I was the wookie, does a video of the chess move exist?

I have a funny story about YEM at this show and it goes somethin like this:

Halloween 95 PTBM blessed my girlfriend Amber and I with 20th row Fish-side on the floor. Sahweet seats considering the situation. 2 car loads from Wyoming had made the 16 hour trek for this 1 special concert. We had left UW Laramie Monday night after a couple of us got out of work. Well, the weather was not good but shitty roads would not be keeping us from Halloween Phish in Chicago.

I don't remember much of the lot but I know we didn't have much time to kick it or Shakedown. The lot at the Horizon that Tuesday consisted of drinkin beers and puffing out of the cold, in 2 idling cars. People switched back and forth from car to car as the "party" raged on per se. Anyways, I am sure in the car is when I turned on, tuned in, and dropped out- this particular evening.

My next memory is Amber and I are at our seats and the book is getting it's ass kicked. And I mean baddd!!! Well concert is rockin. Everyone is dressed up in Halloween garb and things are crazy!! Between the L, the music, and the Halloween atmosphere- I am out of my f***in head.

I can't remember if I noticed these four dudes before YEM, or if they magically came into my peripheral during this MONSTER YEM. Anyways, I am 20 rows back Fish side- probably where a NBA basketball coach would stand during a game. So I am standing there and to my right, first row off the floor, there I see YEM, the costume YEM. It's 4 dudes... And it's Boy, Man, God, and a piece of shit. The Boy has shorts, suspenders, and a propeler beanie on; The Man- a three piece suit, tie and briefcase; God had a white robe, looong wise-lookin beard and a cane; The Piece of Shit had any exposed skin painted brown, brown Hefty sacks covered his torso, and a hat that looked like a brown turtle-head!!

Well when the Boy Man God part came up in YEM, Amber and I thought they were part of the show. We thought that a spot light hit each one as their "name" came up in the song. It was like they each took their respective turn on the soul train line-dance for all the Rosemont Horizon to witness! What an awesome addition to an amazing 3rd set. How thoughtful of Phish to come up with such an idea. It was both brilliant and hillarious. Our row and rows around us were clued in as we made sure to tell everyone, "Look! Look over there!! It's the YEM costume, and there is the boy, man... " I don't know if everyone around us was as high as we were but they seemed to be enjoying themselves.

But when we got back to the car alas, it seems the rest of our crew was not clued in to the YEM costume that the band had set up in the crowd. And they saw no soul train style spot light dancing done by Boy, Man, God, OR the "Human Piece of Shit!" Had they missed it, or Is It In My Head?

Maybe the spotlights weren't bright enough

To be in this room, on this night, for this album proved to me that an intelligence directs our universe and all of it's events.

I'd seen Phish in 94 with a group of friends at the infamous UIC show. Liked the energy and the band. That summer "Down With Disease" was getting some rotation on local radio. I'd heard of Phish previous to this but nothing really had me seeking out tapes of their shows much less hitting record stores to delve into their material. I wasn't a "Dead Head" and had no desire to drive around the country to see concerts. In all, I was the least likely person to be "hippie" band fan.

My tastes in music developed in grade school with a heavy emphasis on The Who. Pete Townsend's lyrics were some of the best I'd ever heard. As I got older and started seeing more live shows the desire to find a contemporary band with a diverse musical sound was really the driving force in trying to find new music. Every week I'd be buying 4 or 5 CD's of new bands searching the latest sounds. After a while everything started to sound the same and yet nothing compared to Townsend's writing talents.

By the fall of 1995 I was fresh out of college and working on building a career. With a new car, collection of suits, and weekends off I could now enjoy the fruits of discretionary spending. My 95 Jeep Wrangler had a hard top/soft top combo. When fall came it was time to put the hard top on of which I employed the help of my friend Ken. As a thank you I offered to buy 2 tickets to see Phish on Halloween. Ken accepted and we planned to meet that night in the parking lot of Rosemont Horizon after we got done with work.

When Halloween came around neither of us dressed up. We entered the arena and were greeted with a chocolate coin with Phish on 1 side and WXRT on the other. The scene inside was hysterical. Everyone parading around with their costumes all themed to Phish songs. I did see one person in a Bellboy outfit which seemed strange at first but figured that was a song I hadn't hear yet.

As we took in the sights, smells, and a few beers we headed down to our seats. This being my 3rd show and Ken's 1st we didn't know what to expect. After the first set I asked Ken what he thought and his response was, "that was mesmerizing". It really was. I noticed that it was hard to take my eyes off the stage. I'm not sure I looked away once. Phish had really captured our attention. Then, what began was something I'll never forget.

Sitting in our seats, our entire section was seated as well. Thriller was playing in the background which seemed like the band's choice that night. It was only a matter of time until the album was revealed. As I scanned the crowd, everyone was still. Frozen in place as they awaited Phish's Halloween costume. Trying to figure it out myself I got past the sound effects from the PA to hear wind and waves. It was hard to identify at first but then I knew this sound. Familiar yet I couldn't quite place it. Suddenly it hit me. I jumped up and out of my seat then yelled "Holy F***, it's Quadrophenia!!!!" I must have repeated that phrase a dozen or more times until "Real Me" came ripping out.

The emotions, memories, feelings associated with listening to The Who for a good 10 years came rushing upon me. Holding back tears in public with your buddy probably wondering what the hell is wrong with you was a bit overwhelming and slightly embarrassing too. But that aside, I was in heaven. Note for note, word for word; that set, that show, it was magic.

In college I had a professor that said to pay attention to coincidences in your life. 10/31/95 was more than coincidence for me. Being in that room, that night, for that album....only the Vedics could explain "it".

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

One of the things I remember mostly clearly about the parking lots in Chicago was the fact that was amazingly cold, and snowing. Will and I were dressed up in costumes; he as Esther and me as McGrupp. I had made a cardboard collar on which I had painted, "If lost, contact Col. Forbin". We had a great time running around the lots, seeing old friends, and trying to stay warm. We went inside soon after the doors opened just because we knew it was warmer inside. We had seats somewhere near the rafters, but we quickly snuck down closer to the first section near the railing- sorry if we took your seats!
From the opening notes of "Icculus" to Trey screaming, "The book is getting its ass kicked!", we knew this show was going to be incredible. The first set was great, really high energy. It had "Divided Sky", "Wilson", "Ya Mar", "Sparkle", "Free", and the band and crowd were feeding off each other. I had not even heard of the strange little song about a pig with all the whistling, but "Guyute" was just great. When the band finished "Antelope" (and what an Antelope it was), I figured the set was over. Boy was I wrong. They busted out "Harpua", and this was . With all the talk of the "Vibration of Death", Mike's insane dream about raccoons, and the mouth watering tease of "Beat It", the band departed the stage for a quick break. Simply amazing.
There is not much I can add to the already many reviews of Phish's take on the Who's Quadrophenia. I was not a big Who fan, I was not even familiar with Quadrophenia, but it was an amazing second set, and a site to be seen. The third set was really big, with monster versions of every song. This great "YEM" fills up the whole side of my taped copy, and the touches of the horns in "Jesus Just Left Chicago" and "Suzy Greenberg" added an extra layer of icing on this delicious cake.
When I tried to relay the encore antics to some friends back in Blacksburg, they almost did not believe me. No really, I tried to convince them, Fish and Trey trashed a guitar, a drum kit, and ultimately depressed a plunger rigged to an explosive charge, all the while as Mike and Page were playing a loopy bluegrass version of "My Generation". It was an incredible finish to an incredible evening, and Will and I did not mind clearing the couple of inches of new snow off of his truck when we got outside. We finished this amazing birthday weekend by driving up to Madison WI where we stayed with our friend Bill and drank some great dark beers before heading back to school. Yes, 1995 was a great year for Phish and for me.

Listening to this YEM gave me a life changing experience

This review is for the YEM and the YEM only.

Before we get to the jam, I just want to mention that the tone used in Mike's solo is great and I don't remember hearing anything else like it.

So the main jam starts at 9:20 (we're going with the timings on LP 14) and it's pretty normal for the first part. Trey hits this sweet riff about 10 minutes in and starts getting things kicking. After that Trey starts to quietly solo as some start/stop jamming happens. Around 11:50 the jam goes into more of a blues state then funk. Release happens at 12:20 and it is pretty sweet. Jam speeds up at 13 minutes as Trey plays some rocking riffs.Trey and Page are feeding off of each others energy as they create an amazing peak.

At 15 minutes the jam starts to quiet down and at this point they are really grooving with Page in front. Blues starts back up again at 16 minutes. Jam starts to quiet at 17 minutes as Trey moves to the mini kit and Page turns on my favorite keyboard tone in the history of Phish. Loops start to come in at 18 minutes as they peak as hard as this setup will allow.

Eventually the loops consume this jam whole. Weird ass jam at 20 minutes. 21 minutes and the jam morphs into an ambient space. Really like Fish's work during the transition. Page here is beautiful as the rest of the band compliments it. Trey's noodling at 23:30 really adds a lot to this section. At around 24:10 you can hear Mike start up a riff.

What follows next is indescribable. It's just too weird to explain with words. The book really did get its ass kicked. The next 4 minutes are complete maniacal.

At 28:40 they drop into space again except it's more sinister this time. Trey goes to the mini kit and starts building a groove. The groove gets realized at 30 minutes as Page takes a solo. At 31 minutes Trey is back at the guitar and immediately starts wrecking shit. Trey gets to take a quiet solo until they go into the vocal jam.

All you need to know is that this VJ is easily my favorite one I've ever heard.

And that's the YEM.

I just counted up - I've given a five-star rating to a total of 82 Phish shows on the website. Most of these are IMO start-to-finish greatness, with the brilliance of the four musicians on continuous display (11/30/94, 8/10/97, and 8/28/12, to name three). Halloween '95, IMO, does not fit this description. What makes this show special to me, is the effort put forth by the band in the performance. The Quadrophenia set is marred by technical issues, missed cues, and flubs inherent in a set's worth of debut performances. But it is the effort put forth by the musicians and crew, and the confidence of 1995 Phish, that earns this show five stars from me.

Speaking about 1996 in The Phish Book, Page comments, "...in the end, we usually managed to rally and play our little hearts out." Listening to Page's bravura performance in Doctor Jimmy, and the band subsequently navigating through the different movements of The Rock with style and grace, reminds me of that quote. Bill Russell, who won 11 NBA Championships with the Boston Celtics, wrote that a Champion is someone who not only performs under pressure and adversity, but manages to raise their level of performance under these circumstances. On 10/31/95 at the Rosemont Horizon in Chicago, Phish played a show worthy of a Champion.

This show was absolutely killer - top to bottom. For the first set to open with Icculus and close with Harpua?!?! C'mon, man. That's the stuff of dreams. Then throw in the entire double album of Quadrophenia, complete with the surprise tease of Thriller beforehand and they could have ended the show right there and called this "one for the ages". But no, they had MUCH more in store. That 3rd set started at around midnight if I recall and the show ended at 1:30 in the morning! There have been many 3 set shows since where the 3rd set was just an afterthought, but this one was chocked full of goodness. To open with a 40+ minute YEM?!?! We knew shit was going to go down. And it was a very creepy Halloween YEM, to be sure. It never got boring like some long jams of that era did. Then throw in what is arguably the best Jesus Left Chicago ever played, man I was in heaven. To see Grippo take that solo to the HOUSE was a moment in time I will never forget. The you get a closer of Susie with horns and a super fun gag-encore complete with total destruction of the set Who style!! This show was absolutely freaking awesome. I can't believe anybody that was there would not give this 5 stars. I'd give it 6 if I could. I've seen 70 Phish shows and hundreds and hundreds of other shows and this one is top 3 all-time in my book. (Along with Pink Floyd Silverdome '94 and The Show 12/31/99). Thank you Phish!!!!

SET 1: Icculus: Unreal opener. Hilarious narration. The book is getting it’s ass kicked, lol!

Divided Sky: Played with incredible fire and passion, all timer.

Wilson > Ya Mar, Sparkle > Free, Guyute: Love this segment. Tons of energy and great playing.

Run Like an Antelope: Great Antelope, they rip it.

Harpua: Really funny, great job Cactus!

First set summary: What a set! Unbelievable. Expectations had to have been incredibly high and somehow they delivered in spades. What a band!

SET 2: I Am the Sea[2], The Real Me[2] > Quadrophenia[2], Cut My Hair[2], The Punk Meets the Godfather[2], I'm One[2], The Dirty Jobs[2] > Helpless Dancer[2], Is It In My Head?[2], I've Had Enough[2], 5:15[2], Sea and Sand[2], Drowned[2], Bell Boy[3], Doctor Jimmy[2] > The Rock[2], Love, Reign O'er Me[2]

Second set summary: Was it perfect? Hell no! But the effort and showmanship should be highly commended. This performance was over the top and wonderful. They had been teasing the fans all tour with Michael Jackson teases and even played MJ at the first set break. And then they trick everyone and throw this down? Phish personified. Brilliant!

SET 3: You Enjoy Myself: An absolute masterpiece. I listen to this every few years. It is not for everyone because it’s just so BIG but it is amazing. Those of you that were there, how did you manage to maintain your sanity?

Jesus Just Left Chicago: Exceptional, Grippo adds so much to this one!

A Day in the Life: Standard. >

Suzy Greenberg: With the horns is exactly what this song was made for. I am sure many are like me – any time I hear Suzy sans horns I ‘sing’ those parts in my head. This is a killer version.

ENCORE: My Generation: Perfection. Fish and Trey destroying stuff was just great.

Third set summary: Perfection! How could they top the Quadrophenia set? They couldn’t. But what they did play was incredible and they threw down an unbelievable, career highlight YEM, an amazing Jesus, Suzy for the ages. This show is perfect as far as I am concerned. Happy to give this 5 out of 5. The stuff of legends. Any of you that attended this were so fortunate!

Finally listened to this show in its entirety. I am not particularly huge on the who, but the costume album is alright to pretty good.

But this YEM makes this a 5 star show on its own. Just seriously OMG, I have never heard a jam quite like this YEM. At points it almost reminds me of the Mikes Groove at MSG a few months later.

What amazing playing I just can't say enough good things about this YEM. Must hear jam for any Phan.

This was my first show!

Anyone want to talk about the voting process in the parking lots?

There were Tombstone pinatas being passed around, with a pad of paper attached in the place of the epitaph. I was on a hippie party bus and a few got passed around. The leading vote-getters were Physical Graffitti, Joes Garage, thriller, and Bold as Love.

Phishbills weren't a thing yet, and come set 2, no one knew what was in store. Intro music from setbreak was Thriller..... and BOOM here comes Quadrophenia.

The Who were one of the classic-rock bands I was least familiar with until I heard this show. That gave me a pink-cheeked innocence going into listening to the musical costume that I cherish and may never again be able to duplicate (though I wasn't a big Bowie guy before 10/31/16, either.) Icculus opener? Yes, please! The Harpua is funny with plenty of Mike banter; if you need a reference point as a newer phan you could think of it as similar to the 9/6/15(?) Dick's THANK YOU Harpua. Plenty of nearly proto-punk energy in The Who portion of the show, and the YEM is one of the longest versions ever (I think maybe *the* longest, but possibly not the best: see 12/9/95.) Perfect encore caps another captivating and mystical Halloween from our four.