Freakin’ On The Greek
The Greek Theatre - Berkeley, CA
With a nationwide, carpet-bombing of mail order tickets yesterday, the final countdown to the Greek Theatre has officially begun. Energy, anticipation, and anxiety has already flooded the scene, as the hype for Berkeley’s three-night stand has come to a head in recent weeks. While people finalize plans, scour the Internet for extra tickets, and prepare to head west, the appearance of second-leg stubs at doorsteps across the country yesterday, upped the adrenaline for all fans trying to focus through one more week.
The tickets for Leg II sport venue-specific designs, the Greeks decorated with a graphic take of the theatre’s backdrop. With “Phish” written in lightening bolts on the tickets, the band gave a subtle nod to the Grateful Dead as they prepare to set up shop on their forefathers’ home turf. The excitement is peaking for many, but others are still trying to get their 
hands on that last ticket to complete their three-pack. By not releasing multi-night packages, Phish and Ticketmaster left a lot of fans to face the worlds of ticket trading and brokering. With Saturday night stubs being the scarcest, prices in the secondary market have climbed over $300 a pop for the intimate GA shows. Since these are the only west coast dates scheduled, the migration to the Bay will come from far and wide, as this is the closer to home Phish will come for thousands of left coast fans. All of these factors have converged to create quite the pre-show hubbub for the upcoming nights in Northern California.
Phish’s only previous visit to Berkeley’s famed amphitheatre came on August 28, 1993, as the finale of Summer ’93. Concluding one of the most prolific months in their history, Phish capped August with a start-to-finish smoker that provides a quintessential portrait of the band in that era of history. “Maze” and “Stash” stood out in the first set, while highlight versions of “Antelope” and “YEM” sparkled in the second. The Dead had just finished a summer run at Shoreline the day before this show, and many first-timers crossed the Bay to check out an up and coming Phish. But since that night, relived countless times through the soundboard tape that became a staple any collector’s stash, Phish has never been back to the Greek.
6.22.10 (P.Harrington)
Ever since 1995, Phish has made Shoreline their routine Bay Area tour stop. With a capacity of 22,000 (almost triple The Greek’s 8000), it simply made more economic sense to play the larger venue. But those days are gone and in this modern era, Phish plays where they want, when they want. With the ability to sell 44,000 tickets over two-nights at Shoreline, Phish, instead, chose the less profitable route of selling 24,000 tickets over three nights in Berkeley – but the experience will be incomparable. Despite being Bill Graham’s baby, Shoreline’s design likens most amphitheatres across the country. But when one steps into the Greek Theatre, it becomes quite apparent they have arrived somewhere special. And when Phish looks out onto the classic stone amphitheatre, they will also feel the mystique of he Greek, and their music will likely reflect their surroundings.
6.27.10 (B.Colligan)
These upcoming Berkeley shows represent the Red Rocks of 2010 – a multi-night party in one of music’s hallowed venues to kick off the second leg of summer. Last year, the band’s improvement between Leg I and Leg II grew so significant, it became virtually inexplicable. The five-weeks between tours – whether used for practice, sorcery, Oh Kee Pah Ceremonies or family time – produced a far more evolved band in August then we’d left in June. I’m not sure we can expect such a colossal leap of progress over this month-long break, but if a musical shift brings any semblance of congruity to 2009’s giant steps, we are in for some good times. Having established a new sound and style for 2010, Phish looks to further their exploits of the early summer…next week!
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Jam of the Day:
“Run Like An Antelope” 8.28 II
The last time Phish visited The Greek…
[audio:http://phishthoughts.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/ph1993-08-28d2t03.mp3]=====
DOWNLOAD OF THE DAY: Greek History
8.28.1993 The Greek Theatre, Berkeley, CA < Megaupload
8.28.1993
Phish’s last visit to The Greek – seventeen years ago in August ’93; a completely different animal altogether.
I: Llama, Bouncing Around the Room, Foam, Ginseng Sullivan, Maze, Fluffhead, Stash, The Squirming Coil, Crimes of the Mind*
II: Also Sprach Zarathustra > Rift, Run Like an Antelope, The Horse > Silent in the Morning, Sparkle, It’s Ice > Big Ball Jam, Purple Rain > Hold Your Head Up, You Enjoy Myself > Oye Como Va Jam > You Enjoy Myself > Contact**, Chalk Dust Torture
E: Daniel Saw the Stone, Amazing Grace
* w/ Dude of Life on Vocals, **out vocal jam, JJ Cale opened
Source: SBD
Tags: 2010, Summer '10, Venues
put me with the nonfiction side for the most part
been reading some novels again recently. i do like them, but it kinda feels like work.
Fukuoka jam, 5:45, so funky Mike
“I’d be happy to add more or take requests (if they’re in my CD collection)”
Art Pepper
Tony Williams – Lifetime or ?
Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock early/mid 60s stuff
artists/eras I have been curious about
Usually non-fiction feels like work to me, but I might have been reading the wrong books.
my wife just said, while flipping through the cable guide:
“how frightening is it that there’s a show that’s just called…’Stossel’?!?”
Although I just read Gladwell’s Outliers acouple weeks ago and it was fun and informative.
Should have a show about Stossels Mustache. Thats one fuckin sweet stache.
@bingos-
If I recall (not having a copy in front of me):
First off, it begins with the mythical creature floating down using his huge scrotum as a parachute.
Next, the introduction of the flower.
Then it gets into all this crazy shit about cia guys going rogue in laos in the ’70’s, selling drugs using federal planes/funds; some of which is a pretty accurate desription of what was going on at the time, if anyone cares to revisit the conversation surrounding the KITMO bustout (personally, I don’t).
If yer not hooked by then, man, I can’t help ya. But its a good one, worthy of a third try, imo.
Jesus this show is good. I always forget, but then…
I haven’t spun Fukuoka in a long time.
Think tonight should be the night?
The book I have been meaning to start in earnest is 1421. It has been on my bedside table for >12months, a research perspective on the Chinese Empire’s explorations previously unheard of in the Westfromthe early middle part of last millenium. Looks intriguing, but I also just watched the ending of Kung Fu Panda so I could be all nostalgic and intrigued from that “skadoosh” move at the end.
nonfiction seems like work to me too. If I’m reading a nonfiction I still need a story to keep me going. I read novels endlessly. Last week I spun through “jazz” by toni morrison – not so much about the music as the culture it spun out of. Absolutely stunning read.
I really go for good character development and a strong narrator voice. Multiple perspectives I enjoy a lot too, all of which are present as well as page long flowing lyrical descriptive sections. Good stuff highly recommended.
Reading is a lot of work for me (or more appropriately finishing books) with this modern epidemic of ADD brought about by intense levels of distraction. So for a while the non fiction were a way to ground me. But now more than ever I want to spend some relaxed down time not thinking about much, hence my new interest in novels. But of course, given my intense need for discovering the minutiae of existence I need to read fiction that has multiple levels of in depth meaning.
@Mr. C – Wayne Shorter coming up. Gonna go with “Speak No Evil” first. 1964. Shorter on sax, Herbie Hancock on piano, Freddie Hubbard on trumpet, Elvin Jones on drums, Ron Carter on bass
Being careful not to give too much away, of course.
@bkan, its definitely worth your time if you’re a fiction guy. Will make it a point to read your CF review tmr.
^
Where will this be posted!
Yeah dog, for real that whole mythical huge scrotum toting human banging creature really turned me off. I’m a weird mofo, but that shit was just too weird for me. How that thing and the cIA Laos all got connected I’ll have to look back on. Might as well, have read all his other books too many times to remember.
@BK, I’d be interested in some other Japan 00 stuff in a couple minutes if you’re down…6/10 13 or 16 strike your fancy?
gonna give this cannonball n coltrane thing a shot here nice matchup there.
Or I’d do set 1 of Fukuoka with you..
Yeah @dognamedwilson what I have read of Robbins I have really enjoyed, and I am enjoying Skinny Legs right now.
@PhamilyBerzerker
My Chance Fisher 2010.07.19 show review can be found here:
http://chancefisher.blogspot.com/2010/07/recap-07192010-boom-boom-room.html
If you go to the homepage there you can see my other reviews (7.1, 5.20, 5.14)
Thanks for reading!
Jtran
Yeah man I’d be down for some Japan Phish tonight.
Let’s do 6.10.00 I’m paused at the start of Disease. Let me know when you hop on
The Piper from this night is some of the most abstract Phish i have ever heard
@cowfunk – for what it’s worth, I like Cannonball better without Coltrane just because I like him as more of a soulful, funky kind of player (not funky in the electronic/fusion sense, although AW has been pimping The Black Messiah from 1970 which is more jazz-rock, from what I understand; I don’t know any of his work beyond the ’60s though.)
The Cannonball and Coltrane album is still really good of course. ’60’s soul-jazz is just a favorite of mine.
@C- curious what you’ve read lately?
@PB- 1421 is another good one, though a bit suspect for me. Its an interesting idea, but not one I’m ready to buy into.
Sorry for the chatter, guys, but you’re in my wheelhouse tonight!