Following a similar schedule as last year, days ago, Trey announced a two-week tour Classic TAB tour over late-February and early-March with the well-loved lineup of ’09 featuring Tony Markelis (bass), Russ Lawton (drums), Ray Paczkowski (keyboards), Natalie Cressman (trombone), Jennifer Hartswick (trumpet), and Russell Remington (tenor saxophone and flute). Though the timing of his tour is similar to last year’s, 2011’s circuit will bring his Classic TAB ensemble to the west coast for the first time since re-uniting the band in 2008, and will feature one solo, acoustic set and one electric set — the original set up of Trey’s power-trio tour in 1999.
Starting in Portland, Maine on February 18, and winding their way to Oakland, California on March 5, Trey’s band will play twelve shows primarily in the east while also hitting Chicago, Denver, Los Angeles and the Bay Area. Denver is this year’s luck winner as the only city to host two Trey shows, as every other city will be one and done. Playing intimate clubs and theatres, Classic TAB will hit only one room with any Phish history in Albany’s Palace Theatre on February 19th. Otherwise, besides the recently refurbished Fox Theatre in Oakland, no venues jump out as particularly special or unique; but that never stopped Trey from tearing a room apart.
While 2010’s TAB tour provided stepping stone for Trey to hone his still-improving chops between Phish tours, this year, his skills won’t be in question. In fact, it was last year’s Trey tour that many fan’s pointed to as the time they really heard the Trey of old emerge. With more freedom in a band created as a personal showcase, Trey could liberally explore solos while also practicing rhythm textures when the horns took the lead. Always a breeding ground for new Phish material, we will likely see a couple up-and-comers for summer tour along the path of Classic TAB. If addition, we’ll likely hear “Liquid Time” resurface after a year of wondering when it might debut in Phish’s repertoire.
Having found a renewed stride with his solo band last year, Trey revamped many songs with lyrical horn arrangements written in collaboration with Don Hart of Orchestra Nashville. With the addition of now-20 year old, Natalie Cressman on trombone last year, and Russell Remington on tenor sax and flute, the powerful chops of TAB-mainstay, Jennifer Hartswick, gained some stellar brass accompaniment. And with the core of Tony, Russ, and Ray — who go it alone with Trey for portions of the show — Classic TAB has never been stronger. Ever since Trey downsized TAB, focusing less on conducting and more on playing guitar, the blazing solos and six-string drama displayed of his earlier tours came back to life. And with Red’s current state of shreddery, we are sure to see some fireworks next month.
Ticket presale for these shows begins today, January 14, at 10 AM Eastern, and public on-sales start a week later on January 21.
TREY and CLASSIC TAB ACOUSTIC/ELECTRIC WINTER TOUR
2/18 – State Theatre – Portland, ME
2/19 – Palace Theatre – Albany, NY
2/20 – House of Blues – Boston, MA
2/22 – Terminal 5 – New York, NY
2/23 – Electric Factory – Philadelphia, PA
2/25 – StageAE – Pittsburgh, PA
2/26 – Lifestyle Pavilion – Columbus, OH
2/27 – Riviera Theatre – Chicago, IL
3/01 – Ogden Theatre – Denver, CO
3/02 – Ogden Theatre – Denver, CO
3/04 – The Music Box – Los Angeles, CA
3/05 – Fox Theater – Oakland, CA
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Jam of the Day:
“Twist” 1.1.11
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DOWNLOAD OF THE DAY:
I’ll be back on Monday with new selections and requests from the archives. Feel free to send requests at anytime to mrminer@phishthoughts.com
