From cdirksen@earthlink.net Sat Sep 12 23:35:41 1998 Date: Sat, 18 Jul 1998 07:38:55 GMT From: cdirksen@earthlink.net To: dan@netspace.org Newsgroups: rec.music.phish Subject: 12/9/97 Mike's Groove in PA 12/09/97 Bryce Jordan Center, State College, PA Don't have the time to review everything inbetween this Mike's and HydroWeekapaug (ChalkDust, MySoul, Stash). So just timings and reviews for the usual. Mike's Song starts the FIRST set of this show (nice to see this at Hampton and here, eh?! thrilled that they brought back the first set Mike's Groove!). Opening segment is standard, maybe a bit on the slow side. Tramps segment at 2:46. Crowd goes crazy at 3:15 (big roar), and I dunno why... maybe you can tell me? (publicly) Very funky jam segment, as you'd expect given the other Fall 1997 shows. Trey patiently chords (after setting off a digital delay loop), jamming along with Mike, Page and Fish, instead of soloing over them (as he used to do regularly do). At 5:05 or so, Trey does begin darkly soloing in the lower octaves of the 'doc.. slowly at first. He then leaps a couple octaves and solos more mellifluously, soulfully even... nice groove! At 8:30 or so, Trey stops soloing above the others and returns to That Typical 1997 Funky Groove you all know and love. At 9:15 they change key suddenly, and you'd swear that they might go into Cities at some point, but no. They just changed key to alter the character of the groove!! =^] Dead stop at 9:53. Then Trey funkily chords for a couple measures, then Mike, Page and Fish come back in (a Black Eyed Katy-esque jam segment, actually, at this point -- but it ain't BEK). I love this jam!! =^] Another dead stop at 10:50, more funky Trey chords.. and, you guessed it, the band comes back in together at 11:09 to continue this phaaaaaat groove. At 11:47 there's another dead stop.. then Page plays a bit by himself. And at 12:05, Trey rips into the Torture. Oh well. Rather lame ending to this Mike's Groove. No closing chords at all whatsoever. I enjoyed the jam segment A LOT, but given the ending, well. Not a very strong version by 1997 standards. Still have to give it a B/B+, given the history of grooves (to arrive at a rating, I compare the Mike's Song to all the versions I've heard, not simply to contemporary versions). The ratings are unreliable anyway. Hydrogen segues-> out of a fine Stash (a great '97 version, imo, with a spacey ending... not a typical ending at all.. but no jam approaching the majesty of even the normal lengthed 5/19/94). Weekapaug opens with a fast, fiery, snappy, slap-happy Mike solo for thirty seconds!! Trey's soloing after the opening segment is typical glorious, mellifluous weekapaugian Groove. Excellent accompaniment from Mike, Page and Fish... At 3:50 Trey starts throwing down some funky chords (the funk was THICK last Fall), and the jam lays down into what I've formerly called the "quiet jam" (for some stupid, uncreative reason) segment of 'groove. At around 5 minutes, I thought the jam might start seguing into "Can't You Hear Me Knockin'," but it doesn't do it. Trey begins somewhat melodiously soloing again (Fish, Mike and Page are just kicking out typically awesome accompaniment) and, at 6:12, climbs an octave or two and sustains a note up high abit, before dropping an octave or two down to repeat the process. At 6:50 Mike teases CYHMK again, and by 7:10 Mike, Page and Fish are into CYHMK but Trey isn't (he's darkly soloing.. no longer melodious). This doesn't sound too coherent, so they drop CYHMK and try to accompany Trey, who has left the stage and is WICKEDLY soloing (see 12/31/97's Weekapaug, actually).. come back.. Trey.. he does. The jam soon cools a bit.. and by 9:22 Trey starts the closing 'paug chords up. Total time: 10:25. This is a considerable length of time for a Weekapaug that wasn't really THAT great, in my opinion. It is a complete waste of time in light of the 12/2/97 'paug. Hard to complain about a set with Stash and Mike'sGroove and Loving Cup (not to mention Horn). But in the context of Fall 1997, and 1997 in general, this set doesn't hold water to many others from last year, in my opinion (although the Mike's Song and Stash are worth hearing once or twice, imo). two cents charlie -- "All the obvious. Miles Davis and Bill Evans." -- Steve Kimock, on his jazz influences.