you for perplexing me, since it isn't every day that I become perplexed.

6. I am relistening to 12/30/10's "Tweezer" as I type this and I LOVE IT SO MUCH!!! I cannot believe how blessed we are that Phish came back and is still playing. (And I'm also so thankful I got to catch this 12/30/10 "Tweezer" *LIVE*!)

Two more cents,
charlie