The meat of this show is a wonderfully *contemplative* 46 > Tweezer > 2001 > LxL run, especially interesting since 'contemplative' isn't the first word you'd associate with those first three songs! 46 Days starts off snarling'n'spitting, but after a dark climax there's a delicious ambient bridge into Tweezer, which climbs for seven minutes and slides deliciously downward for four (recalling the epochal 2/28/03 Tweezer in the coda). We land in a brief low-key 2001, which sets up a delicate Limb by Limb, and the rest of the show is standard-fine. Definitely look up this second set - and for an eerie companion piece, track down the haunted 7/18 Twist.

oh yeah, back at the creek for 3 nights! as opposed to the last couple of rounds at the creek, this was a remarkably easy ticket. i grabbed pavillion seats for all 3 nights for the grand total of $55. then a buddy of mine kicked my, for face value of course, a front row ticket for this night. it was a great night to be less than 5 ft from trey.

cities: really nice, slick opener. it was a treat to hear this one, but they did not take this one very far at all before dipping into...

run away jim: this got the crowd rolling again. the boys sounded sharp on this one. they took this one a little further out than cities, but not too far still. good sharp version. after they wrapped up jim, the lower pavillion started a very nice "fluff head" chant. the boys mingled amongst themselves, and from our close position, we heard trey say....

meat: i like this tune, but almost anything but fluff head would have been a bummer. this was a nice little version of meat though.

water in the sky: nice up pace version. pretty sharp.

stash: here's the first jam of the night. they really took this one deep before trey and page came storming back up. this is probably my favorite stash from the '03-'04 era.

the old home place: being an indiana guy, i really like this tune at the creek. mike sounded good.

vultures: i have liked this tune from the get go, and this is one song i thought they were playing better than ever. they sounded really good on this took

boaf: this worked well following vultures. they had a nice 7-10 min jam that was very well textured, and it really got the crowd jumping. after bringing it back into the birds theme they dip down and find...

mike's groove: here's the 1st set surprise we were waiting for. the sun had just started to dip, and phish came out ripped a nice first set mike's. trey was in full rock star mode, and page was playing very well behind him. they dipped hydrogen in the middle before storming into weekapaugh. mike sounded really good and they tacked on a cool little start/stop jam on the end before calling it a set.

set 2:
suzy greenberg: this got the kids back to their seats. page sounded particularly sharp on this above average suzy.

taste: this might be my favorite taste that i've seen. trey and page were particularly nimble before trey took this one to the grandest of peaks.

46 days> i was stoked to be seeing this one for the first time. gordon was holding down the bottom so well while trey was shredding over top. after taking this one up to a quick peak, page and trey lead the way on a more "rocking ambient jam." this played its way into...

tweezer> yeah, the first deer creek tweezer... so many shows here, yet no tweezer! this one was pretty solid. they built a nice groove and road it out for a good 8-10 minutes. as this one simmered out it found its way into...

2001> page was all over this one. fishman and gordon were also particularly strong on this good, intense 2001. also of note, a guy wearing a full astronaut suit made his way to the front row. he was going nuts.

limb by limb: this was a nice fiery limb by limb. trey was very strong on this one. limb did its things before it slammed into...

good times bad times: this set was flowing remarkably. page nailed the plant vocals and trey laid down a fairly unique solo for this tune. good set

enc:
loving cup: i seem to constantly catch this song in the encore slot, and i have grown kind of sick of it. on the other hand, it worked really nice here, on this night. trey had been throwing out hot rock licks all night, so hell, why not play some stones.

tweezer reprise: end it rowdy!

overall:

this show does not have any "best ever" versions of songs, but both sets have remarkably good flow with good solid playing. even if you are not a fan of '03-'04 era phish, you will like this one. in fact, if you hate that era, i would say, at the least, you should own the deer creek '03 run. i found it to be the exception to the rule.

highlights:

1st set: stash, vultures, mike's>hydrogen>weekapaugh

2nd set: the whole damnd set!

(Published in the second edition of The Phish Companion...)

I'll admit it, I'm a Creek Phreak. Since I made my first trip out to the middle of the corn and soy fields of central Indiana in 1998, Phish at Deer Creek has always been "must see" shows for this dedicated Head. The easy six-hour drive from my house, as well as the plentiful camping that surrounds the venue, makes this tour stop one of the most exciting stops on any tour. It provides the festival atmosphere without providing the festival. To top it off, the last three Phish stands, as well as Trey's show with Medeski sitting in during the summer of 2001, have provided this intrepid show-goer with too many musical memories to count. When the boys announced a three night stand this year, I knew it was on.
I arrived with two cohorts to the sprawling onsite camping that was spread out in an empty field behind the entrance, somewhere around 4:30 p.m. I like the family-run campgrounds that are sprinkled throughout the area, and have had great experiences at a few of them, but this time, with economics a factor and a lot of shows still ahead of me, onsite was the logical choice. We set up camp, and my friends quickly went off in search of tickets for that night's show, which turned out to be quite a simple task. Extra tickets were everywhere, and few people had any luck getting rid of theirs for more than $20. Each of my friends picked up all three tickets for a combined fifty dollars, quite a steal.
We headed in and I left them on the lawn to check out my pavilion seat, which was located on the far left side of the venue. Before I could find my seat, I ran into Chris from Wisconsin, who I had befriended at the 2000 Phil n' Phish stand at the Creek, when we camped next to each other, along with our respective girlfriends. Three years later, the girlfriends were gone, along with our long hair, but we were back in the same place we had hung out three years earlier. The great thing about Phish shows is that this sort of randomness happens all the time.
After some chit chat, the band came out, and we were on our way. I was stoked for my first show of the summer, and I was hoping for a doozy. The opening chords of "Cities" rang out and I knew we were in for it. Tardy Heads could be seen sprinting through the concourse area, filling any empty area that remained in the pavilion and on the lawn. I thought this was a great opening choice, finding that as I head towards the sixty show mark, I appreciate unique song selection as much as on point musicianship. The tour's only "Cities" went over well, and Trey then raised the energy a notch with "Runaway Jim", a short and to the point version complete with Trey messing up lyrics, though the crowd seemed to care very little. The halting chords of "Meat" rang out next, much to the excitement of some around me. I appreciated the busting out of a song not seen since pre-Hiatus, and Mr. Mike Gordon was loud and funky, but this song doesn't do much for me.
The frenetic tempo and slick country sound of "Water in the Sky" picked up the pace a touch, but the venue exploded in its first real peak moment of the evening as the opening lick to "Stash" rang out. Clocking in close to fifteen minutes, this version provided an interesting jam section, and the boys began to stretch their legs for the first time. The jam had murky undertones as Trey tore along, with Mike providing interesting runs and Page alternating between a wash of organ sounds and the hammering rhythm of the grand piano. This all built to a peak before cooling back down into the song's trademark lick.
"My Old Home Place" followed and was a good cool down song for band and audience alike. "Vultures" followed, rung in with Page's descending piano intro, and took off. "Vultures" was once overlooked, but as the band plays it more and more, it has blossomed into a fan favorite. "Birds of a Feather" brought a huge reaction from the crowd and took off. The jam was fast paced and chugged along, audience in tow, for six or seven minutes before slowing and fading into some haunting guitar distortion. Trey reprised some of the song's chords before deciding on the opening riff to "Mike's Song" instead.
The crowd barely reacted the first time, many in the house missing the lick altogether. By the time Fishman's drums and Kuroda's lights kicked in, the kids were rocking,. Many predicted that we were due for this tune somewhere in the Deer Creek run, but few thought it would come this early. This version featured full-on rock star wailings from Trey, something that would develop into the theme for the evening. After the song's crushing climax, the band noodled for a second, seemingly unsure of where to go, before dropping into "I am Hydrogen". This song, to me, is like the eye of the storm. One of Trey's most beautiful guitar melodies sandwiched between two of Phish's most explosive roof shaking numbers. It's perfect.
Some around me complained that they've been playing "Hydrogen" in every "Mike's" this tour. I won't though, thinking back to when "Simple" was the standard segue fare and "Hydrogen" was semi-retired. Fishman's snare drum then abruptly snapped open "Weekapaug" and the band took off, led by Mike, whose thundering bass was loud and clear all night. At one point Cactus stepped up and ripped a series of the most riveting and bone crushing bass licks that kickstarted the jam towards its energy laden climax, leaving mouths agape.
I vacated the pavilion following the set, and headed to the concourse in search of friends and an ice cold drink to cool me down after the blazing set I had just witnessed. Setbreak flew by, at a mere twenty five minutes it was quite a departure from the never-ending setbreaks of tours past. I hustled up to the lawn as the opening of "Suzy Greenberg" rang in the start of the second set. Trey was a step behind on the lyrics, something I'd notice throughout the run, evidence of the long Hiatus and the tough task it must be to re-learn Tom Marshall's twisted catalogue of wordplay after two years off.
"Taste" was next, and I was super thrilled to hear it. I had often said during the Hiatus that one of the things I missed the most about Phish was Page's piano solo in "Taste". This one was a treat, but Trey quickly took over the jam and steered it like a madman hell bent on rock supremacy. After a brief pause, Trey led the band into "46 Days", the first Round Room song to appear that night. This song is a good one, but it just doesn't feel finished to me. With another verse or two, an a little more structure this could be a balls-out rocker. Instead, it is just used as a jumping off point, as there's nothing easier than jamming a song with no end to return to. When the jam lost its buoyancy and begin to drift along aimlessly, losing the attention of some, the lack of energy was immediately rectified by the intense trademark blare of the opening guitar line of "Tweezer". The band turned the intensity up a notch and the audience responded in kind as the resonance of Fishman's building drums made many wail in joyous response. The jam highlighted the funk chops of Mike and Page as the groove rode on the plunking rhythm of Gordon's bass, and was driven by Page's futuristic synthesizer licks. If anyone within earshot wasn't convinced we were being taken on a journey to outer space, they knew for sure when Fish kicked in the opening beat of "2001".
This one always delights, and the spacey dance beat was the perfect thing to grab the audience after the jam-a-thon that was the two preceding tunes. Once "2001" had run its course and its climax degenerated into feedback, the opening chords of "Limb By Limb" rang out, building to its furious apex riding on the interplay between guitar and piano, before giving way to Fishman's infectious drumbeat. Trey then turned up the distortion and crunched out the opening chords to "Good Times/Bad Times". This version featured an extended solo that lit out with lightening quick speed and never lost a beat. With this closer, Phish proved the audience that it had the arena rock credentials to match those of the song's original authors. The encore twosome of "Loving Cup" and "Tweezer Reprise" restated just that as the band used their one last shot to rock the audience, as opposed to sending them out on a slow note. As the audience filtered out into the temperate Indiana night, to party in the lot or crash in their tents, everyone agreed. Yes, it was a beautiful buzz. And we were only getting started.

The tour now has a feel of direction. Phish seems to be locked in and prepared/eager/wanting to jam, and the onstage cohesion is starting to show more consistency, rather than sporadic flashes of brilliance. I had never listened to 7.21.03 before this past weekend (but I did peak at the setlist), and in doing so was left with nothing but "What the hell is this going to sound like?" If you are wondering the same thing, good for you, because this show takes us on a journey...

The storied venue pairings of Alpine and Deer Creek always give us something to look forward to - some variation of "all time" shows or jams which we have come to anticipate - and with how the two nights at Alpine shaped up, although not "all time" shows perhaps, but definitely containing some all time jams, the level of stoke was high for THREE nights at Deer Creek.

Cities funkifies things out of the starting blocks and the crowd goes wild! A statement opener with abbreviated funk but overflowing with energy, a tone was set that this night, and maybe this run, would be one of lore. A fiery, straightforward Runaway Jim drops into the two slot and keeps the momentum surge flowing through the venue. Trey kept cycling back, repeating the peak and crushing this "normal but great" version of the fan favorite. A dirty little Meat comes next and continues the funk. A great opening trio! Energy abound! The band was a little off in the start/stop portion of the closing segment, but it was comical rather than grating. It was like they wanted to keep toying with the outro funk, but just... quite... couldn't... make... it... click. No complaints here though. Water in the Sky comes next and continues to pattern of fast-paced, psychedelic jamgrass with Page and Trey trading solos at a blistering pace. Good stuff in here. Stash swirls in next, and this is probably a Stash you've never listened to, and NEED TO .... RIGHT NOW. I was blown away by the tonal shifts and near-major-key jamming this Stash morphs into. When Fish takes over on the woodblock - wowza - they are locked in. This isn't quite Type 2, but not exactly Type 1, but it is most definitely Type 1.68. Stash swoops back into its close after all sorts of creative segments and man, what a jam! Old Home Place provides a nice dance respite before a sloppy Vultures comes and goes. Next up, a smoldering Birds of a Feather! WOW! This thing, along with Stash, goes out there... without really getting out there. It is not Type 1, not Type 2, but encompasses creativity and passion and direction within a 10+ minute framework. They kinda misfire on the ending, but play if off nicely into a mellow outro jam before Mike's Song growls into the mix. At this point, Mike's was a TOTAL surprise. The set was already along and amazing at this point, and to close with a Mike's Groove?!? Mike's was perfunctory awesome, and really who even cares if it was or was not an all time version. There was some confusion at the ending, and, well, it hurt to listen to. They eventually made their way into Hydrogen which was performed well enough. And then we get the bouncey, peppy, spunky, totally dancey Weekapaug Groove! This version in particular features some AWESOME Fish/Mike interplay. The middle groove "Slap Your Monkey Around" (or whatever they're saying) this just too much fun. Then remember this is the first set!!! Bass! Drums! Back and forth! Bounce! Pop! Funk and roll! This Paug has it all. What a way to close a pretty smokin set.

Set 2 starts out where Set 1 left off. A funkier-than-thou Suzy set a great tone for what would hopefully be another great set. Taste takes on a harder edge - a solid version that loses traction in the end - it still provides a boost early in set 2. With all due respect, I still firmly believe 2.14.03's Taste is the creme d'la creme (I made up that spelling - I am not sorry French people) of Tastes in 2003. All the others, while energetic in their own right, all seem to kind of fall apart in the end. This one, although rocking to start out, loses cohesion at the end. Oh well. Taste fades into a really bluesy, soft intro of 46 Days. 46 Days can start out like power rock song, a funky dance party, or in this case, a little bluesy number. How intriguing! Right from the get go, this 46 Days is going places. I thought to myself NUMEROUS times during the jam, "This is the harbinger of IT Ghost and IT 46 Days." That deeply gritty, insanely trippy, caustically gnarly sound that envelopes you in equals parts awe and fear. It takes you places. It takes you deep down the rabbit hole. And you think to yourself, "Tell my wife I love her very much (she knows!)" What a musical excursion this is. You will not dance your face off, but you will stop what you're doing and lose yourself in the abyss that this jam becomes. Really cool stuff. It slinks into Tweezer, eventually, welcome-ly, and hopefully this is when the real dance party starts. Unfortunately, the all-star on-paper trio of Tweezer > 2001 > Limb by Limb falls flat. As individual songs and as 1-2-3 punch, the set looks great (on paper) but sounds directionless and lost. Who knows, maybe the band freaked themselves out after that 46 Days. Good Times Bad Times had a bit of a false start, capping off the formless closing segment of the show. A pedestrian Loving Cup > Tweeprise closed out the evening with a mixed bag of emotions.

This show has many bright spots and a few shadowy areas. The first set is unequivocally better than the second, for starters. The first set has energy and bounce, the second set has a quagmire of psychedelia. The second set has an mind bending jam in 46 Days, the first set has inspiring, fun jams in Weekapaug and Stash. An interesting show, to say the least. One that represents some of the best and some of the not-so-great elements of 2003 Phish. There is much to hang their hats on though, so let's forget some of the weirdness and see if this momentum carries onward to the next two nights at Deer Creek.

Must-hear jams: Stash, Weekapaug Groove, 46 Days
Probably-should-listen-to jams: Birds of a Feather, Suzy Greenburg, Taste

This show has its moments, for sure. The ambient jam in 46 Days was probably my favorite moment, followed by some of the soloing in 2001. Furious builds in Mike's and Taste are followed quickly by botched endings, especially the Mike's, in which Trey tries and fails to play the traditional ending and so ripcords into feedback and fuzz. There are those moment sprinkled throughout the show, and so it feels like a typical 2003 gig; some brilliant jamming marred by horrendous execution at times. Still, a decent show. Three stars.

This would be the first time I would see Phish more than two shows in a row. This would be my first three peater. I had no idea what to expect. I was excited to be at Deer Creek for the first time and came over there with an old buddy of mine that I hadn't been to a concert with in quite some time. He also had never seen Phish before and I told him what to expect of them. He was a big Grateful Dead fan and had seen them quite a few times before. He was very surprised afterwards, as much as I was. Every song was great except for I am Hydrogen, which to me is hard to put in between a great song like Mike's Song and Weekapaug Groove. Mike's Song hits a point where you know it's gonna continue in Weekapaug, but it doesn't with Hydrogen. Maybe it's just me, but Hydrogen is a letdown song for me. I think a song like Rift would fit in there much better. Anyway, great first set. The second set started off with a good Suzy Greenberg leading into Taste, but picking up quite a bit with 46 Days, Tweezer and 2001. Then came Limb by Limb, not bad, and ending with a good Zeppelin tune Good Times, Bad Times. My buddy was as surprised as I was. He and myself were happy as hell they finished up (encore wise) with Loving Cup and Tweezer Reprise. We both had a great time which he said he'd love to see them again. I was, but he wouldn't see them again until next year when he came back with me again. This was just a start for me. I was coming back the next two nights, and was looking forward to it....

The Greek show I referenced in my review was 08/06/2010, not 08/06/2011. Thanks for understanding.

This opening night of three at Deer Creek was just about the best show I saw in 2003. If not the best, then right up there with the best. I saw my first shows at Deer Creek in 97 and admit that I am partial to the venue.

SET I: The first set is a bit of a hodge-podge, but it is a well-played hodge-podge. Everything is really solid all set.

1) You can never complain about a "Cities" opener. This one got everyone off on the right foot even if it did not sore to any insane heights a la 08/06/2011 Greek Theatre.
2) "Runaway Jim" doesn't run to far and has a pleasant Trey singing flub. One of those "haha we are having fun" flubs not one of those "oh my God this Phish cover band is awful" flubs a la the 2003/01/02 "Simple."
3) "Meat" is one of my all time favorites. They can play it every night. A good weirdo Phish tune. My friend Daniel loved that song also. That counts for something. We miss you buddy!
4) A little bit of an odd transition from "Meat" to "Water in the Sky." "Water" is a little sloppy if you want to really nit-pick the poor band to death. That song always makes me think of Big Cypress; which is, of course, a natural thing, because they opened it down there as you all recall.
5) Onto a fifteen minute "Stash" that kicks ass. I am not a big "Stash" guy normally, but this version would make a believer of anyone.
6) Another odd transition to "My Old Home Place." I like that song. Bluegrass Phish always has room in my book.
7) I love "Vultures." What the hell is up with that song? It always comes out of left field at me like "I Saw it Again" has a tendency to do.
8) I am not a big fan of "BOAF," but this is once a gain a very solid version. There were a hell of a lot of people outside the show this weekend. In 99 there was a hell of a lot of "BOAF" and I think I still hadn't forgotten it.
8) The "Mikes-H2-Weekapaug" is perfectly placed at the end of the set. I love first set "Mike's Groove." This is not an "all time great" or anything, but it is a great set closer. People were freakin' out. Plus, anytime you get "Hydrogen" you should be happy.

SET II: The second set of this show is spectacular in any time period. Very well played and considerate versions of these tunes. Really very psychedelic for a set with "46 Days", "Tweezer", "2001", "GTBT", and "Loving Cup" which are all big rock and roller type songs.

1) "Suzy" is a great opener. Much better than a "Suzy" closer. Nothing startling here, but Page funks it out.
2) "Taste" is one of the all-time least appreciated Phish tunes. This one (like many) does get out there into the "Why am I thinking about people I haven't seen in awhile" chaos, but I love it.
3) The "46 Days" "Tweezer" "2001" section of this show is really amazing. "46 Days" is raging around 8 minutes in. By minute 11 everything is very low tempo and psychedelic. Fishman is amazing through some of the down-tempo parts.
4) A nice segue into "Tweezer", which like "46 Days" gets very slow and understated. Not "The band wants to get back to the tour-bus" understated, but precise and directed understated.
5) More of the same in "2001".
6) "Limb by Limb" is one of those chameleon songs. I either love it or hate it. It makes a so-so show more so-so, but when it comes out like it did here or 12/29/1998 at MSG it can be spectacular.
7) "GTBT" has some initial low level slop but then Trey really ratchets it up. Amazing high energy "Trey is a rock and roll god" moments.
8) "Loving Cup" encore is a bit of a throwaway. Don't get me wrong, I like "Loving Cup", but right after "GTBT" I am pretty big rock & roll covered out. Still though, Trey slays it and only a moron would complain.
9) The "Tweeprize" is half as long as the "Tweezer" and continues in the "Trey destroys my brain" fashion.

A solid A minus show. Well worth the listen. A great start to what turned into a pretty great weekend. Shout out to Green Acres!

Ahhh, back at my old stomping grounds! Being from Toledo, I caught 95, 96 and 97 and made it to '00 from Colorado. You come to expect a lot out of your favorite band when seeing them play the same venue so many times and play it so well. Dead Creek may as well be called Phishhook Creek. Great times! We made the drive from Alpine in short order. We got to Dead Creek midafternoon and set up our camp in between JNap and thebigz. Z banked big time for four days, going thru a shitload of fat tire and grilled cheese. I ended up getting pretty damn drunk on Sunday night. This really came in handy. I was one of the people that never woke up at all during "Hurricane Guyute." I just sort of remember waking up in the morning in my tent, sleeping in a very large puddle of water. No worries, I pulled out my sleeping pad and went back to sleep on the grass and dried out for the most part. Ask JNap about this one! Is there any truth to a tornado touching down nearby during the maelstrom? >

SET 1: Cities: Wow, sweet opener; never would have called this. The Cities I saw at Deer Creek '97 about put me into the funny farm (in a good way). This one was the exact opposite, very cut and dry, no real jamming – very tight version and an excellent way to open up the Creek run.

Runaway Jim: Nice, something about this song, to me; says Deer Creek – that and Possum. Not sure why but it works for me. Nice Runaway, nothing too crazy but tight all the same.

Meat: Standard.

Water in the Sky: Nice nod to this morning's storm.

Stash: I don't know what's up w/ this tune this tour, but none of them have really grabbed my attention. Until now. This Stash really goes out there and gets it done. Very cool and spooky Page breakdown in the neighborhood of 9 minutes. Best of the tour thus far by far. Kind of allayed my fears about the future of Stash.

The Old Home Place: Standard.

Vultures: For a song that has got to be very difficult to nail as a band, they have to be very proud of themselves w/ this Deer Creek version. Lyrics/Vocals: Nailed. Composed sections: Nailed. It just sounded great, and I've got to think this tune is one of the more underrated songs that they play.

Birds of a Feather: Rips your face off! Not as good as say Columbus 99 or Deer Creek 99, but this Birds really gets everyone moving. Wailing guitar courtesy of your favorite red head. Sweet segue into>

Mike's Song: Whoa! I never saw this coming, and it straight knocked me on my keister. I love the fact that they are once again playing Mike's Groove to end first sets (see Utah)! It's such a great capper and unexpected at least for me. Mike lays down such a thick foundation behind Trey. Short Mike's w/ a shaky Trey lead segue into>

I Am Hydrogen: Gotta love this classic when it's played well by you know who. Once Trey gets thru the segue, everything else plays out quite nicely. >

Weekapaug Groove: Big time goosebumps for me throughout Mike's intro solo. Dancing like a goofball with a bunch of other freaks somewhere in Indiana, it just does not get any better! Crosseyed tease by Trey from 5:19 -> 5:25. Trey leading the Shock the Monkey tease was cool. This Weekapaug is a total rager, absolutely awesome version.

SET 2: Suzy Greenberg: Tons of energy coming out of the gate >

Taste: Phish has made a statement w/ this song on this tour. They want it to be more of a jam centerpiece, I think. It's taking spots in sets that hold a lot of importance I think, more so than in the past when you would consistently see it mid first set. Love it or hate it, if you are a fan of Phish than you must appreciate the extreme tension the band builds w/in this song and then explodes back into itself. Trey struggles to wrap this one up a bit at the end and Page even hits on a rare, missed note.

46 Days: Oh geez, things are definitely going to get dirty now! It's on for sure. This one actually stays much more low key than I expected. A lot less arena rock and much more ambient style jamming, especially the last three minutes of it. It gets way, way out into space. I absolutely love this version! Shares elements of The Moma Dance from 6.17.04. This melts/segues into >

Tweezer: Again, eh? Number four, I think. The energy in the joint is sky high at this point. Mike Gordon is a bass master; the man can flat out play. At eight minutes, Page takes over. 3 minutes later segue into >

Also Sprach Zarathustra: The mothership has arrived friends, jump on board. CK5 = thou knows no equal. The man is a flat-out genius. Short 2001. I don't think it really segued into LxL but Phish.net thought so >

Limb By Limb: Placement sucks. Flat out. Sorry but I have seen this song so much since 97 - oddly enough I think this, and Taste have very similar jams. But late second set at the Creek you want a heavy hitter, and this is not a heavy hitter. What followed however, was. >

Good Times Bad Times: Wow! That 8/10/97 show is really showing its face as both Good Times and Cities were both played that night at the Creek. Again like the Cities, that GTBT was completely different than tonight's. 97 was an exploration in mind f*** your audience. This version was straight up arena rock. Blistering. I thought my head was going to explode. Good God, what an amazing way to end the set.

ENCORE: Loving Cup: Standard >

Tweezer Reprise Standard.

Replay Value: Stash, Birds of a Feather, Weekapaug Groove, Taste, 46 Days.

Summary: Tons of meat on this bone. This show ROCKS. Nothing, and I mean nothing, beats hanging out with a bunch of your friends at Deer Creek in that camping environment. Those were the best times. I would rate this as a 3.75 out of 5.

Met a few guys in the campgrounds - I was transferring undergraduate schools that summer - they ended up going the the school I was transferring to. Good friends ever since then. Isn't that how it always happens? Blast of a second set, first set... meh.

could only make this night..bummer the other nights were better.