Date:    Fri, 5 Dec 1997 11:05:14 -0500
From:    Alex Valentine 
Subject: 12/3 Review

****************Disclaimer*****************
I am a twelve year old kid, my favorite songs are bouncing and sample.
Sometimes I go to the show but usually I just hang out in the lot and do
nitrous. I have one CD of Phish, Hoist. Oh, By the way, I flunked all my
English classes.
*****************************************

12/3/97 Corestates Spectrum, Philadelphia, PA

        I picked up my friends around 3:30 and started to make the 2 hour drive
to the spectrum. There was a major accident on the Northeast extension
of the turnpike which held us up for at least an hour. By the time we
reached 76 east around 7:00 and ended up reaching the Spectrum around
7:50. Luckily, the boys did not start untill after 8:00 o'clock.

I:  Punch You In The Eye, My Soul, Drowned, My Old Home Place, Gumbo >
    2001 > You Enjoy Myself

PYITE: I was really happy to hear this tune! The opening sequence was
really long just like most of the 97 PYITES. This was not a perfect
version of PYITE but it sounded much better than the botched went
version.

My Soul: Usually I don't have much to say about this tune but this
version was the best My Soul I've ever heard. After about 2 mins of this
tune, Page went in to this amazing solo. They have really done a good
job developing this tune.

Drowned: I couldn't believe what I was hearing. It was so weird, I was
in a section with a bunch of teeny boppers who seemed to think this was
a new song. This version started out great, a lot of energy. I swear I
heard some 2001 teases in the jam. It went in to a nice jam that seemed
to have some dead points and then it just went in to one of those
funkdafied jams of '97.

My Old Home Place: I couldn't believe they took this one out of the
closet. Again, nobody in my section seemed to know this tune. Pretty
standard version, but it was a nice surprise.

Gumbo: I started to wonder if we were in some kind of time warp. It was
a pretty standard version but well played.

2001: I think this was the best 2001 I've ever heard. There are no dull
moments in this version. They didn't fool around at all, they got right
to the point. Amazing Light show with this tune as usual. I thought they
would close with caspian when suddenly


YEM: I really liked the first 7 minutes of this YEM. Everything was
played beutifuly. The middle seemed to be pretty standard, the tramps
segment was done well. I am not a big fan of their new vocal jams, they
all sound pretty much the same.

Setbreak: More of Charlie Hunter playing Bob Marley tunes, I need to get
this CD!


II: David Bowie* > Possom, Jam** > Prince Caspian, Frankenstein,
    Harry Hood

* Unfinished, a Simpson's theme and a "D'Oh" during the intro w/ "Take
Me Out To The Ballgame"
** Similiar to Worcester Ghost jam...probably really really good.
Thanks to John Whittaker & Others

Bowie!: They got on stage and Page started to play Charge! and then he
went in to Take me out to the Ballgame. The intro was really long just
like many other '97 versions. I think this version overall was great.
The energy buildup was slow and amazing. Check out this Bowie! I was all
ready for a ripping Bowie ending but they went to

Possum: I almost shit my pants when I heard this tune. Excellent
version, fit in really well with the Bowie Jam. Then they went in to

Funk Jam: Great Jam, I almost thought it was Black Eyed Katy. Mike was
outstanding in this funk jam. Trey started do that Worchester Ghost Jam
solo thingy, I liked it a lot.

Prince Caspian: I love what they have done with this tune. It was kind
of out of place but I don't think they were planing on doing a funk jam
for the rest of the second set.

Hood: Standard version of '97, well played but it doesn't have the peak
of a '95 or a '94 hood.

Encore:

Crossroads: I think this tune was nicely done, some people didn't think
it was a good encore. I think it was much better than the Alpine Vally
Crossroads.

Overall: Great Show! Get this tape, PYITE, 2001, Bowie, Possum, and the
Funk Jam were excellent.

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

Date:    Thu, 4 Dec 1997 15:15:20 -0500
From:    Sam Stein 
Subject: another 12/3 Philly review

I:  PYITE, My Soul, Drowned>Jam, Old Home Place, Gumbo, 2001>YEM

PYITE sounded exactly the same to me last night as it did in Hampton,
which I guess is a good thing- danced my ass off.

My Soul, Drowned, and the funky jam which followed (which obvisouly
isn't a Who cover!) were my highlights for the set... the fast funk of
that jam really did it for me, I only wish they had just given up a bit
earlier on finding a segue to another song- which can get a bit messy.

The 2001 was yet another great 1997 version, with Trey throwing his hand
in front of the ?Theremin? during the middle part to produce a whistling
noise which almst scared me.  Aware that the set had started around
8:15, I was shocked to hear YEM pop out after what had seemed like an
hour or so of playing.  Nothing special, in fact I thought I heard Trey
flub the part just before the big sustain.  and what's the deal with the
persistent CLAPPING DURING THE VOCAL JAM!?  even when there's obviously
no rhythm to clap to


II: brief Ballgame theme and a Doh!>Bowie>Possom, Black Eyed
Katie>Prince Caspian, Frankenstein, Harry Hood

Bowie>Possom: AWESOME
At first I was thinking "this Bowie isn't going anywhere" but once they
got to that more soothing part last night, I really got into it and sort
of gave up on a hard core, in your face version.  I really liked how
Mike and Fish were driving this one through the changes plus for some
reason I really got into Chris's use of the more simple, less flashy
lights; they just seemed to set up a really appropriate atmosphere.
After a nice jam, they masterfully brought it back to the standard
Bowish theme at which point I waited for them to build it back up for
the finish.

Could not have been more pleasantly surprised when they whipped out the
Grade A Possom which pretty much brought the house down.  During two of
those furious peaks near the end, I thought I might have heard Trey
leave the rest of the band.  My far fetched dream of him leading the
band right back into the lightning finish of Bowie didn't come true of
course...

My first Black Eyed Katie did not dissapoint (I'm immediately in love
with that song) and the Caspian was very appropriately placed.  My
roommate and I agreed that they found the exact length where Caspian was
still good and not boring last night.  Some of Trey's best leads all
night on this one.

Can't stand Frankenstein as a regular, so hearing it after a slow song
kinda screws me over, but that's just me.  I just wish half the people
at every show didn't think there was improv jamming or a real Fishman
"drum solo" in the middle of the song.   [I'll shut up now]

Hood- not so good (not downright flubbed or anything, just ?a bit of a yawn?)
though as someone in my car said on the way home, there's been so much
good playing lately, that even the worst stuff right now ain't too
shabby.  I'll have to listen to this one on tape  [ok, I'm some sort of
snob I guess- Hood, yamn]


E: Crossroads

Excerpts from netnews.rec.music.phish: 4-Dec-97 12/3 Philly mini (before
I .. by "David Petrozzi"@wharton
> E:  The guy next to me called a Clapton cover.  Unbelievable.  I smiled
> dumbfoundedly as they launched into

"The guy next to me" was none other than myself, thank you very much!
(and thanks for the Hershey's kiss)

Did Trey really say "out of time" at the end of the encore as we
thought?  Makes a lot of sense considering there were security guards
screaming, "ok, shows over" about 6 seconds after the lights came on.

Still don't think I've seen enough shows to make an overall call as to
whether this was a good night, though.

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

Date:    Mon, 8 Dec 1997 03:41:00 GMT
From:    UArts69 
Subject: *12-3-97 Review (long)*

Hey There:

   Here are some notes on the Philly show.  The Second Night in Philly wasn't
quite the same as the first night.  This has become standard fare with Phish,
as it appears anytime they play more than one night in a city, they end up
playing two totally different shows.  Granted, Phish 2001 was still in full
effect on the 3rd, so was some of the old school Phish.  A nice mix, and a
solid two sets of music.  Again we enjoyed getting our faces melted by
Phish...I mean who doesn't.

I: Punch You In The Eye, My Soul, Drowned, My Old Home Place, Gumbo -> Also
Sprach Zarathustra -> You Enjoy Myself

II: David Bowie -> Possum -> Black-Eyed Katy -> Prince Caspian -> Frankenstein
-> Harry Hood
E: Crossroads


Punch:  Whew, this first set held nothing back.  Contrary to poular belief,
this Punch was really tight.  This is the tightest Punch I've ever heard live.
This tune is extremely complex, and rarely do they nail it (like at the Went,
they REALLY botched it) but it was hip tonight, with a nice long intro.  The
harmonies in this song really play nicely.  The chords are very rich.  Not a
bad way to start a show.

My Soul:  Again, I don't know what the complaint is about this song.  Page and
Trey were both very strong, and what better for them to play over than the
blues.  This tune has a pretty bad rap with most fans, but no one can deny that
Trey rips the hell of this tune very consisitenly, and if memory serves
correctly, Page made some beautiful noises during this song...I loved it.

Drowned:  This was the first time I've heard this song live.  The 12-31-95
certainly is a sloid version, much better than 3-18-97.  This version is also
strong, at least better than the 3-18-97.   I haven't really analyzed this tune
enough to make a really coherent view on it.  The outro jam got very funky, but
ended rather abrubtly, and it was really odd, because they just kinda went into
MOHP which was nice, but nothing out of the ordinary.

Gumbo: Unh...yeah funky.  This song has improved tons, although the jamming in
this tune left a bit to be desired in the end.  It was still very solid, but I
don't remember it building as much as I would have liked it to, but then again,
who the hell am I?  This song is maturing, and should serve some very strong
jams in the future.  The segue into 2001 is really kinda cool...but anytime you
hear 2001 is cool.

2001:  This song is just becoming a haven for jamming...ever since 12-6-96,
which is a very strong version, (as is 11-30-96) this song has been very solid.
 The Went is a huge 2001 that is probably the best one ever..I don't think that
will ever be re created, but the 12-3-97 2001 is very strong, with a gorgeous
build, and some very strong playing by page with some even spacier effects from
Trey..screechy stuff.  Very cool...seek it out for this and..

YEM:  I knew we'd get a YEM, as I remembered the 12-29-96 YEM was a very strong
version, with rotation.  This was a very typical YEM, Trey was much cleaner in
the opening than in the past.  A nice tight opening can sometimes even
overshadow the jam segment.  The jam was very funky, but never went anywhere
they hadn't been before.  I thought we might see some rotation action when Trey
put his guitar down and let Mike and Page and Fish jam, but instead he broke
into a nice vocal jam.  In my opinion this was aclear nod to the 12-29-96 show,
as was the Bowie set II opener.


Set II

Bowie:  The intro was way long with the Simpson's language and Take Me Out to
the Ball Game.  That was really weird, as Trey was harmonizing it very
strangely...spacey...the actual Bowie was strong, again a clear nod to the
12-29-96 Bowie (which is a strong version IMO), and well, the Jam drifted waayy
out.  Not as out as the Orpheum Bowie (thanks Charlie) but out, and somehow
they ended up in Possum, which actually seemed like it took forever to rip into
hard.  Trey tore it up as usual.  It always amazes me that they (Phish) can go
"out" from where they are playing and come right back in together.  Trey also
chooses his notes very well.  On his climaxes, he always will resolve, but he
doesn't always land on the actual tonic, but rather the 3rd or 5th of the
chord, and all that does is create more tension.  This Bowie --> Possum is a
very solid example of what I just explained :).

Was it BEK or NOT?

   Well, whatever it was it sure was cool.  Mike's use of the foot bell was
solid, as was his playing as was Trey's playing.  Very funky and effective use
of the Wah Pedal..not much else to say...this song is just funky.

Caspian:  Agian, you can say what you want, that Caspian is a set killer, but
Phish does so much with so little chordal substance...it aint easy to make C to
G sound amazing, but they do.  Cut them some slack.  I think the outro jam that
gets really quiet and then melts your face is very strong.

Frank:  We saw Trey do the Frankenstein walk, and well, they ripped it up.
What a fun tune live.  It doesn't do anything but inject pure energy into the
crowd.

Hood:  Well, this probably looks really great on paper, but it was never REALLY
finished...they made it to a point, and it really died.  When the closing "You
Can Feel Good" lyrics came in, Mike never changed notes with the chords, but
rather just laid down a pedal, which reaaallly wasn't cool.  It never had
closure, it just kinda laid there stagnant...who'd complain though, there was
some very pretty jamming.

The Crossroads was an unexpected surprise, and left us all with a nice taste in
our mouths...at least mine.

I hope everyone is having a nice holiday season.  I look forward to meeting you
on the New Years Run.  What a scary show NYE is going to be.  Look for my Year
in reveiw to be released to the RMP on January 7th...it is a VERY in depth look
at the travels and accomplishments of Phish in 1997, which has become a
milestone year for the band.  Enjoy, and you guys know I love feedback.  Hope
all is well.

Later
Ryan

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

Date:    Fri, 19 Dec 1997 19:26:49 -0500
From:    Chris Glushko 
Subject: 12-3 Philly----Most Underrated show of the tour!!!

I've been lurking around RMP all throughout tour and I've seen people
shitting their pants over nearly every show (a couple which I thought
were lame and overrated).  However, I saw very little response
concerning the second night at the ole Philly Rectum.  This is easily
one of the best shows of the tour--and out of the six shows that I
caught (Albanys, Worcesters, and the Philly), it is far and away the
best musically.  Btw, there are numerous factors that contribute to how
good a show is (imo).  I'm not basing my comments on the show
experience, but rather from the music only--via the tape.

So, you say how can I say that---well, lets take a look at the setlist:

The show opened up with PYITE---can't really ask for a better opener.
Groovy  into...no need for more detail.

Next came MY SOUL.  I have been sooooo lucky to catch My Soul 6 times in
12 shows since its US debut this summer and this was far and away THE
BEST MY SOUL THAT I HAVE SEEN.  Why do I say this:  BECAUSE IT WAS THE
SECOND SONG OF THE FIRST SET AND IT DIDN'T COME OUT OF ANY GOOD JAM.  I
HATE HATE HATE  MY SOUL.  What I hate more about My Soul is that it pops
up in the absolute worst spots (Creek 8/11, Worcester I, Albany II,
Raleigh out of the Jim jam).  THIS SONG SUCKS!!!!!!!!  However, what the
band likes isn't always what we like.  Therefore, if we have to hear My
Soul, this is about the best place to have it.

Now Boys and Girls, lets get to some serious jamming.  Next came
DROWNED.  Drowned is easily one of the best bombs that Phish can pull
out of their arsenal to get a show going and this Drowned did not
dissapoint.  Although I was pulling for a jam more like the epic
12-31-95 version, we were treated to a very dancy and funky drowned.
FWIW, Phish is actually jamming off of an old Stevie Ray tune.  I don't
remember the name (not a big srv fan), however it is there.

OLD HOME PLACE was next....nice to hear--good for a breather.  It was
especially nice to hear since they have been beating Ginseng to death.

To Close the set, we were treated to Gumbo (way extended)>2001 Shakedown
St.>YEM.  All were solid, funky grooving versions.  Most importantly,
everyone danced their asses off.....Can we really ask for more???

Now, the second set opened up with BOWIE.  Immediately, I was pissed
off.  I know allot of people love Bowies, but personally, I find them to
be quite boring.  The first few times I saw and heard the tune, it was
awesome.  However, I can practically conduct the whole song nearly every
damn time they play it(granted, there are exceptions such as the Ventura
Bowie from the summer).  It doen't hold any intrigue for me anymore.  I
guess its my fault for listening to too many too closely--but what can
you do .  NOW  LETS GET BACK TO THE POINT.  People, this Bowie is simply
one of the most amazing Bowies ever played.  The intro is long (big
deal), the composed part is flawless (who cares), and the jam starts of
the same as usual.  However, somewhere in the middle of the jam they
enter this simply intoxicating groove.  The Groove is so un-bowielike,
however they are still in Bowie.  I wish I could put it into words.
Fish is coming up with an amazing drumbeat, Trey is noodling around--he
even plays a few MIDI horns at one point, Mike and Page are just
grooving.  Just give it a listen, you'll hear what I'm talking
about......

Now, I thought that the band was going to explode back into the usually
Bowie finale (yawn), but instead Trey starts doing the POSSUM intro.
The band catches on....slows down to start the Possum intro and then
EXPLODES into Possum.  Great, solid, rockin Possum.

Next came the elusive little jam (remenisent of the Worcester Ghost) out
of Possum.  Very groove, very cool.  After that we were treated to
PRINCE CASPIAN.  Unfortunately, no show is perfect.

FRANKENSTEIN came out of Caspian.  Although it always brings the house
down, I'm not real big on it--especially since it is most likely going
to bring the set to an end.  However.....

Right out of the Frankenstein finale came a fantastic Hood.  Turned out
to be a great closer to a wonderful second set.

For the encore we were treated to the always rare CROSSROADS.  Great
encore to end a great show.

Well, thats it....like I said great and underrated show.  Definately
check it out if you get a chance.

Take Care,

Chris

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

Date:    Wed, 24 Dec 1997 14:38:45 -0500
From:    Patrick.Donahue@ASTRAMERCK.COM
Subject: concerning 12.3.97 (was: 12-3 Philly----Most Underrated show of  the
         tour!!!)

this is a brief response to chris glusko's post regarding the 12.3 philly show
being underrated and allan abrams' post regarding the fall tour going downhill
after the worcester runaway jam combined into one for your reading pleasure.

first off, let me state that i know not whether 12/3 was or is underrated (though
i do believe 12/2 was and is, due perhaps to the bouncing zero ginseng sample ending
(d'oh!) or the disease into go nowhere makisupa, but PLEASE check out the entire
mike's groove especially the ya mar > weekapaugh) and even the dogfaced).

one line into it and already off on a tangent. anyway, i was a little surprised to see
chris comment on 12/3 being underrated since i was under the belief that most people,
other than the ones i attended with, were giving this show more credit than it deserved.
my feelings may have been swayed by the fact that the second set setlist was considerably similar to the second worcester
show(11/29) (bowie, hood, caspian) with both the bowie and
hood having been MUCH better in worcester in my opinion. (i am incapable of
comparing one caspian to another for numerous reasons). now, i am not blessed with
the tapes(and this is another discussion point that should be addressed, are we discussing
the show or the tape of the show?) but paid close attention from the eighth row when not having
my ticket examined(seven times, it was eventually marked with an x because my foot was in
the aisle) and this is what i thought.

punch you- solid opener filling the masses with energy only to
beat them back down with

my soul- ditto chris. i liked this a lot at the went. scorching was my favourite adjective
for that version. four months later and i do not hesitate to say that i literally
hate this song. this is not about being a hip fan. this is not about seeing too many
shows in a row. this is about hating this particular song. (ny run prediction:
msg erupts when seeming my soul encore is actually roadhouse blues)

drowned: certainly unexpected but unfortunately this is where the relevance to and my
partial agreement with mr. abrams comes in.
they totally, excuse me, trey totally bailed out on this one. just as the jam out of drowned was
becoming its own thing, becoming something, trey insisted on forcing into another tune, in this
case, my old home place. the look on the other members faces was one of confusion and
seeming frustration, as in, wha? why?
i felt the same way. it was obvious that trey thought this was a fantastic idea, his face was full
of excitement. mike, page and fish simply looked bewildered. i wonder how often trey gets these
types of ideas and regrets them a minute into the song. i honestly wonder about this.

my old home place: see above. poor placement.

gumbo> 2001: you kind of skip over this in your post chris but i have to say that i felt they
also bailed on the gumbo jam just as it was getting really interesting. at the time, the same
thought came into my mind that allan posted about. was the band purposely killing off
jams before they lost control of them?
of course, i had a blast getting down on the dancefloor and
agree with that assessment (so much for you basing your comments
just on the tape eh?:) but thought the yem was kind of weak -- especially in
comparison to the first night worcester.

(set two)
Bowie- as you mentioned, the bowie intro was long but, so what. If there is
one thing that should be retired in my opinion it may be the simpsons "language".
With all the interesting and original "language" the band has created that
involves the audience but is unused, the d'oh! line just doesn't do it for me,
especially in something like a bowie intro where the time and situation
gives them the opportunity to quote/tease anything they want. It's just too
easy. The "charge" lines from page were nice for their connection to the flyers
game two nights before. Take me out to the ballgame? Wrong sport. (note: obviously,
I'm being a bit overly critical at this point. No, I didn't have my arms folded and a weary
expression during the show. I was either doing a strange new version of the jungle
boogie or nearly on my toes with anticipation heartbeats. But I am a fan, not a fanatic
and willing to admit/discuss the low as well as the high. Unfortunately, it seems that
my several reviews/glorifications of dayton and large parts of the worcester show
have been swallowed by the net. anyway.)
I have elected to not discuss the bowie further due to my respect for chris'
musical tastes which inform me that I need to hear this again-- though a
sense of greatness did not impress itself upon me at the time. (note- I thoroughly
enjoyed the worcester bowie due in part (no doubt) to the fact that it was a savior at the
end of a first set that had taken a wrong turn somewhere in the middle but also
because i simply thought it was an excellent, rocking bowie.

>possum. The explosion into possum was unexpected and more than energetic.
Another really enjoyable moment in the show. this possum was real solid and the
joint was clearly jumping.

After a pause, I was suddenly back in worcester as they kicked into everyone's
favorite unnamed little jam. I definitely think this is a result of the in studio
jamming the band has been doing recently and really hope(expect?) to
see/hear more things like this develop.  And then into

caspian.

d'oh! indeed. Then

frankenstein. I don't know something about this tune always makes me think
of it as a crutch. Something that the band can whip out to get the crowd
back on their side. A foregone conclusion in a way. I've never liked foregone
conclusions.

 hood. Not sure how to say this but, I did not think this was a good hood at all.
Without the tapes, it's difficult to explain why. Chris described it as fantastic
but I wonder how much he meant that. Unlike the bowie, this one word
description does not compel me to want to hear this again. I don't know.
I think hood is often very dependent on the mood of the moment, the
atmosphere. Well, on that note, and musically, I did not feel overly
good about this hood. And that my friends, is not a good thing.

Crossroads encore was really enjoyable to me because earlier that day
I had admitted the dearth of my knowledge about cream. I know it is
the favorite band of the pizza guy on the corner. He has told me
numerous times that crossroads is the greatest tune ever written.
I recently gave him a copy of 5/8/93. So anyway, that day I was
given a real basic tutorial in cream from a close friend. The encore
thus, made me laugh out loud. in a good way.


Okay so, I had a great time at the show. made a few more ribs apparent
through get down weight loss. Etcetera.
But I was not really moved. So much of a show to me is cohesiveness,
momentum, shared energy. I think that placement is nearly as
important as performance. I like a story to be told without words.
The unexpected reprise. The following and exploration of spontaneous
moments of musical bliss. All that good stuff.
I think they held back that night. questioned  themselves. thought.
The same things I find myself doing and get frustrated over.
wanting to just be.
So, here's to being these holidays.
Love,
patrick.

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

Date: Tue, 23 Jun 1998 18:05:02 -0700
From: "David M. Goldstein" 
To: dan@archive.phish.net
Subject: Philly 12/3 is overrated

Have to offer a dissenting view of night 2 at the Spectrum though. Nearly 
everybody claims it was one of the best, and while decent, I thought it 
was below average compared to the rest of the tour....especially in light 
of the stellar multiple show runs in Hampton, Worcester and Albany (and 
for those who care, I've seen 15 shows 300+ hrs. etc.)

The first set kicks in with a tight PYITE, and I'm not about to complain. 
It works perfectly in the opening slot and gets the audience pumped. "My 
Soul" sucks, and that's all there is to it. The ensuing "Drowned" 
surprised me, and is definitely the highlight of the set, and perhaps the 
show. Strong, 15+ minutes of Page dominated jamming. Very funky clavinet 
stuff going on, and the band is locked in a tight groove. I guess Benjy 
Eisen claimed there was some sort of Stevie Ray Vaughn jam in there, but 
I'm not a fan, so I couldn't tell ya. Old Home Place is fine, but 
standard. The jam out of Gumbo is sort of cool....noisy, wall of sound 
stuff similar to the 11/26/97 Gumbo. Decent segue into a 2001, which 
while good, is signifigantly shorter than most on fall '97, and returns 
to the 2001 theme several more times than the average for '97, and seems 
to hold back on the funk. Can't really bitch about a YEM set closer, but 
the non-composed section and vocal jam were much more reminiscent of 
summer '95 than what was recently being played. Pretty short YEM, maybe 
15 minutes or so.

The first set of this show is average Phish. Solid, and maybe worth 
hearing for the Drowned, but nothing worth raving about. Set II is what 
the majority of phans have been cheering for, and I have to disagree.

After a waaaaaay too long setbreak (55 min!!), Bowie kicks in with some 
Take me Out to the Ballgame teases and Simpsons language. It's been a 
while since I've heard the show, but I remember the Bowie being very well 
jammed and intense. One major prob. It was unfinished. IMHO a Bowie 
without the insane hammer-on ending is like the Price is Right without 
Bob Barker. Pointless. I need to have my Bowies finished. Despite this 
oversight, the segue into Possum was smooth, and the song itself was a 
particuarly rocking version, rivaling my favorite, 12/30/96. The ensuing 
funk jam to me was a disappointment because it was woefully out of place. 
A > segue to be sure, not a ->. It just drops out of nowhere, as if Phish 
absolutely felt obligated to sneak some sort of funk jam in there. It's 
basically the Ghost jam from 11/28/97 (a must hear at all costs) without 
the Ghost. Not bad musically, but out of place. Caspian is Caspian and 
Frankenstein is Frankenstein, despite the fact that it's definitely a fun 
tune. At this point in the concert I was forced to leave the venue to 
catch a train, so I can't comment on the Hood. Reports claim that it was 
somewhat lacking, but what do I know. I'm sure the Crossroads encore was 
cool.

Maybe I'm just being overcritical, but after witnessing Hartford and the 
first 2 Worcester shows (all of which were excellent), I was a little let 
down. The first set was standard, and set II seemed to be subpar, 
especially in light of the seemingly forced funk jam and the unfinished 
Bowie. 

But like I said, what do I know? Listen to it yourself, and form an 
opinion.

dave


"Well there's 44 men stashed away in tank C and there's only one shower 
but IT DON'T APPLY TO BOBBY."
               -dave