Just as quickly as it started, the Greek Theatre run that kicked off the second leg of Phish Summer Tour 2010 in Berkeley, CA has just come to a close. Coming out of the gates with the fast-paced AC/DC Bag > Foam pairing, Phish lost their way a bit during the opening of Gotta Jibboo but recovered in time for the sublime jam. Speaking of sublime jams, Reba followed and contained impressive work from keyboardist Page McConnell who egged guitarist Trey Anastasio on throughout the jam.
[Photo by @Tweeprise]
Sleep Again and Army of One gave fans a chance to sample tunes that were once part of Anastasio and McConnell’s solo repertoires before bassist Mike Gordon led the band through one of his songs (for Phish) – Poor Heart. 46 Days was a bright spot and stands out as the “you should listen to this tomorrow” highlight of the opening stanza. The Tube that came out of 46 Days was played really fast by the quartet making for a unique version and the Character Zero closer gave the set the big rock finish.
Another awkward transition occurred at the end of the Wilson that opened the second set as the segue into Light was abrupt. All was forgotten quickly when Light descended into a lengthy and ambitious jam. Trey led the improv through three or four unique themes with has band mates ready, willing and able to follow his lead. From light to dark, pretty to dissonant, the Light jam touched on many different soundscapes.
08/07/2010 Greek Theatre
Set 1: AC/DC Bag > Foam, Gotta Jibboo, Reba, Sleep Again, Army of One, Poor Heart > 46 Days[1] > Tube, Character Zero
Set 2: Wilson > Light > Twenty Years Later > Harry Hood > Theme From the Bottom, Also Sprach Zarathustra > Suzy Greenberg > Slave to the Traffic Light
Encore: The Lizards, First Tube
[1] Streets of Cairo tease from Trey.
46 Days contained a Streets of Cairo tease from Trey.
[via Phish.net]
20 Years Later offered a nice counterpoint and led into a strong Harry Hood that saw the band connect and play with purpose throughout the beautiful end jam. The improv wasn’t rushed giving the foursome time to develop the jam and Trey ample time to shred. Theme and 2001 kept the energy high before Suzy brought things to a boil. McConnell led the way through the jam and just as the song was about to end Anastasio decided he hadn’t had enough and restarted his solo. Red’s resulting solo was fiery and eventually segued into a smoking Slave to the Traffic Light. The encore featured the first Lizards in that slot since November 22, 1994 and First Tube.
Many Phish fans were looking for the return of the Type II jams and Berkeley contained a number of them. What the run didn’t have were bust outs, new originals and random covers – Ride Captain Ride must wait to sail off. We’ll see what the Telluride run holds when it starts on Monday at Town Park.
6 Responses
There’s way too much emphasis on this type II jamming thing. Including the constant critique and negative blogging on Phish 3.0. Seriously people just enjoy the moment, enjoy the fact that they are playing again with Joy. Isn’t that what the album is all about? This is your song too, we want you to be happy. I’ve seen 45 shows since 97’s Great Went, and I’ve seen Phish not only evolve, but change in so many ways. A good crowd of Old Heads stopped after 96, for there were many years of change in the early nineties too. They used to tell me, how I never saw the Real Phish back when I was touring in 98′, and 99′. Every year and tour Phish changes. Can’t we all see that? Let them play, sure it’s no Mike Groove from 1995, it’s 2010 man, people change. Environment and life makes Styles of playing change and are implemented over each year without reason or rhyme. Enjoy the Phish we have now, after all it might be someones favorite show.
werd to posternut.Right on Brotha! been seeing em since 94 and I still enjoy every show because I’m there…
Agreed P-nut.
Type II + 3.0 = B.S.
Just enjoy the Phish and stop critiquing every note.
i didn’t hear any type II from the the greek. not by a longshot
Light, Simple, 46 Days and Ghost all went off the beaten path and I’d consider Type II jams.
Here here P-nut… I’ve been touring on and off since ’92 and have seen many changes, but I’ve always felt lucky, even blessed to be out on the road with such a great band. Variaty is the spice of life, and it holds well for Phish too. I for one have had a blast witnessing all the changes, and look forward to being there for the rest of their career.