, attached to 1999-09-16

Review by kipmat

kipmat https://forum.phish.net/forum/permalink/1378203506

From The Phish Book, p. 119:
Mike: "Phish and the Dead share certain musical values. We don't make music to revolt against societal institutions in an overtly political way. But at the same time we both try to break radical new ground in whatever small ways we can. Not that our respective bands always reflect sweetness and light. Both the Dead and Phish explore some pretty dark and scary places as a way to celebrate life in all its diversity."

The West Coast mentality symbolized by the Grateful Dead may have been foreign to jam bands from New England, but the late 90s saw Phish play some of their best shows in their career by the Pacific Ocean. 9/14/99 Boise and 9/18/99 Chula Vista have both seen official release, but in between those two shows Phish played a two-night stand at Shoreline Amphitheatre that is worthy of reconsideration. Understandably, the first night gets lost in the shadow of the Phil Lesh guest appearance the following night, similar to how Phish stood in the Grateful Dead's shadow throughout the first half of the 90's.

The fourteen songs in the first set are a cornucopia of the band's repertoire, including the debut of the new, "Farmhouse" arrangement of Dirt, and a resurrection of Allen Toussaint's On Your Way Down after having not been performed in over 1,000 shows. The arrangement of On Your Way Down is different as well, performed in the manner heard as a bonus track to the Little Feat live album Waiting For Columbus, rather than the original version on the classic Dixie Chicken album faithfully covered by Phish back in the 80's. This bluesy take allows Trey to slow down his phrasing and make his guitar "cry" a little bit, a technique echoed in an extended coda to Billy Breathes later in the set. Trey's whining Leslie-speaker guitar tone also shines in the loops that bring spookiness to the 2001 second-set opener, as well as the killer guitar duel with special guest Warren Haynes during the encore.


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