Today our December focus shift onto two sprawling excursions that took place on the eighth day of the month in 1995and 1999. Both selections — Cleveland’s “Tweezer > Kung > Tweezer” and Cumberland County Civic Center’s “Piper” — feature musical explorations that veer far off the beaten path, providing snapshots of the band’s experimental side as seen through the lenses of 1995 and 1999.

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“Tweezer > Kung > Tweezer” 12.8.95 – Cleveland, Ohio

This multi-tiered adventure moves through several distinct stages in forming a musical labyrinth. Page led the troops through the first segment of the jam with heavy piano, while Trey selectively picked and chose his spots before slowing integrating a melodic theme. Quickly — but not abruptly — Phish descended into a quieter canvas painted, still painted by Trey and Page’s brushstrokes. Moving into an abstract, beat-less realm, this version evoked memories of the depths that plunged “Tweezer” seemingly every night in the experimentally-focused Summer of ’95. Even while Phish cranked out, perhaps, the tightest music of their lives during December ’95, they still carved out plenty of room for abstract exploration. Dipping back into “Tweezer” and building directly into the cosmos again, Phish passed through segments of groove, amorphous jamming, and ambient beauty before morphing into “Kung.” Oozing back into “Tweezer,” the band took a couple minutes to wildly peak the jam, and then several more to slowly bring it to a close in a hefty dose of Fall ’95.

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“Piper > Dog Faced Boy” 12.8.99 – CCCC Portland, Maine

On the second night of Phish’s visit to Cumberland County Civic Center during their smoking tour of December ’99, they dropped an unconventional “Piper” amidst a six-song set that has flown under the radar ever since. Setting sail into thrashing “millennial” waters, Trey fired off countless notes as Mike crushed frenetic bass-lines in lock-step with his guitarist. But instead of following this more traditional “wall of sound” path, the band peeled away layers, landing in stripped down and particularly un-noisy textures. Page added quintessential ’99 space-sounds and Fishman altered his beat as the band significantly down-shifted into a hauting-turned-beautiful exploratory passage. Trey played subtle melodies over a growing ambient canvas as the music turned into uncharted territory. This segment fused Phish’s more melodic ambient style of Fall ’98 with their abstract and layered psyechedelia of ’99, resulting in an awing musical concoction. Drifting though crystalline, space-aged bliss, the band sculpted a soulful ambient excursion. Concluding the adventure with a grandiose spacescape, Phish gradually melted into “Dog-Faced Boy.”

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Jam of the Day:

“Halley’s Comet” 12.7.99 I

A phenomenal version from the first night of Cumberland County ’99.

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DOWNLOAD OF THE DAY:

2.12.93 Mid-Hudson Civic Center, Poughkeepsie, NY

Mp3 Torrent, Megaupload < Links

This one goes out to Highway Bill, who describes this special night as…

“…my first real show, a snowy weekday night in Poughkeepsie. The venue was almost empty. I remember quite clearly walking right up in front of Trey (like 3 feet) in amazement of what I was seeing. I would then walk back to where the people I came with were standing and asking them if they were seeing what I was, they weren’t. I could not understand (and still can’t) why they were not being affected. I remember doing this several times…This show hooked me for life.”

I: Golgi Apparatus, Maze, Guelah Papyrus, Sparkle, Split Open and Melt, Esther,The Wedge, Chalk Dust Torture, I Didn’t Know, Take the ‘A’ Train, Run Like an Antelope

II: My Friend, My Friend, All Things Reconsidered, Reba, Poor Heart, Big Ball Jam, Fast Enough for You, You Enjoy Myself, Ya Mar, Hold Your Head Up > Terrapin > Hold Your Head Up, Harry Hood, Harpua

E: Amazing Grace, Good Times Bad Times

Source: Unknown

Today’s flashbacks bring us into two legendary periods of Phish history – Fall ’97 and Fall ’95 – and showcase two pieces of music that define these eras to a tee – Dayton’s “Tube > Slave” and Niagara Falls’ “Split Open and Melt.”

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“Tube > Slave” 12.7.97 – Nutter Center, Dayton, OH

Capping off a fun-filled opening set at Dayton’s Nutter Center, Phish reeled off the defining musical segment of the entire show. Tw0-thirds of the way through a tour filled with dance grooves, “Tube” — still a three-minute song — had yet to make an appearance. Thus when Phish took the rarity off the shelf in Dayton for a rendition that many fans now know by heart, they completely redefined the song for the late ’90s and beyond. Instead of firing through a musical shot of adrenaline, Phish applied their Fall ’97 paradigm to the song, crafting a legendary dose of “cow funk.” A revelatory moment in which one could feel the burgeoning excitement deep within, Phish locked into an addictive groove clinic that set the Nutter Center afire. Phish, themselves, felt so good about the birth of the funk-generation “Tube,” that upon its ending, they burst back into the rhythmic crack that had just drenched the crowd. Lighting up thrilling back-to-back dance sessions, Phish built these grooves away from “Tube” and into an iconic slice of Fall ’97 music. The band slowly infused melodic leads into the bubbling brew, and Trey introduced the opening hints of “Slave” while the band still soared through a rhythmic wormhole. The band heard his idea and slowed the tempo for a gradual move into “Slave.” Capping this momentous segment with a glorious “Slave,” the band had invented a brand new improvisational vehicle for years to come.

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“Split Open and Melt” 12.7.95 – Niagara Falls Convention Cntr, NY

Surrounded by so many mind-stretching highlights in the same week, let alone the same month, this show from Niagara Falls doesn’t always receive the recognition it deserves. Boasting top-shelf renditions of “Reba,” and “Mike’s > Groove,” its most blistering piece of music remains the second-set opening “Split Open and Melt.” Illustrative of the rapid-fire communication of late-95, the band chugged their way into a vintage psychedelic jaunt. Spinning into a four-piece symphony, the band converged in a piece that pushed the limits of improvisational tightness amidst cacophony. A chaotic version that remained tightly glued together, the skills on display in this jam were the skills that made December ’95 such a spectacular month of music. Progressing into a more palpable rhythm, the band slowly built the abstract jam back into the back end of “Split’s” sinister build. Taking plenty of time to peak this enthralling rendition, Phish also traveled down a creative path to end the piece, softly closing one of the more impressive renditions of the year.

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Jam of the Day:

“Mike’s > Weekapaug” 12.7.95 II

Another stellar nugget from Niagara Falls ’95.

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DOWNLOAD OF THE DAY:

10.27.1995 Wings Stadium, Kalamazoo, Michigan

FLAC Torrent (etree), Mp3 Torrent, Megaupload < Links

This Fall ’95 reader’s request goes out to Vinnie in San Francisco. In his own words:

The “Runaway Jim > Fluffhead” opener was pure bliss. The “Suspicious Minds” cover was in tribute to the epic rumor of an Elvis spotting at a Burger King in Kalamazoo. The “Bowie” was a melter for all in attendance, and they finished off with a classy David Bowie cover of “Life on Mars?”

I: Runaway Jim, Fluffhead, Taste That Surrounds, Horn, I Didn’t Know, Rift, Stash, Fee > Suspicious Minds > Hold Your Head Up

II: Also Sprach Zarathustra > David Bowie, Dog Faced Boy, Poor Heart, Simple, McGrupp and the Watchful Hosemasters > Keyboard Army, Bouncing Around the Room, Possum

E: Life on Mars?

Sources: FLAC – (FOB) Schoeps cmc3/mk4, Mp3 – AKG 460s

December – one of the Phishiest months of the year. We have once again returned to the last page on the calendar, and with each passing day, memories of epic Phish shows flood our memories. This month is especially significant as it represents the 15-year anniversary of December ’95, one of the most powerful months of music that Phish has ever produced. In addition, early December brings memories of Fall ’97’s home stretch from Philadelphia out to the Midwest and back to Albany. And of course, December goes hand in hand with New Year’s Runs – one of Phish’s greatest traditions. Many monumental moments have come over the four final days of the year, and as Phish returns to the same two venues that hosted their epic run 15 years ago, it will be (in the word of living-legend Yogi Berra) deja vu all over again. Over the next few weeks, we will look back at significant December moments in Phish history, especially at the band’s legacies at Worcester and Madison Square Garden. But today, on December 6, there are two significant segments of music that celebrate their birthday. Hailing from 1997 – the all-timer – “Tweezer > Izabella,” and from Phish’s ’96 Vegas extravaganza, a sizzling “Mike’s > Simple > Hood > Weekapaug.”

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“Tweezer > Izabella” 12.6.1997 – Auburn Hills, Michigan

The “Tweezer” from The Palace at Auburn Hills, Michigan on December 6, 1997 needs no introduction. Amidst a well-loved and uber-creative tour filled with superb “Tweezers,” this version took the cake. Carving out, and then transcending, the gargantuan funk grooves that defined Fall ’97 versions, this one opened the door to another galaxy. Taking the jam on an inter-galactic ride Phish threw one of the defining “Tweezers” of the late-’90s thirteen years ago tonight. An unforgettable experience, when the set ended I knew that it would stand any test of time. And sure enough, over a decade later, here we are. A full-band journey into the center of the universe and back again, seldom do jams come together like this one did. Last week a friend posed the absurd question – “If you had one day to live and could only listen to one more “Tweezer,” which would it be?” Without hesitation I replied “12.6.97.” With no further ado, Happy Birthday to my favorite “Tweezer!”

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“Mike’s > Simple > Harry Hood > Weekapaug” 12.6.1996 – Aladdin Theatre, Las Vegas, NV

Phish pulled into The Aladdin Theatre in Las Vegas for the last stop on their extensive fall tour of 1996. Though everybody remembers the absurd and extensive “Harpua” encore featuring many Elvis impersonators, Les Claypool and Larry LaLonde of Primus, yodelers, and various other stage antics that punctuated the affair, earlier in the night, Phish dropped an hour-long “Mike’s Groove” that provided the musical meat of tour’s finale. Starting with a ferocious “Mike’s Song,” the band crunched the darkness, straddling the slowed down rhythmic style of late-Fall ’96 and their fleeting arena rock paradigm. Blasting through an aggressive version on the heels of San Diego’s monster two day’s earlier, the band landed seamlessly in “Simple.” This extended version contained the most original improv of the sequence, as Phish passed through a tranquil pond into a web of snarling musical textures, and then onto a soaring transcendent plane. Descending into an explosive and heart-melting “Harry Hood,” the band pushed the delicate music with exquisite energy and urgency, sculpting a top-shelf rendition of lore. Trey’s guitar leads took on a narrative quality that lent an especially cathartic aura to this “Harry Hood,” and the entire band stamped the tour’s “farewell jam” with a dizzying peak. A smoking run through “Weekapaug” bookended this adventurous musical suite, and added one last sprint to the end of Fall 1996.

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Jam of the Day:

“Reba” 12.31.93 I

Here is the sublime version from the Worcester Centrum on New Year’s Eve 1993 to kick of the week.

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DOWNLOAD OF THE DAY:

8.26.1993 Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, Portland, OR

Mp3 Torrent, Megaupload < Links

A relic from August 1993, this show from Portland, Oregon smokes from beginning to end. A particularly burly “Split” highlights the first set, while “2001 > Bowie” opens up the second half with a bang. Enjoy this show from one of Phish’s golden months in history, going out via reader request to Chuck D.

I: Runaway Jim, Guelah Papyrus, Reba, Fee, Split Open and Melt, Esther, It’s Ice, Harry Hood, Golgi Apparatus

II: Also Sprach Zarathustra > David Bowie, Lifeboy, Rift, Jesus Just Left Chicago, The Lizards, Hold Your Head Up > Mice and Bats*> Hold Your Head Up, Chalk Dust Torture

E: Free Bird

* w/ Baby Gramps, who was also the opening act.

Source: (FOB) Neumann km140 > Sonosax SX-M2 > Sony D-10 II pro (@ 48 kHz)