Serendipity is the word of the day for me on this show.
This for me was my 3rd favorite show that i have been to. I was at 2-22-03 amazing Bathtub and Tube not to mention a decent Friday (yes i said it a decent but 2nd to 12-28 the only good Friday jam guitar solo EVER- the one in Texas was absolutely the worst 2nd worst only to the one in my least favorite show that I attended of all time 11-29 03 the 20 yr reunion 4 show ones which were all terrible btw except the Hary Hood opener and the 1st show was ok w the Whats the Use and Crimes of the Mind was kickass. Anyways back to my 2nd favorite show to top this one of the attended was my show in Reading at the Skating Hockey Arena for chompers galore. . .that Reba encore the Walk Away and the amazing 20 years later made that night abolutely amazing for me. . .but I had fun at all the shows yes even 11-29-03 .
I had fun at my first show 2-21-2003 I love Wading as an encore and the one at US Bank in Cinci was so cool . Trey held the C cord note out for like a minute no joke a full minute and a half on one note then they played my favorite version ever after the best show of 2003 in Uniondale NY the show in Greensboro NC they played it mid second set and that version is a must listen to it is the best ever in my opinion. And my tie for third best show along w this one was my 2 nighter in Camden where they played my 3rd tie for number 3 best attended shows Camden Trey must like to play there cause they played a great show in 6-7-09 a Lizards a bad one but it is my favorite song ever so ill take a bad version of it Mike was not on bass point on that one and treys guitar solo ender was sloppy at best. But the setlist was amazing the Antelpe the Tweezer even the Joy was fun to hear and i can never like a Sugar Shack but Treys guitar picking was on point the first time they ever played it . . I had fun that night in part cause 2 really hot girls were dancing and i was sandwiched between them and they were so sweaty from acid that they let me like feel them up basically it was so wierd and fun. . .i got away w some groping and i admit it was wrong in hindsite but lots of fun at the time. The other camden show was so kickass and yet the night of i was high on weed and a bit drunk so i did not even enjoy the show. . .i was too tired. And at the time i did not know half the setlist it being my 3rd live show. I did not know Spocks Brain i did not know the cool reference to IT w the Bob Dylan Counting Crows joint and i did not know You Aint Going Nowhere right on but i did not know the 30 minute song of the night SaSS either and i must admit what i love about it now i was bored to tears hearing live cause i just couldnt get into the dark heroin jams trey was doing at hte time cause he was so fucked up on Coke and Dope to play happy DWD jams. Oh that reminds me give a liste n to the fun DWD my personal favorite Disease ever live cause it was my first show i think i am biased but u tell me the one from 2-21 in OH . . .so yeah the Twist and the YEM stole the night for me. LISTEN TO THE YEM from 7-30-03 it is so so so badass! Page steals the show on that one even over mikes bass guitar even over the stupid antics on the bouncy little trampoline.
My 4th favorite show was 11-24 2009 I did not have fun at 11-25 at ALL but Trey played my 3rd favorite tune behind Lizards and MFMF which is Esther i had a gf named Esther in college. But she was not brainwashed by a voodoo doll and told to drown herself after meeting a cult of fake Christians in a mean Reformed church lmao
11-25 was 2nd worst only to 11-29 for me
I had a lot of fun at my 5th and 6th favorite but i was high on OCs and molly so i dont remember most of it. Girl in the lot gave me what i thought was coke but turned out to be Molly and another guy gave me free mushrooms which hit the spot but i only did 2 caps so i only sorta hallucinated a bit under the light show. They were the 2 shows at Merriweather 2010 and then the following year 2001 i only did the 2nd night not the Daniel Saw a Stone but the one they did Sanity encore but i dont remember any of it lmao. So i cant review it it may have been a great show but i will never know if it was LIVE. 2010 I must take back actually it may have been my 3rd favorite tied too or even my 2nd favorite cause the Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas Jumping Jack Flash an I Saw it Again monster theme and then a Hendrix Fire wow that was quite the night even a Walfredo opener for us Blue Crab lovers that lived in MD at the time. I lived in MD for 27 years so i will miss it fondly and have much nestalgia for Merriweather Post especially after a Walfredo to top it off then my favorite marley tune even above Trenchtown Rock w a great GREAT mellow mood up there w the IT one. I missed the even better 4.7 rated on Phish.net show from 2014 the amazing one where they did Jennifer Dances and ran around in circles on stage during the encore. . .i wasnt even there and got a contact high off that ENERGY. . .btw they can never play Energy again as far as i am concerned lmao
Sorry i missed that one i regret it big time cause i had tickets to it and work messed me up.
My 3rd worst show i attended was so terrible but not as bad as 11-29 it was 7-15-2009 at Merriweather. . the only highlight was the debut of Party Time. . .I hope to hear GONE from that album some day live but they only played it 2009 and 2010 ONCE so i doubt i ever will just like i thought i would never hear MR COMPLETELY again and that brings me FULL CIRCLE to my serendipity point that i just had to make and give a review for this show because of . . .
My best friend from College at Cedarville University was a townie that was already out of college but worked at the cafeteria named Damon Titus but we all called him Wonkey cause he is so cool and wierd and at the time had hair like u used to the long str8 hippy thing going and like u he loves all things Dead and Frank Zappa. . .
So his favorite and first show was the one played on Bittersweet Motel which btw i swore i was gonna hear tonight in Pittsburgh cause of the lyrics but no such luck as an encore instead we get a FUCK BUG which i too do not like but for different reasons than u. . .i hate any lyrics anti-Christian so i hate Bug I hate Friends (J Fishman tune off Big Boat) I hate Lifeboy and i hate all the apathy tunes like who cares tunes like It Makes No Difference (but i love the music to that one ) and I hate Friday and i hatre Whats the Use cause i do for one care and i think there is a reason for existence it is to serve and bow to Jesus so there is a use and there is a what behind it . . .but i am not here to soapbox Christianity i am here to talk music
So his favorite was Albany 1997 the Roses are Free that nobody knew and all looked at each other like wtf is this tune. . .etc
Amazing night
So he goes to what he thought would be his last show before turning into an Accountant GEEZER and never going again to see Phish and sticking to John Mayer w the Dead and Bob Dylan and a few other live acts but thought he was done seeing Phish cause he has 2 daughters now and does not want them becoming flower children prostitutes and i cannot say i blame him. . the lot scene would terrify me if i had kids and would not lete my daughter within ten miles of men like me and u FZappa and the even worse. . the str8 pedophiles and just alcoholic creeps etc. . .
So it took him some convincing and me swearing we would do this show fully sober. . .energized by great music alone and by great food at our Hilton Homewood suites downtown on the other side of the river and just be on PROTEIN and Red Bulls. . .I was the guy in Green Nike top and Blue Nike shorts and jeans over that before the first set and then just the shorts so i can sweat out the contact high from the ghosted acid or just weed most phish shows and just a bit of cocaine and weed around us this time. . .credit cards and lines but i can take a bit of insanity as long as they dont try to offer me shit. . I am not a customer i know what is up and i do not smell like money i smell like fuck off hippys. . .I am saved get the fuck away lmao
So really really long story short
Damon and i went to 2-22-03 the best Tube ever and one of the best Encores ever Suzy (yes a total chomper thing to say i admit) and a Sloth and Dog Stole Things and a Scent of a Mule i mean come on . . oh shit i forgot scent of a mule in my all animal dream set list on Phish.net in my review of Sprinkles night Esther Col Forbins Harpua wow what a night and i was thinking only the S setlist and a dream list of animals could maybe top that and 2-28-03 and Magnaball.
So we get a Mr Completely JAM just a tease of it during Bathtub Gin right and then they play it later that summer for the first time at 7-15-03 an amazing show minus the Spread it Round lol and now it has come full circle and i know this sounds crazy before i say it cause why would Trey care or even know about me and Damon but I call it a God thing . . nothing else makes sense to me. . now they went and fucked up my theory by playing it in MSG for the Donut shows and that puts a big hole in my theory and gives it loopholes now but had they just played it in Cinci and after the hotel fire not played it again until Pittsburgh i swore it meant something from Jesus and i am sober i am saying this sober. . .i am not on acid saying this. . .this seems like signs and wonders i am telling u. . .anyone care to comment on this as to am i crazy to see this as reading the signs like the whole football thing in Silver Linings Playbook. . it was just so cool to mention this to Damon and he didnt think i was nuts. . I even made a joke cause he is my best friend and i havent even seen or talked to him in 14 years and it was like we never separated i never went back to MD to see my dying dad who has since passed of stage 4 cancer. . .and i said to him i made this corny joke about Jerry Maguire and albeit i hate tom cruise and Sceintology he stole my Katie Holmes obsession right out of me and my silly addiction to Dawsons Creek 20 years later. I said Damon shut shut just shut up u had me at HELLO . . .u complete me Damon. . lol Mr Completely
The end