A Tour Story

Andy Hill (State of Mind)

Albany - photo: Andy Hill (State of Mind)

After a day of decompression and a 15 hour slumber, some post-tour processing is necessary.  The past two weeks have been incredibly inspiring.  To see Trey so happy and healthy in such intimate venues was like being with an old friend again- there was a lot of catching up to do.  The zest and precision in which Trey played his trusty Languedoc all tour long encouraged vibrant dreams of the future.  With Trey referencing Phish throughout the tour, and specifically mentioning the Hampton shows at the end of the last show, he made it clear where his intentions were.  With Tony, Russ, and Ray- the only members that should ever comprise the Trey Anastasio Band- Trey became re-acclimated to stage, and by mid-tour, he owned it once again.  With his multi-faceted guitar repertoire flowing like molten lava, Trey gained so much momentum throughout the eight shows that it seemed he wished the tour was not ending so soon.

Andy Hill (State of Mind)

Albany- photo: Andy Hill (State of Mind)

Despite similar setlists, Trey magnified different songs on different nights and sprinkled in enough new and other songs to keep every show feeling unique.  Enthusiastically shredding throughout the tour, song selection was secondary to his consistently pristine, clean and refreshing improvisation.  Trey seemed to have as good a time as anyone over the fortnight, as he was all smiles all the time.  Complete with his one “show shirt” for the tour, it sure seems that the cosmic jokester we know and love is back to tickle, tease and tangle our minds again.

Musically announcing his comeback to each audience across the Northeast, and one in the south, Trey seemed as if he was rediscovering the joy of just playing.  Clearly not carrying as much personal weight with him, his childlike bliss shone each and every night.  With shows comprised of several new songs, some from Shine and 18 Steps and many TAB classics, Trey and his band delighted each and every audience of the tour.  With the white-hot focus on the sublime improvisation of the man himself, he consistently responded with blistering, yet delicate playing that provided a significant contrast to his last days with 70 Volt Parade in 2006.

Andy Hill (State of Mind)

Albany - photo: Andy Hill (State of Mind)

The entire tour had a distinctly celebratory tone to it, as the energy in every room was astronomical.  With the imminent return of Phish, and no shows scheduled between now and then, people knew this might be the one time they saw Trey before Hampton- or beyond.  It would not be surprising, seeing how much fun he had, to see Trey announce a New Years show or two, but as of now all we have are rumors.  This was the return of Trey, and with so much anticipation for the return of Phish, it was most definitely the return of the Phish community.  With many fans reacquainting after the extended time away, one of the coolest parts of the tour was seeing so many familiar faces again, both friends and also those people you didn’t really know, but always saw all over the place.  And this is just a preview of the massive homecoming that Phish shows will be.

Andy Hill (State of Mind)

photo: Andy Hill (State of Mind)

Gotta’ give props to Trey’s band who were great all tour.  Tony and Russ always holding down a deep pocket, but more specifically Ray Paczkowsi on keys.  Adding a completely other dimension to the smaller sized band, he consistently improvised with Trey on the tour, supporting his melodies and licks, while helping build some monster jams.  If there were a non-Trey MVP award, Ray would clearly be the winner.  Trey went out of his way on multiple nights to point out that Ray has been by his side for every non-Phish show over the last eight years, and to say what a spiritual and musical connection he felt to his second keyboardist.  Adding tremendously to funk jams, and layering melodies and sounds behind others, his playing stood out in every show.

Andy Hill (State of Mind)

photo: Andy Hill (State of Mind)

In looking forward to Phish, there were some songs that seem clearly destined for our favorite band, and others that could possibly make the transition as well.

Let’s look at the possibilities:

LIKELY
Backwards Down the Number Line: Written by Tom and Trey, about friends coming back together, with a ripping jam, this one seems both lyrically and musically spot-on.

Light: Only played once, opening the second set of Wallingford, Trey seems to be saving this one for Phish.  When you listen to the song, you can imagine Phish destroying it.  A transcendent jam that will be brought to uncharted realms, I for one, cannot wait to hear this in Trey’s “other band.”

Greyhound Rising: Also only played once, deep in the Philly’s second set, this compositional masterpiece seems written for Phish as well.  You have to figure if Trey has these amazing songs, and only played them  once during these shows, he wants Phish to be the quartet to define their destiny.

Burlap Sack & Pumps: Consistently introduced with other TAB-to-Phish songs written by Trey such as Sand, Jiboo, and First Tube, it seemed as though Trey was implying that this was the next to make that jump.  A song made up of multiple diverse jams and six total words, it sure fits the description of a Phish song.  Played for the first times ever as a four piece band, this could be a fiery piece of Phish 3.0 improv.

Valentine: Played twice in the first three shows, Trey kept this one stashed away for the rest of tour.  Another song you can just hear Phish playing and taking to divine places of improvisation, this new uplifting song seems like it was tucked away for a reason.  Only able to go so far with a guitar solo, add three master improvisers to the mix, and you’ve got a whole different monster all together.

Let Me Lie: The next in the line of beautiful Phish ballads, this one will have a jam as well.

Ruby Waves: Debuted in Burlington, the only time played on tour, this song features flowing verses and extended guitar improvisation. Phish will make this into something this band just can’t.

I WISH

Spin: With an open ended jam that has absolutely no necessary direction, this one would be a psychedelic adventure every time Phish played it.  These would be the type of jams that dreams are made of, the ones that have no logical ending point and are wide open for the imagination.  Potentially too autobiographical for his larger band, one can only hope Phish adopts this one.

A Case of Ice and Snow: It would awe-inspiring.

MAYBE

Alaska: This is the exact type of song that Trey would bring to Phish for no apparent reason.

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DOWNLOADS OF THE DAY: Here are crispy AUDS of the entire Trey Tour (except Roseland), linked all in one place for your selection. Back to Phish tomorrow!

10 08 Chevrolet Theatre,Wallingford, CT

10.18 The Palace, Albany, NY

10.19 Higher Ground, Burlington, VT

10.21 Lupo’s, Providence, RI

10.23 The Orpheum, Boston, MA

10.24 The Electric Factory, Philadelphia, PA

10.25 The National, Richmond VA

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TAB, THE PALACE, ALBANY NY, PHOTO: ANDY HILL (State of Mind Music)

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“Sample In a Jar” acoustic, Richmond, VA

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“Sitting In Limbo”  solo Richmond, VA

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13 Responses to “A Tour Story”

  1. kbill23 Says:

    was Trey wearing AF1’s in Richmond? i thought that was great. he was just tearing into every jam he could get his hands on that evening. great stuff

  2. mrcharlie Says:

    close-
    they’re dunks.
    been wearing them since BK

  3. eric Says:

    Thanks for all the tour reviews and all the excellent loads. Delving back through your archives I was thrilled to finally get my hands on the Lemonwheel Ambient Jam. I have had a copy of Lemonwheel for quite some time but the Ambient Jam file was corrupted. I was so happy to groove out to that jam late last night. Thanks.

  4. jaime Says:

    Wait, so why haven’t you posted a Roseland copy? I know you said you weren’t going to but with all the new versions of concerts you’ve posted it doesn’t seem to make any sense why you haven’t posted a copy of the Roseland concert. Can you at least expand on why you won’t?

  5. pyite Says:

    Ice and snow sounds like the prototypical 2nd set song. That will definitely make the jump.

    Also @jaime I don’t think any auds of Roseland have been posted yet, I haven’t seen any. I don’t think it’s anything personal against the show.

  6. A.Hill Says:

    Thanks for using my pics Mr. Miner.

  7. Vermont Says:

    hey, thanks for the tour updates. I had to miss this one because I’ve been on the west coast for a few months, but I really like the sound of some of these shows, Backwards down the number line seems like it came out of nowhere, but I love it! If Phish doesn’t take it and run with it, I’ll be very disappointed! I hope you had a good time on tour. thanks again for the shows.

  8. Greg Says:

    Major MSG March 28th rumblings going around!

  9. Cory Says:

    I only have time for one show for this tour. Suggestions?

  10. Taylor Franklin Says:

    Hi Miner!

    I just want to thank you for a couple of things. One, for all the Trey shows! Second, for getting me back into Phish in a way that makes sense for someone who hasn’t been listening to them as much since they left. For me, I’d traded so many shows (tapes) and listened so much that I had no reason to really start downloading full shows again. Now, with your Miner’s Picks, I can get back into Phish in an exciting way…I can dive into a whole tour without listening to cavern 44 times. I can just listen to the one special cavern, etc. Your mixes also allow someone who is listening to everything but Phish, to listen to Phish in a manageable way. Sure, I love listening to a whole show and always will, but this is nice too.
    I love having these little best of’s. It makes me focus on specific aspects of why I love phish – Jamming in a club, taking a non-jam song and sucker punching us with surprsise jams or just highlights from a tour. I never even knew that summer 95 could be labeled as psychedelic and now I’m excited to go hear all those parts. Phish’s jams are so special. they are the reason they are my favorite band (with the beatles slowly in the rear, literally fucking them they are so close). Their jams still today hold up for a 26 year old. It wasn’t just a fluke that I loved them when I was 16.
    I’d also like to say that this is the first time I’ve been able to listen to a whole tour (trey) as it happens. I know technology in general has a lot to do with this but still…it’s great to have a show to listen to along with the setlists.

    One question…when Phish comes back and have the official downloads on their sight. does that prevent you from putting up their shows here for free? Or is it still ok to post regular trader’s taped shows?

    Thank you for making Phish relevant and exciting…and they haven’t even come back yet!

    Take care,
    Taylor

  11. Dunwoody Says:

    Thanks for all the great uploads. It’s been nice to have a one-stop shop to check out the new material.

    I agree with you about the material that moves to Phish. Greyhound Rising and Light will be excellent. I am more confident than you about Case of Ice and Snow reaching the repertoire as well (I think it gets bumped out the “I wish” category anyway). I think that tune has a great feel to it that Phish could really take out nicely. It reminds of Pebbles and Marbles a little, and that turned out to be a decent little number.

    I’m still playing catch up with some of the older material, but is Spin always as crazy as it was on 10/24? If so, count me in for keeping it on my wish list.

    I’d also add Drifting to the list of “good chance Phish will play it tunes.” While I’m not wild about the song itself, I’m a big fan of where I think the jam could go.

    Thanks again for all you do. Take care.

  12. axillalot Says:

    Good god just listened to the Jibboo from Boston. Just unreal. Trey and Ray are just locked in and having so much fun together. The band gott better, literally every night, as the tour went on. Thanks for posting the shows up here. Got a few off etree and a few off here, all have been sounding really good, as far as auds go. Thanks to the tapers!

    As far as the question of whether or not Miner will be able to post shows here once Phish is back and posting their sbds for sale at their site, he will be. They allow trading of legally taped shows. So even though you can go buy the “official” show, it is legal to get a copy of an audience recording. Nothing has changed there.

  13. Read Icculus Says:

    ……I would like to preface my comments by saying this is the first time I have visited your website and I became insipired……..You care, I can tell…and so do I.
    Regarding the most recent TAB shows and possible Phish crossover tunes…yes, yes, and yes.
    Trey looked and sounded great! A very inispiring tour indeed.
    The wife and I have been seeing shows going on 18 years. I proposed to her on the first night of the Lake Placid shows in December of 1995 during Page’s piano solo in Squirming Coil and never looked back.
    When coventry was over (and if I may quote comic book guy “worse final show ever”) I turned to my friends and said see you in five years and wouldn’t you know it we won tickets from the mighty Phish for Hampton (five years later).
    We have kept the fire burining, we’ll be there and we’re bringing the love.

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