Received all our Phish shirts a couple of days ago - can't wait for our family Christmas morning picture sporting Phish. I been listening to them for over 25 years and I finally have an actual Phish shirt...
Yeah, I'm going "phishing" yeah, that's it! I actually "smuggled" a Canadian with an expired US Visa back into the US after the 5-22-94 Phish show in Vancouver. We had all driven up together (in my car). My friend in question was (and still is, ha ha) Canadian, living in the US for work. Anyway yeah on the way back he was like, 'uh, I think my Visa is expired I might not be able to get back into the US, what should we do...?' Me: crouch down on the floor in the back seat and pull those blankets over you Luckily, we were more or less waved through.... And, yes, I was at the 2 July '97 Amsterdam shows. Good times. Back of the worm, indeed. That was one heckuva show to trip at!!!
Heads up: tomorrow, Jambase will be premiering official audio of the 30-minute "otherworldly" Simple from 12/9/97.
Here's a link to that Simple. Be-Bophones! https://www.jambase.com/article/exc...ays-30-minute-simple-bryce-jordan-center-1997
I was at that show. I didn't think it was great so I was surprised when they released it. There are subtleties I like on the CD though.
I worked there from 2006 through 2012. Always on the east lawn right before you get into the pavilion.
Helping Friendly Podcast The latest episode of the Helping Friendly Podcast focuses on two great fall '97 shows (12/2 & 12/3 - Philadelphia) and is a great listen. The guys are fun to listen to and they certainly know their stuff. They put a lot of work into these podcasts and I greatly appreciate being able to listen.
Right On. I saw my first show the same week....hard to believe (in some ways) it's been 25 years. PHISH, THURSDAY 12/10/1992 STATE THEATER Kalamazoo, MI Soundcheck: Blues Jam, The Wedge, Dog Log SET 1: Golgi Apparatus, Llama, Foam, Fee[1] > Poor Heart > Split Open and Melt, I Didn't Know[2] > All Things Reconsidered[3], Reba,Sweet Adeline[4], Cavern SET 2: Rift, Tweezer > Tela > My Sweet One > Big Ball Jam > Maze, Glide, You Enjoy Myself[5], Hold Your Head Up > Love You > Hold Your Head Up, I Walk the Line, The Oh Kee Pa Ceremony > Suzy Greenberg ENCORE: Bold As Love, Carolina[4], Tweezer Reprise [1] Trey sang verses through megaphone. [2] Fish on Madonna washboard. [3] Simpsons, Random Note, and Aw ****! signals. [4] Without microphones. [5] Extended jam segment of duets, first Trey and Fish, then Page and Mike. Trey sang the verses of Fee through a megaphone. I Didn’t Know featured a Madonna washboard solo from Fish. All Things Reconsidered was introduced by Trey as “the variation on NPR’s All Things Considered theme” and featured Simpsons, Random Note and Aw ****! signals. Sweet Adeline and Carolina were performed without microphones. YEM included an Odd Couple theme tease and an extended jam segment of duets, first Trey and Fish, then Page and Mike. Fish introduced Mike as "The Man in Black" after I Walk the Line. The Wedge from the soundcheck incorporated elements of I Want You (She's So Heavy).
I was not at those two shows, but saw a bunch around that time, the two Port Chester Capitol Theater shows in late November and then the new year's run at the New Haven Palace Theater, Springfield, and Boston. They were playing at such a high level and with so much energy back then... (That's not a knock on recent shows, they are a mature and different band, but still excellent. I didn't see them this year due to lack of Bay Area shows, but the shows I caught in 2014-2016 in particular were outstanding).
I really enjoyed my first few shows but felt like Summer of 93, specifically August, was when they went technicolor. They talked about the SOAM from 4/21/93 (the one on Hoist) being the break through for them. At that point they broke through their own limitations in their collective mind of what Phish could be and realized that Phish could be anything. Absolute freedom, that combined with the momentum they had going in terms of their growth snowballed into the perfect storm. 93/94 they were on a run very analogous to an up and coming sports team on the run towards their first championship. Confidence +excitement + momentum. Also I'm of the opinion that 29 on the cusp of 30 is a magic age/sweet spot. Trey turned 30 in 94, Jerry in 72. Based on these 2 gents as a case study for exploratory improvisational guitar skills , It's a good age where there is still plenty of youth/balls/aggressiveness combined with a bit of knowledge and wisdom, driving towards perfect goldie locks playing. Last unrelated thought: 6/26/95 SPAC YEM. Came up on shuffle during my commute last night. First time I've ever locked in and focused on that one. 95 was one of the finest years for YEM and this version is a true highlight. I very quickly lost any inhibition in terms of my outwardly appearance to fellow commuters. If you're looking for inspiration, check this one out.
Good point. I saw several shows in '93, but only one in August, and then didn't see any until mid-'95, the longest gap I had between shows until when I lost interest for several years from '99-'09 (in part because the band arguably lost nterest as well). However, the later '93 and especially '94 shows that I've heard are great. That era is also when they really learned to play bigger places, which I couldn't have envisioned working as well with the '92 approach.
I was holding off until I bought the CDs from LivePhish, but don't have the funds for a little bit, so I finally decided to jump in and start streaming audience copies of the Baker's Dozen shows while at work today - haven't heard anything from the run until now. Just wrapping up first set of night 1 right now.
I was at July 28/29 of Bakers this summer, and I’m heading back to MSG for the New Years run. The bug seems to have bitten me once again 25years on...old habits die hard....