Well this first set certainly does suck.

[Spoiler]

Well, maybe a couple sentences. I've heard the rumors that "Mike was SO off" and "Mike sounded SO bad..." yadda yadda. Well you know what, they all sucked. They all sound bad. Trey is obviously frustrated, addressing the crowd after Ya Mar saying they're "ironing out some details." Uh huh. But Trey is also a 1/4 step ahead of everyone else, missing transitions, and just seems downright disinterested. Fish is missing fills and his timing sounds off. Page is lost in the AUD and I don't blame him. Mike also sucks. His voice and general spunkiness on the ol 5-stringer are non-existent. Honestly, one of the worst sets of Phish I've listened to. Is it because of Mike being hungover (I don't think so), Trey's ego (I don't think so), Fish forgetting timing (I don't think so), Page being too shy at this point in his career to speak up about it (I don't think so) or perhaps a combination of all four instances combined with some late-tour fatigue brought on by what seems to be 3 straight incredibly-hot-weather shows (I think so)? You can listen if you dare to answer that question. I for one will never revisit this set again.

But then set two happens, and although it's not a barn-burner, juxtaposed against set one it may well be Magnaball. Well... maybe I am being too hasty. Let us explore. Ghost is a welcome set two opener and despite it's impressive length (that's what she said) it doesn't do much until the very end (that's also what she said). It takes about 12 minutes of kinda-hot-but-also-kinda-sloppy jamming before the band settles into a really pretty, really soft little jam. The final five minutes of Ghost are super good, a cleanser of the ear in a sense, especially with how rough the first 80 minutes of music have been up to this point. Halley's Comet seemed to be on odd choice for my ears, and this version is all things pedestrian until a very unexpectedly nice -> Seven Below. The crowd didn't seem to dig this much, considering you can almost pin point individual cheers of celebration amongst an otherwise unenthused crowd. FEAR NOT, FELLOW LISTENER! PHISH IS HERE! And just like that, the switch is turned on Seven Below takes on a swinging, sassy, playful, and energized jam! My goodness, momentum is a fickle beast. This Seven Below garnered a second listen from me after the show concluded because it is such a fun jam to listen to. One of those jams where, despite it being the savior THIS show, its place in ANY show would absolutely result in the incarceration of many in attendance, due to the high levels of controversy of their dance moves. Phish couldn't have dropped a more perfect jam at this moment in time. Seven Below returns to the quizzically comical "huh?" ending about 5 minutes too soon (the jam was still firing before Trey reeled it back in) but oh well, I dig it! A slightly extended, Trey-effect-laded Tube drops in next and the energy surges. This version is rather mild, with Page doing almost all the heavy lifting while Trey f***s around with sound effects and Mike hammers home a solid bassline... Fishman however, is still struggling. He just isn't all that splashy during this show and has a pretty bad swing-and-a-miss trying to bring the jam back home... actually two bad swing-and-a-misses... had there been a third he'd have been ejected for arguing balls and strikes... but I digress. Tube eventually sifts itself into Prince Caspian which does have a solid 4 minutes of good, soaring Trey-led jamming. Nothing too out-of-the-ordinary here, but it sounded (and felt) good to hear the Phish let loose with a cathartic OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH TO BE PRINCE CASPIAN followed by a powerful outro jam. You could tell they needed it. 2001 was a super surprise, but much like Tube this featured mainly Page and Mike (not that I am complaining). This version, length notwithstanding, could fit right into 1999. Check it out for that reason alone. Fire closed the set and, I cannot believe I am saying this, contains the second best jam of the night behind Seven Below. The Fire is straight fire. I mean Phish FINALLY (never say never, right?) connects on a full-band power surge and they blow the roof off this version. It is a FANTASTIC closing song, and really lifted (my/our) spirits as the night came to a close. Man, they really really crushed this Fire. Squirming Coil was played almost apologetically, and it was a perfect encore song for that reason. It was humble, soft, and forgiving. A nice way to pat our collective selves on the back, as if saying, "You'll get em next time kiddo..." and if you're looking ahead, they certainly hold true to their word.

Must-hear jams: Seven Below, Fire
Probably-should-listen-to jams: The last 5 minutes of Ghost, 2001

It really goes to show you what the power of waiting a few years (or in this case, 10 years) to reflect and review a show. These days, it seems like halfway through a first set and a show is getting rated, and comments are being thrown up like pasta on a ceiling even before the band has had time to take their final bow.

When phish announced their southern run, I along with two other close friends (one being the notorious David Einstein, one of the legendary PT trolls) were all in. We had already seen phish in our hometown of Greensboro, NC and were blessed with an absolutely amazing show. Also, I had ventured out to Kansas earlier in July to catch the Bonner Springs show and reunite with a friend who I worked with in Colorado the summer before hand.

Yay, phish is coming back to the South! But, Charlotte > ATL > Raleigh > Pittsburgh? Who figured out this road loop?!? Nothing like a lot of backtracking. On the third day we rolled back through Greensboro into Raleigh. It was so, so hot. I was taping the three night run, and we rolled into the lot in Raleigh late. I switched out driving with David so I could jump out of the car, and make it through the bag check to get inside. These were the years where if you had a tapers ticket, you could get to the best spot in the section. Now, well, if you have a tapers ticket you take your assigned seat since someone in a better "tapers ticket" seat not only isn't taping, but spent "x" amount of dollars on stubhub for their seat in the section (but that is another rant). Making it in quite a bit faster than I thought, I found my spot with my other taping cohorts, set up, and waited for the show to start.

Raleigh can be a hot show, or it can be a dud. We just had two great shows in Charlotte and ATL, and expectations for Raleigh were high (We didn't know the band was saving all the gusto for Pittsburgh).

Back to where I started, taking a few years to review a show. Listening back a little over 10 years later, and this was a gem of a show. If you are inclined to check out some under rated shows, add this to your list.

Some key songs to check out Disease (full ending), Ghost and a great -7, followed by a tube with a little extra zing on it.

This show gets overshadowed by Charlotte and Pittsburgh. But if you put this show onto rotation, you might just be surprised.

The joys of looking back into time. Things that may seem dull end up having a shining moment.

Cheard check out the awful bass playing during the first set; especially during Jim, Ya Mar, and Llama. Apparently Cactus got really messed up the night before and was either hungover or still messed up.

After a much better second set opening, Trey welcomed Mike back.

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

This was the second time I saw Phish. The day was unbearably hot, and the cops were unbelievably prevalent. People were getting thrown on their backs just for standing around. Every time someone got arrested, angry Phish fans (like myself) circled around the scene, objecting to the actions taking place in front of us. Two of my personal friends were given citations that day, and another was even arrested and taken "downtown." After all the drama, I decided to escape the heat by buying a bottle of water for a buck and sitting in the car with the AC full blast.
Somewhere in between those two actions, I completely lost my ticket. Looked everywhere around the car, in the car, under the car, where I bought the water, but I never found the freakin’ ticket! Had to buy another one at the box office, and thank goodness it didn't sell out. I got inside the show in plenty of time.
First set had a great setlist, but listening to it on CD is
a whole different story. I don't think the first set will go down in history for being one of their better sets. Second set, they came out and just nailed "Story of the Ghost", and did a great "Prince Caspian." It was a show equipped with a great audience and a beautiful, starry night.

I understood the Mike situation as he walked offstage to puke and Trey welcomed him back when he returned to his spot on stage. I had heard he was sick from the night before and Im sure the heat of the afternoon did not help...

Def a bit of a lull mid-first set. The second set was pretty solid though, especially Ghost through Tube.
Does anyone have any insight into the welcoming back of Mike after Seven Below?

Well this first set certainly does suck.

[Spoiler]

Well, maybe a couple sentences. I've heard the rumors that "Mike was SO off" and "Mike sounded SO bad..." yadda yadda. Well you know what, they all sucked. They all sound bad. Trey is obviously frustrated, addressing the crowd after Ya Mar saying they're "ironing out some details." Uh huh. But Trey is also a 1/4 step ahead of everyone else, missing transitions, and just seems downright disinterested. Fish is missing fills and his timing sounds off. Page is lost in the AUD and I don't blame him. Mike also sucks. His voice and general spunkiness on the ol 5-stringer are non-existent. Honestly, one of the worst sets of Phish I've listened to. Is it because of Mike being hungover (I don't think so), Trey's ego (I don't think so), Fish forgetting timing (I don't think so), Page being too shy at this point in his career to speak up about it (I don't think so) or perhaps a combination of all four instances combined with some late-tour fatigue brought on by what seems to be 3 straight incredibly-hot-weather shows (I think so)? You can listen if you dare to answer that question. I for one will never revisit this set again.

But then set two happens, and although it's not a barn-burner, juxtaposed against set one it may well be Magnaball. Well... maybe I am being too hasty. Let us explore. Ghost is a welcome set two opener and despite it's impressive length (that's what she said) it doesn't do much until the very end (that's also what she said). It takes about 12 minutes of kinda-hot-but-also-kinda-sloppy jamming before the band settles into a really pretty, really soft little jam. The final five minutes of Ghost are super good, a cleanser of the ear in a sense, especially with how rough the first 80 minutes of music have been up to this point. Halley's Comet seemed to be on odd choice for my ears, and this version is all things pedestrian until a very unexpectedly nice -> Seven Below. The crowd didn't seem to dig this much, considering you can almost pin point individual cheers of celebration amongst an otherwise unenthused crowd. FEAR NOT, FELLOW LISTENER! PHISH IS HERE! And just like that, the switch is turned on Seven Below takes on a swinging, sassy, playful, and energized jam! My goodness, momentum is a fickle beast. This Seven Below garnered a second listen from me after the show concluded because it is such a fun jam to listen to. One of those jams where, despite it being the savior THIS show, its place in ANY show would absolutely result in the incarceration of many in attendance, due to the high levels of controversy of their dance moves. Phish couldn't have dropped a more perfect jam at this moment in time. Seven Below returns to the quizzically comical "huh?" ending about 5 minutes too soon (the jam was still firing before Trey reeled it back in) but oh well, I dig it! A slightly extended, Trey-effect-laded Tube drops in next and the energy surges. This version is rather mild, with Page doing almost all the heavy lifting while Trey f***s around with sound effects and Mike hammers home a solid bassline... Fishman however, is still struggling. He just isn't all that splashy during this show and has a pretty bad swing-and-a-miss trying to bring the jam back home... actually two bad swing-and-a-misses... had there been a third he'd have been ejected for arguing balls and strikes... but I digress. Tube eventually sifts itself into Prince Caspian which does have a solid 4 minutes of good, soaring Trey-led jamming. Nothing too out-of-the-ordinary here, but it sounded (and felt) good to hear the Phish let loose with a cathartic OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH TO BE PRINCE CASPIAN followed by a powerful outro jam. You could tell they needed it. 2001 was a super surprise, but much like Tube this featured mainly Page and Mike (not that I am complaining). This version, length notwithstanding, could fit right into 1999. Check it out for that reason alone. Fire closed the set and, I cannot believe I am saying this, contains the second best jam of the night behind Seven Below. The Fire is straight fire. I mean Phish FINALLY (never say never, right?) connects on a full-band power surge and they blow the roof off this version. It is a FANTASTIC closing song, and really lifted (my/our) spirits as the night came to a close. Man, they really really crushed this Fire. Squirming Coil was played almost apologetically, and it was a perfect encore song for that reason. It was humble, soft, and forgiving. A nice way to pat our collective selves on the back, as if saying, "You'll get em next time kiddo..." and if you're looking ahead, they certainly hold true to their word.

Must-hear jams: Seven Below, Fire
Probably-should-listen-to jams: The last 5 minutes of Ghost, 2001