Tag: burlington

Shows #50 and 51: 5/23-24/88

Monday, 05/23/1988
Nectar’s, Burlington, VT

Set 1: Take the ‘A’ Train, Golgi Apparatus, You Enjoy Myself, Rocky Top, Light Up Or Leave Me Alone, I Didn’t Know[1], Peaches en Regalia > Possum, Good Times Bad Times

[1] Fish on trombone.

On today’s post, we get the rest of the 3 night run started at the last show. The last show’s date waffled between the 21st and the 22nd. Evidence from this recording of 5/23 points towards 5/22 being the correct date. Phish.com reflects this but Phish.net does not. During 5/23 at the start of “You Enjoy Myself”, Del Martin makes a request and the band reminds him they played a request for him last night. “Last request, we’re even gonna give you! After you graduate from graduate school, man. Del, if you get a Masters degree, we’ll play another request for you, ” says Trey. Which makes me wonder if Del Martin ever did go to graduate school? Did he get another request? After he allegedly fled with some of the 1980s master tapes, does the band even talk to him anymore? Trey and Del seemed to be such great friends during these recordings. I wonder what his story is. That’d be a great article to work on and blow wide open. Other than that nugget, not a lot of highlights here. A flubbed but roaming “You Enjoy Myself”, a tight “Light Up or Leave Me Alone”, and a solid “Possum” are the things to listen to here but you can really just focus on the next night.

Tuesday, 05/24/1988
Nectar’s, Burlington, VT

Set 1: The Curtain With, Rocky Top, Funky Bitch, Alumni Blues > Letter to Jimmy Page> Alumni Blues, Peaches en Regalia, Golgi Apparatus, Sneakin’ Sally Through the Alley,Suzy Greenberg, Fire

Set 2: Jesus Just Left Chicago, Fluffhead > Whipping Post

Set 3: Ya Mar[1] -> Jam[1] > Halley’s Comet[2] > The Sloth, I Didn’t Know[3], La Grange,Fee, I Know a Little, Big Black Furry Creature from Mars, Corinna, Harpua, Run Like an Antelope

[1] Jah Roy on vocals.
[2] Richard Wright on vocals.
[3] Richard Wright on drums, Fish on trombone.

Teases:
· Theme from The Flintstones tease in Big Black Furry Creature from Mars
· One Love quote in Jam

Phish today is known as a jamband but on these early tapes, while they are great improvisers, I really don’t get the meandering feeling of a jam band. Most people wouldn’t recognize this band with how short the playing is. When people today complain that Phish “doesn’t jam enough”, I kind of laugh to myself because Phish is just being Phish. They’ve always just been a very tight rock band that happens to take things for a walk now and then. However if you want to hear early leanings of the band’s ability to jam then 5/24/88 is a show for you. A strong “The Curtain With” kicks off the show in grand style. The outro jam is a must listen. “Rocky Top” also has a strong early version here. This Nectar’s run really solidifies the song as a staple of the Phish catalog and the earliest of the band’s bluegrass leanings. “Here’s one for this guy right over here!,” says Trey. “Oh yeah, hey you!,” says Mike. “Way for you to show up man!” We’ll never know who that is but he’s getting a “Peaches en Regalia” and maybe some shots it sounds like. Nothing like a call out from the band. “Sneakin’ Sally” also gets loose and is well played.

Second set is the real highlight here. The band kicks off “Jesus Just Left Chicago” and Mike asks the band to “take it down” and to “take it down again” even though the band is playing the song about as slow as it can without falling apart. It also is real quiet below Page’s vocals. It as if they want to make it as dirty as possible. Page plays a great solo going from piano to organ. He sings another verse and then it’s time for Trey to ale over and he lifts the band back up to heights, playing a wailing solo. There are great moments of sustain in “Slave to the Traffic Light” and “Divided Sky” but Trey here is just urging so much out of his guitar, it’s a must hear. It’s every bit as good as the vaunted “Jesus” from Slip, Stitch, and Pass. Mike follows it up with “We’re gonna slow it down a bit. I’d like to thank Kevin, the owner oft his space for letting me use it tonight,” which is weird considering the gig is at Nectar’s, owned by a man named Nectar at the time. Maybe it’s a reference to another show. A really solid “Fluffhead” follows it up. Then, the band gets lost with “Whipping Post”. It starts off innocent enough with a basic reading of the tune but it starts to go off the rails slowly. It never goes type II, leaving the structure of the song. If this was 1997, it might have but for a huge Type I jam, this is stellar. It even almost breaks down at about the 8 minute mark with Trey playing some really dissonant playing in and out of time. Fishman goes nuts for the whole 26 minutes with John Bonham-like enthusiasm. He even has breaks to let Trey show off. The band even brings it down for another verse and then slowly builds to another screaming jam. A milepost on the journey of Phish. Trey announces a break and that’s it. A 3-song second set. Unprecedented. Even the set containing the longest Phish jam ever, 11/29/97 Runaway Jam, was a 5 song set. Whoa.

But they weren’t done yet. They fire up “Ya Mar” for a danceable third set opener. They then bring Jah Roy of Lamsbread on stage and he leads the band into a reggae medley, the centerpiece of which is a cover of Bob Marley’s “One Love”. This is not listed as a song played on Phish.net but upon hearing this, I feel like it should be. The whole band even gets into the call and response part of the song and feels as much a cover as “Cannonball” from the 5/7/94 Tweezerfest. Another guest comes up int he form of Nancy to play his two songs. He helps with vocals on “Halley’s Comet” but the song really is notable for the killer segue into “The Sloth”. Trey yells it out for the band an they nail the transition as if they had practiced it (which they might have.) Just another great flash of how all 4 members think together. Nancy moves over to drums so Fish can play Trombone on “I Didn’t Know”. While the band nailed “The Sloth”, they still have some learning to do as Fish misses the best on “Fee” where he’s supposed to match Trey’s lyric. He plays it twice to make up for it but you can hear Trey’s chuckle in his verse as he knows how badly Fish missed it. Also in this show, you can see how the band is starting to piece together set lists. The best example of this is the placement of “Corrina” to “cool down” the audience after the hard edge of “Big Black Furry Creature from Mars”. It’ll be interesting to see this develop over time. We also get the first “Harpua” THE RIGHT WAY as finally Poster Nutbag is “hot lunch” for Harpua instead of the other way around. It’s a standard “Harpua’ but important for this note. The set closes with a very strong “Run Like An Antelope”. Next show, we move on to the larger and more professional The Front, down Main Street and across Pine from Hunt’s! See you then.

Show #45: 3/22/88

Tuesday, 03/22/1988
Nectar’s, Burlington, VT

Set 1: Harpua, Wilson > Peaches en Regalia, Funky Bitch, Golgi Apparatus, Suzy Greenberg, You Enjoy Myself, The Lizards, Good Times Bad Times, Happy Birthday to You[1], Colonel Forbin’s Ascent > Icculus > Colonel Forbin’s Ascent > Fly Famous Mockingbird > AC/DC Bag

[1] “Dub” style.

The third in a 3-night stand at Nectar’s (Night 1 doesn’t exist on tape) finds again no jams here. That does’t mean this recording is a waste, in fact quite the contrary! We only have one set so there might have been more going on, but there’s some very nice selections here. The lead-off of “Harpua” is classic Phish. Trey gives an amazing band introduction. I wish there was video to see what he did during this. Mike also chimes in with his bike/clown horn, giving a glimpse at his know well-known goofy side. We get the basic narrative with no deviation and the classic story of the nice cat Poster Nutbag facing off against the mean dog Harpua here. The rock opera ending. It’s all here and played amazingly. “You Enjoy Myself” also slays all day. Again, not mind-blowing just tight perfectly performed compositions. “YEM” unfortunately gets cut off just before lift off but we follow it up with a tight “Lizards” featuring outstanding work from Page. It’s all going so well and then Trey begins the “If I Were A Dog” outro. And then….clapping? Seriously? One of the most beautiful pieces of music in the Phish catalog and the crowd starts clapping along. You think the Woos are bad? This is just disgraceful. Luckily, it didn’t stick or else I might just wait for Soundboard recordings. Yuck. The outro remains very nicely played though. The most interesting section closes the set. Trey announces it’s time to go back to Gamehendge and that they’ll skip the beginning and move to the middle. Hey begins to describe “Colonel Forbin’s Ascent” before asking if everyone knows who Icculus is? People respond no so Trey calls an audible and the band goes into “Icculus”. Now, most fans know Icculus as a silly song where it builds and builds as Trey eludes to who Icculus is. This version is the most straight version I’ve ever heard. Trey actually describes who Icculus is and why he’s important to Gamehendge. If you’re new to the song, this would be a great place to start. “Colonel Forbin” begins with the lounge singer/piano style intro. It’s interesting and might work in a small club but no surprise it eventually got dropped. It goes seamlessly into “Mockingbird” with no narration but again just change after change is getting nailed. The recording closes with “AC/DC Bag”. It has finally lost it’s intro, which is a shame because I dug the little funky intro it had. Alas, it is a bit more effective dropping to the main groove. The band starts to finally loosen up but then the cut. Who knows what delights the rest of the veining had but it’s a fun little glimpse into the waning days of Nectar’s.

Show #44: 3/21/88

Monday, 03/21/1988
Nectar’s, Burlington, VT

Set 1: Suzy Greenberg, Golgi Apparatus, McGrupp and the Watchful Hosemasters,Sneakin’ Sally Through the Alley, Divided Sky, Boogie On Reggae Woman > Timber (Jerry), The Lizards

Set 2: Fire, AC/DC Bag > The Chase > Possum, Dinner and a Movie, I Didn’t Know[1],Colonel Forbin’s Ascent > Fly Famous Mockingbird

[1] Fishman on trombone.

A complaint amongst a portion of today’s fans is that Phish doesn’t “jam” enough. In defense of today’s Phish, I’d like to present a glimpse of what a jam-less show is really like. This show at Nectar’s has only two long tracks and they’re not that great. We have a meandering 8-minute “McGrupp” and an 11 minute “Lizards”. Every other track is quite short and does not deviate much from the song structure. The whole first set is effectively a throwaway. Not a lot going on here and you can tell that the energy of the crowd is not that into the set. Not even the resurrection of “Boogie On Reggae Woman” is a highlight here. 2nd set is where all the action is but there’s not even any jam vehicles. The “AC/DC>Chase>Possum” is quite good with the Possum being the top pick there. The crowd also starts to get into the vibe a little more. “Dinner and a Movie” is slayed here, if short. The recording closes out with “Forbin>Mockingbird” without narration, which is interesting considering, two shows ago, Gamehendge was debuted. The “Forbin” is coll because it has an odd jazz piano intro, where Page plays the melody of the verse and then accompanies Trey’s vocal but as a solo player before the band come sin. That’s very cool and worth a listen; my personal highlight. The recording cuts out during “Mockingbird”. Maybe all the jams were in the 3rd set that night. We’ll never know.

Show #43: 3/12/88

Saturday, 03/12/1988
Nectar’s, Burlington, VT

Set 1: Jump Monk[1], McGrupp and the Watchful Hosemasters > The Lizards > Tela[2] >Wilson > AC/DC Bag > Colonel Forbin’s Ascent[2] > Fly Famous Mockingbird > The Sloth >Possum, Run Like an Antelope

[1] First known Phish performance.
[2] First known performance.

One of the problems in reviewing a band’s career in retrospect is you know what happens next. In addition to the problems reviewing 3/11/88 that were explained in that post, there’s also the anticipation for a bigger show that’s just around the corner. Such is the case for 3/12/88. The importance of 3/12/88 is that it marks the first live The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday, or Gamehendge. The story of this gig is so much more though. The entire band, by all accounts, had previously gone to see Frank Zappa play Memorial Auditorium, just a few blocks up Main street from Nectar’s. At some point during the show, someone had thrown a Phish t-shirt on stage. Frank held it up and the crowd went nuts. Maybe with the knowledge that freaks were out and about that night for the FZ show and that letting their freak flag fly would be par for the course, or that Trey knew he would have a large audience to unleash it on spurred the decision. Regardless, the band decided to go for it.

This would also prove to be an extremely important decision for the band’s future as well. That night, local band Ninja Custodian had a friend in town named John Paluska. Ninja Custodian insisted that they head to Nectar’s to see Phish. He walked in and caught the Gamehendge set and thought they’d be great for his Zoo house parties at Amherst. This ended up with him booking them for April and they quickly built a following in western Massachusetts, the next enclave outside Burlington to take to the band. Paluska’s success lead to him begin asked to manage the band later in 1988. Paluska’s Dionysian Productions would manage the band from that day until the band’s “breakup” in 2004. You can read more about Paluska’s experience on Phish.com with the “This Month in Phish History: March 1988” entry.

As for the recording itself, we only have one set. Luckily, it’s the Gamehendge set and if you’ve ever heard the studio recording, it’s very similar. However, the narration is a bit clearer here. Trey sounds less scripted and more off the cuff. The set opens with Charles Mingus’ “Jump Monk”, a jazz cover that would only be played once more; which is a shame because it’s very well done in the same manner of later cover “Donna Lee”. Quickly though, we get to the main event. The band launches into “McGrupp and the Watchful Hosemasters”. This is important because “McGrupp” was actually the poem that launched Trey into writing the “TMWSIY” story. It’s odd that other versions don’t use it again as this is the only rendition that opens with “McGrupp”. “McGrupp” closes, which I don’t think is as effective. “McGrupp” sets up the tale much better. Over Page’s outro solo, Trey begins to tell the tale of Gamehendge, which I will narrate here as well. “Once upon a time, there was a man…” That man turns out to be Colonel Forbin, a retired military man who stumbles upon a door in the middle of a field. He opens the door and begins making his way down the corridor found within. In the corridor, he finds Rutherford the Brave. Rutherford begins to tell him about the strange land he is now in during the song “The Lizards”. This “Lizards” is pretty note perfect. It doesn’t even have much of a pause between the verses and the “If I Were A Dog” outro. With Rutherford having drowned at the end of “Lizards”, Forbin doesn’t have much time before being spotted by Tela and her two-toned multibeast. Forbin is instantly smitten with here and contemplates this in the song “Tela”. The version here is much longer than other versions and it does drag for a bit because of it. Still sounds great though. Tela and Forbin ride to the rebel camp and Trey describes Errand Wolfe, actually in more depth than in his senior thesis. We learn more about Errand in his singing of the song “Wilson”. We then get a song from Wilson in “AC/DC Bag”, which the crowd loudly cheers. Forbin realizes that the only way to help everyone is to get help from the wise and knowledgeable Icculus, who lives on the mountain over the land. Forbin climbs the mountain in “Colonel Forbin’s Ascent” and Icculus’ response is to fly the Famous Mockingbird to get the Helping Friendly Book from Wilson in “Fly Famous Mockingbird”. Much has been made about the narration between “Forbin” and “Mockingbird”. Recently some said they wished the one from the JEMP truck set on 12/31/13 was too short but here, in the first ever rendition, the narration is also very short. The playing is also amazing here. The band just nailing it like a well rehearsed Broadway pit band. The Famous Mockingbird successfully gets the Helping Friendly Book and Forbin returns to give it to Errand. Errand, now consumed with power, kills Wilson with the help of “The Sloth” but also puts Forbin in jail. The “Forbin in jail” story isn’t repeated here. It really does’ thane an ending except for Icculus’ musings captured in Possum. This version of Gamehendge is also the only live one that ends with “Possum” and really isn’t as neatly tied up as others. How do you follow that up? With a scorching “Run Like An Antelope”. Not as powerful as the previous night but still a lot of fun until the recording cuts off. A historic evening at Nectar’s indeed.

Show #41: 2/26/88

UVM’s Living and Learning Center.

Friday, 02/26/1988
Living and Learning Center, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT

Set 1: The Curtain > Suzy Greenberg, You Enjoy Myself, The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday > Avenu Malkenu > The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday > AC/DC Bag >Possum, Phase Dance, Good Times Bad Times

Set 2: Fluffhead, I Didn’t Know[1], Golgi Apparatus > The Lizards, David Bowie, The Ballad of Curtis Loew, Fee > McGrupp and the Watchful Hosemasters > Dear Mrs. Reagan, Makisupa Policeman, Alumni Blues > Letter to Jimmy Page > Alumni Blues, Whipping Post

[1] Fishman on trombone.

In a previous post, I talked about the band having off-nights. When you’ve played 1,630 shows, they’re bound to occur in your history. This is yet another example of an off-night (or day since I’m unsure when this show was played). There’s nothing here you have to listen to. The only cool thing I thought was you can hear the crowd clapping during “I Didn’t Know” showing how embraced the band was by UVM. Also, we have the entire “The Curtain” without here. The recording however fades out of “The Lizards” missing the “If I Were a Dog” outro. We’re missing a lot of the 2nd set. Unsure if anything of note happened in those tracks but overall, a show most people can skip.

Shows #36, 37, and 38: 2/3, 2/7-8/1988

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Alright, we’ve got a trio of shows here. I’ve grouped them together because we have a snippet of 2/3 and then 2/7 and 8 are a run together. I haven’t decided whether or not to group runs together or not. Might depend on the run. These really runs though are fairly similar so it makes sense to group them together when writing these pieces.

Wednesday, 02/03/1988
Gallagher’s, Waitsfield, VT

Set 1: David Bowie

Set 2: Sympathy for the Devil[1], Fee, Run Like an Antelope, AC/DC Bag -> Possum

[1] First known Phish performance.

Back in Waitsfield, we have this nugget that somehow has slipped out into the public. No idea where the rest of the show is. The clear highlight is the “David Bowie”. It’s really the band first “extended” jam reaching just over 18 minutes. It also however clearly shows the young bands limits as Fishman keep trying to end it most notable around the 13-minute mark but the band just keeps going, despite running out of ideas were to take it. Fortunately, the band would resolve this through practice and the concept of type II but for now, it’s not quite ready for prime time. The 2nd set is well-played but nothing notable.

Sunday, 02/07/1988
Nectar’s, Burlington, VT

Set 1: Fire, McGrupp and the Watchful Hosemasters, Shaggy Dog, Golgi Apparatus >Alumni Blues > Letter to Jimmy Page > Alumni Blues, Peaches en Regalia, Phase Dance[1],Dear Mrs. Reagan, I Didn’t Know[2], David Bowie

Set 2: Happy Birthday to You, AC/DC Bag > Timber (Jerry), Flat Fee, Fee, Possum, The Lizards, Fly Famous Mockingbird[3], Whipping Post

Set 3: Suzy Greenberg[4] > The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday > Avenu Malkenu > The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday, Clod > Bundle of Joy, The Curtain With, The Ballad of Curtis Loew, Good Times Bad Times

[1] First known performance.
[2] Fishman on trombone.
[3] Debut.
[4] Stopped in the intro as Trey jokingly said “Good night” to the crowd and restarted.

After taking a few months off, Phish finally return to home base at Nectar’s. We’ll be hanging in Nectar’s a lot over the next few months as 1988 really marked the place as the band’s home. This show actually sounds really great for not being an SBD and might actually be better mixed than the following night’s SBD. It’s also exciting because you can hear the energy of the crowd at this early show. They are really into the band here. A raging “Fire” kicks the show into high gear. “McGrupp” follows and at about the 6-minute mark there’s a great Page solo in the middle. Some lively banter as someone yells for “ROCK ‘N ROLL!” and a lady follows it up with “No more reggae. Play some rock n roll!”, though I would not consider “McGrupp” reggae by any means. What does Phish do in their typical ways, plays an old folk tune in the form of “Shaggy Dog”. Way to win ’em over, boys. The next song, “Golgi Apparatus” however does get them as it goes into full-blown sing-along mode on the chorus. The rock vibes continue with “Alumni>Letter>Alumni” and “Peaches en Regalia”. The band then takes it down a notch with the first known performance of Pat Metheny’s “Phase Dance”. It’s a valiant effort but lacks a little bit of the emotion of the original as well as some of the technical prowess required but it does establish all the members as fine jazz players, building on that reputation. Phish.com has the debut of Charlie Parker’s “Moose the Mooche” but that was not found on any recordings that circulate. Instead, we get an actual coherent version of “Dear Mrs. Reagan”. I’m still not a fan of the song but at least the lyrics are decipherable now; still antiquated however. Following the song, Trey proves the perfect host of the evening introducing “Alex”, the new Nectar’s waitress and advises to tip her well on her 2nd night. I wonder where Alex is now. Trey then introduces Paul and asks if anyone wants to buy his old guitar, most likely his red Timecaster. I wonder where both Alex and Trey’s red Timecaster are now. The next song is not a debut but it has an important new addition. It is the first time Fish joins the band on trombone, playing on “I Didn’t Know”. A much more coherent Bowie finishes the 1st set.

Set 2 opens up with “Happy Birthday to You”, dedicated to Kristy, Roz, and Meg. Kristy being Trey’s sister, who also the song “Joy” was written for. Kristy interestingly enough was running lights for this show. Trey brought all of them up on stage but Meg wasn’t here so he had roadie Del Martin sub in. “AC/DC Bag” still has the original intro and segues into a nasty “Timber (Jerry)”. They get really out there, even inverting some of the rhythms. This might even be the jam of the show. Then we get the “Flat Fee/Fee” combo. The crowd also knows “Fee” and sings along! A key demonstration that the band is beginning to gain its legendary fan base. “Possum” begins to gain its “intro” as the band hammers on the intro chords dissonantly. The fans seem to enjoy it though screaming along, hitting the chorus. It’s probably the best “Possum” so far. Next, we get the first full-length “Lizards”. This early version is cool in that is has some Talking Heads/Latin style jamming before dropping into the “If I Were A Dog” outro around the 5:30 mark. We get another important debut following in “Fly Famous Mockingbird”. It’s a little jarring without the usual “Colonel Forbin’s Ascent” proceeding it but it’s played extremely well for a debut. It’s interesting to note that this the debut so that when Trey said “Flying around up there. 30 years later” during the MSG NYE truck set, really should have only been 25. Set 2 closes with a wild “Whipping Post”. Set 3’s only really stand out track is another fantastic “The Curtain With”. It also has a shortened “Clod” with a loud audience sing-along and a long “Good Times Bad Times”. Overall, a great show just to hear the crowd as it sounded in 1988 with some fun highlights.

Monday, 02/08/1988
Nectar’s, Burlington, VT

Set 1: Slave to the Traffic Light, Funky Bitch, Take the ‘A’ Train, Golgi Apparatus, Phase Dance, Fire, You Enjoy Myself

Set 2: Fluffhead, Wilson > Peaches en Regalia > Divided Sky, The Lizards, Run Like an Antelope[1]

Set 3: The Sloth, Flat Fee, Dinner and a Movie, Alumni Blues > Letter to Jimmy Page >Alumni Blues, Harry Hood, Bike[2], Fee, Jesus Just Left Chicago, Big Black Furry Creature from Mars

[1] “Moses Heaps” and “Moses Brown” references.
[2] Trombone solo from Fishman

Hey, do you like Mike bass bombs? Then 2/8/88 is FOR YOU! This SBD is a little poorly mix so Mike comes through loud and clear all night. It’s a little overpowering on this delicate 1980s recording and rattles my system. Night 2 of 2 (or 3?) at Nectar’s opens with “Slave to the Traffic Light”. Right from the bat, you can hear the problem with the recording. “Funky Bitch”, “A Train”, and “Golgi” are all good versions. We get a second take on “Phase Dance” and this version is little more lively and feels more like Phish. A shredded “Fire” is destroyed by too much bass. “You Enjoy Myself” is well-played.

Set 2 kicks off with the complete “Fluffhead” suite, including the previous night’s outcasts “Clod” and “Bundle of Joy”. It’s odd that the band keeps going back and forth between having hem be separate songs or part of “Fluffhead”. It won’t be too long though before that’s resolved. “Wilson” has cool little jam intro before going into the main part of the song. “Peaches” and the short “Divided Sky” are tight. “Lizards” still has the funky middle jam in it. The set 2 closer “Run Like An Antelope” is a rager though and the highlight of the set. The band hits all cylinders as they build to a raging pace. Trey even throwback to 10/31/87 by intro ducting the band as Moses Heap and Moses Brown as he did back during the jam with the Joneses that night.

Set 3 opens with a great early “Sloth”. The band hits a great groove on this tune here, that’s just a little more loose than later versions. Next is a fast moving “Flat Fee” that seems to have a quicker tempo than other versions so far. It does a great job of showing off the jazz chops again. They seem to have at least one showpiece per night. “Dinner and a Movie” has been shortened. It also does not have it’s syncopated intro, just dropping into the verse. Still very tightly played though. Nothing too crazy about “Alumni>Letter>Alumni”, except only guy really digs it by letting out a blood curdling scream. “Harry Hood” is the other big showpiece here. This version really cooks with tight interplay between all band members. A funny moment happens the band goes into the final jam after “Thank you Mr. Hood”, where today fans would throw the glowsticks, an audience member loudly says “Finally!”, as if he has been waiting for this part of the song. Trey and Page have some great interplay at the beginning of this section, working off each other’s licks. The band perfectly builds up to the big tension and release of the jam. You can hear the patience in the moment. They know how to move forward without pushing it. It’s as masterful as some of its later counterparts. A must listen for any fans of “Harry Hood”. Fish comes out to sing “Bike” but messes it up. He combines “Bike” with “Love You” and ends just playing an extended trombone solo, which is still fun. “Fee” comes next but the intro sounds like the band is going to play “Timber (Jerry)”, which is a little odd, like someone forced the change. Page does another fine job with “Jesus Just Left Chicago” and they bring it all home with “Big Black Furry Creature from Mars”. I think I prefer 2/7 to 2/8 but that might be due to audio quality. You could put together highlights from both and have a pretty great ’88 compilation. The big takeaway here is even if it’s marked SBD, it might still not be great quality. Thanks for reading. Hope to pick up the pace on 1988 here!

Shows #33 and 34: 11/18-19/87

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November 1987 Promotional Photo. Credit: Phish.com

Wednesday, 11/18/1987
Hunt’s, Burlington, VT

Set 1: Slave to the Traffic Light, The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday > Avenu Malkenu >The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday, Flat Fee, Wilson > Peaches en Regalia, Take the ‘A’ Train, Golgi Apparatus > Divided Sky > Alumni Blues > Letter to Jimmy Page > Alumni Blues, Good Times Bad Times

Set 2: I Didn’t Know[1], You Enjoy Myself, Fluffhead, AC/DC Bag

[1] First known performance.

Thursday, 11/19/1987
Hunt’s, Burlington, VT

Set 1: McGrupp and the Watchful Hosemasters -> Sparks, Funky Bitch, You Enjoy Myself,Sneakin’ Sally Through the Alley, Harry Hood, Fire

Set 2: Timber (Jerry), Fluffhead, I Didn’t Know, Fee, Corinna, Alumni Blues > Letter to Jimmy Page > Alumni Blues

Set 3: Jam, Suzy Greenberg > Possum, Divided Sky > Big Black Furry Creature from Mars, Dinner and a Movie[1], The Ballad of Curtis Loew, Whipping Post, Harpua, Take the ‘A’ Train, Camel Walk, La Grange, Bike[2], Slave to the Traffic Light

[1] First known performance.
[2] First known Phish performance.

Ah, the end of the early years. Or at least as they’re grouped on the Spreadsheet and PhishTracks. These are also the last known gigs at Hunt’s. Hunt’s proved to be an important incubator for these early years, almost in tandem with Nectar’s. While Nectar’s gets all the credit because it is still around and the band played there for much longer, the availability of Hunt’s is just as crucial. Before I get into reviewing those two shows, I would like to let you in on an idea I have, one that sparked the whole genesis of this blog.

You might see the full title includes “The Phishsonian Presents”. The Phishsonian is a concept I have for a museum/retail space in Burlington celebrating the history of Phish. I’d love to work with the band to display old artifacts and photographs and just have an official presence in the city. People can learn old landmarks and about Burlington’s history. What does this have to do with Hunt’s. Hunt’s is housed in a building called the Woodbury Armory, located at 101 Main Street in Burlington. The Armory had a fire a few years ago and has sat dormant but a recent project is reviving the building, attaching it to a new hotel. The redesigned Armory will have retail space. I’d love for this retail space to be the Phishsonian, the official museum of Phish. This project could bring in fans from around the world, have special events, and teach Vermont youth about the music industry, something I wish I had growing up there. It would also contain all of the fans’ journey as well. The Mockingbird Foundation, The Phellowship, Surrender to the Flow magazine, would also be part of the story. The largest part would be capturing fan interviews. We’d love to create the largest Phish fan interview repository, so we have everyone’s favorite shows and wild stories, giving the biggest picture of our phenomenon. If you want to know more, this page will begin to have concepts and more information. You can also write me anytime at thephishsonian@gmail.com. I’d love to get this in front of Jason Colton, Kevin Shapiro and the band’s management but for now, it’s just a dream.

Anyway, on to the music. 11/18/87 you can mostly throw away. If you do want to check it out, Set 2 is where the highlights are with a well-played “You Enjoy Myself” and the first “I Didn’t Know” and “complete” Fluffhead. Other than that, the energy is just very flat. Also, all of those highlights (except for firsts) can be found the next night. 11/19 just has better energy, a better setlist, and just overall better “vibes”. It also is a nice soundboard recording that, except for some isolation moments, really sounds quite good for the age. The show kicks off with a very nice “McGrupp”, notable for the first with a Page solo. Page nails his part here. The song segues beautifully into “Sparks”, which the band continues to beautifully play. Fishman nails the drum parts more than we’ve heard so far. Funky Bitch is alright. The “YEM” is a great short early specimen. “Sally” is fun. The “Harry Hood” is the highlight of the set. The band absolutely demolishes the peak with Page and Trey locking in together to bring it home. Only wish it didn’t have some of the isolation moments during the peak. Trey shreds “Fire” to end the first set.

The 2nd set is once again where the money is because this is one of the best “Timber (Jerry)”‘s there is or ever will be. It starts off innocent enough with Trey hammering out the rhythm while Fishman plays actually a different, more tribal pattern. And then it just goes OUT THERE. Trey shreds the song to pieces. There’s nothing left to do by the end but throw out a chorus to wrap it up. Seriously, a MUST-LISTEN jam. The 2nd ever “complete” “Fluffhead” follows and it’s a beauty. Clearly, they’d been working hard on all the parts. From “Fluffhead” to “The Chase” to “Who Do? We Do!” to “Clod” to “Bundle of Joy” to “Arrival”, it’s all there and all nailed. The outro solo is also a gem. Not to say those parts wouldn’t creep out as their own songs again, they still make a few appearances but it was clear, “Fluffhead” was finally a complete work. They follow it up with the 2nd ever “I Didn’t Know”. The song is not yet the Fishman showpiece it is today, whether it’s vacuum or trombone solo. It’s a fun song with a neat vocal arrangement. A great breather here. The set continues to mellow out with a standard “Fee”, still sans megaphone, a light but pretty “Corinna”, and a standard “Alumni>Letter>Alumni”.

Set 3 opens with Trey introducing “the Mike Gordon band”, a funny thought now that Mike has his own band, which is unofficially known as “the Mike Gordon Band”. Anyway, this prompts a short jam, in which, Mike riffs on James Brown-like quotes over the band. This leads into a nice, slow “Suzy Greenberg”. A fast moving “Possum” kicks the set up a notch. “Divded Sky” comes next, still in it’s short form. It’s not a good version here with the band hitting some confusion in the escalating scales section. You want a real Trey flub, here it is. They manage to finish it though and then tear into “Big Black Furry Creature from Mars”. The anger oft he flub comes out in this “BBFCFM”. The band then debuts “Dinner and a Movie”. Interestingly enough, it does include the slow off-beat prelude but kicks off right into the hard driving groove. If you’ve heard the song, it really doesn’t do much else and the nearly 8 minutes hear, really push the boundaries of good taste. Page does a pretty version of “The Ballad of Curtis Loew” to bring the crowd back in it. “Whipping Post” kind of goes nowhere and is not as fiery as previous versions. Interestingly, we get the debut of the 2nd half of “Harpua” next, still without any context of Poster Nutbag. It’s a sign of things to come but not fully realized yet. “Take The A Train” again displays the and’s jazz chops ably, despite Trey introducing the song as “Fuck Your Face”. “Camel Walk” is a little weird as Trey plays the chord profession in an odd fashion. It’s as if he’s trying to make the Holdsworth-penned tune his own. It doesn’t quite work and the song doesn’t sound quite right. “La Grange” is a highlight with the band nailing the changes and Trey showing off on guitar. Fish comes out to debut his cover of Pink Floyd’s “Bike”. Unlike his recent string of debuts, he actually knows most of the words and the song seems to fit his singing style at this point in his career. The set ends recorded 1987 on a high note with a very well played “Slave to the Traffic Light”. I’ve been a but hard on the band so far saying “Slave” hasn’t hit the peaks right yet. It doesn’t quite build how I like it but you can’t argue with how beautiful Trey plays and has those long sustaining notes, which will become his trademark. It’s a great early “Slave” and the perfect way to say goodbye to 1987.

Hopefully tomorrow, we’ll bust into 1988 with a show from my hometown! I’d also like to thank Twenty Years Later for a shout-out the other day. He’s doing a cool thing, reviewing 1994, exactly 20 years after the show. I’ll be doing that a few years from now but still a very cool concept. Be sure tog et in touch if you want more info about the Phishsonian and how to get involved. Thanks for reading!

Show #31: 10/14/1987

Wednesday, 10/14/1987
Hunt’s, Burlington, VT

Set 1: Peaches en Regalia, Take the ‘A’ Train > You Enjoy Myself -> Golgi Apparatus > Slave to the Traffic Light > The Chase[1] > Fluffhead -> Dave’s Energy Guide > Possum

Set 2: David Bowie, AC/DC Bag > Divided Sky > McGrupp and the Watchful Hosemasters > Clod > Makisupa Policeman

[1] First known performance outside of Lushington.

Always interesting that not much is known about what Phish did for almost an entire month. There’s only 3 known shows between the last review and this show and one of them was found to actually be from February 1988. This got me very flustered as I thought I had missed a show and listened to the wrong one in prep. Fortunately that was not the case.

This tape is incomplete. Phish.com has “TMWSIY>Malkenu>TMWSIY” opening again but I’m not sure that is accurate and the “Peaches” opener on Phish. net makes more sense. The keyword for this show is “flow”. The band doesn’t take many breaks between songs, which is interesting for an 80s tape from a bar. The show also has a lot of segues. It almost seems like they’re learning proper construction at this gig. The tape drops into the middle of “Peaches en Regalia” and while the quality is about a B-/C+, it still captures the feeling well. A great “Take the A-Train” follows with fine solos from Trey and Page; excellent bass work by Mike here. A tight early “YEM” follows. the band really sounds dialed in on this one and it hits all the right notes. No real bass and drums or vocal jam here as it segues into “Golgi”. Mike’s all over this “GolgI” with really bright notes filling out the tune and the band just nails it. The last chord of “Golgi” is used as the first chord of “Slave to the Traffic Light” keeping the set moving. The “Slave” is pretty standard but interestingly, it does not peak or end, opting to just go into “The Chase”. “The Chase” gets closer to being in “Fluffhead” by leading into at least as the rage of the set continues. “Fluffhead”s well played if nothing else but it does have a tape anomaly at the 7:30 mark that dampers the amazing segue into “Dave’s Energy Guide”. It’s right as Trey plays the line and you can hear the band’s hard transition but the power is lost in the degradation. “DEG” then slows down and rolls into the rollicking groove of “Possum” played at a faster pace, more fitting of modern versions. “Possum” is also marred early on by a hot mic, making it hard for Mike to sing the verse. “Possum” grooves hard and when finished, Trey announces a short break. But the wall-to-wall music of “A Train” through “Possum” is impressive and shows how hard the band was firing at this point. Amazing.

Set 2 opens with “David Bowie”. This is a classic “Bowie”, again showing the high caliber the band was playing at for this show. After a pause, we get the 2nd “song suite” of the night. Trey introduces “AC/DC Bag” as “Hold Your Head Up” jokingly and then we get the funky intro riff to “Bag”. This “Bag” is pretty groovy if standard with excellent work by Page. During the ending, it gets cut short as Trey rips into “Divided Sky”. Still the shortened version, the band plays it at top speed uncharacteristically AND also plays underneath the chant lyric, which is odd and obviously did not stick. Replacing the last chord seems to be a theme of the evening, as if Trey wanted to play a set like the “Abbey Road Medley” as once again, he forgoes the end of “Divided Sky” to play the opening riff of “McGrupp”. “McGrupp” is short with no jamming and also goes right into “Clod”. Nothing flashy in “Clod” but it sounds good before dissolving into “Makisupa Policeman”. “Makisupa” begins to get weird but the tape cuts out before blast off. All in all, a very tight show with great playing. I don’t know if fans today would enjoy it due to a lack of jamming but the band was on fire. Next, the second ever Halloween gig.

Show #26: 8/10/87

Monday, 08/10/1987
Nectar’s, Burlington, VT

Set 1: Peaches en Regalia, Alumni Blues > Letter to Jimmy Page > Alumni Blues, Golgi Apparatus, Wilson, Quinn the Eskimo, Divided Sky > Good Times Bad Times

Set 2: Fire, AC/DC Bag -> Possum, Fluffhead, Fee, The Curtain With, I Know a Little, Mustang Sally, You Enjoy Myself, La Grange

Set 3: Icculus, David Bowie, Jesus Just Left Chicago[1], Whipping Post, Anarchy, Tush, Dear Mrs. Reagan

[1] First known Phish performance.

First off, I want to apologize for the long delay between posts. I’ve been dealing with some personal stuff and it made it a little hard to focus. But I’m here now and the show must go on! Of course, being that it’s very early in the band’s career, we don’t have as large a catalog to play from. So, we might get some very similar shows. Such is the case during the is two-night stand at Nectar’s. The repeats here are plentiful. “Peaches En Regalia”, “Golgi Appartus”, “Good Times Bad Times”, “Fluffhead”, “Fee”, “You Enjoy Myself”, and “David Bowie” all appear here again. Now, while some these we van’t heard yet or didn’t even hear the previous night’s version, the set lists are getting a little similar. So, I’m going to try and just hit the highlights for this show. “Peaches” features a great example of Trey’s early tone working for him. “Alumni Blues” has amazing organ work from Page with huge sweeping chords. Also has very early Mike bass bombs. “Letter to Jimmy Page” stands out as being less aggressive and has more of a full band feel to the song. “Quinn the Eskimo” ended up being the last performance of the song until 1998 and it features a huge swirling crescendo jam in the last two minutes that dumps into the last verse and chorus well. We get the first recorded “Divided Sky” though in this early state it does not include the middle section and only repeats the beginning for the ending. The introduction is impeccably played but it loses steam in the harder “jumping” section. Work needs to be done and it will but a decent second attempt. It’s interesting that “Divided Sky” rolls into “Good Times Bad Times”. It’s jarring but the dose of hard rock to end the first set and continue that momentum, tagging in Hendrix’s “Fire” for Led Zeppelin to open the 2nd set is an inspired choice. “Fluffhead” is still not yet complete. We get the first recorded “Fee”. No megaphone yet in this rendition. It also moves at a little too fast tempo; like the band is rushing to finish. “The Curtain With” continues to amaze as the band hits all the changes with aplomb. “Mustang Sally” swings and has that Phish groove that makes the cover unique. Fish’s drumming really gives the song its unique feel. The band also takes “You Enjoy Myself” for a serious walk with all 4 members taking things to the max on the jam. It’s a thundering powerful take on the song. “Icculus” gets dedicated to Paul’s mom but is fairly standard. “David Bowie” is a must-listen. The band finally breaks out of the song and goes, what most fans know as, “Type II”. Type II jamming is when the band goes outside the normal chord structure of the song and creates something new. More recent examples of this include the “Tahoe Tweezer” and the “AC Twist”. This is the first time we get outside the normal “Bowie” and just get free. It’s a glorious moment, occurring about 8 minutes into the song. The jam is strong too. All 4 members are in sync and on board. Fish leading the way with a steady but improvised beat. Page filling Trey’s rifts with strong keys and Mike’s bass filling the space between. It’s fleeting but a glimpse at what’s to come. 3 ZZ Top songs appear in this show, “La Grange”, “Tush”, and the night’s lone debut “Jesus Just Left Chicago”. A tune that a lot of fans would come to know on the 1997 live album “Slip, Stitch, and Pass”, this version lays the groundwork for all other versions that followed and it’s a great place to start with passionate playing from Trey and solid rhythm work from Mike and Fish. The other note is you can tell the band is starting to gain respect and some fans. There’s strong applause after each number and more and varied requests. You can feel the building energy. Next, I tackle the long vaunted “Ian’s Farm” show!

Show #22: 4/29/87

A flier from Phish’s first two-night stand at Nectar’s. Nearly 3 month before this show. Photo credit: @Phish on Twitter.

Wednesday, 04/29/1987
Nectar’s, Burlington, VT

Set 1: She Caught the Katy and Left Me a Mule to Ride, Alumni Blues > Letter to Jimmy Page > Alumni Blues, Golgi Apparatus, Swing Low, Sweet Chariot, Fire, Skin It Back ->Cities, Lushington

Set 2: Dog Log, Melt the Guns -> Dave’s Energy Guide, Take the ‘A’ Train[1], Halley’s Comet > Quinn the Eskimo > AC/DC Bag

Set 3: Peaches en Regalia > Fluffhead, Good Times Bad Times, Anarchy, Makisupa Policeman -> Run Like an Antelope, Boogie On Reggae Woman, Timber (Jerry)[2], Slave to the Traffic Light > Sparks > McGrupp and the Watchful Hosemasters > The Ballad of Curtis Loew[2], Come On (Part One)[2], I Am Hydrogen -> Who Do? We Do!

Encore: Fuck Your Face[3]

[1] First known Phish performance; Jeff Friedberg on saxophone.
[2] First known Phish performance.
[3] Debut.

Now, I’m glad if you’ve been following since day one that hopefully you’ve listened to every show or at least the highlights as well. I’ve got some bad news though and it’s not that your cat died. Poster Nutbag hasn’t even been born yet! It’s that I could have saved you all a lot of time. ut you would have missed the sublimeness that was “Prep School Hippie”! One of the tent poles of the short range of 1987 shows, this night has a lot of highlights. B Heck! We even get three full sets! There’s a lot of music to get through so let’s dive right in.

The night begins with a nice standard “She Caught The Katy”. Good song to warm-up to and get the crowd interested. We then go into “Alumni Blues>Jimmy Page>Alumni”. Earlier, it would have been played as a standard blues but we’re starting to get that trademark groove. Someone out there may be able to better describe it but it has a certain feeling that makes it more danceable than standard blues. There’s a certain looseness, I think it’s Fish’s drumming that gives it an odd shuffle. It’s very white boy Meters feel. Also, instead if Trey wailing through it all, we get a very nice Page Rhodes solo about 4 minutes in. The end of the song also feels more like 4 musicians working together. The next song is introduced as “Duke Ellington’s favorite song” as told in his memoirs and relayed by Trey. It turns out it’s “Golgi Appartus” despite it debuting 12 years after his death. This “Golgi” is much improved with more movement from the band during the middle section and some much needed patience infused into the delicate melody. The buildup to the release also is well played. “Swing Low Sweet Chariot” comes next providing a cool vibe. Page also gets to take a solo which is much appreciated. Trey gets to noodle away next as “Fire” comes up and the band powers through it, infusing the set with wild energy. The dance vibe comes back though as the band grooves into “Skin It Back”. The song’s a little weak compared to other tracks but the end jam gets in there are Mike’s bass weaves around Trey’s guitar while Page holds down the groove on the Rhodes. The song segues weakly into “Cities”, showing that they still have work to do. I wonder if they listened back and analyzed how much stronger that could be. Obviously this was way before all their self-imposed rules so it’s possible. “Cities” also fizzles out a bit and goes nowhere fast. Set One closes with “Lushington”. ’87 will be the year of “Lushington” so you’ll hear a lot of it if you follow along. This version cooks at a nice clip and has fine keys work from Page. It’s a solid version.

Set 2 opens with “Dog Log”. This version has the jazz influences seeping more and more, making it feel more syncopated and loose. The band takes “it around one more time” and all 4 have at the rhythm, sounding together and disjointed at the same time gloriously. Fishman hits the cymbals and it sounds like “David Bowie” might be coming, even the rest of the band plays a funky jam over the top of it but Trey and Page hit the melody for “Melt The Guns”. It starts out pretty standard but at 3:30, we get into the jam and it’s a beauty. Trey plays a gorgeous soaring lead over a darker, dissonant piano part from Page. Mike even gets into it with a throbbing bass line. The last minute really ups the intensity and shows off the musicianship of all 4 members. The song also features a very strong segue into “Dave’s Energy Guide”. Less rough than pervious versions, they don’t actually hit the main theme until about a minute in, enjoying the groove until Trey finally starts the diamond pattern. Rather than disconnecting lines, the band hits the rhythm hard and hooks up quite well. At times, it even sounds like “On The Run” by Pink Floyd. It’s less noise and more actual music. The whole segment is definitely worth a listen. Once again, it’s Duke Ellingston’s birthday. So the band decides to play an actual Ellington tune, “Take the A Train” with guest Jeff Friedberg on saxophone. It’s a fun listen to hear Phish with horns well before the Giant Country Horn days. “Halley’s Comet” comes next and it’s fun but nothing outstanding. It does have a smooth segue into “Quinn the Eskimo”, which sounds good but is not too exciting. The tape then has a crossfade and we miss the cool intro but we go into “AC/DC Bag” to close the set.

The third set is the most exciting in my mind. It opens with a great intro from Trey reminding people to tip their waitresses and waiters and then Fish hits the drum intro to “Peaches en Regalia”, which is standard but rips nonetheless. “Fluffhead” comes next and it’s played at a fast and furious pace. The train is gathering steam and it’s headed down the right track. Can’t wait to see where it goes from here, especially with the Fluff’s Travels development. Keeping the crowd in it, the band rips into “Good Times Bad Times” and it ably shows Trey’s quick finger fretwork. The short punk basher “Anarchy” follows and they slam through it and one fan even yells “One more time!” and on cue they do it again. Taking it down a notch, the band fires up “Makisupa”. About 2 minutes in, Trey solos over Page’s chords and it’s interesting to hear him take the song for a walk. It rolls into “Run Like An Antelope” nicely with the band starting slow and increasing to normal tempo. The ability to maintain a groove while executing tension and release is on full display here and it makes Antelope quote amazing for how early it is in the band’s career. Getting the crowd back to dancing, “Boogie On Reggae Woman” comes next. The band tired hard to jam it out but it really doesn’t develop. The night’s 2nd new cover, “Timber (Jerry)”. Now, the interesting thing is only Phish would think about taking an old folk song from the 1930s and making it fresh with a new wave guitar part over the rhythm. Listening to it played by the son of one of its authors, Josh White, Jr., it really is a dramatic overhaul and makes it a lively tune to dance to. This first version is a must listen. It’s high energy with great soloing from Trey and an amazing beat pounded out by Fishman. “Slave to the Traffic Light” is a good choice for a breather. It’s played impeccably well. It still doesn’t the peak but instead of Trey’s noodling incessantly, He just pounds out the chords to build to release and Mike hits a great melodic bass line to close it. The set probably could have ended there but it’s not last call yet. Trey hits the guitar chords to “Sparks” and the band goes into it. Fishman hits the drum fills quote well here. “McGrupp and the Watchful Hosemasters” comes next and retains its spoken lyrics. Luckily with less Bob Dylan style vocals and more just atonal shouting. Besides that it’s pretty standard. We then get the third new cover, “The Ballad of Curtis Lowe” by Lynyrd Skynyrd. This first version is interesting because Trey sings some of the verses where as modern day versions have Page singing all the verses himself. Trey continues his mastery of the southern rock style of guitar playing. Next, we get the last cover in “Come On (Part One)”. The song is base on the Earl King R&B hit but the version here is clearly based on Jimi Hendrix’s rendition from Electric Ladyland. This is the only known performance of the song by Phish. Trey would later play it with the 8 Foot Fluorescent Tubes and his solo band in 1999 a few times. The song mostly features Trey’s uncanny ability to mirror Hendrix in his own style. However, the rest of the band also moves at the quick pace with strong support from Page, a hot bass line from Mike, and flashy drums from Fishman. It’s a shame they didn’t take this one for a walk more. The evening winds down with “I Am Hydrogen>Who Do? We Do!” “Hydrogren” us fun because it’s played at a faster tempo than usual but is no less beautiful. “Who Do? We Do” is broken up on my copy of this show, which is interesting. It ends abruptly, ending the recording. Apparently “Fuck Your Face” made its debut as the encore but did not make the recording. A fine 3-set affair from Nectar’s in the books!