Songs: Simple [Dog Gone Blog]
The mind of Mike Gordon works in strange ways. His unpredictable behavior resonates in his playing, creating a spontaneous style that can lead a jam to places never thought possible. Often, Mike will forge a brand new song from thin air simply by altering the pattern of his notes. One of these such songs that actually came to life is “Simple”, one of my personal favorite Phish songs.
Phish: 04/04/1994 II SBD Burlington, VT
Phish opened their ‘94 Spring Tour with a special show at the Flynn in Burlington that featured a version of the Giant Country Horns. This torrent features a SBD recording of the second set of that show - ScottyB
Phish: 03/09/1991 AUD UNCIRCULATED New Orleans, LA
Charlie Dirksen has just circulated this previously uncirculated gem of a show from 1991. Charlie notes “some traditional analog cassette flaws in this recording, and at inopportune times.”
Phish: 08/04/1996 DAUD UNCIRCULATED Morrison, CO
Taper Scott Bernstein’s BARN archival release series continues with his recording of the first night of the Red Rocks ‘96 run. My highlights this night were the Reba, the Split and watching Page play with the Theremin. - ScottyB
Venues: The Wild Cards of Summer [Phish Thoughts]
Lakewood Amphitheatre – Atlanta, GA
Having hosted no less than eight Phish shows between 1995 and 2003, Lakewood has seen more than its fair share of epic jams. Several Lakewood highlights need no introduction – 6.15.95’s “David Bowie,” 7.23.97’s “Ghost,” considered one of the all-time greats, the legendary “Ghost > Slave” from July 4, 1999, and the first set “Tweezer” of 6.24.00. And these are just the creme de la creme.
From The Archives: Trey Interview - Guitar Player Sept. 1994 [OhKeePah]
Is there anything that Phish would never do?
Everybody in this band is willing to try anything. There are times when one person can’t deal with it and the other three can. We just say, “Okay. We won’t do that then.” People don’t say that unless they really mean it. Some songs I’ve written were just bad. I’d tell Page, “Sing this,” and he would. Most people would say, “I’m not going to sing that”. We have this philosophy, “I’m not going to diss it until I try it.” I would never say never. I don’t like that word.
Trey Anastasio: Spring Tour 1999 DAUD Various
Yesterday, Duanebase and Jason Sobel seeded the best available source of each Trey Anastasio Spring Tour 1999 show on bt.etree.org. This tour featured Trey solo for the first set and backed by Tony and Russ for the second set. If you’re only going to download a few shows, I’d recommend Albany and St. Louis. - ScottyB
Gear: Trey’s Open Tunings [Dog Gone Blog]
“Time Turns Elastic” is the next step in this compositional technique. Pushing forward in new directions, Trey landed on a very obscure tuning in which to compose his newest masterpiece. “TTE” is written in ‘open C6/9′ tuning (C-G-C-E-A-C), which sounds exactly as complex as it is.
Remembrances: A Subtle Shift - Fall 1998 [Phish Thoughts]
After a full year of concentrating almost exclusively on collaborative band grooves, Fall ‘98 represented a shift towards a new style of play for Phish. Come the end of summer and beginning of fall, the band began to infuse layered “ambient” improv into their repertoire.
Phish: 05/21/1988 UNCIRCULATED Burlington, VT
Notes:
-Prior to Letter to Jimmy Page, Trey announced that per “Del’s” request, they were going to play Letter to Jimmy Page as a band, and then Fish would play it by himself (telling the crowd that Fish didn’t know it)
-YEM was dedicated to Del
-This show included the first known Phish performance of St. Thomas.
-La Grange was dedicated to Mike.
-Note that Trey refers to Tela as a debut at this show, though it actually debuted on 3/12/88.
-Note the jam in this Tela sounds an aweful lot like Split Open and Melt.
-Big Leg Emma was played for the first time since May 3, 1985 (100 shows).*Caveat Emptor*
- Source info is questionable. This is what was on the DAT.
- The show is riddled with cuts. I crossfaded most all of them. Some were left as-is.
- Set 3 is loaded with digital errors. I ran a couple of de-click and de-crackle plugins to lessen the harshness of the errors. This is by no means perfect, but here it is at long last.
TV: Lost Season 6 Preview - Phish Style [Hidden Track]
Jack – Fluffhead
“He’s sure got some powerful pills, oh yeah.”
Certainly, we all expect a big heroic ending from Jack in the final episode akin to the climax from Fluffhead, whereby he saves the Losties and squares off against the Others. But in our mind, Jack’s finest hour came as Future Jack when melted down, grew a playoff beard, and got hooked on Brett Favres.
Songs: Why Reba Remains on My 4GB iPod [Creative Loafing]
Anyway, I always liked one of the middle sections of “Reba” (starts around 4:51 on the YouTube version) where the guitar and keyboard lock into a strange melody over the bass. It’s a kind of two-part invention with drums. When they reach the end of the section, the repeat it, only now with the guitar two beats behind, creating a two-part invention with an additional canon (a “chase,” like “Row, Row, Row Your Boat”) between the piano and guitar. I transcribed this section, so you can follow along if you are so inclined.
Cactus: From the Archives - Mike Gordon’s Bass Player Interview [Oh Kee Pah Blog]
How did the Hampton shows go?We might have been trying to prove something on the first night. We started with “Fluffhead” and played a lot of other orchestrated material, so it was a little difficult to get the groove going. I was surprised at how much I loved the other two nights. They were the highest-energy concerts I have ever experienced—period.
Official Releases: New Live Phish - St. Mike’s ‘92 [Hidden Track]
Nearly 11 months after the release of the Clifford Ball DVDs, the LivePhish archive has finally opened again with the release of a show from November 19, 1992 at St. Mike’s College in Colchester, VT. Phish archivist Kevin Shapiro hinted at this show’s release when he played the epic Divided Sky from 11/19/92 during one of his From The Archives radio shows at Festival 8.
Trivia: Trippy Phish Phacts [Valley Advocate]
- Page McConnell’s father was the co-inventor of Tylenol.
- Trey Anastasio was raised within walking distance of Princeton University campus, which he used as his second home. Most Phish songs are a collaboration with lyricist Tom Marshall, a boyhood friend from Princeton.
- Trey Anastasio’s full name is Ernest Joseph Anastasio III (thus “Trey”).
- Phish Food (described as “Chocolate Ice Cream with Gooey Marshmallow & Caramel Swirls & Fudge Fish”) is the third highest-selling Ben & Jerry’s flavor. The proceeds from the sales of this flavor have raised millions of dollars to help the fish in Lake Champlain.
Phish: 10/22/1995 DAUD Champaign, IL
If you haven’t heard the Catapult-> The Curtain-> Tweezer-> Makisupa Policeman-> Big Black Furry Creature From Mars, you need to download and listen to this show ASAP. - ScottyB
The Biography: Something Phishy [Valley Advocate]
“No marriage could survive the amount of time these guys have spent together,” said Puterbaugh, laughing. “It was clear to me after getting to know them that their very deep bond of friendship is the key to the whole thing. They just like being around each other. Trey has often said that his favorite time with Phish is rehearsing with the other three guys, the joking, story swapping, brainstorming, just the four of them. They have a great chemistry.”
Phish: 08/14/1996 DAUD Hershey, PA
IMO, one of the more under-rated Phish shows of all-time. Be sure to check out the nasty post-Wilson jam, the gorgeous Reba and intense Tweezer. - ScottyB
Remembrances: Sleeper Shows Pt. 3 [Dog Gone Blog]
1994.10.18 Vanderbilt University Memorial Gym, Nashville, TN
This show is somewhat better known for its ripping second set “Llama” featuring Bela Fleck. However, few ever mention the other highlights from this show – including one of the finest versions of “Reba” from ‘94 (a bold claim). Touring through the south, the band made a stop in Vanderbilt’s gymnasium, leaving behind a show with several gems worthy of mention.
The show kicks off with an embryonic version of “Simple”, abbreviated yet powerful. “My Friend”, a potent opener in its own, follows, adding to the early energy. The first set is well played throughout, with a particularly dark “Stash” placed right in the middle.
Cactus: Mike Gordon Announces March Tour [Hidden Track]
I guess the members of Phish aren’t into spending too much time off the road these days, as we’ve got a second band member hitting the road this winter. Phish bassist Mike Gordon has just announced an eight show run with his solo band that kicks off on March 5 at the tiny Revolution Hall in Troy, NY. Tickets for all eight shows are currently on-sale now through a real-time fan pre-sale at mikegordontickets.rlc.net.
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