From Daniel.W.Mielcarz@Dartmouth.EDU Sat Dec 12 16:21:24 1998
Date: Wed, 25 Nov 1998 13:36:19 -0500
From: Dan Mielcarz 
Reply-To: Phish WWW workers mailing list 
To: PHISH-WWW@netspace.org
Subject: New Haven 11/24/98 Review

(A copy of this message has also been posted to the following newsgroups:
rec.music.phish)

Hey all, I just got my tired ass out of bed after getting home at 3 AM
last night and decided to write a quick review of the show last night.  If
anyone cares, this was my 24th show or something and I have a lot of
tapes...and if I say a song was "standard", or simply "good" I don't mean
to imply that it is anything less than spectacular in comparison to 99% of
the music out there today.

The scene:

Wow, I have never seen as many ticketless as I did at this show. I guess
it speaks to the smallness of the venue. I would estimate at *least* 500
people with their fingers in the air, and the number is probably much more
than that.  The stairway down from the parking garage was a veritable
gauntlet of people begging for tickets. Matt, a fellow big Dartmouth
student who had only seen West Coast shows up to this point was astonished
at the scene on the right coast, and last night, I was too.  I'm not one
to complain too much about the scene like some people; but this definitely
got to me.  Drugs don't bother me; ticketless do.

The venue:

The weirdest "arena" I have ever seen.  Take a normal arena and cut off
the corners to make it look like a big plus sign, and you have an idea of
what it looks like.  It was ill-equipped to deal with the crowds of people
that were there; the hallways were packed between sets.  The security was
fine for the most part, but the one guard closest to us during the show
was the biggest jerk I have seen at a concert.  While Ann and I were
heading down to our floor seats, we saw a head with what looked like a box
of DATs trying to explain to this guy that he just needed to drop them off
to a taper.  This guard got in his face and started yelling at him, so the
head just says to the guy "You're a nerd."  The guard then says "You get
the hell out of my face or I'llkick you out!"  It was pretty funny how
calm the fan stayed while being bitched out by this loser.  The guard did
some other silly things during the show but I won't get into it.  The rows
on the floor were unbelieveably close together, but I was on the floor, so
I didn't really mind. Except when the guy behind us crashed from whatever
drugs he was taking and slumped over our seats.  We pushed him back and
his girlfriend took care of him. Remember: moderation is key!

The setlist:

11/24/98 New Haven Coliseum - New Haven, Connecticut
I (~70 min): *Down with Disease, Moma Dance, Ginseng Sullivan, Stash,
Brian and Robert, Limb by Limb, Sample in a Jar, Tela, Chalk Dust Torture

II (~70 min): Ghost -> Halley's Comet, Tweezer -> Possum**, Wading in the
Velvet Sea, Character Zero

E: Suzie Greenberg***, Tweezer Reprise***

* - during the spacey intro, before Mike's bass comes in Trey teased Stash
** - spacey intro
*** - with the Dude of Life, different lyrics in second verse

The show:

Set I
Once we got settled into our seats, we waited for the lights to dim.  Dim
they did, and the band came out and started with a spacey little intro
that can only lead to DWD.  During this, Trey teased the main riff from
Stash once, then Mike played the DWD bass intro and they were off.  This
DWD was exclusively Type I, with Trey leading the jamming they whole way
through.  It was very enjoyable, but nothing like 2/17/97 Amsterdam, for
example.  Trey was truly taking the lead the whole night, much more than
shows from 97 and earlier this year (I haven't heard much fall tour, so I
can't comment on what's been happening recently).  The time for this
version was ~13 minutes, and most of those minutes were Trey soloing.

MOMA DANCE  followed and I noticed something about this song: it doesn't
change a hell of a lot (well, the one's I've heard).  That said, it is a
GREAT composition, and I love the
bah-bah-bah-bah...bah-bah-bah-bah...bah-bah-ba riff.  It's just so
different from other Phish composed songs, that I expect a jam, but I
shouldn't, because there's no jam in Guyute.  The jam at the end was good,
but nothing that one wouldn't expect from Moma, and similar to the Deer
Creek from this summer that I heard on the way to the show.  It was nice
to hear it after the release of SOTG, because now I know all the lyrics.
GINSENG SULLIVAN is a song I've been hearing a lot lately, 3 times in 1998
alone. At this point I'd rather hear Nellie Cane, but Ginseng was well
played, and I allowed myself to enjoy it :)

STASH was up next, turing the tease at the beginning of the show into
foreshadowing.  This Stash was definitely the highlight of the first set,
lasting 12 minutes and going to some very cool places.  In the middle of
the jam there was a great segment with Trey playing staccato notes with
Fishman keeping the beat on the woodblocks. Kuroda added to the fun by
lighting up the fans in the back of the stage, changing their color to
Trey's jam. They were extremely together throughout the jam segment, and
it stayed fairly close to the foundation of the song.  Certainly a part of
the show where you look at your compainion and give her or him a smiling
nod (you all know what I mean, right?). Stash ended and was followed by
BRIAN & ROBERT, which was a much needed chill out song after that raging
Stash.  I've never been able to get into the words of Brian & Robert, but
this one was well played and I love the sound of Page's organ (Rhodes?
Moog? what the heck does he play in this one? I get confused...) that
continues throughout the song.

After Brian and Robert, they started up LIMB BY LIMB.  This was a tight
version, with a slight flub by Kuroda (or one of his minions) who kicked
the red lights a measure early before the guitar solo. Ann and I decide it
must have been a minion because as far as we are concerened, Kuroda can do
no wrong.  We envisioned a scenario in which Kuroda bitches out the guy
like the Drill Seargent in Full Metal Jacket (I didn't know they stacked
shit that high!) or Shooter McGavin talking to his caddy in Happy Gilmore
(Wedgie huh? Well, you're fired).  Great solo in this Limb, but nothing
you haven't heard before out of the Lemonwheel Limb.  This tune was 11
minutes long, for those of you playing along at home.  SAMPLE was next,
thought by most in attendence to be the set closer for sure.  We were glad
to be wrong.

TELA was a huge surprise, and probably my favorite slow song to hear.  I
was pretty happy to get my second Tela in 98.  I love the end where they
sing "Tela, Tela, jewel of Wilson's foul domain."  Although I do like the
original TMWSIY with the "vulgar crooked hut" stuff better.  After this we
got a CHALKDUST TORTURE, and I knew for sure that it would be the set
closer, and it was.  Trey told us he'd be back in 15 minutes, so I ran to
get a soda and call Rob so I wouldn't miss anything ;)

Set I recap:  Great Stash, good DWD and Moma, nicely executed Tela. 5.5 on
the Scott Jordan Concert Review Scale.

Set II
The distinctive delay loop (present on SOTG) signalled that a GHOST was on
the docket.  And a fine Ghost it was!  Definitely not the funk Ghost of
Tours Past, this Ghost veered off into an almost Bathtub-like jam.  Matt
compared it to the Murat Gin, I compared it to the Went Gin without the
Euphoria - but the interesting thing is that we both compared it to a Gin
jam. I would call Trey's jamming almost circular, in that he was repeating
a cycle of notes that cycled through a range of pitches.  Trey definitely
dominated the jam, and the song lasted a fun-filled 17 minutes, before
degrading into some sustained space noises, out of which came Mike's vocal
solo at the begininning of HALLEY'S COMET.  This version was completely
straight up...no jam at the end at all, just an abrupt stop, which was
followed within seconds by TWEEZER.

This Tweezer was the tightest jam they played all night, with a lot of
nice clav work by Page at the beginning of the jam (typical, but quite
good).  The jam was lead by Trey's guitar work that was decidedly anthemic
(not anemic!) and not funky. It ended in the "repeat the main riff and
slow it down each time" fashion, and entropically melted into some space
that I thought for sure was either going to be 2001 or Bowie, it was
pretty cool, and I never expected the song that would emerge. But after a
couple minutes, I heard Trey tease POSSUM as a signal for Page and Fishman
to start it up. Start it up they did, and Possum really got me and the
rest of the fans dancing.  This Possum was a raging 15 minutes long, and
fun was had by all.

The lights seemed to signal and end-of-show atmosphere at the end of
Possum, so we were surprised when the band started up WADING IN THE VELVET
SEA.  This Sea had no delay loop by Trey, starting only with the really
pretty piano solo by Page that we all know and love. I really like the
lyrics to this song, and I'll be damned if I let all of you convince me
that it's cheese. And Page singing? Come on, what more can you want? Nice
slow solo by Trey to finish up the song, and we figured the wanted to end
on more of a high note, and we were right.  As soon as they started up
CHARACTER 0, I could feel a collective sigh from jaded fans all over the
venue.  Previous to this night, I felt the best Zero was 12/31/96 Boston,
but last nights was MUCH better.  They actually mixed it up a bit in the
jam at the end.  I know you all don't believe me, but Trey was definitely
doing things with the solo that he had never done before (or at least I
hadn't heard before). They looked like they were having an incredible
amount of fun for the 9 minutes that Zero covered, and it really was a
good closer (which is something I rarely say about Zero).

Set II recap: Wonderful, original Ghost, tight Tweezer, long Possum, best
Chracter Zero ever.   8 on the SJCRS.

Encore
Who walks out with the band but that begoggled fool, the Dude of Life!
Trey lets us all know who he is, and they play SUZIE GREENBERG, a song
that I thought was on permanent leave due to the statements by the band in
the Phish book.  A really fun version, with different lyrics that I
couldn't quite catch in the second verse.  The Dude is great, some of my
first tapes were shows that he guested at, so he has a lot of sentimental
value for me.  He is a great showman too, running around the stage,
pointing at Page and Trey when it's their turns to solo.  I was hoping for
a Crimes of the Mind or She's Bitchin' Again after Suzie, but forgot that
they still hadn't played TWEEZER REPRISE.  The Dude was singing something
at the beginning of the song before the lyrics, but no one I talked to
could figure it out.  Maybe it will be more clear on the tapes.  He helped
out with the standard vocals as well and made an ordinarily great
show-closer extraordinarily great.

Encore recap: Fun as hell, The Dude, Suzie back from the dead.  8 on the SJCRS.

So I guess that gives the whole show about a 7.25.  Definitely above
average, the first set wasn't stellar but the second and encore make up
for it.  They are damn good this fall, folks, and I encourage you to be
VERY psyched for any shows on your schedule. See you all in Worcester!

-Dan
--
Dan.Mielcarz@dartmouth.edu

"John the Baptist after torturing a thief
looks up at his hero the Commander in Chief
saying 'Tell me great hero, but please make it brief -
Is there a hole for me to get sick in?'" -B. Dylan

------------------


Date:    Wed, 25 Nov 1998 19:11:15 GMT
From:    Matt Siegle 
Subject: New Haven thoughts

Hey all-

Luckily enough, within a few weeks of the show, I found a New Haven
ticket. I consider myself to be luky to attend.

I must explain a little about my bearing during the show before going
into my show thoughts. This was my first ever East Coast show (being
from California) and I was not prepared for how many kids go to the
show just to get trashed. Where I was sitting, not a very good seat, I
was the only one dancing in the four rows around me. I mean, I was THE
ONLY one. I would say that 90% of the people around me were sitting
for the majority of the second set. Lots of people talking, lots of
people going in and out, lots of people using the show as just a play
pen to get high. Consequentially, I found it VERY hard to catch the
groove, no matter how good the music was. The vibe in my section just
put a damper on things. None the less, I stil had a great time (just
not as good as it could have been).

First set-

Standard for the most part. Disease was a nice, high energy opener.
Moma was Moma (I am a bit sick of this song- Of the last 6 shows I
have been to, I have heard it 5 times...). Stash was VERY nice. The
jam turned VERY evil and spooky. It slipped out of the normal Stash
framework and slipped into a soft, incredible spooky jam that SLIGHTLY
(I mean really slightly) reminded me of 8/13/93 Gin as far as chord
progressions and music is concerned. Tela was nice to hear, Chalkdust
rocked (as usual). A standard first set. I was a bit let down that we
didn't get any bust outs.

Second set-

The Ghost opener RAGED! I mean, this really was a terrific Ghost.
Multi-peaked, slightly type-II jam. Carried on for a good 20 minutes
(I believe) and segued fairly nicely into Halley's. WOO-HOO!!! I love
this song...No real jam here, sort of segued, flowed into Tweexer (I
wouldn't call it a real segue. Tweezer was nice, had some good funk
and a couple of great themes and progressions going on. Generally, a
pretty raging Tweezer. Had the slowish, falling apart ending of
Tweezer. This segued into POSSOM which started off a bit dull, but
then quickly became very engaging, high energy. So many people were
sitting down during this song in my section, which really bummed me
out. WIAVS followed and was what it normally is. Character 0 closted
the set and was a bit of a buzz kill for me.

It was GREAT to have the Dude out for the encore and to hear Suzie. I
could feel the energy of the floor even though it wasn't in my
section. Nice to hear after having been shelved for a bit. What can I
say, I like this song! Reprise raged out.

Overall highlights include Stash, Ghost through Possum killer and
Suzie. A nice show! Hopefully, this weekend at Worchester (where I
have better seats) I will really get the vibe!

Take care everyone, and have a pleasant Thanksgiving!

matty


-------


11/24/98 - New Haven Colliseum, New Haven, CT



Date: Sun, 29 Nov 1998 21:07:30 -0600
From: Jeff Palmer Jeffrey.Palmer@mail.cc.trincoll.edu
To: dws@protos.lifesci.ucla.edu
Subject: FALL98_REVIEW

Its Sunday night and I just got home from thanksgiving break and I thought
that Id just like to give my thoughts on tuesday's new haven show.

Set 1

Down With Disease-WOW! Down With Disease is a great set opener. Trey was
totally on in the jam and the whole band was very tight and played with
much energy. Definitely the highlight of the first set!

Moma Dance- This was a pretty standard version of moma. Nothing special.

Ginseng Sullivan- This song was a nice little surprise and I was pretty
psyched to hear it. I really wish Phish would play bluegrass more often.
Stash- After hearing rave reviews from my friends of the Tennessee Stash I
was pumped to hear the opening notes. However, Trey was extremely sloppy
during the middle section and it never really took off.

Brian and Robert- This was about the same as all the other Brian and
Roberts i have ever heard. No big surprises.

Limb by Limb- This was a highlight of the first set. It was jammed out for
something like 15 minutes and the band was tight throughout the jam.

Sample in a Jar- Sample got the crowd up on its feet and dancing. The band
played it with a lot of enthusiasm and energy. I thought for sure that
this would be the set closer.

Tela- A nice little treat after what I thought what be a set closing
Sample. Most were sitting down throughout the whole song though. Beats me. 

Chalkdust Torture- Chalkdust got the crowd juiced and ready to dance after
the slow Tela. It was a good way to close a standard first set.

Set 2

Ghost- At first I thought we were in for a 2001 until I heard Trey's
opening chords.  I do have to say though that I prefer the older versions
of ghost (summer 97) to the album version. Out of the spacey ending of
Ghost came the familiar sounds of...

Halley's Comet- I was happy to hear Mike start this one off. This was
great to hear live again. I was not excited after getting hit with a
glowstick and seeing two glowsticks hit Page. I was hoping that they would
stretch the jam out. Instead, they ripped right into...

Tweezer- I was kinda expecting this one. This was a fun version of
Tweezer. It wasnt too long like some other versions and they kept it going
nicely.

Possum- I dont think that I have ever heard such a spacey opening to
Possum. I wasnt sure what in the hell was coming for a while during the
intro. This Possum was definitely not as strong as some Summer 98 ones.
The jam which usually blows me away didnt do that much for me.

Velvet Sea- This was a good way to calm down the crowd after Possum. This
isnt my favorite Phish song but they really played it nicely and enjoyed
it. I was ready for a fast paced song now and was hoping that Id get a set
closing Antelope but instead...

Character Zero- What can I say about Character Zero when I am expecting an
Antelope. I was a little disappointed but it still raged nonetheless.

This set was a little above average but they never really took off.

E:                                                                   
Suzie Greenberg- I was pretty sure we were gonna see the dude sometime
because of the extra mic stand. When he came out and started to count the
band off I knew a Suzie was coming. WOW! This was by far the highlight of
the show for me.   The Dude sings Suzie much more melodicaly then Trey and
even added in what I thought were his original lyrics in the second verse.
After the second set Tweezer there was only one logical choice for the
encore closer

Tweezer Reprise- A short but rocking version with the dude of life singing
different lyrics in the beginning then joining the band for the refrain.
This encore made this show well worth the price of admission in my book.



Date: Thu, 26 Nov 1998 00:53:29 -0800
From: "David M. Goldstein" DivSky333@snet.net
To: dws@protos.lifesci.ucla.edu
Subject: FALL98_REVIEW

New Haven '98 eh?

First of all, lemme say that I missed the first set up to the end of the
lyric section of Limb x Limb. School commitments only revealed as of a
week ago forced me to make the show late....hit Grand Central, got the
7:06, hit New Haven...taxi...show time.

Dang, the Coliseum really is a lot smaller than most of the sheds they
end up playing on fall tour. Holds just over 11,000, and much more of a
square shape than most of the arenas. Sound was good (as always).

What I caught of the first set was decent, if unremarkable. Tela is
always a nice treat, I'm surprised at how well 'Toph has the lights down
on this one considering how seldom they play it. Chalkdust rocked as it
always does.

II:  As much as I prefer the old style Ghost to the SOTG version, it does
have its merit, and some of the atmospheric guitar stuff Trey does is way
cool. The ensuing jam was very intense and hard rocking with much
"machine gun Trey" and trilling. Extremely high energy, lots of peaks,
vaguely reminiscent of the jam in the middle of the Went Gin, but wheras
that was a big, grinning, friendly monster type of a jam, this had some
serious attitude. Gets a nod over the Worcester Ghost funkfest played a
year and 4 days later. Check it out. Halley's was fun, but is it just me,
or did the tempo drag? Superfluous glowsticks in this one. I counted 3
hitting Page's baby grand...some getting way close to Trey. Not much of
an outro jam, but a jump cut segue into Tweezer. Confident rocking
version. Not the "Jesus H. Christ breakneck speed Tweezer from hell" of
New Haven past, but still some rawkin' fun. Kind of '94ish. They returned
to the Tweezer theme at the end (which seems to be a rarity these days)
and kept slowing down the tempo until it was damn slooowwwww. Possum is
good clean fun, but like other songs of its caliber ('Dust, Zero, PYITE),
it never gets so incredibly different from any other version that it
stands out. I wasn't psyched to hear ...Velvet Sea, and maybe being in
the company of a good friend I hadn't seen in over a year rosied things a
bit, but I thought it was pleasant and well done. They nailed the
harmonies, and Trey's guitar solo at the end acheived a serene beauty at
the end that reminded me of David Gilmour's work on Comfortably Numb
(though the songs are in different keys....D and G I think). I'm finally
sick of Character Zero for a closer. Yeah it rocks, but overexposure
deems it a throwaway for me.

Overall, set II was solid. Nothing too unusual, or crazy....it didn't
seem like they were really stretching out, but very well played.
Highlights would be the sick machine gun stuff in Ghost and most of the
Tweezer. Not their best work, but certainly worthy.

The encore with the Dude was fun. What a ham. Got a little thrown by
hisfreestyle verses on Tweezer Reprise, but t'was interesting to see the
man
responsible for Suzy actually get a chance to sing the song with the band
who made it popular.

Full reports (none of this missed set crap) on nights 1&2 of Wooooostah
to follow. If you're gonna comment, reach me at
dgoldste@eden.rutgers.edu. I never check this e-mail addy. Peace out
mo'fos.

david m. goldstein 



Date: Wed, 25 Nov 1998 10:21:38 -0400
From: Pete Kraus pkraus@panda.uchc.edu
To: dws@protos.lifesci.ucla.edu
Subject: FALL98_REVIEW

11-24-98 New Haven Coliseum, New Haven, CT

To quote Dom DeLuise: "Nice.  Not Thrilling, but nice."

The word that kept coming up when thinking about this show was "safe."
It seems that the recent trend from summer tour through this tour was
one of taking many risks.  For this show, they were working with a net.
While the music was technically very sharp, the lack of danger lended a
satisfying but less than thrilling air of safety.

I am left with a few questions after this show:   What happened to the
"full band jam?"  Where was the more spacious style of jamming we've
been hearing lately?  Many jams in this show were a regression to the
"machine-gun Trey" style of pre 1997 shows.  To be sure, it rocked
fiercely.  I was hoping for progress, however, and I didn't see it.

The first set was OK.  Moma Dance was a decent groove, but the Stash was
definitely the highlight.  It went to a very interesting place- quiet
and spooky.  Trey started to bring the sound back to the familiar and
then it was slammed back abruptly by Fish as he just pounded on his
kit.  Sweet.  Limb By Limb is always welcome, as is Tela.  Chalkdust
rocked out well to close.

Ghost to open set II was quite good.  I really like the way this sounds
on the album, and they were true to the album version to start.  The jam
took us off into some driving Trey-led rock-n-roll, something which I
have not heard from any Ghost I've previously heard.  It was a solid
jam, but nothing spectacular.  Halley's was a bit of a surprise, and I'm
always glad to hear it.  Many glowsticks were tossed at the beginning,
simulating mini-comets dancing through the arena.  I don't like to see
these things flying at the band, though.  Several were capable of
decapitating someone as they sailed over the heads of Trey and Page.
The Tweezer was also a good rocking jam.  I got the sense that they were
trying to recreate the masterpiece Tweezer of three years ago in the
same arena.  They were close, but not quite there.  The end returned to
the beginning riff and fizzled into a nice Possum.  They really like
playing this one these days.  Standard (excellent) Possum.

The rest of the set was not special in any way, shape or form.  Velvet
Sea does little for me, and why do they play Zero so much?  Trey seemed
to be having so much fun playing it, and it was a rocker, but I don't
care for it to close a show.

The encore was fun.  First Suzy in a while, I guess.  The Dude is really
a showman.  In addition to the original explicit lyrics to Suzy he added
some improv lyrics to Tweeprise.

All in all, a good rock-n-roll show.  Without the danger, however, it  was
slightly anti-climactic.



Date: Wed, 25 Nov 1998 10:15:34 -0500
From: andrew@middleberg.com
Subject: 11/24 New Haven Review - ssttp



Got there as the lights went down and the first notes of DWD hit.
 Unbelievable seats, first set sat ten rows up just in front of fishman,
second sat sat in the 13th row on the floor page's side.  A lot of people
without tickets.   Cool place, the ceilings were a little high (a lot
like ervin j nutter), and there seemed to be too much concrete going on.
 Anyway, super quick review of the show:

Pretty standard set list, nothing out of the ordinary, but they were
super tight.  Trey was absolutely en fuego!  Had a perfect view of his
fingers all night.
1. HOLY GHOST!!!!!!!!!!!
2. Great Tweezer (full 15 minute syncopated funk version, thought I heard
 a little mind left body, but not for long.)
3. DWD was really as good as it gets.  so loud that my ears were  burning
ten minutes into the show.
4. Moma was a really really slow, but great version.
5. Stash and Limb by Limb were slightly above average versions.  Stash
 definitely nowhere near on the level of Fri night Hampton.
6. I question the guy in front of me hitting Page in the hand with a
 glowstick during Haley's.  He was not happy, at all.
6. The Dude of Life is a loser.  Somebody tell him to lose the gogglesand
the whiny voice, and mix in a haircut every six months.

All in all a successful after work mission, left at 5, back at 1:30.
 Easy in, easy out.  No night can ever be bad when topped off with 2
chocolate frosted and the best coffee in the game.  See ya'll or none of
you in Worcester.

Rak   



Date: Wed, 25 Nov 1998 14:36:03 -0500
From: Cassidy Amy amy.cassidy@email.gs.com
To: dws@protos.lifesci.ucla.edu
Subject: FALL98_REVIEW

I'm always interested to read what others have to say about their show.
Sometimes, I'm even tempted to write about an experience
myself...although I never have. Today, I was inspired to do just that -
after stumbling across the ever-so-perfect quote from one Mike Gordon
who said " "It's kind of silly when [fans are] making pie graphs about
set list openers.  But then, I always liked a good graph." If this quote
doesn't sum it all up, I don't know what does!

I had the chance to catch the New Haven show last night. It was my first
show since the nights in Nassau last April. Let me precede any "review"
by saying IT ROCKED. THEY ALWAYS ROCK. In my 30+ show history with
phish, they have never once, come close to letting me down. Sure, there
are songs and jams I prefer over others...but as is the case with
everything, you have to love the best with the less-than-best. After
all, if you had nothing to compare --- what fun would it (phish, or
anything...) be?

With that in mind, I have to say that Halley's was my highlight. That
song is just outstanding! I loved the Tweezer! Sometimes, Tweezer's
kinda come and go, without much being said. This one went to some pretty
dark places, the lights were incredible, they changed pace quite a few
times, and the jams were solid. Ghost rocked. Possum got a little creepy
(which I thought was uncharacteristic of the typical Possum) -- but I
loved it nonetheless. Suzy G was a welcomed encore. All in all -- it was
worth the trip from NYC!! ....a great prelude to the Holiday Run!

I trust I will see you all @ MSG!
Stay well,
-Amy            



Date: Wed, 25 Nov 1998 15:39:30 -0500
From: Geoff Sprigle gsprigle@financialfederal.com
To: dws@protos.lifesci.ucla.edu
Subject: FALL98_REVIEW

11/24/98--New Haven, CT

I'll make this review rather concise, as I am quite fatigued.
In bed at 3 AM and up at 7 Am for work, where I am now.
This was my 27th show and first since the Garden New Years run
last year(oh dear, what a long time).
The scene outside was fair.  Security presented no problems from
what I could tell.  There was one parking lot scene which was
small and cramped.  it appeared that there were more people
outside the arena without tickets than with tickets.  I did see
someone dressed as Austin Powers (yeah, baby!) but unfortunately
did not see him for the remainder of the evening.
The arena is pretty small.  No beer for sale.  No problems
getting beer inside though if you desired.  You probably could have snuck
a beer ball inside the way they checked.
anyway, on with the show.
I:     DWD--pretty solid...good opener...not as memorable of a
jam as could have been
       Moma Dance--ugh!  What shite!   I though Black Eyed Katy
was funkadelic and delicious last year.  The album version is
pretty good but tonight it was painfully slow and went nowhere.
       Ginseng--always delivers...favorite of the blue grass
tunes
       Stash--happy to hear it...jam was a bit slow in the
middle but heated up for a superb finish
       Brian & Robert--first time live...fair tune...not much to
say
       Limb By Limb--quality...was looking forward to hearing it
and enjoyed it
       Sample--kicked ass...loud and crisp...crowd seemed to be
getting into it       
Tela--only my second Tela...what a beatiful
song...Page is on
       Chalkdust--Chalkdust is Chalkdust...the band was really
enjoying it

Intermission--Some girl on the floor was wearing a red sparkly
evening dress and handing out flyers of some kind.

II:    Ghost--quality jam...I understand how people are
disappointed that the studio version doesn't incorporate any of
the live qualities of this song
       Halley's Comet--the best song of the
evening...mini-glowstick war ensued...why some people whip(not
toss but whip)glowsticks at the band  is beyond me...they should
have saved them for the Dude of Life later in the show
       Tweezer--surprisingly solid Tweezer...didn't meander in
middle...Mike was whacking the shit out of his bass!        Possum--second
best song of night
       Wading--some people find it boring...i think it's a nice
song..gave the crowd a chance to sit after Possum although many
didn't want to
       Character--i really like what they've done to this
song...high quality set closer...makes me want to mosh(didn't,
of course)

E:   Suzy--Oh boy, it's the Dude of Life!  From where I was
sitting he looked a lot like Cory Feldman with his bad hairdo
and bandana...not necessary...does not add antything to the
band...people did seem to enjoy it though
      Tweezer Reprise--always solid...plus the Dude of Life left
the stage

That's it.  Nothing special this evening.  The band sounded
great but unfortunately did nothing to make it a "special" 
night.  It's what I expected after reading the setlists from
last week (how could they possibly compare).  But from reading
what they've done the entire tour I was hoping for something
special.  It just didn't happen.  Oh, well.  It was still a
great time, and I can only look forward to the New Years run.


Date: Wed, 25 Nov 1998 16:42:42 -0400
From: Sam Gaines spgaines@worldnet.att.net
To: dws@protos.lifesci.ucla.edu
Subject: FALL98_REVIEW

 11/24 New Haven

I

DWD: Began w/ stash and other teases by Trey. This version was flawless
from the beginning. Trey didn't back down at all in the jam. Unlike some
of the DWD's in the past year, he didn't resort to using funky rhythm
chords. He was playing with a lot of intensity (despite the lack of
intensity from the crowd), and it was obvious that this would be Trey's
show.

MOMA: After the fast, rocking DWD it was time slow down into some funk.
This Moma was a standard version only a little slower. 
Ginseng Sullivan: As Moma was winding down, I figured we were due for a
bluegrass tune. Ginseng is one of my favorite bluegrass tunes in the
Phish rotation, and it was very tight. Page's solo was on fire, and he
appropriately took an extra chorus.

Stash: After hearing the stories about the Hampton Stash, I certainly
didn't expect this one. And although I've heard that the version last
night doesn't even compare to the Hampton version, it was a well above
average Stash and may have been the best Stash I've ever heard. Trey was
adding all sorts of notes to the melody; it sounded really cool. The jam
really moved well. Despite its length, this Stash never lost its
momentum.

Brian and Robert: I needed to sit down after the first four incredible
songs. Brian and Robert gave me the opportunity to do so. This was a
standard version, but well placed.  

Limb by Limb: I was hoping that the boys would play this tune, and it
executed well.

Sample in a Jar: Standard except for the extra notes the Trey was
playing in his solo (similar to the Stash).

Tela: Awesome song; well placed.

Chalkdust: Incredible version. Trey was going absolutely nuts.

II

Ghost: This was a great way to begin the second set. The jam was funky
yet had plenty of momentum.

Halley's Comet: Did not expect this one. The jam wasn't quite as good as
recent versions, but this was still a fairly tight song. 

Tweezer: This was definitely the highlight if the show. The band was
really in sync with each other, and Trey provided more unreal guitar
playing. This version was much better than the previous New Haven three
years ago and shows how improved this band is.

Possum: The buildup intro was played very well. The jam was a little
weird. I'm glad to see that they're willing weird out some of their old
tunes.

Wading: I never had an opinion on this song until tonight. After four
jam songs, my legs needed a rest. However, I was very surprised at how
the beauty of the song was conveyed. Although this was my first live
Wading, I don't recall hearing tapes of this song that really moved me
like this version did.

Zero: A Zero closer 2 out of 3 nights-- lame.   
Encore:

Suzie: The Dude! While the songs lose some of their integrity with the
Dude on stage, the Dude always brings excitement to the crowd. The Dude
sung his original lyrics.

Reprise: I'd like to know what the Dude was singing during this one. It
seemed to fit in.



Date: Sun, 29 Nov 1998 18:02:17 EST
From: Mrturtle@aol.com
To: dws@protos.lifesci.ucla.edu
Subject: FALL98_REVIEW

11/24/98 New Haven Coliseum
-Brendan Bansavage

The boys were plaing in a sad slab of concrete that holds about 11,000,
with a parking garage on top of the arena. They might as well have been
playing in a warehouse, but a great concert nontheless. It was the first
time in a few years that the Hartford/New Haven show had a nice, solid
setlist that was accompanied by some solid improvs.

I.
Great Down with Disease to open. Probably the best I've ever heard. Very
climactic. They never backed away in this one - very intense and a lot of
Trey. Set the stage for a great show.
Moma Dance calmed things down. Slow version with a lot of Mike - as
usual.The thing I really remember well was the Page solo on Ginseng
Sullivan. It was TIGHT. Good tune.
The Stash was not as hard hitting and climactic as some of the ones that
I've heard in the past - nothing like the Hampton, VA performance. It
flowed well however, and had a kind of moody, more funky jam tonight with
Trey improving well.
I really enjoy hearing Brian and Robert all the time - great tune, and
great opportunity to catch my breath on Tuesday night.
I think Limb by Limb is the best song, by far, on the new CD. I was very
pleased that they were able to get it into the setlist at New Haven.
Another great song. 
This Sample in a Jar was the regular version with Trey improving a little
bit. 
Solid 8 or so minute Tela. Very well-placed and done very well by the
band.
A Slave to close out the first set would have made it a pretty long one.
Instead, they went with an incredible Chalkdust Torture to close, and what
a smoker! Trey was going crazy - renewing the same intensity that he had
during DwD. They jammed well, and the intensity and momentum remained
throughout the whole song. I couldn't have asked for a better first set.

II.
Ghost to open. Solid, funky version. Jam was similar to that of the
Character Zero that opened set 2 of Hartford the year before.
Halley's Comet! Wow - I did not expect this one but I was thrilled to hear
it. I am totally in love with the song, and they executed well. Glow stick
war.
I think the best thing about Tweezer every time they play it is that it
means they're going to play Tweezer Reprise. Tweezer is not one of my
favorite songs but I was very impressed with tonight's version. A lot of
Mike at times, and a whole lot of Trey, who was once again jamming like
crazy, especially towards the middle of the song. Last year, they opened
with Tweezer - that's a no-no - well placed this year.
Possum is a song that I enjoy a lot more than most. They were on fire for
this one! Great transition from Tweezer to build up to the first few
notes. The jam was outstanding. Strong and climactic. Trey was awesome
once again - he always seems to have a great show when he comes to
Connecticut.seems to have a great show when he comes to Connecticut.
After going nuts for almost an hour, I needed a rest. It seemed, that me,
along with most of the rest of the place sat down simultaneously after
hearing the first few chords of Wading in the Velvet Sea. This was the
last of the 5 songs they played from Ghost tonight. This was a
well-executed version with a great Trey solo. Once again, very well
placed.
Character Zero was flowing well at the beginning, but they lost some
momentum towards the beginning of the jam. They got it back, though, and
finished strong.

The Dude of Life was a real treat for the encore. He sang his original
lyrics on Susie Greenberg - great version. The Dude was having a great
time - good stage presence
He also joined them for Reprise, on which he sang some improv lyrics.
Solid reprise.

I was very pleased with the setlist tonight. The concert flowed very well.
All the songs were very well placed. I couldn't have asked for much
better. Exceptmaybe for an Antelope somewhere in that second set, maybe
replacing Character Zero. Nice to see the Dude of Life, who had some
rumors surrounding him about the possibility of appearing at the show
after playing in New Haven himself, a couple nights before. As for thew
highlight of the show, I can't help thinking about Halley's Comet - how
could that song not be the highlight of a show, barring a spectacular YEM
or Bowie? Trey was going nuts all night, and he really had a great concert
overall. Better than last year in Hartford, though it's hard to top last
year's second set with PYITE, Ya Mar, and 2001.