Tag: sit-ins

Steal Away Before the Dawn — New Orleans, LA 03.03.1993

Phish — Tipitina’s — New Orleans, LA 03.03.1993

I  Rift, Foam, Bouncin’, Maze, Guelah, Paul & Silas>Sample, Jim, Lawn Boy, Cavern

II  Axilla, Curtain>Melt, Mound>Mike’s>H2>Weekapaug, Glide, MSO, FEFY, HYHU>Terrapin>HYHU, Coil, Adeline

E  Fire

Here we have the second night of the two night run in New Orleans, the final show Phish would ever play at Tipitina’s as they would graduate on to larger venues such as the State Palace Theatre and McAlister Auditorium over the next two years before their Jazzfest appearance in ’96. This one is a marked improvement over the night previous as the hangovers appear to be gone but the colds remain somewhat, impacting the singing on a few tunes. But the playing is not at risk with that and the band came out with energy and vigor, bringing an old friend out for a couple of tunes as well during a fun if not exploratory show.

The first set kicks off with a well executed Rift that precedes a Foam that continues to bring the energy level up before Bouncin’ gets its turn. This continues the trend of this tour where they would play three-ish crowd pleasing tunes to get the room moving before hitting the first more involved song musically. Tonight that fourth song is Maze and that turns into a shred factory for Trey and at this stage you can tell both band and crowd are feeling it. Guelah, P&S>Sample fills the mid set here with exactly what you expect out of those tunes. Nothing bad but nothing of note either. Jim runs away next with a very spirited version that stays mostly at home but provides another opportunity for Trey to flex the shred muscles for a bit before they wrap it up and bring out a guest for the second night in a row. And who might that be but Gears himself, now residing in New Orleans! He takes the solo turn in Lawn Boy (much more engaging than the small solos Trey has been taking in this tune of late) and then adds his trumpeted flavoring to the set closing Cavern which makes that at least tolerable in its ubiquity. Always nice to have a GCH member join in. Then it is off to the setbreak to catch our breath after that energetic first frame.

The second set gets off to a rocking go with Axilla which leads to a decent Curtain that heads into a very frenetic Melt. We are still not quite to Eureka Moment for this song but it is getting oh so close. Mound bounces in next before the expected Mike’s Groove (remember, we got Tweezer and YEM last night so in this tour that means Mike’s Groove and a junior vehicle – tonight being Melt – gets the call for the second set heavy lifting). Nothing major in the Mike’s or H2 but Paug has some extra sauce on it in a slightly extended version. This is really mostly about what Trey and Page do in a bit of a breakdown section in the middle as well as everything around it as they come back to the peak. Eh, just go listen to it already. It really rages quite nicely. Glide, MSO, FEFY get us to Fish Fun Time time for Terrapin where he once again expresses his great distaste for HYHU and does some band shout outs. Coil is mainly about Page as he takes a bit more of a solo than usual here (and the composed part is a little rough getting there) before an [unmic’d] Adeline closer and a Fire encore take us home.

Your takeaways from this one are the Weekapaug and perhaps the Melt and Maze. But definitely the Paug. Outside of that is is mainly just standard fare for the tour which is not to say it is bad but just not really notable in any particular fashion. As a whole, this is a show you could do worse than to listen to but it won’t jump out as one to spin simply because there aren’t any major highlights to point to here. Of course, you have the sit-in from Carl Gerhardt but being that it is just for Lawn Boy and Cavern there isn’t anything here that you haven’t already heard on a full GCH set such as from the Summer ’91 tour. So I guess we just chalk it up to another solid night along the path and move on to the next thing. And now we get another day off for another 500 mile drive before the band heads into Texas for a pair of shows on their way to Colorado and points further west (by way of New Mexico).

Water Your Team in a Beehive I’m a Sent You — New Orleans, LA 03.02.1993

Phish — Tipitina’s — New Orleans, LA 03.02.1993

I  Buried Alive>Poor Heart>Stash, Reba, Sparkle, Ice, Fee>ATR, CDT, Horse>Silent, IDK, Bowie

II  MFMF, Uncle Pen, Tweezer>Lizards, Llama, YEM, HYHU>Love You>HYHU, It’s My Life, Loup Garou, Choo Choo Ch’ Boogie, Hood, Grace

E  Golgi>Reprise

After finishing up the Florida run, Phish hugged the gulf coastline to make their way to New Orleans for the tail end of the Mardi Gras proceedings that year. They had a few days off to make the trip across and apparently took full advantage of that in ways that will become apparent as we work our way through chronicling the show from this visit. This would be their fourth stop at the venue but their first since 1991 when they played a pair of shows (one in March and the other in November). That November one had a bunch of ARU folk sit in with ten tracks included as the filler for the Katrina Relief release several years ago.

For this stop, the first set kicks off with Buried Alive>Poor Heart>Stash which can really serve to get the crowd going — and would help keep them from singing too much considering Trey now sounds afflicted with the cold Fish had in Florida (along with the fact that the band overall seems a bit… off). This Stash is well played and peaks nicely in a short but sweet version. Reba is next and she does well for herself while not necessarily dropping any jaws. But then, she’s a coy gal and doesn’t get too flashy very often but people still notice her beauty. The set then takes shape with a run through a bunch of stuff where you know what you are getting starting with Sparkle, Ice, and Fee>ATR. Trey notes those aforementioned issues with his voice during the ATR intro right after Page had thrown in a clever tease of Manteca in the Fee coda section. This is followed by (yet another) fiery CDT, Horse>Silent, and IDK (with multiple nickname fun and Fish on Madonna washboard along with Trey and Mike adorning his head with Mardi Gras beads during his solo). Interestingly, there is a note on .com about a sit-in for this version of IDK but I cannot hear it on the tapes and Trey never mentions it… Which gets us to the Bowie set closer. Probably the most notable thing here is that Trey asks the crowd if everyone is still hungover (with the implication being that he is) before they dive into what will be a rather unmemorable version that meanders a bit before coming back to close. Then it is off to the break to nurse those hangovers or maybe get a bit more hair of the dog going prior to the band’s return.

Second set kicks off with another tune with Trey on the acoustic (remember, of course, that Horse was Trey on acoustic back then) as MFMF sets the mood preceding Uncle Pen and then Tweezer>Lizards. The Tweezer has a couple of interesting ideas but doesn’t really flush those out too much with some over-noodling from Trey going on before they end up in Lizards. Trey’s vocal issues are on display a bit as he ‘speaks’ the lyrics for one section but otherwise this one is just fine. A kinda shreddy but sorta uneven Llama gets us to YEM (which has the ‘water your team’ lyrics) which is a pretty decent version with a nice jam. It isn’t a world beater but you get a nice building Page organ solo and then the requisite Trey hose-y takeover and a relatively mellow D&B section as they bring it home to the VJ which has a section that almost sounds like wolves howling (which is apropos to one of the sit-in covers to come). Next up is a relatively quick Fish Fun Time for Love You (though Page does give the opening HYHU a little extra sauce tonight) and then we get a sit-in from Bruce “Sunpie” Barnes for It’s My Life (Junior Wells tune), Loup Garou (a Willy DeVille tune about Bayou werewolves that Sunpie and his band also recorded about five years after this sit-in), and Choo Choo Ch’Boogie (a Louis Jordan original that Sunpie recorded much later than its 1940s heyday). All of these are fun tunes for the locale and were one-time performances by the band. Incidentally, the connection to this fixture of the New Orleans music scene was just starting with this sit-in as Trey would join his band for a whole set on 04.28.1996 (two days after the initial Phish appearance at Jazzfest – which was the bulk of that Katrina Relief release – in what would be a busy day for Trey as he and Page sat in for the whole Cosmic Krewe show too). Then on 04.30.2005 Sunpie came out to join the 70 Volt Parade for a couple of songs in a show highlighted by the “New Orleans Superjam” that deserves your listen, particularly for the second set and encores which include Trey, Cyril Neville, Gregory Davis and Roger Lewis of The Dirty Dozen, Dave Grippo, Michael Ray, Gordeaux, Ivan Neville, and the 70 Volt Parade band members. Oh yeah, Dave Matthews was there too. A fine enough Hood then gets us to the Grace closer (unplugged and not included on most tapes in circulation) and finally a Golgi, Reprise combo for the encores so that everyone can go revel in the last hours of Mardi Gras before doing it all again once more the next night.

In the end, overall, really not much going on here that you don’t hear in other shows. The sit-in is interesting if you like that shuffle-y cajun-ish music but it doesn’t really go anywhere very creative. At the least, it is different than most of the cover fodder Phish gets into and Sunpie is a massive personality with great stage presence that just grabs you and brings you into a happy place full of smiles, dancing, and good times in general. The Reba, Tweezer, and YEM are nice enough but there’s not much meat on the bones of anything in this show, quite frankly. Maybe it was the illness, or the hangovers, or just one of those nights after a couple off where they didn’t really connect. But you would hope that by the second night of the run they’d hit form again and we will find out about that next time…

I Stumble Into View — Miami Beach, FL 02.25.1993

Phish — The Cameo Theatre — Miami Beach, FL 02.25.1993

I  Buried Alive>Poor Heart>Cavern, Maze, Forbin’s>Mockingbird>Rift, Stash, Bouncin’, IDK, Bowie

II  Suzy>Ice>Sparkle>Wilson>YEM, Uncle Pen, BBJ>FEFY>HYHU>IIOHAB>HYHU, Golgi>BBFCFM

E  Grace, GTBT

After taking a night off to enjoy Wally World and get down to the tip of Florida, the band finds themselves in Miami Beach for a show at a venue that maaaaaaay be a little different now than it was BITD considering it was once a place to catch hardcore and punk acts before transitioning to a disco night club in the 90s. Now it is apparently… something else… what with the stripper poles, DJs, and such. But for one night in the early 90s this was a venue that hosted Phish and I’m here to dive into what happened that night so let’s just get to it already, okay?

Before we get too far along here I’ll just get it out there that the available recordings that circulate for this show are really not that great. Basically you get a Frankenstein of patched sources (unfortunately this does not mean they played Frank that night though) with some jump cuts, tape flips, and whatnot thrown in there to keep you on your toes. We get this right from the start with the opener Buried Alive which fades in not too far from the start of the song. Nothing special here as we head into Poor Heart and Cavern with this three pack of tunes to get the crowd moving. The Maze that follows seems to wake Trey up as he tears apart his solo quite effectively. Forbin’s>Mockingbird fills the meat of the set after that and the story is quite lovely with a big wave (the biggest surf wave ever!) carrying the crowd (with their feet planted firmly on the floor) to Gamehendge. Page teases the theme to Gilligan’s Island and Trey adds in some hurried detail about GH, noting that there will be a quiz at the end but I’m still waiting for that quiz and all of the other ones from other shows where he has mentioned this so what gives, Trza? Where’s the follow through on that? C’mon, man. Maybe that’s why mainstream never took these guys seriously. What’s that? Oh. Right. Trey moves on from this (as I clearly should have) to nail the end solo in Mockingbird and then the band pretty well nails Rift which by this point they should considering this is the 12th Rift in 19 shows. Next up we have Stash and this one stays mainly in the box during its compact course, being more of the punchy clean variety with a nice peak rather than going into deeper waters. I know I already covered this but there is an absolutely brutal tape cut at the end here that kind of throws one off for a sec. It is a little unnerving, frankly, but we will get by. We will survive. After a standard Bouncin’ we have IDK which gives us a whole host of Fish nicknames from Trey, the trombone solo, and our first indication that Fish needs to be on his better behavior since Trey notes his parents’ presence in the crowd. This brings us to the Bowie first set closer which includes a full nod to Fish’s parents being in the room, some SL (Oom Pa Pa, Simpsons), and a full band tease of the theme to Jeopardy before they head into a solid jam that builds to the end peak quite well. After that we are left to wonder about how different the crowd for some of those classic shows in the late 80s here were from the one in the venue this night and to wonder what they would have thought of these moheads from Vermont.

Right about when we have finally begun to grasp that hetty concept the band comes back for the second frame, kicking it off with a five song sequence of Suzy>Ice>Sparkle>Wilson>YEM. Those first four are about what you’d expect though the Wilson does have some SL (Random Note) and a bit of an extended end section (for the era)… but let’s just move on to the YEM, okay? The composed section is fine enough but then Trey takes charge and elevates the jam segment before they head into a VJ that includes the typical for this tour ‘choir’ ending. After a pretty rough Uncle Pen we have the odd pair of BBJ>FEFY which occurred more than seems correct but for our purposes doesn’t really demand much conversation about that. This brings us to Fish Fun Time and tonight we are treated to a special guest as Mimi Fishman graces the stage for her sixth ever guest vac appearance. I suppose if you make the drive from Syracuse to southern Florida to see your boy’s weirdo band perform at some small club they let you help out with the non-traditional music instrument section of the show. Knowing that Mimi apparently really loved doing this just makes the fact that Fish uses a vacuum that much funnier somehow because you know they had some epic vac jam sessions together. Mother son bonding is amazing stuff. Everyone say “aaaaaawww” now. A quick dip Golgi and a raucous BBFCFM closer take us to yet another Grace, GTBT encore pairing (third already this tour!) and we are off into the Art Deco night to enjoy the sea breezes and people watching of Miami Beach.

This is a fairly uneven show with a few rough patches in a couple of songs but the Maze, Bowie, and YEM (particularly the jam segment) are all worthwhile. These first Florida shows must have been odd considering that they went from playing theaters in the Northeast to some college venues in the MidSouth to The Roxy run to these small clubs which is quite the change of scenery in only a week or so. There is definitely a lot looser feel to some of these shows but when they connect it really doesn’t matter what size the room is. And while they didn’t always connect I feel comfortable in saying that on a nightly basis they found enough points of connection to be able to further develop their sound while also growing the fanbase seemingly one blown mind at a time.

And They Just Couldn’t Wait — Atlanta, GA 02.21.1993

Phish — The Roxy Theatre — Atlanta, GA 02.21.1993

I  Suzy>Buried Alive, PYITE, Uncle Pen, Horn>CDT, Esther>DaaM>Bouncin>Antelope

II  Axilla, Curtain>Stash->Manteca->Stash->Lizards, Gin->HYHU>Rosie>HYHU, Coil, BBFCFM

E  Adeline, GTBT->Paul and Silas->Pig in a Pen

How do you follow up one of the better nights (up to that point) in your live musical career? Do you try to top it? Do you just say ‘screw it’ and go out there knowing you cannot live up to the previous show? Or do you do what you do which is to treat each night on stage as the special snowflake that it is with the understanding that the people who came out tonight are not the same crowd as the night prior and it is your job — nay your duty — to do whatever you can to try to melt their faces with the music you play on this night? Rhetorical questions, obviously, but this show points out the challenge of being a touring musician, playing your fifth show in as many nights (not to mention knowing they had to hit the road to make it to Gainesville, FL for the next night) and working as hard as you can to achieve that connection you know is out there just waiting to be found and fostered so that the fans that came to this show get as much out of it as you can give them. On this night, planted firmly in the shadow of the one that preceded it we get a little bit of all of the above as the band brings as much energy and musicality as they can to the proceedings while also clearly fighting the fatigue and ‘hangover’ from the prior few nights’ shows. This is not to say that the show suffers but in reality it is not quite to the level of the two nights that preceded it, hetty jams therein notwithstanding. But let’s get into things to see what went down, shall we?

The first set kicks off with a somewhat rare different intro to Suzy as they harmonize a line a cappella before diving into the song proper. This isn’t the first time (or last) that this would occur (summer 1992 has a few, for example). Trey slips in a Tweezer tease along the way, perhaps reflecting back to the previous night’s epic second set but also hinting they are raring to get after it again. They take this into a quick Buried Alive and then run through a still-pretty-rough-around-the-edges PYITE. Uncle Pen and Horn bring us then to CDT which rages in that way it did in the compact form it maintained in this era and then we are on to Esther. Page toys around with the intro here, adding some ‘reggae’ flavoring while the band banters about him ‘moving his organ’ so that everyone can see what he is doing. After Esther (which includes a Simpsons SL) they roll right into the tour debut of Dinner and a Movie before hitting Bouncin’ on their way to the big Antelope closer. This Lope has a Woody Woodpecker tease and some Secret Language (Random Note) but the real reason to spin it is the push towards taking this one outside the lines with Page adding to the dissonance and everything leading to a well executed peak. Now we are at setbreak and when not comparing this set to the show the night before people were probably starting to realize they should just go ahead and call out from work the next, oh, week or so and go ahead and follow the band down to Florida since the music was so hot. I know I would have had that conversation… at least with myself.

After the break the band comes out firing, ripping through Axilla and The Curtain before kicking off a Stash that will eventually become one of those Stashtecas the kids are always on about. This one is not as fully developed as the one from 11.14.1995 (part of that amazing set) or the one from 10.30.1998 (with the masterful transition both to Manteca and eventually to Tweezer and beyond) but it has its value. You get the typical Stash fare of ’93 in the first half and then they take it down quite low before making the move to Manteca (107 show bustout!) and then eventually bringing it back home for the release from Stash. They then go directly into Lizards after another fine segue and this one is about what you expect out of the Gamehendge tune. Next up is a somewhat rare for the time (heck it is rare now too!) second set Bathtub Gin that actually stretches a bit more than what is typical for the song in this era (remember, this song did not really take off as a potential jam vehicle until August ’93 with the Tampa and the probably-doesn’t-need-to-be-mentioned-because-you-should-already-know-it-by-heart Murat version) before heading directly into HYHU for Fish Fun Time. I’ll stop here for a second to point out that they were definitely trying to replicate something of the previous night with all of the seguery here but it doesn’t pop quite as much as that set perhaps due to the songs involved or the way it is handled, which is not to say it is ‘forced’ but that there is something just missing in the execution (even though the segues themselves are quite good here). Perhaps it was the total reckless abandon with which they attacked those songs the night before, throwing in teases and callbacks to prior songs while also layering them seemingly on top of each other. Really, it is just a matter of trying to compare one subjective thing to another. So we will move on with that. After HYHU we have some typical Fish banter, the second Rosie of the tour, and (after Rosie) Trey mentioning how they don’t want to leave the Roxy to head forward on tour. Aaaawww. Anyway, next is a fine Squirming Coil with Page doing his thing and then a typically fun BBFCFM closer to wrap up the set. After that you’d think we were about headed to the exists with a quick encore but they still have some tricks up their collective sleeves (and mumus) as after the standard a cappella number (Adeline tonight) they bring out another guest, the Reverend Jeff Mosier, who like Mr. Herring was also a member of the ARU family tree with their roots here in Atlanta. This is very notable sit-in as it is the first [known] example of him bringing his bluegrass stylings to the Phish stage but it most certainly would not be the last as we would all grow to know him quite well over the Fall 1994 Tour, specifically the Midwest section where he hopped on the bus and sat in for several tunes in several shows (aside: this is another tour I plan on eventually covering. but we will get to all of that eventually…). The first song they tackled was GTBT, putting a grassy spin on the typically raging rock classic before heading straight into the only repeat song of the three show run, Paul and Silas. This gives way to a direct transition to the Phish debut of Pig in a Pen which caps the night off and sends everyone home to check those finance boxes about that notion they had over setbreak.

As I said, this show is not the one from the previous night but it does have its highlights and takeaways. For respins, I’d recommend the Antelope, Stashteca, Gin->Lizards, and the encores if you are into the grassy side of the band. And with that in mind, if you have never taken the time to check it out, I highly recommend devoting the hour and twenty minutes required to watch the Phish Bluegrass Sessions video which was filmed along the path of the Fall 1994 tour, mostly by Rev. Jeff Mosier himself. Realistically, the biggest takeaway from this show is the introduction is allowed for that to happen at all considering his sit-in here and the background story which places he, Trey, and Mike playing bluegrass tunes backstage after this show for more than an hour to the crew, family members, and other hangers on before they hit the road and followed the lines headed south to Gainesville, FL. This summary isn’t the place to get into the full dissection of how that impacted the band but knowing that this is the probable starting point for it is important. So chalk another one up to the band finding the connection they can on the back end of a big run. And next we will dive into the band’s first ever shows in Florida which include some things that set the stage for the rest of the tour as it progresses further west.

The Resounding Echoes Grow — Atlanta, GA 02.20.1993

Phish — The Roxy Theatre — Atlanta, GA 02.20.1993

I  Golgi, Foam, Sloth, Possum?Weigh>ATR, Divided, Horse>Silent>Fluffhead, Cavern

II  Wilson>Reba>Tweezer->Walk Away->Tweezer>Glide>Mike’s->MMGAMOIO->Mike’s>H2->VoL->Kung->H2>Weekapaug->Have Mercy->Weekapaug->Rock and Roll All Night Jam->Weekapaug, FEFY>BBJ>HYHU>Terrapin>HYHU->Hood, Reprise

E  Sleeping Monkey

You see that setlist up there? That right there is Phish in a nutshell, particularly the Phish that existed in the early to mid 90s traversing the country time and again building the fanbase we have today one show at a time. By this time they were not quite well known but regarded highly enough in certain regions of the country that they could play a three night run more than 1,000 miles from their home base in Vermont to a sold out crowd and drop that show seemingly without any notice that something like this was coming. Sure, the signs are there if you listen closely enough to the earlier shows on the tour as they warmed up and reconnected after the short break between the 1992 New Year’s Run shows and the Spring 1993 Tour that began about a month later. But up to this point in the year they had not broken out this brand of Phish yet, choosing instead to focus on more straight forward shows that highlighted the songs on the recently released Rift album while interspersing older songs and some new music in as well. Maybe this was the “make up” show for the one at the Variety Playhouse from just under a year prior that got abandoned only a few a cappella numbers into the second set when a flood in the venue caused officials to not allow the band to plug in and play. Trey had hinted at that flood during the previous show’s Colonel Forbin’s Ascent narration but here, seemingly, was the payoff since that night was more about celebrating Fish’s birthday and inviting Jimmy Herring to join in for the back half of the second set than it was about making any kind of larger musical statement. So here it would be, the show that would eventually make this three night run legendary and part of the lasting canon of the band’s legacy, a show that was at least partially nodded to as recently as 07.27.2014 at Merriweather Post Pavilion what with that show’s twists, turns, and returns to the overarching theme of Tweezer while also stringing the majority of the music together without much of a break to to speak of once they took the stage for the second set. Rather than effervesce here about what this night means in the larger scheme let’s dive in and take a look at what really makes this show stand the test of time: the music. Because if nothing else it is the music that tells the story and everything else is simply statistical detail.

First set starts off innocently enough with a few warm up numbers in Golgi, Foam, Sloth before Trey seems to wake up a bit for Possum (this is not to say the playing is off before this just that they really get going as of the Possum). This is your typical straight forward rocking Possum and by now four rocking songs into the set the crowd is fully warmed up as is the band. This brings us to the always fun Weigh and a fine ATR before a Divided that is clean, powerful and pretty… like my wife! Horse>Silent gets us to a perfectly serviceable Fluff and Cavern ends the set which all feels like table setting. There’s nothing bad in this set but nothing great either. You just aren’t going to have a legendary set on your hands when Divided and Fluffhead ‘carry’ the weight of the set. But it is a first set which is meant to focus more on songs than jams anyway so there is nothing wrong with calling the set what it is and realizing that it is all done simply to set the stage for what they get into after the break. It feels like they are just getting ready to drop IT all on us and holy shit are they ever.

Strap in, this second set summary may take a while…

So the second set starts off with one of those slow-ish Wilsons where they drop some secret language (Simpsons here) and a tease (Iron Man – this is just the start of much much much more to come in this set) before ratcheting things up to the peak before working towards Reba and this is a keeper version to be sure. The pace is quick, the playing is tight, and Trey slips in some Woody Woodpecker teasing which works perfectly in this jam that also has some inklings of Stash and Lizards mixed in before they go into Tweezer. From here things start to really get nutty as this one has not only a Low Rider jam but some Das EFX teases (seriously. go spin this and then the Tweezer and you will hear it) before going into Walk Away (tour debut and 159 show bustout!) and then back to Tweezer. Then they segue into Glide which has an undercurrent of Tweezer from Trey as they move through Glide before they go into Mike’s Song (while stretching the Gliiiiiiiiiiide out into the Mike’s intro which is nice). At this point I should probably just start another paragraph because shit gets real.

Mike’s starts up and they are having fun with the lyrics, changing it up a bit and then the next thing you know Trey is playing Reba, then they are playing Tweezer, then Lizards, the Wilson “blap boom”, then a bit of Stash, then back to Mike’s before ho hum I guess we’ll just do MMGAMOIO before going back to Mike’s and then why don’t we just move over into H2 now?Oh and by the way we’re going to do the Vibe of Life with some N2O undercurrents and add in Kung too while we are at it, tease Entrance of the Gladiators and NO2 and then maybe we’ll finish up and head to Paug, ok? Oh, you thought we were done having fun here? Now let’s just go ahead and rip into that Paug before executing a great segue into Have Mercy over the Paug groove (ho hum, only 669 shows between appearances there), working back to Paug, getting into a Rock and Roll All Nite jam (complete with a fan on vocals – in costume as Gene Simmons no less), and then returning to Paug to cap that off. Yeah. So let’s just take a little breather here and reflect on what just happened.

Got your wits about you now? Okay, let’s keep going… FEFY>BBJ>Fish Fun for Terrapin ought to do it. Heck they even throw a tease in there as HYHU gets teased in Terrapin (which also includes a lengthy series of band and crew introductions). 20 minutes later give or take and we are on to a wonderfully open Hood that provides a nice punctuation mark on a fantastic set of phish. This one goes to eleven. Then the Reprise closer really seals the deal and Monkey provides the denouement it typically does for such things in the encore.

So I’m going to tell you straight up that if you are not familiar with this show you really need to just go ahead and spin it straight through. I get if the ’93 sound isn’t your thing and you like the big open jams of later years or cowfunk or ambient washes or whale’d out jams or songs about doing lines with basketball players (that’s what that song’s about, right?) but this? This is canonical phish.This is a brand of phish that many of us cut our teeth on. I have joked in the past that this set is what the 07.27.2014 set II wants to be when it grows up and honestly there’s some truth in it. Sure, they were harkening back to this sort of set with that show but this is what that came from and what people talk about when they refer to ‘turn on a dime’ mastery phish. It is tough to say now how much of this set was planned ahead of time and how much happened in the moment but considering the setting and time period my money is on it all being a spontaneous outpouring of everything up to that point from the band. This is a touchpoint show that can be pointed to as one of those moments when it all came together. The wonderful thing is that for some bands this would be their peak, the thing to which they aspire and a show that they would talk about longingly in the future as ‘that time when it all made sense and just worked’ for them as musicians. But this is Phish we are talking about here and this show is exciting not only for the music it provided us but also that it is just one of many false peaks along the path as they continually challenge themselves and alter their course by pushing the boundaries of what their music can be.

I know I have already written a lot here and I don’t want to go on for too long (too late!) but this show epitomizes Phish in so many ways. Here we have evident the full gamut of Phish with their tight playing, high energy, playfulness, antics, mastery of varied forms of music, ability to alter the show based on the mood of the room, and their eagerness at pushing the envelope. This show not only culminates everything that came before it (recall that the better 1992 shows are high on energy, segues, teases, etc. but a bit light on open jamming) while also pointing openly to the future that lay ahead. It is the type of show you give to people who want to be introduced to the band just to show them the possibilities of what Phish can do. By this time I had enough of a baseline with Phish that when the tapes reached me (pretty quickly, I might add. this show hit heavy circulation very quickly) that I could hear what this show meant in the context of where they were as a band at that stage but if this was your first show or the first tape someone handed to you, honestly, how would you react to it? To my mind, this was the type of thing Trey was always referring to when he talked about people coming to their shows and not being ‘in on the joke’. Just imagine having no baseline for this band and having something like this be your entry point. It would be totally polarizing but hopefully if you are in the right frame of mind could catapult you into the world we all inhabit. This is truly the type of tape I would give to a friend to see if they “get it” when they ask what phish is “really” about (back in the day – now that story is different).

And if this type of show isn’t your thing? That’s fine. We all came into the scene at different stages and for that reason perhaps appreciate different aspects of what make the band what they are to us. But even if this isn’t your favorite flavor of Phish you have to realize the significance not only of what this set means musically but also in the larger picture of where they were headed soon after this. The jams would only get bigger and more open from here but the spirit of this show shines forth in other classics that came after it such as 05.07.1994 (Bomb Factory, of course), 06.22.1994 (Columbus, OH), 07.13.1994 (Patterson, NY), 12.01.1994 (Salem, OR), 12.14.1995 (Binghamton, NY), 06.27.2010 (Merriweather Post Pavilion), and the aforementioned 07.27.2014 (also MPP). It would eventually pave the way for the four song set era where sets generally did not have much of a stop if at all in getting through those massive jam vehicles. Now it is yet another tool in the arsenal that they can call on or ‘get to’ when pushing the music forward. And having such a versatile band is one of the things that attracts us to following them, is it not? I mean, who would want to go see basically the same show time and again year after year? That’s just boring.

You have read more than enough on this topic so with that I will end this post. If you do not yet have this show memorized I strongly urge you to get on that homework. There are much worse things you could do with your time than to revel in the jaw-dropping greatness of what still stands as one of the top shows the band has ever played.

The Room Begins to Spin — Atlanta, GA 02.19.1993

Phish — The Roxy Theatre — Atlanta, GA 02.19.1993

I  Cup, Rift, Melt, Fee->Maze, Forbin’s>Mockingbird>Sparkle, MFMF, Poor Heart>Bowie->Moby Dick>Bowie

II  Jim, Ice, Paul & Silas, YEM>Ya Mar, BBJ, Lawn Boy, Funky Bitch, MSO, HYHU>Love You, HYHU, Llama, Grace

E  Bag

Ah, the last (of two) of Fish’s birthday shows… and the first of what would become quite a notable run in the band’s history — one that was eventually released as a high quality boxset for you to enjoy. Incidentally, this would be the first three show run at any single venue by the band since 1990 (not including the three shows at the Greek in August ’92 when they opened for Santana each night) when they did it twice: The Front in Burlington, VT (03.09-11.1990) and The Inferno in Steamboat Springs, CO (04.12-14.1990). Let me just start out by saying that the thirteen shows on the tour that lead up to this run all pretty much pale overall in comparison to what happens here. Sure, there are individual jams that might outpace some of the stuff here (and honestly this first night is probably the weakest in overall jamming considering it was the Fish birthday party and Herring sit-in night) but from the very start you can tell they mean business. Maybe they are finally warmed up, maybe it is the presence of other great musicians in the room, maybe it is Fish’s birthday, or maybe it is something else, but whatever it is they have IT here. So let’s get down to it, shall we?

The first set kicks off with Cup and this is definitely the best version of the song yet with Trey going big with his solo and Page really giving the baby grand the business. This carries over into Rift, the oft played number that hasn’t really clicked much this tour. This is definitely being used as a warm up tune here but Trey is already on fire, totally taking it where he wants without any inklings of borked notes or missed opportunity. Then we get a fast paced Melt that has a lot of Trey out in front, bending notes in ways that hint at where this song is destined to go in a few short months. But the real takeaway here is a lead line Trey adds on the journey back towards the main theme that takes this thing next level. There really is a lot packed into this relatively short version. Fee is next and while ‘normal’ has a nice segue into a positively smoking shredder Maze. Trey is hitting all the notes tonight and this Maze is Trza personified. Then we get a fantastic Forbin narration that starts as a callback to the last time they were in Atlanta and got flooded out of the Variety Playhouse (which may be another reason they are taking it up a notch) but then goes to something else entirely in the way the good Trey stories do before a beaut of a Mockingbird completes the tale (listen for a ‘Charge!’ tease in the Mockingbird). Sparkle and MFMF come in next and then there’s a Poor heart that again showcases just how on point Trey is this night. I can’t believe I’m even calling out Poor Heart but here we are. But now we get to the meat which is the set closing Bowie->Moby Dick>Bowie which starts out with some fun teases (Jingle Jangle Jingle, Happy Birthday, Moby Dick, Happy Trails), birthday shoutouts, and whatnot before heading into the debut of Moby Dick (with vacuum, natch) and then they get into the Bowie itself for a very nice jam and some more Moby Dickery in the wrap up of Bowie. Great capper to that set and we are left wanting more as we head to the setbreak to check out the Spanish Baroque architecture of this old venue.

Second set starts out with a fine example of where Jim is at this stage (which is still about a month from going ‘away from script’) but again Trey is exerting his clear influence on this night. Then we get the fourth Ice to follow Jim on this tour (and it won’t be the last) in a fairly standard version (another tune that didn’t get weird until a bit later). Quick dip in the bluegrass for Paul & Silas and then a midset YEM which is well played but without any major takeways other than “yeah, that was pretty nice”. A fun Ya Mar with Mike babble chanting and a ‘Happy Birthday’ tease is next followed by BBJ (Charge tease) and Lawn Boy with Page noting the presence of his parents in the crowd before we get to Jimmy Herring joining the fray for the remainder of the set. First up is Funky Bitch and Trey and Jimmy trade solos in a fiery version where they seem to be checking each other out a bit. MSO is up next and Jimmy gets a solo before they cut it to bring Fish out for Love You where, along with Fish beginning a joke of introducing Jimmy Herring repeatedly for the rest of the show and another ‘Happy Birthday’ tease, Jimmy gets a solo and Fish is presented with a Flavor Flav style neck clock to help him get to the bus on time as is part of the running bet thing this tour (there is no mention of what the bet is up to at this stage though). There’s also some fun in trying to get Col. Bruce Hampton up on stage but that doesn’t happen so we will just move on then. After all of this fun you get a seriously shredded Llama with Page, Jimmy, and Trey all taking solos before an a cappella Grace closer and then the bustout Bag (84 shows woo!) encore that was apparently a gift for someone else’s birthday who they may have met the night before or something. I don’t know. Go check the show notes on .net or .com for more on that ‘Hack’.

Overall this is clearly one of the better shows they have played on the ’93 tour so far and shows they are hitting stride in fine fashion. As said above, this is not the big jam show if you are looking for that but the playing is sharp, the band is clearly having a great time, the sit-in does not detract from the vibe of the show at all (in fact it probably adds to it), and you can tell they are settling in for bigger things to come from this weekend run. Interestingly enough, outside of YEM there really isn’t a big vehicle in the second set, something that will bear fruit for us in the next show, one that is really where the legend of this run grew and one of those shows that you can point to as a taking off moment for both the band and scene in general. The takeaways here are probably the Melt, Bowie->Moby Dick>Bowie and maybe Llama but this one is more than the sum of its parts. Go spin it for Fish’s sake as he hasn’t gotten a birthday show since this one.

And There I Saw to My Surprise — Two Nights at the Roseland — New York, NY 02.05-06.1993

Originally I was going to separate these two shows into separate posts but it kind of makes sense to group them together here, considering this was the first “stand” the band played on the Spring ’93 Tour. I’ll handle each show in turn and then we will get to the big picture as well. But I’d be remiss to not first note that this classic venue that was once a skating arena is no more, having closed in April 2014 (after Lady Gaga had the final residency) to make way for yet another 50+ story building here in Midtown. Progress never sleeps, right? With that, let’s strap in because this one is a tad lengthy…

Phish — Roseland Ballroom — New York, NY 02.05.1993

I  Llama, Guelah, Rift, Melt, Sparkle, PYITE, IDK, Poor Heart>Reba, Bowie->Vibe of Life->Bowie

II  Curtain>Tweezer, Horse>Silent, Paul & Silas, Ice, YEM, HYHU>Love You>HYHU, Coil, Reprise

E  Grace, Cup

On the first night of their stop in New York City Phish opened up with a fiery Llama that gets the rowdy crowd going in what will eventually end up being one of those “Page Shows” we used to note excitedly while filing out of the room back in the day. Guelah then slides into its familiar second song first set position (get used to it. this song was played in 30 of the 71 shows that make up the spring tour) before we have Rift, a tune that benefits well here from Page’s new baby grand piano. Next up is the first opportunity for the band to stretch their metaphorical legs a bit with Melt but this one is wholly in bounds and pretty short at that. The renaissance for this song was still about two months away and we will get to listen to that all happen on stage as we move forward here. A fast Sparkle then precedes a massive bustout of PYITE, a tune that had gone 414 shows between appearances. This version is a tad shaky which isn’t really surprising all things reconsidered, but its appearance is notable as they would then begin a pattern of alternating this song and Landlady (not always in consecutive shows). It is an odd thing to have them playing what amounts to two pieces of the same thing concurrently as in most cases when they have had songs that eventually became larger suites (think Fluffhead>Fluff’s Travels with all of the various parts that make it up — Clod, Who Do? We Do!, The Chase, etc.) they ceased to play the parts once the whole had been begotten. Quite frankly, I know there are many who would love the return of the freestanding Landlady but that is a discussion for the comment section. Note that during this version Trey takes the time to teach the crowd The Storm Dance and even notes that the faster playing they typically use for Landlady messes him up a tad. IDK (“Tubs” “Beast Boy” actually attempts to play an oversized picture of Otis Redding, which obviously does not translate well to the tape and seems to just confuse the crowd) and Poor Heart serve as filler in this set in getting us to the first Reba of the year, one that takes a patient path through the jam segment with Trey adding color to the relaxed vibe of the rhythm section. This is followed by the set-closing Bowie which includes some SL (Random Note, All Fall Down) as well as a little taste of Storytime with Trey as they throw the Vibration of Life in the mix before leaving the Bowie intro. This is only the fifth (of 22 total) time they evoked the green beams of the universal vibration of life so it doesn’t really get the reception I think Trey was seeking but it does provide a nice interlude upon which to lay down those aforementioned secret language cues. From here we get the balance of the Bowie (complete with the echo vocalization that the song now lacks) and a Bowie jam that gets out there in that way we love with the band toying around with the rhythm of the jam as they work their way towards the big finish. And with that we are off to setbreak.

This night the second set would kick off with the beloved old school combo of Curtain>Tweezer and this version is a keeper at that. After nailing the Curtain they take the Tweezer out for a bit in a jam that hints heavily at ‘Funkytown’ at times. Ok, so maybe this isn’t a ’95 mindfuck Tweezer jam or a ’98-99 space odyssey but it is worth your time. Horse>Silent, P&S provide a bit of a break here before they dive back into the bigger stuff with a nice Page-led Ice and eventually YEM. And let’s just note here that you will see an obvious pattern form over this tour where the major jam vehicles alternate on a 2-3 show basis with Mike’s Groove and perhaps a “minor” vehicle such as Reba or Stash typically being played opposite of Tweezer and YEM. Obviously they break the pattern occasionally — and often this results in the more notable set/show having been played — but for the most part this is the format we have (along with some other patterns more related to the straight ahead tunes. Keep in mind that this is before the true “open jam era” that would begin in earnest later in ’93 and really springing to life in ’94 and ’95 so a song like Weekapaug actually did have some notably unique jams that could almost carry the set which is relevant when simply perusing these setlists and trying to make comparisons to the way the songs are played today. But let’s get back to that second set here…

From the first notes of YEM it is apparent that this is a song many came to hear. The crowd immediately provides positive feedback to the band and the band responds in kind with an engaging and complete take on the composed section of the song, particularly with a stunning ‘Nirvana’ section and a great Bass & Drums that leads to another interesting VJ that culminates with the choir ending. Page rides this choir theme on the organ before starting up HYHU and Fish then comes to the front of the stage for his pretty much nightly thing to sing Love You and suck some vac while also bantering about the crew (notably, he calls Brad the “chairman of the boards” since he is sitting in a chair by the soundboard, a nickname that will eventually be linked to Page). Once he is back at the kit we get the first Squirming Coil of the tour and here is where Page really gets to use his new toy to great effect, stretching out the end solo as he tinkles away at the keys of his real live actual piano. But I will say that whoever thought it was a good idea to start a synchronized clap thing during Page’s solo really needs to reevaluate that line of thinking. There will be many instances of crowd-generated clap routines over the course of this tour but this might be the most oddly placed one. At least the others accompany the song to some degree. Geez. The expected Reprise closer comes next and then we get those two new tunes again for the Amazing Grace, Loving Cup encore combo.

This is, largely, one of those shows that would today be referred to as an “energy” show where the jamming is limited but the songs are played well and the crowd is fully engaged. But if we do that then we will have people arguing back and forth because one person was there and feels the show is getting slighted by those only listening on tape and surely they don’t get what happened that night and then there will be some negative comment that hurts someone’s feelings about what was a transformative experience for them and then we have to do the whole dance around Attendance Bias and whatnot. Honestly, I’d like to avoid that aspect of modern phishlife if we can so we will just move right along then to tell you that the takeaways from this first night at the Roseland are Reba, Bowie->VOL->Bowie, Curtain>Tweezer (because why avoid the introducing piece?), YEM, and Coil.

Oh, and because we are here we should also note that after the show Mike and Trey went over to The Ritz to join in on what would henceforth be known as The Ritz Power Jam to help out on a few tunes at the end of the second set. They would be part of Spanish Moon, Watchtower, and the Gloria encore. Really, if you have never heard this tape check it out. Warren Haynes, John Popper, Noel Redding, Leland Schliefer, Chuck Leavell, Bernie Worrell, Jaimoe, Jerome Brailey, and Marc Quinones make up the band. Add in the Trey/Mike + DMB on Watchtower and there’s a heck of a lot of musicians involved. I definitely wore out the tapes on that one way back when.

Now on to night two!

Phish — Roseland Ballroom — New York, NY 02.06.1993

I  Golgi, Foam, Wilson, MFMF, Maze, Horn, Divided, Lawn Boy, Wedge, Bouncin’>Antelope

II  CDT, Mound, Stash, Adeline, ATR, Mike’s>H2>Paug, Lifeboy, Uncle Pen, BBJ, HYHU>Lengthwise>Buried Alive, Possum

E  Fire

If the Friday night show was an “energy” affair, then this one would definitely be considered the “Saturday Night Special”. This is also the fourth night (of five total) in a row that they played and even though this is a much younger band at the start of the tour it does show a bit that they were a tad weary by the time they hit the stage for this one (and the late night sit-ins and other partying that occurs in NYC surely had some impact as well). Now, these five night runs weren’t rare at this time so after a while you just accept that they are going to happen and keep that in mind for perspective but as this is a much younger band they don’t seem to have a lasting impact or are always at play when trying to figure out why the band isn’t connecting as well as on other nights.

With all of that said, this is still a solid outing for the band for Spring ’93 showcasing the variety of the songbook, the high standard level of playing, and some guest sit-ins taboot taboot. Things get off well enough with the first Golgi of the year and a second song Foam (pretty much this song’s standard slot when not occupied by Guelah) that brings things up a bit in the energy department before we have the first Wilson of tour. Now, if you know your phishtory you know that this is pre-crowd involvement for this song (that really didn’t take off until later with the 12.30.94 version being The Moment for the song — and the version that ended up on A Live One) so it is quite subdued from the song we know today as the bombastic anthem it has become. There’s even room for some SL (Random Note, Simpsons) in the pause before the “blap boom” ending section. Next up is MFMF and its old acoustic intro before a shredder Maze that features a nice organ solo from Page before Trey takes a few laps around the fretboard. Horn (finally!) makes its appearance as one of the last Rift songs to be played on this tour (remember, Weigh is still a couple of shows away and Mound would show up later one this night) before a quite well received Divided fills the room. Lawn Boy (with Trey taking the solo) and Bouncin’ sandwich a very nice take on Wedge where Page really shines on the piano, bringing this “slow” version closer to the modern iteration of the song. Finally, a rousing Antelope sends everyone to the setbreak on a high note to discuss current events and various forms of literature and other art while waiting in line with the other freaks to unload their bladders.

The second frame starts with CDT (similar to two shows ago) before the first Mound of the year pops up to keep things quirky. Then a now-rare second set Stash fills the third slot and if you are thinking “holy shit! second set stash! that must jam!” then you would be largely incorrect as this one stays at home for the most part, though they do build some nice T&R along the way. Oddly, they take things way down next for a mic’d take on Sweet Adeline and then ATR before ratcheting it back up for the obvious Mike’s Groove we knew was coming. Things start of hilariously enough with Mike doing the “this is MY song” bit before they take the jam out for a dark turn or two. A somewhat out of tune Hydrogen is next before they dive headlong into a dynamic Weekapaug that includes an extra verse and some type II jamming, giving a bit of a glimpse into where this song was at the time considering that in some cases the Paug jam could elevate a set in a way the rote rocker quite simply does not do anymore. Next we get the second Lifeboy ever and this one is maybe a little more poignant that the debut but still lacks the deep pathos this song would deliver as it became a more regular member of the rotation. A quick run through Uncle Pen precedes Fish Fun Time which on this night includes Fish refusing to tell the Prison Joke (don’t worry, it’ll come out later in the tour) and a few rounds of Lengthwise including a verse about burning your finger from holding up a lighter for too long before they transition directly into Buried Alive. John Popper comes out to add flavor on this tune and stays on through the set closing Possum and here I will just say that the subject of the relative merits of sit-ins is on full display here. Back in this time Popper was a big gun on the scene (particularly in NYC and the area) so it was not unusual for him to join in here. What you get here is largely what we all now know his harmonica playing to be which is to say that some appreciate it and others really don’t. I’ll argue that he adds to the Possum but really just clouds the issue a bit on Buried Alive. Then for the encore the debate can go further as they start up Fire only to stop twice after jokingly not being able to play the song before they bring out Noel Redding to sit in on bass. Popper is also there (Trey gives him the first solo) and Mike gives way to join Page on the keyboards and while including one of the original players on the song it is just an okay take without any major benefit in the long run, as in “holy crap have you ever heard that time they did Fire with Noel Redding and John Popper?!?” yeah, it’s fun to hear but just doesn’t really elevate much. So then everyone is off into the night to find other nefarious goings on to attend to with their Phish buzz in full effect. Which is interesting to joke about considering that Fish would sit in with Shockra over at The Wetlands for a couple of songs, playing vac on one and playing drums while reading from a Sun Ra book on another. They also encored with Fire which is nice. But that’s all really just anecdotally relevant to the larger topic anyway.

For your takeaways on this night let’s include The Wedge, Weekapaug, and that Possum. Sure, there aren’t a lot of high highs here but the tour is early…

— —

So where does this stand put us? These two shows point out the benefit of a band that plays and practices together a lot, as the playing is quite strong and energetic no matter what song they are playing. In a way, the playing is so sharp that when they do slip up it is almost UNnoticeable as it almost seems planned (if that makes sense). Part of this is the youthfulness of the band and their mastery of both instrument and the music being played but a lot of it is simply the level of connection and communication they have forged amongst each other. There is still a long upward trajectory to be heard on this tour but here only four shows in it is clear that the band is feeling good and sharing in the energy their fans push back to them. There is excitement in knowing what is to come here as these shows don’t even really scratch the surface of where we will be in a few short months. And that is a wonderful thing to look forward to…