"That was when Phish became a good band, right before the Bangor Tweezer." - Trey, Relix 11/16/2020 Fall '94. The difference in the band since Summer was palpable. We were fresh off of the classic 11/23 show, having been blown away by the whole experience, and rolling into Minnesota a day early. We skipped Chicago. Maybe a mistake, but a high school buddy was playing running back for little St. John's University outside Minneapolis and let us crash at his pad on some lake. I remember evergreens laden with snow and drunk Catholic girls and not much else. The day of the show was [i]frigid[/i]. Cold in Colorado ain't like cold in Minnesota. And the wind was blowing. And it was snowing, light at first, then picking up near show time. No lot scene due to weather and limited parking, so we went inside as soon as we could and gawked at the place. Not as much eye candy as the Fox in St. Louis, but more elegant somehow. Dylan had owned the place until '88 when he sold it to the city. 10 million in renovations later, and it was damned impressive, especially the giant chandelier. Seeing Phish west of the Mississippi but not in Colorado was a different sort of experience pre-'96. It was always the first Phish show for large swathes of the crowd, and this night was no different. We brought a friend to his first show, and every damn person surrounding us were n00bs, so we got to play like jaded vets and answer questions about the band. Fungus fully kicked in right as the lights went down, maybe the best I've ever timed that, making first set an extended psychedelic roar. The opening MFMF > Possum was twisted enough to lead to some uncertain looks among the n00bs. Better buckle up, kids. Trey blew a verse in Guyute, but it was new enough no one cared, and the fugue-ish section raged. Foam's dynamics always work best in small theaters, and the sound in this one was spectacular. The quiet parts were [i]really[/i] quiet, but still crystal clear. The last four songs of the first set are...not my my cup of tea, but they were playing so well I didn't give a damn. If I have a fave Poor Heart, this is it. Setbreak came and went in a haze. I remember little but staring at the deep blue lights Kuroda had bathing the stage. Second set, magic set. Best set of Phish I ever witnessed. I had literally one tape with Halley's on it at that point, and had nearly worn it out in a mere couple months. So when Mike launched into the opening vocal line, I started jumping up and down like mad, startling the n00bs. From that moment, it was on, like Donkey Kong. How to describe the following Bowie? I've started to write posts on just it, but words always fail. It is ineffable, at least when considered in the primacy of felt experience. It defies descriptions of type I or II; it's somehow both at once. Here's this 37 minute kaiju of a jam, experimental to all hell, yet by the last five minutes every n00b around us--hell, the entire theatre--was standing up, spines channeling electricity, arms raised in triumph. Art, [i]true[/i] art, always f***ing wins. The rest of the set is roller coaster Phish at its best. It is in every sense dramatic, cinematic. The range of emotions covered in this set is extreme, and the closing Slave (the ALO version) remains the best I've seen. The Rocky Top encore had the damn security guards dancing in the aisles, and I remember spilling out of that place into the zero degree air laughing and shouting, full of f***ing life like some character at the end of a Hallmark movie. I'm likely known around here as a 3.0 apologist, but that's a feeling nothing other than 1.0 has ever given me, that feeling of being so damn alive and in touch with the world at that moment. God f***ing damn, I'm getting chills merely recalling it. The next day, of course, we nearly died driving through the Blizzard to Bozeman, but that story can wait.

Just a thought, Bowie starts with (Page?) saying it's just passed the stroke of midnight and is now Trey's birthday...so this show didn't start until 11:15???? Not to sound like anybody's grandma or anything but that's just weird to me, that's like a Jazzfest late night set. Anyway, carry on, good Bowie.

Loved the whole show and this whole series. I have a question for the set list...how is this full TAB debut? Trey has LML played since 2006. Love how Trey is going after the songbook. Nothing off limits. Makes TAB shows exciting not knowing what he will play. Tonight was amazing. The GOTF show was awesome. This whole run....its sort of groundbreaking in the time of covid. Next week will be special. And his banter is gold.

Brilliant! Sweeter. More heartfelt. horns. Cressman shows her passion for her presence on that stage. Nothing less than perfection. As Trey divulges his purest reason for being on that stage, life is worth it! Blessings to those who have sacrificed to bee there fir us upon that stage. Congratulations Grandfather Cyro! Happiest of birthdays! SCIENCE!!!!!!!!!!!!

Only here to comment on the Reba. I've listened to this Reba so many mf times it's practically imprinted in my brain. Mind-blowing stuff. Turn it up loud enough and you'll shed tears (I have). I've listened to most of the "best" Rebas and I'm pretty sure this is the best one. The groove! The melodicism! The tightness! That ending! Might need to go listen again after writing this review... better get my kleenex ready

In the download I just listened to (from phishows.com), the opening track labeled TV Theme is actually the McGrupp jam from the end of the show, and the last track labeled McGrupp seems to be the mysterious and incredibly compelling "TV Theme" (which sounds something like a Zappa tune? although Trey says they just wrote it). It's mind-blowing to hear them playing so tight already in this early tape. This is absolutely must hear stuff. (Even though the recording sounds speeded up for most of the tracks and Trey sounds like he's on Helium.)

If anyone is interested, there's a great hour+ long interview with Trey recorded the morning of this show. Can be found here: [url]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fv9t9XGqWDI&ab_channel=JohnCaudy[/url] This is a very fun show -- great early Phish, phenomenal Bowie... Really fun to hear where Trey's head was at the morning of a mid-week early-90's Phish show.

This one of my personal favorites. Was still in high school and drove from Washington down to Richmond with tour pals in a combo van (yes indeed, the perfect vehicle for tour). The venue was tucked behind an industrial park, that seemed to be an endless field of mud and maybe even a racetrack. The Amp itself was a rather makeshift space with a roof that looked like a tin can. Of course, we were late and walked in during Rift. I remember my friend alerting me at intermission that I had missed Gumbo - I lost my shit (a rarity at the time). Second set is just relentless and features he best fan guest appearance on Harpua and top shelf versions of YEM and Antelope. There had been a massive thunderstorm which made the atmospherics of the Harpua all the more compelling.

Still maybe the best NY run, with the stage design and 1993-era precision of the tension/release style. This show gets overshadowed by the monster 12/30 and 12/31 gigs but don't sleep on the SOAMelt with Kashmir and the YaMar with Auld Lang Syne. The onlu time I can recall the set design influencing the vocal jam - see YEM. Phestive Phish.

This gig was initially not in the published DS yet the date had a note that said: "A performance will happen on this day" With no DC area shows announced, we were hopeful (I was a freshman in HS!) but none of us had predicted the Patriot Center, a 10K-seat college basketball arena, which was large for this tour. The show was probably 2/3 full but we scored 4th row center and got to watch Trey rock out, injured ankle and all. Loving Cup and Reba remain standout versions to this day 6 months later the band would return and set at the time, the concert attendance record.

So here we are. The last show of 1.0 Phish. If there was any time for a blowout show, this was it. Looking at the setlist, it certainly looks good on paper. Almost like they were “playing the hits,” but at the same time fairly typical for 2000. First Tube opens up the show in standard rocking fashion. By this point they could play this song in their sleep. The peak flows with such ease one might forget the gravitas of the moment. A classic Mike’s Groove is an obvious choice for the last show. Mike’s Song starts off weirdly subdued but eventually works its way to a fine peak. Nothing special for this last versions of a storied song. Perhaps it’s appropriate. Hydrogen is played well and leads us into the final Weekapaug. Mike’s solo is kinda flat; not much energy to it. The rest of the song follows suit. Not bad, per se, but not great. Fee is great choice for a throwback song. The first track off their first album deserves a place at the last show. While it’s no Jones Beach, this one is played well. Gin gives the first real jam of the night. This one is right in line with the rocking upbeat Gins of 2000 and is overall quite nice. Glide, another oldie, is a great send off for the fans. “We’re glad, glad, glad that you’re alive.” Of course compared to Phish’s other “last show” this version is played without any real flubs. My Soul closes the 2nd to last set of Phish. A solid set for sure, but not adventurous in the slightest. The energy is kind of sad and tired. That said, it’s still a fun set with no complaints from me. Set 2 begins with a pretty great 3 song sequence. Twist is fairly average but it has some good guitar work from Trey. The spacey outro then slowly morphs into 2001 as Fish starts up the beat. This 2001 has heavy danceability. One last funky dance party is what we all needed. Trey and Mike really drive the rhythm home here. Tweezer descends from the clouds of 2001. As the final version for Uncle Ebenezer, it’s pretty good with Trey developing a cool theme and the rest of the band supporting. The one ballad for the night is Trey’s favorite Wading in the Velvet Sea. It’s heartfelt and touching. Meatstick, the patron saint of ’99, gets one last performance. It’s joyous and silly, just as it should be. Bowie comes in a bit shaky in the composed section, but they make up for it with a “standard good” jam. Tweeprise closes the last set of Phish in great, high-energy, fashion. As the final encore, YEM is an obvious choice. It’s as funky and dancey as ever and the vocal jam has a nice finality to it. And there it is. The last show. Surprisingly, not a word from the band was spoken. Not even a “thank you” after YEM. I suppose they felt there was nothing to say. They’ll be back one day, why say goodbye?

This show isn't a big jam show. This show was essentially a 2016 version of a 1991 show. Just super high energy Phish and they're all just having a fantastic time playing. Not every show has to be bookmarked by a massive jam to be good. If that's all you like them for, then go back and listen to shows where they did that. I'll take a fun, high energy show any day. It really just goes to show the versatility that the band has. Especially in the song selection on this night. I'd highly recommend this show to anyone who loves the band.

This soundcheck is one of my all-time great memories of the band. I can actually say I attended. Back in 2009, I had lost my job, like a lot of people, and I didn't have the bread to get a Festival 8 ticket. But as an LA resident, I wasn't about to miss it. I signed up for the volunteer shifts, which meant coming in a couple of days early and working for something like 20 hours total. We checked in at the store and we all got one of the nice metal Festival 8 water bottles, which I immediately lost. I walked right back in the back of the store tent from the back, where no one was guarding the exit, and I grabbed another one. Then I did like 8 hours of mostly lifting cases of water bottles onto or off of a little golf cart trailer, and just getting water everywhere it needed to be. It was back-breaking work, and Indio in late October is still hot, easily in the 90s. After a full day of it, the foreman picked out me and maybe four other hefty dudes. We all were pretty sturdy. He didn't tell us where we were going, but we got on a truck loaded with palm trees in pots. They drove us right into the venue during the opening jam of what is called set 2 here. Only one of the other volunteers and myself was actually really pumped we were getting in. The other dudes were tired, I guess. We loaded out a truckload of palm trees all over the venue while the band played. The palm trees went to the corners of the sound booth and at all the light and speaker stations among the crowd, as decoration. It was pretty fantastic. I was dancing on the moving flat-bed truck from one side of the venue to the other during Undermind. I remember that very well. Empty lawn. Just the band and us techies. We finished up with the palms, and the guy didn't take us away right away, so we got to see the soundcheck to the end. None of us had the stones to go right up to the front. We kept a respectful distance off to the side, but there was nobody between us and the band. I didn't recognize Starship Trooper, but people were very excited. I knew it was a possible Halloween clue. Later this night, you could still get into the outer area of the venue, and on that giant screen they were playing clips of horror movies interspersed with clips of Phish shows. They played a good chunk of the 1998 Halloween set, and I said, hey, this exists! When are they releasing this video?! They still have not. Nor have they released the 3-D blu-ray of Festival 8, even though there was a movie released in theaters. Why can't I buy that 3-D blue-ray of the movie you aired in theaters, Phish.com? I digress. The next morning I showed up to the store for my last shift, in costume, which was as a cop. Yup, it was the scariest thing I could think of at a Phish show. I was a pretty believable cop, actually. I think I went too far. I got my hair cut short to the neck, which really sold it. I showed up for my shift and they put me in the back of the shop to just stand there all day and discourage the hippies from stealing those nice Festival 8 water bottles. You show up as a cop, they make you a cop. Don't do it.

Show 3 of the final run. The penultimate Phish show of 1.0. Clearly an epic event of mythic proportions right? Carini starts us off right. Nothing too special but it’s a good energetic opener. Stash up next and while it stays in the box, it is well played with some great moments from Mike. Boogie On continues the spirited playing but not much exploration. Mellow Mood cools us down with a damn near perfect placement halfway through the set. Maze is another good version with good playing from all members. Moma doesn’t reach the heights it had earlier in the year but it is solid. Antelope closes the set with its standard ferocity. Nothing special but a solid set nonetheless. A brisk Heavy Things opens the 2nd set in typical “calm before the storm” fashion. Down with Disease bursts out of the gates with a rocking jam that then quickly recedes into contemplative playing. As quickly as the quiet section arrives, Trey ratchets the jam back up to speed presumably to bring back the Disease refrain. But they take an unexpected left turn into to rhythmic territory which slowly morphs into… Spock’s Brain! Super cool segue. TIJW is a fine cool down song but I don’t like the placement here. An uncommon 2nd set Rift gets the momentum back up and sets the stage for another big jam. Cities immediately feels like it’s going big with quick textural work from Trey… but instead it fizzles out. Sand once again is the choice for the big jam of the show. At this point in the tour, I’m sick of Sand. Trey goes over to his keyboard and makes soundscapey noises per usual but instead of building for 10 minutes he instead switches back to his guitar and leads into a rocking jam. It’s surprising to hear Sand played this way after so many versions of the same thing. Golgi is played great for its final 1.0 performance. Brian and Robert is a bad call here right before the end of the set. Very awkward placement despite how much I like this song. Bold as Love closes an alright set. Disease -> Spock’s Brain and Sand are the highlights of this 3rd-to-last set of Phish. Encores generally aren’t much to talk about but if Bob Weir joins you it’s definitely worth noting. I’m not into the Dead much but from what I can tell these are well played versions and Bob mixes well with the band although he’s a bit too low in the mix. Well, all in all this one isn’t the epic 2nd-to-last Phish show it might’ve deserved to be, but there are some highlights in the Stash, Disease -> Spock’s and the Sand and of course the encore. It’s nice to see Bob play with Phish, especially this close to the end.

This may be the first truly great Phish show I've encountered since starting from the beginning of their recorded history. This is in part due to the quality and relative completeness of the recording However, this nice recording also reveals a band that is finally mastering its craft. There is a tightness in the playing throughout, the trademark sense of humor matched with sincere energy and musicianship, and then there is just the novelty of hearing a lot of these classic Phish tunes & covers in their first incarnations. I am going to list my highlights, but please don't let this make you think you can safely skip any parts of this show. I could honestly rave about almost every part of this show, it smokes from start to finish: 1) [u]Skin It Back[/u]: The first known version of this cover slays. The whole band is really locked in and tight during the jam, keeping the energy high throughout. Trey really soars on top of Fishman's propulsive beat. Great early Phish jam which segues cleanly into… 2) [u]Cities[/u]: Slick pairing with Skin it Back, a back-to-back funky little one-two punch for ya. There isn't a jam, but the execution is thrilling [b]3) [u]McGrupp[/u]:[/b] This early version of McGrupp has a mesmerizing sense of growing dread due to an atypical, hypnotic melody Trey is playing over Page's beautiful chords. The tension builds with spine tingling fervor until it explodes on the "He looks too much like Dave" line. The jam afterwards is definitely driven by Page, with a more typical McGrupp feel. [b]4) [u]Lushington[/u]:[/b] If you haven't heard Lushington, do yourself a favor. Listen now, this rendition is great. You'll no doubt recognize segments that would later be fully incorporated into Fluffhead, but Lushington has its own character and is a great tune. Still hoping for that bust out in 2021! 5) [u]Sneakin' Sally[/u]: Worth the listen for the exuberant, early 80's energy that they bring to this funky cover tune. Nice vocal jam taboot. [b]6) [u]Quinn->Mike's[/u]:[/b] The Quinn part of this pairing is fun and gets stretched out a bit, but its really the Mike's you want to hear. It's like they built up and stored the energy from Quinn's, segued subtly into Mike's Song, and then as soon as the jam on Mike's Song starts they just unleash. Trey's playing is insane, and he and Fishman display some great syncopation, especially towards the very end of the jam. Do not skip. [b]7) [u]Harry Hood[/u]:[/b] Heroic peak in this one. Perhaps one of the best Hoods to date. Trey changes his tone as he moves back into the end of the song, giving a nice effect leaving his virtuosic soloing [b]8) [u]Run Like A Cantaloupe[/u]:[/b] Cantaloupe shenanigans aside (highly amusing), Trey gets cosmic on this one! His tone is like a celestial siren, laying prophecy amongst the chaos of Mike/Fish/Page's meteoric collisions. Amazing peak and best antelope (well, cantaloupe) up to this point! This or the Mike's Song may be my favorite jams of the show. 9) [u]Clod[/u]: Sure, its just a segment of Fluffhead, but its slowed down and the vibe is completely different outside of Fluffhead. A little more chill, a little jazzier, and whole lot more drama. Great end to this stellar show!

Decent show with some first time performances for songs that are iconic in Phish's current repertoire. Nothing too stand-out, but there are some minor highlights: 1) [u]Slave to the Traffic Light[/u]: Just a well executed, early era Slave without any of the extended build-up or crazy peaks 2) [u]Wilson[/u]: As noted by another, the vocals evoke Dylan and its kinda hilarious. There is a brief, smooth, jazzy jam in the middle of the song. 3) [u]Halley's Comet[/u]: Although Mike's questionable falsetto may induce cringes, there is a nice little jam on the end that builds up really well into a Possum segue 4) [u]Possum[/u]: Some slick guitar work by Big Red in the middle of this one

Can't say I'm a huge fan of this show/recording... not really sure why, many of the songs are performed fairly well. It's just lacking a lot of the magic for me. However, there are some highlights: 1) [u]AC/DC Bag[/u]: This jam has a little bit of fat on the end! Unfortunately, the cool intro from the previous version (04/01/86) isn't here, but they give this one an extended Type I treatment which has some momentum before fizzling into Dear Mrs. Reagan 2) [u]You Enjoy Myself[/u]: The first YEM to really stick the Boy/Man/God/Shit transition. Trey has some pretty ferocious playing the during the jam (ferocious for this era).

I sing this show's praises so often that I decided to just chime in with my $.02 about how good it is. IMO, this is a perfectly-executed Phish show, if not necessarily the most exploratory or experimental. Doesn't matter - everything here is, for the most part, perfectly executed. Psychic link on 100. Not a dry undergarment in the house. I left with my jaw on the ground in utter amazement at how hard Phish crushed the Garden this night. EASY 5 stars. Listen immediately and accept no substitutes.

My first show. I was 51 years old. My oldest son brought me. I was late, and missed the only two Phish songs I knew (Runaway Jim and Bouncing), but when YEM came on, and the crowd began to dance en masse, the atmosphere was filled with love and music, and I was done. Hooked. 75 now. 70 shows later. The rest of the show is a blur; I was unfamiliar with the music but loved it, and I'll never forget Buddy Miles' performance (I dabble on drums), and was won over by the way the group featured their guest. Thank you Phish for the continuing music, old and new. For a guy who started on Elvis and Dylan, and then of course doo wop, r&b, the Beatles, and on and on, Phish managed to surpass all and become my favorite band.

My very first Phish show. It's a nice little hall, this place. I also saw Beck play there around this time, which was a great show. My general memory is just that this band was so fast. I was used to dancing through long slow sections at Grateful Dead shows, and this was just go, go, go. It wore out my little 23-year-old self. And I loved it. So much energy. I also remember that this is one of those places where they put a temporary floor down over the seats, so it bowed in a bit under the crowd. There were certain sections when everyone was pogo-ing, and the floor was really bouncy. In my memory, that happened during Bouncing Around the Room, but it looks like they didn't play that, so it must have been somewhere else. Probably Maze. Why Don't We Do It in the Road was really funny, as I recall. And I clearly remember the CDT Reprise (first ever!), when Trey thanked 1,000 people by name. The Simple is great, but it probably only made it on the album because it's short and sweet and stands alone. Also, I have no memory at all of DMB opening. I didn't realize it, but this was the last show of the era of the super-tour. Maybe it should be called Phish 0.5.

This show is decent, with some phenomenal highlights, but there are also some lulls in it as well. A couple of notes before I get to my highlights. The first recording of Icculus is short and rather uneventful, none of the drawn out shenanigans we will one day anticipate. For YEM, they still haven't quite ironed out the "Boy Man God Shit" transition but the main composition is fairly solid and very funky. Finally, I wouldn't say that McGrupp is recited Dylan-esque (I was expecting weird singing with that comparison). Instead, it's more like a recitation, with poetic meter (which I guess you could say is Dylan-esque... but that's not what comes to mind when I hear that phrase!). Highlights: 1) [u]Have Mercy[/u]: First known performance of this beloved cover, it has the absolutely gorgeous ethereal middle section, thanks to some reverb effects from Trey. Very cool! [b]2) [u]Harry Hood[/u]:[/b] My god, this Hood peaks pretty hard. Perhaps the first great Hood I've encountered as I'm going through Phish's recorded history chronologically. Check this one out. [b]3) [u]Help on the Way> Slipknot![/u]:[/b] In particular, the Slipknot! jam gets pretty wild, with essence of some of the ragier Antelopes that would emerge in '92/'93. The chaotic rage dissolves into some absolutely weird spacey jam with lots of synth-effects from Page and then later some echoing bass from Mike. Eventually the jam seamlessly segues into... 4) [u]AC/DC Bag[/u]: ...Such a cool little intro fpr AC/DC Bag! Very slick! The first recorded version of Bag is a banger from day 1. Great tune from the outset. 5) [u]Dear Mrs. Reagan[/u]: First recorded performance of this song... meh, it's OK. Check it out if you've never heard this tune.

I had A LOT of fun at this show, probably too much. But no one seemed to mind as they were all in the same headspace. Yes, everyone was doing their part to get weird. Right after first tube, the curtain dropped over the stage. I distinctly remember my bud getting into a yelling argument about whether the band was real or not. It was such a treat to be able to listen to phish play music without judging because there truly was no reference point. It was completely new to everyone. Surprised to hear tweezer on the first night. Third set ran out of steam. Can’t blame them. One of my favorite nights ever.

Well I guess I'll join the chorus on this one. It's not too great of a show and the recording is rough, which doesn't help. Also, I'll note that the slide guitar on Antelope is kind of grating to my ears. It is not without its highlights however!: 1) [u]Mike's Song[/u]: The jam here has some great Type I soloing from Trey. Shreddage! 2) [u]You Enjoy Myself[/u]: This YEM isn't actually too remarkable except that it is the first known recorded performance. The arrangement isn't complete yet (including a lack of the "Boy, Man, God, Shit" lyrics!). I also do not hear any violin on the recording... Oh well, check it out for historical purposes!

The recording for this show is incomplete, providing snippets of only the four songs in the second set. The overall theme I would say is self-indulgent, yet confident stoner rock. It's definitely worth a listen, especially if you are looking to explore more of Phish's vast history (and if you are digging around these early 80's shows, I'm guessing you must be on your Phish vision quest). Highlights: [b]1) [u]Whipping Post Jam[/u]: [/b]Having no context for the "Whipping Post" part of this jam due to the incomplete recording, the music starts in a pretty weird and murky place. Lots of self-indulgent jamming occurs before it takes some form at ~11 min, which sort of reminds me of an Allman Brothers jam. The Norwegian wood tease around 17 min is fun and at about 19 min, a pretty great relaxed, yet triumphant mood emerges, with Trey and Fishman charging ahead deliberately. Things dissolve back into murkiness for a minute or two but then around ~24 min, more of this triumphant jamming emerges before finally settling into a reggae-esque beat, which builds into a funky little riff that they have fun with before the recording ends. It’s a beautiful mess full of lots of compelling moments, including several where the band confidently coallesces into some powerful crescendos which explode. It's hard to imagine this jam existing in any other period of the band's history, but for that reason alone I would say its absolutely worth the listen. It's revealing to hear Phish jamming in this formative stage; their later work and classic jams didn't just magically happen! These guys spent a lot of time cutting loose in these early shows, exploring without restraint, before they learned how to reel it in and produce a more focused product. 2) [u]Run Like An Antelope[/u]: The recording starts at the jam section of the song, but we get to hear the entire band build some really intense energy! Trey is raging hard, Mike's thick bass in the mix is amazing, and Fishman is going bezerk. Unfortunately, I don't really notice the keyboards too much in this mix, but its still a fun jam. 3) [u]Dave's Energy Guide[/u]: Quintessential stoner rock at its best. The DEG riff that I've heard teased in so many later Phish shows is fun, but the extended song gets particularly far-out and space-invaders-like. Dissonance delight!

This was my first show, and I walked to the bandshell from my dorm room, South Hall, which was about 30 yards from the field. I laid in the grass that evening and just lost myself. At the time the only songs I recognized were the covers, but that didn't matter. Everything about the experience washed over me that night. Even though I wasn't able to get to another show until they came back a year later, I started collecting tapes, CDs, whatever I could get, then saw a LOT of shows between 94 and the breakup. This was a truly formative experience for me. It's also the last time I can remember the crowd not yelling "HOOD" when Trey said "HARRY!" and I liked the song better that way.

Acoustic show! Unfortunately, the recording is incomplete but what is available is fun to hear. Highlights: 1) [u]Hurricane[/u]: Only time they played this song, maybe its no the most amazing cover but a good song is a good song and hearing Phish cover it acoustic is awesome 2) [u]Piggies[/u]: Another cool cover that stands out not only because of the acoustic treatment, but for how well it fits into the bouncy Makisupa sandwich. 3) [u]Makisupa Policeman (second half)[/u]: An acoustic jam emerges, that at the start sounds reminiscent of McGrupp, but then returns to the bouncy Makisupa theme.

Fun early show, good to hear the band honing its craft and the early arrangements of some of these songs are delightful to hear. Highlights: 1) [u]Harry Hood[/u]: The Mr. Minor jam is indeed a little different from the more familiar incarnations of Hood. Mike's bass is particularly nice and thumpy in the mix. The jam after the Mr. Minor section is sublime but too brief. None of the build up of more 'classic' Hood jams. 2) [b][u]Dog Log[/u]:[/b] I am an admitted sucker for this song, but this one has a little more oomph than most I've heard. The little jazzy jam in the middle freaking rocks! Nice execution and a wonderful ode to dog shit :) 3) [u]Possum[/u]: This version is bouncier and more honky tonk than the version we've come to know and love. It's a cool rendition and worth checking out. It kind of reminds me of the 2013-10-26 version they played when Kenwood Dennard replaced Fishman on drums. 4) [u]Sneaking Sally[/u]: Really funky early take oon this beloved cover tune, and as the show notes indicate, the vocal jam on this one is particularly electrifying. Great execution. 5)[b] [u]Alumni>Letter>Alumni[/u]:[/b] I love these slower takes on this tune. The funk just oozes out of every corener, and its played with infectious cocksureness. 6) [u]Prep School Hippie[/u]: My first time hearing this tune, its got a nice arrangement and catchy. Bust out potential aside, would love to dance to this tune at a show.

What will show 2 in the final run give us? Some surprisingly good segues and an atypical Zero? Chalk Dust opens the show with a fun little Walk This Way tease. Guyute is well played and is a fine choice for the 2nd song. Wolfman's gets into some cool funk rock and has a super slick turn-on-a-dime segue into Sneakin' Sally. Good stuff. But beyond that, the set doesn't have much else to offer. LxL through Possum is played very standard with nothing to distinguish from other versions of these songs on this tour alone. Drowned starts up the 2nd set and I'm immediately expecting another 9/14. Of course while it's not stretched out to those epic proportions, it does offer an interesting jam. It starts off with a standard type 1 jam but slowly begins to morph into something like a 2.0 jam. Fish and Trey are totally in sync. The tempo begins to pick up as the intensity increases and all I'm feeling is 2.0. The jam stays in a pretty solid groove for a few minutes before a surprising and well executed segue to NICU. This NICU is played well. Bowie up next gets a spacey intro without Fish’s regular drumbeat. The jam proper starts off standard fare but eventually works its way to a cool major mode section that rocks for a bit before returning home. Definitely worth a listen. Halley’s gets a short outro as Trey starts up the Walk Away riff for a ’00 segue favorite. I’m a little sour on this Piper. It’s really felling like they have run out of ideas for this in the same way as Sand. I guess it’s a well played jam but it’s territory I’ve heard time and time again on this tour already. Zero seems like it would be a standard set closer with Trey starting off a typical blistering solo (with a 2.0 sounding guitar tone). But Trey is dragging. Every few bars he pulls the tempo back a little more. He pulls it down to super slow sludginess and starts singing FEFY lyrics. It’s weird but not in a good way. WMGGW brings the show to a close. Stick around for the segues and Drowned through Bowie. The rest of the show had me bored.

I've been dreading this one. Not a single jam chart mention and the longest song on the list is Reba at just over 14 minutes. Damn, will there be anything interesting about this show? After listening though I do have some thoughts. I think this is it. This is the show when it hit them that they were about to be done for who knows how long. 17 years of near relentless touring and making albums was about to come to an end. Moma starts the show energetically enough but it's decidedly not one of the big '00 Momas. It's Ice comes in fairly well played with a spacey middle section and nothing else. Bouncing comes and goes as usual. Funky Bitch also another standard type 1 version with nary a flair. Then we come to Reba. In the midst of the jam I think is when they realize this is probably the last time they'll be playing song for God knows how long. The gradually becomes more and more intense but has a small bit of a foreboding energy to it. But the jam cuts off before the real peak comes. I could feel they were holding back something by the end. Dog Faced Boy serves as a quick pallet cleanser. Perhaps appropriately it's one of their few outright sad songs. Antelope starts up next to bring the set to a close and right from the start of the jam the mood has shifted. Fish lays down a beat with a sense of purpose that I haven’t heard from him yet this tour. Trey, Mike, and Page interweave a jam that is at once slightly ominous yet with some sunshine. The subtle note choices really drive it home for me. Rock & Roll opens the 2nd set without the foreboding of Antelope but also doesn’t have much going for it. They pull out early and start laying down ambient effects as an intro to 2001. The one has a few moments of interplay between Trey and Fish but for most part is fairly average. Seems like at this point they’re still searching for something to really grab on to. Why they chose Sample to play next is anyone’s guess. It’s very average. Will Gotta Jibboo be where the set really takes off? No. But it is a very well played version. Would probably be more recognized if this was played in the first set, but we’re in the 3rd quarter here with basically nothing to write home about. A cool buildup lick to end the jam doesn’t cut it here. Bug tells me they’ve given up on this set... and yet Trey really goes after it with this solo. Hard. There’s some real passion in his playing. Almost like an apology for the rest of the show. I’m serious they play the shit out of this Bug. Listen to it. After that, does Hood have anything to offer? Besides the standard good Hood always gives, Trey comes up with some very pretty fluttery lines and goes after the peak like it’s his job, heh heh. I really feel him going after this peak just like with Bug. Cavern brings the house down one last time. Loving Cup gives just a little bit more. Not a great show by any means. Not even a good show honestly. But I recommend the Antelope if you’re curious and surprisingly, the Bug too.

Normally I would skip over a one off TV appearance but this one strikes me as a bit strange. Aren't they going on a hiatus in literally 4 days? Why bother continuing to promote the new album? Fish appears with his tattered dress, Trey looks disinterested... apparently the band didn't sleep from Vegas to Shoreline. Not sleeping for 5 days doesn't exactly do wonders for your appearance. There is also the parallel between this Tonight Show guest spot and their Late Show guest spot in 2004 where once again the question is why bother?