5-21-00 -- Radio City Music Hall - New York, New York

Date: Fri, 02 Jun 2000 00:51:09 CDT
From: Mark Hutchison markaha@hotmail.com
To: traders@umich.edu
Subject: Radio City Reviews (finally!)
 
Hi, everybody!  Now to first dispell any unpleasant rumors, I am not dead,
nor am I married, nor did I mean for that to come out like some kind of
comparison between the two.  I am, however, recharged and sustained - for
now at least - by two truly stellar performances (well, one and a half that
were _truly_ stellar...) and have no remorse that I missed what would have
been the smallest East-coast Phish show in some 10 years, but am a bit
disgruntled that Greater Northeast Productions, aka the Mail Order Gods
decided in their infinate wisdom to overlap tour and mailorder once again.
No, I did not M.O. for Fall.
 
So let's tawk about New Yohk.  What a beautiful venue!  Not so much ornate
as it was 'in a class by itself'.  An impressive theater with a heavy
curtain draped from the top of an enormous stage - the lobby was painted
with scenic scapes involving floating clouds, chandeliers and lots and lots
of mirrors.  The internet's "Project Phormal" was a considerable success,
with probably about 50-65% participating by dressing up somehow the first
night, and a little better participation the second night.  Yours truly
opted for a comphy first show, and a tie & tails for the Monday gala.  Now
onto the music...
 
Sunday 21 May 2000 - Radio City Music Hall
I:                           II:
First Tube                      Gotta Jiboo
Wolfman's Brother               Down with Disease!!!
Squirming Coil                  Dirt
Possum                          Twist-->  (new - different)
MOMA Dance                      Piper!!
Limb by Limb                    Harry Hood
Character Zero                  Velvet Sea
(0:59)                          Guyute
 
E:  In-Law Josie Wales (aka "Minestrone" and "Bake & Boil")
    Loving Cup
    (1:46)
 
 
Very nice, strong opener, and a definate nice suprise from the opener
everyone and their brother were calling - Farmhouse.  Of course, to open
what had been dubbed the "Farmhouse Promo Tour," what else?  This has been
called "Bing Bong" by me and others in the past, but I now relenquish that
title since the album that was actually produced by Trey has the title
"First Tube" on it, even though "Bing Bong" is a clearly superior name.
When it's my band, I'll change it.  But its Trey's band.  And Trey likes the
internet community's descriptively cryptic moniker.  Another thing Trey
liked is doing Pete Townsend-style guitar windmills during this tune after
the change to major key (at about 4:00 on the album).
 
Everyone got their little solo tonight, not so much a true "solo" as their
chance to be heard on the (really kick-ass looking) Radio City stage.
Page's came at the end of Coil and was considerably short.  Of course, all
the screaming fans probably didn't help.  It's clear on the tapes that even
if he'd wanted to strech his dynamic range on this solo, anything under a
mezzoforte would have been drowned out by the lurid cheering.
 
Fishman's solo was his inhuman singing/drumming extrazaganza during the Limb
outro.  Fish was funny these couple of nights.  For the first time ever in
my watching him, he seemed not to be intensely chugging away as usual, not
at all - but rather laid back.  He dropped a couple of beats here and there,
one in First Tube, and I overheard at 7:00 before the Monday night show that
he was reachable "only by phone" from one of the crewmen, and that they'd
just been able to locate him for the first time that day.  A taper said he'd
seen Fish at the bar he was at when he left at 1/4 to four am...
 
Mike's solo I guess was the second set Disease, which was over 20 minutes in
length and raged, rocked, and funked throughout the entire time.  This
Disease was easily the highlight of the two days, and the only reason I put
it above the Ghost from 5/22 is becasue this one pumps hard all the way
through to the end, and while the Ghost is definately funkier and more
intense at points, it peters out into what I almost dare call a
"Simple-style jam" for the last five minutes.
 
Trey's solo came - well, he had a lot of them I guess.  It could have been
Character Zero, a fairly standard version, or as Dirt, his self-professed
"favorite of the new songs," or even the next night with Horn.  He played a
particularly beautiful Horn.
 
Most of the tunes this first night (with the exception of the aforementioned
Disease) were fairly straight-forward, no real suprises.  Which was exactly
what I expected.  We got to see a familiar combo with the Twist->Piper,
although the Twist was especially mellow.  Probably due in part at least to
the new arrangement (yes, again) that differs from the version they did in
Hampton as well as on the album.  This one starts out with just Fishman
really soft, then fade in slowly adding Trey, then Mike and Page, leaving
out the clever intro with the vocalized bassline entirely.  Piper raged, and
had similar form to the CD version, in that they launch out of the first
vocal chorus, taking off with tightly-knit and seemingly reckless abandon
rather than the '97 approach of a slow & steady build.  This Piper morphed
into Trey's favorite dj-style wah-wahs and had a slight Birds of a
Feather-feel jam in the outro, akin to the 10.22.99 Minneapolis Piper
although not as pronounced or long.
 
After Velvet Sea, Page turned to the audience and thanked them, saying he
"used to come here as a kid" and that this was a special show for him (and
also that it was his mom's (?) birthday).  Trey, not to be outtalked,
commented that he and Page had come to see Steveie Wonder in RCMH, then went
on for nearly three minutes about how great "this whole thing" was - and
that "we don't want to do anything to screw it up, so let's just keep this
going for as long as we can."  He profusely thanked the audience, saying how
lucky he felt for the last 15 years and how they've "built around the four
of us," and said they were the ones who should be applauding us.

Take care, and I hope to see each of you all soon...
 
- Mark
 
PS - Deer Creek tix go on sale this Saturday!
 
PPS - 12/11/99 Sneaking Sally-->Ghost!!!

Date: Wed, 24 May 2000 06:46:32 -0400
From: SHANE THOMAS SHANE.THOMAS@FERGUSON.COM
To: dws@archive.phish.net
Subject: RADIO CITY REVIEW 5/21
 
Phellow Gliders-
 
I have never had the gumption to review a show for I am greatful for
seeing the band whenever I get the chance, but these two days is worth
writing about.  Heres how I saw it go down.
Set 1:
First tube rocked.. hands down a tight opener. Wolfman was about the
same as its played in Hampton (my back yard..) and Squirming Coil was
abbreviated to include a mini piano solo in the middle of the first set.
Happy belated Birthday goes to Pages mother for producing such a talent.
Possum was about as intense as song will allow and that funky Moma's
Dance was really tightened up to produce the funk.  Limb was on time to
wind down the first set and Dirt and Char. Zero put the nail in a strong
set.  "Then the funk really wafted in.."
Set 2:
Jiboo was stinky funky..  it almost stuck to my fingers when the lights
went out.  Then smacked with Down with Disease and Mikes nasty bass
funk.  Twist was a nice bring me down so the band could slam into Piper
(which jams as always.)  After a long pause, Hood made an appearance and
I had thought this was the final tune for the set..  little did I know
Velvet Sea and the jammer of the night Guyute rolled onto the set.
Guyute was the best it has ever sounded.  The long devilish sound of
bouncing like a newborn elf shuddered the onlookers and the sound was a
wall of ooze.  Tight set.  To finish the evening up, Trey pumped a nice
version of Inlaw Josie Wales that had the crowd hushed with his
acustical skills (which I love) and then smashed the crowd in the face
(and prepared me for the next evening) with an outlandish Loving Cup.
To end the night off, the band said it best..  "OOOO what a beautiful
buzz, what a beautiful buzz"
Shane T. in Hampton

Date: Tue, 23 May 2000 12:39:10 -0700
From: swank.49@osu.edu
To: dws@gadiel.com
Subject: Radio City Sunday Night
 
 
Well I'd like to start this off just by saying what a memorable
experience it was to be at this show, and how cool and cooperative
everyone was including the NYPD and the show security.  There
is such a wonderful vibe surrounding this community now and I
just want to thank phish's crew and thank all of you, the phans
for everything that this has become. Now on with the show...
 
At 8:14 the lights went down and the place erupted!!  Trey gave
a couple fist pumps before he plugged in his guitar and then
ripped into
 
Set I:
FIRST TUBE: great tune and well played, Trey even added in some
windmills on his guitar, you could tell right from the beginning
that they were having a great time.
WOLFMAN'S: pretty good version Mike had some really funky lines
in this one.
SQUIRMING COIL: Definately didn't expect this but very pretty
version of the song, Page added a very nice but short solo on
the baby grand at the end.
POSSUM!!:  Always love to hear a possum.  Everyone really seemed
to get into it after SC.
MOMA DANCE:  One of my personal favorites, pretty good rendition
but not as funky as other versions i've heard, still very good
though, right into
LIMB BY LIMB:  Fish added a very cool solo at the end and it
was a great way to end the song.
CHARACTER ZERO: Always love to hear this tune pretty rockin and
this ended the first set @ 9:14 putting the first set at exactly
an hour long.
 
Set II:
The lights dimmed at 10:04 and the second set began with
 
JIBOO: This song always puts a big smile on my face, love to
hear it and really enjoy to get down to this tune.
DWD: Pretty interesting version, but damn was it good, I had
it clocked at around 21 min.
DIRT:  I really enjoy hearing this song plus this song stood
out because it just sounded great echoing out through RC!
TWIST: Another interesting version of this song too, it started
out with a slow beginning and the melody managed to stay pretty
slow throughout, really spacy and funky!
PIPER:  One of my show favorites, this tune had some excellent
jamming and Kuroda's lights were amazing!!
HOOD:  To all of you that were there I would like to say thanks
for not throwing glowsticks, not that I don't enjoy seeing them
at other venues, but I was really glad to see that everyone respected
the venue and one another by just groovin to a good Hood.
VELVET SEA:  Fairly good, not one that I like to hear as much
but how can you go wrong.
 
SPEECH:  One of the very memorable parts of the show began with
Page thanking everyone for what has evolved around the 4 of them
in the last 15 years, Trey added to what Page said and just gave
the most wonderful speech I've ever heard!  I don't think I was
the only one who was a little choked up after hearing him talk.
GUYUTE:  Not one of my personal favorites but they were right
on and it sounded great.
 
Guyute wrapped up the set at 11:34 putting the second set at
90 min.
 
E:
11:37-11:47
 
INLAW JOSIE WALES: I was thrilled to see Trey get his acoustic
out and hear him play this wonderful tune.  I was close enough
(15th row, OO) that I could see his fingers sliding across the
strings, silence fell over the crowd as everyone was moved by
the acoustics. As I watched him play I thought of just what a
wonderful experience it must have been for Trey to be playing
and hear it echoing out through Radio City.  Phabulous!!
 
LOVING CUP:  Oh what a beautiful buzz!!  This song wrapped up
a truly memorable experience.
 
If you're still reading thanks for taking the time and I'd like
to say a special thanks to Matt and Sharon for the ticket.  And
also to the young lady who let me use her very cool illuminating
pen throughout the show to write the setlist.  Thanks and Peace,
I'll see you this summer!!!
 
Ryan Swank
Ohio State University

Date: Mon, 22 May 2000 14:02:10 -0700 (PDT)
From: Chris Merenda chris_merenda@yahoo.com
To: dws@archive.phish.net
Subject: 5/21/00 Review
 
First off, please let me take a moment to thank everyone involved with the
shows at Radio City, especially the people working the venue.  Everyone was
extremely friendly for this ^Óunique^Ô event and I think that their
professionalism is what made everything run so smoothly.
 
That being said, on to the review...this was my 40th show and 26th birthday,
so I knew I was in for a treat!
 
My girlfriend and I planned on spending the day in the city, but due to the
wedding of two of my best friends (congrats Woody & Beth!), we were very
sluggish in the morning and wound up getting into Manhattan a lot later than
we had planned.  Since it rained all day, we weren^Òt really that crushed we
didn^Òt get to hang out, but we still got down to the Village and had a pretty
decent meal at the gothic landmark, Jeckyll & Hyde^Òs.
 
We arrived at RCMH around 6:45 to find the line already wrapped all the way
around the building. Normally, this would be cause for some frustration, but
since everyone was in such a festive mood, waiting for ½ hour wasn^Òt even an
issue.  Kudos to everyone who participated in Project Phormal ^Ö it made the
whole experience that much more meaningful!
 
There was a Tom Marshall sighting ^Ö unfortunately, I didn^Òt realize it was
him until I did the proverbial double-take.  He walked right past the line and
ducked inside the stage door.  Naturally, this caused a bit of a buzz in the
line, but apparently he wasn^Òt there to perform ^Ö just to party!
 
Once inside (no pat-down), I was instantly blown away by the beauty of the
hall.  Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine I would ever get to see Phish
in such a gorgeous room.  We walked around the lobby for a few minutes, taking
in all of the sights and sounds.  If you haven^Òt been to Radio City before
(and I hadn^Òt since I was a kid), the basic décor is Vegas-glitz, with
reflective paneling, mirrors, gaudy colors, patterned rugs, the whole works!  
I snapped a few pictures, including what I hope will be a great overhead shot
of the lobby and all the phans looking around in amazement.
 
After a quick stop at the concession stand ($16 for two beers & bottled water
^Ö ouch!), we made our way to our seats.  This was the second time in about 20
minutes that I gasped in amazement.  The room itself was simply awesome.  We
were sitting Page side, 1st mezzanine 6th row and we had a tremendous view of
the stage.  There was a huge gold curtain (raised) framing the stage, and I
wonder why the band didn^Òt take this opportunity to have a curtain rise as
they started playing.
 
At about 8:20 (estimate), the lights faded and the crowd went NUTS!  You could
already sense the wonderful acoustics as the cheers and applause echoed all
around us.  Trey had a huge grin on his face as he plugged in and, after
taking a moment to look around, they busted into:
 
FIRST TUBE was a somewhat obvious choice for an opener, in my opinion.  I was
hoping for something more obscure, like a Cinnamon Girl-type experience at the
Flynn, but this still brought a smile to my face. Trey was in full rock-star
mode, jumping and bouncing and even giving a little windmill action for
effect. The driving beat drove the crowd into a pretty good frenzy.
 
WOLFMAN^ÒS BROTHER was pretty mellow with Mike providing the foundation of a
chilled-out funk jam.  I think that Mike will step up to the plate more on the
older songs since the Farmhouse tunes don^Òt really allow him to explore as
much.
 
THE SQUIRMING COIL was placed in a weird place in the set, and the Page solo
was shorter as a result. Pretty standard^Å
 
POSSUM got the crowd back into the game after two relatively laid-back tunes.  
Trey^Òs jam before the closing refrain was hard and fast and the floor was
bouncing and swaying up and down.  I love when they hold the
^ÓPOSSUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUM^Ô
 
MOMA DANCE, LIMB BY LIMB AND CHARACTER ZERO were all pretty standard as well.  
Not that this is necessarily a bad thing, but there just wasn^Òt much
variation from any other version.  Limb had a pretty good jam towards the end,
and Chris^Òs lighting of the jam got a great reaction from those in
attendance.
 
SETBREAK - I was surprised at this point to have only heard one Farmhouse
tune.  I do like the new album very much and I think it^Òs their best studio
work to date, but I was glad that they didn^Òt saturate the first set with new
music.  I guess with two nights of the ^ÓCD Release Party^Ô to fill, they knew
they had to spread it out.  I picked up a commemorative poster at the break,
and my girlfriend got her first Phish t-shirt.  I was hoping for a short
setbreak due to the possibility of a venue curfew, but that obviously wasn^Òt
the case ^Ö typical 45-50 minutes.
 
GOTTA JIBBOO opened the second set, and, of course, was a lot of fun.  My
girlfriend really loves this song, so she had a good time bobbing around with
a smile on her face.
 
DOWN WITH DISEASE is where the show really kicked into high gear.  Once again,
Chris^Òs spiral lights added to the jam, but even if they were in complete
darkness, you still would have known they were kicking ass!  I^Òm guessing
this one clocked in around 20 minutes.  There was a slow groove towards the
end that I was really digging before they kicked back into the reprise.
 
DIRT featured the somewhat new arrangement (new vocals before the first verse
and some new backgrounds, I believe) and was a nice break after the big DwD.
 
TWIST is one of the coolest songs off Farmhouse, but still hasn^Òt really been
one of my favorites live.  I feel that there are a lot of places they could
take this song, but it always seems it just spirals down into a jam that
peters out^Å
 
PIPER was also pretty huge ^Ö the jam after the second verse was a little
disorganized, but very fast and kept everyone moving (and sweating!!)  I
always love this song ^Ö so much so that I named my dog after the red red
worm!
 
HARRY HOOD was somewhat of a disappointment.  No variations from the norm, and
I was hoping as the song ended that it wouldn^Òt close the set.  It appears
that the glowstick war fad has finally dies out, but it would have been cool
if Chris turned out the lights and Radio City was treated to the phans version
of a light show.  If the sticks were not thrown out of respect for the venue,
that^Òs great!
 
VELVET SEA was absolutely gorgeous ^Ö Page sings these lyrics with such
passion and emotion.  It was a good time to reflect on the enormity of the
entire evening.
 
After the song, Page talked about how special it was to play at the hall since
he used to come as a kid to see shows.  Trey echoed his sentiments, and
mentioned how him and Page caught Stevie Wonder at RCMH when they were
younger.  I thought we would get a Boogie On here, but Trey went on to say how
lucky the band feels about their ^Ósituation^Ô with the phans and how they
hoped they wouldn^Òt do anything to screw it up.  He^Òs been saying this a lot
lately in interviews and I think that the whole New Year^Òs experience really
made everyone in the scene realize how special the scene is.
 
GUYUTE was a good choice to close the set, but like Harry Hood, was a little
too standard.  I guess that this song will never really become the jam vehicle
it had the potential for.  I keep waiting for it to happen, but I guess I will
be calling all Guyutes from here on out ^Óstandard.^Ô
 
Again, thinking that there was a curfew (it was 11:30 on the nose), I didn^Òt
think they would come back. But the house lights never went on, so we waited
and after about 5 minutes, the boys returned.
 
INLAW JOSIE WALES is another beautiful song ^Ö Trey^Òs playing on the acoustic
guitar is something breathtaking.  I envy those in the first few rows who
could really see his fingers working the strings.
 
LOVING CUP was especially memorable for my girlfriend and I, considering I had
drunkenly serenaded her with this song at the wedding the day before.  I loved
the fact that they slipped some Phish into the playlist at the reception ^Ö
their actual wedding song was a 6 ½ minute If I Could.
 
In summary, I thought the show was good, especially considering the nearly six
months away from the road. I think tonight^Òs show will probably be better,
but I^Òll have to find out tomorrow since I unfortunately won^Òt be there.  
I^Òm looking forward to the summer tour ^Ö I think that the band will take all
the emotion they have been feeling about themselves, us, and everything
related and give us a really memorable tour.  Thanks again, guys!


Date: Mon, 22 May 2000 16:53:30 -0400
From: Matt Enderlin m_enderl@skidmore.edu
To: dws@gadiel.com, dws@archive.phish.net
Subject: 5/21 review
 
    I was hooked up with a *free* ticket for the 7th row, right in front of
Page. Woohoooo!  But I must say, that this being my 23rd show, I don't think
they played all that well.  I am not disappointed in the least, in fact, I am
never disappointed with phish.  But for some reason Phish had their jam-meter
turned off last night. Everything was based around each individual song, there
was little imporvisation, and the jams seemed directionless.  It seemed as if
they were thinking "alright, we're at radio city- now this is a classy venue,
so we should stick to the basics so we can sell ourselves to all the
newcomers, business exec's, and the couples out for a night on the town- we
can't really go off and jam out, becuase people might get bored and pigeonhole
us as just another spacey-hippie-rock band".  This is how I felt they were
playing.
    Now let me say that I think that Phish's greatest talent is the heavy
doses of funk/groove that began to permeate their sound in 97.  I don't know
why they have to deny that.  You can hear it in Sand and First tube.  As far
as Farmhouse goes, that's about it.  The one dose of funk that we did get last
night was Moma Dance, and it WAS funky.  But they ended it so quickly and kept
it so basic (which isn't necessarily bad), that I was left begging for more-
and didn't get it.
    Probably the most inspired and raw jam of the night was the 2nd set Down
with Disease.  It began to take on a life other than simply the song.  The
Dirt that followed was a nice break from the jam, and I was eager to find out
what would come next- and we got-- twist.  I'm not going to even start on
that, but let me say that until guyute, it was all downhill from twist.
    Just a couple things I noticed...NO SEGUES- a dead giveaway of a heartless
and mediocre show. and NOT A SINGLE SOLO OUT OF PAGE (with the exception of
the squirming coil, which is part of the song)- what the hell is that!? I
don't even think he touched his organ once throughout the show...
    Now that all that is out, let me say that I had a GREAT time at the show,
the people were very respectful of the venue and it was truly magical to be
there.  I am sorry to everyone who couldn't get in, and to those who feel like
ripping me apart for my review, go ahead- I had a great time ;)
 
Matt

Date: Mon, 22 May 2000 19:21:24 -0400
From: majik@tna1.tradewind.net
To: dws@archive.phish.net
Subject: Radio City 1st night


This show rocked! This was my first time in RCMH since I saw the Rockettes
there way too many years ago. The whole scene was very laid back, exactly
what I was hoping for. The first set was a little slow for the mood I was
in, but the songs were great nonetheless. After a setbreak, it was like a
whole different show. The second set was just unbelieveable. High energy
atmosphere and great song selection. I haven't danced like that in a long
time. Wish I could go tonight.

Joe in Albany, NY

Date: Tue, 23 May 2000 04:32:23 -0400
From: Maureen Murphy bsmm96@localnet.com
To: dws@archive.phish.net, dws@gadiel.com
Subject: Phish at Radio City on 5-21-2000


First thing i want to say is that it was a blessing to be in NYC and to be
at one of Phish's historic Radio City Hall shows.  I was hooked up with a
comp ticket by a lucky stroke of nepotism and even scored a pass to the
after show party where i met Mike Gordon -- Very Cool Experience.

The long wait in line was rewarded the moment i stepped into the hall --
it's an amazing, grandiose place that had me awe for a while as i just
stood scanning the buzzzing crowd of people.  Everything was high class
and immaculate the staircases, the carpets -- it was fucking Radio City!!
After buying a shirt i was off to find my seats which turned out to be
about 20 rows away from the stage dead center -- i smiled and laughed as i
walked in a daze down the aisle, it seemed so surreal -- the energy level
was already high you could just feel the vibrations, then just as i
reached my unbelievable seat the lights went down and the crowd went crazy
as Phish took the stage.
        There they were so close, first show since the magical madness of
Big Cypress, what would they play?  Would their be any special guests?  
Any special oldies or new jams?
        Unfortunately the answers are nothing spectacular, no, and no,
respectively. Now don't get me wrong there were some highlights -- First
Tube opener captured the energy that was lurking in every corner of the
beautiful hall and threw the crowd into a frenzy although Page's brilliant
work in the song was drowned out by Trey's over-abundant loop layering
toward the end.  Wolfman's Brother was cool when it started but never came
to life.  Squirming coil always a well played number sounded great
especially Page's solo of course -although he kept it basic.  Possum
always fun -but this one seems again to just die in a cacophonic blaze of
noise instead of morphing into the funky-country romp it has been several
times in the past.  Now my biggest quam of the first set a song that i
love and feel has some of the best live possibilities Limb By Limb was
just boring.  Character Zero could have described the set. Second set was
better -- Jibboo and DWD were the highlights for me - trey was generous,
Fishman kept the beat, Page was the mad scientist over the keys and Mike
just blew the place up with his tenancious hard-hitting bass.  Dirt was
nice and clean and thats all, Wading in the velvet sea sounded great,
Piper was theatrical but not much more, Harry Hood was good-basic, Guyute
- something more unique maybe--would have loved to have seen a funkyfied
Boogie On after mention of Stevie Wonder--but alas. Inlaw Josie Wales
answered my acoustic wishes and Loving Cup was an upbeat way to end so the
encore was somewhat redeeming. But now for the part that's gonna piss off
all you bitchy fans who think that its so heinous to ctriticize
Phish--they are just people like you and i --except they have a shitload
of money and connections and are believe it or not extremely Fucking
Famous--Trey played SNL with shitty snot-nosed Kid Rock-- Trey =
Celebrity.  basically they can handle the measly criticism im dishing out
here on my pc and to all the morons who think that every time Trey builds
on three chords and a obnoxious amount of special effects and the lights
(which yes are awesome-but has that become too much of a focus??) swirl
like crazy its "phat"-- you're wrong.  Trey sells himself short by doing
that for more than two or three songs a night -- and he did it about six
or seven times on Sunday making it impossible to hear PAge or Mike and
what a shame that is because Phish is at their best is a seamless blend of
all four members--not just Trey.  He was just way too loud most of the
night. My only thought came at the aftershow as i weaved through a bunch
of pretentious forty-year olds in suits--Maybe they just wanted to show
off the balls to the walls side of their music --which is Trey
centered--that would explain the utter lack(besides DWD) of any
exploratory, building, reewarding jams that we all know and lust after.
They simply didn't show their true colors--plus i heard that 1/3 of the
tickets were complimentary which means industry people friends/family
etc--not typical phisheads. Anyways if this pisses you off too bad-- i
support Phish just like you do i just feel like i have the right to
exercise some criticism if i feel that way.  I think the guys are amazing
musicians and have been transformed by their music several times over. It
was a memorable beautiful evening, Radio City was beyond my wildest
dreams, i just wish the music could have taken me to those places i love
to visit with Phish- hopefully ill get there this summer and fall see you
there and lighten up y'all DONT MISS BERKFEST AUGUST 11-13!!!!--Bela,
SCI,Moe.Galactic MMW and more jumps,jives,and jams


-B-Win


Date: Mon, 22 May 2000 15:33:35 -0400
From: Alex Petisi petisi@snet.net
To: dws@archive.phish.net
Subject: Review
 
I have to disargree with some of the comments regarding last night
show.... First of all, the whole show scene was unbelivible.  The venue
was the nicest i have ever seen and the sound was perfect. Now on to the
show...
 
This show was intense.  For not playing together for a long time i
thought there jams were very tight...
 
First Tube - Killer opener, got everyone moving
Wolfman's - Pretty nice, not my favorite song but they brought out a
nice jam in the middle, good to hear
Squirming Coil - Intresting placement of this song, a little out of
place but cool to hear in the first set, pretty good Page solo..
Possum - Yess! got everyone moving again, i thought it was played very
well, very high intensity
Moma Dance - Pretty funky yet could have been jammed out a little more
Limb by Limb - I have never heard it in concert so it was pretty sweet,
good version
Character Zero - Sweet, loved it, good jam and cool closer to the first
set
SET 2
GOtta Jiboo - Nice 2nd set opener, one of my favorite songs off the new
albulm
DWD - Great, i dont know what Wolfman was talking about, i loved it,
great Jam cool to hear, Mike was on fire
Twist -> Piper - Im not a huge fan of Twist but i thought is was played
well, great transition into Piper which was slightly short but definatly
rocking
Harry Hood ->Wading in the Velvet Sea - Harry Hood, what can i say,
GREAT... wasnt the best Jam i ever heard but very well done, trey was
very tight as usuall... Veltet Sea was nice to hear but im not really a
fan
Guyute -> Definatly cool, played perfect
E:
Inlaw - Trey sitting by himself with his acustic guitar, wonderful, the
sound quality was unbelivible and Trey played it perfect.
Loving Cup - Great finisher, got the crowd going nuts
 
alex

Date: Sun, 21 May 2000 23:19:01 PDT
From: The Wolfman terrapinwolf@hotmail.com
To: dws@archive.phish.net
Subject: Review of RCMH 5/21
 
     Since this is not the most positive review ever, allow me to preface it
with a couple of important notes.  First and foremost, I am unwaveringly
thankful to whatever higher powers are responsible for allowing me to be in
Radio City Music Hall tonight.  Second, I had a GREAT time.  I don't care if
Phish comes on stage, plays one note apiece, and ends the show...there is
nowhere else on earth that I would rather have been that night than at the
Phish show.  So before everyone goes responding to my musical review with
"you should be grateful you got in" or "you're the type that ruins shows for
those around them", please know that I am incredibly grateful and that I
danced my balls off and that I spread love and good cheer to all those who
encountered me.
 
Now then...
 
Is Phish the greatest jam-rock band ever?  Absolutely.  Is Phish the
greatest jam-rock act out right now?  Absolutely not.  The boys came out
tonight and put on a mediocre show.  That's not by Phish standards, that's
by all jam-rock standards.  The first set was very straightforward, with
some very uninspired jamming.  Wolfman's did nothing special and ended
abruptly.  It was a smooth ending, but anyone who has listened to even a
couple of older live versions of this song knows that there is much, much
more room to expand from where they just ducked out of it.   Squirming same
deal basically.  They just ducked out of the jam after it really went
nowhere for about 8 minutes.   Possum...anyone who has been to umpteen shows
and has umpteen boots (which is a lot of us) has heard dozens of possums
that put this one to shame.  Good, yes, substandard, that too. Moma VERY
abrupt.  Where's the brilliant jamming guys?  Maybe a segue or two?   Limb
By Limb and 0 absolutley nothing that stands out the least bit.  And that
right there is the essence of the show...it's not a BAD show, there's just
nothing that stands out at all.  The only 1st set standout was the First
Tube opener.  It was high-energy from the start (bravo for not opening with
Farmhouse).  The crowd blew the roof off of the 12-story room when the boys
hit the stage.  I don't think they've been greeted like that in quite some
time.  The show had all the energy in the world at the beginning, but it
wasn't capitalized on.
     2nd set was more of the same.  Down with Disease was particularly lost.
  If you've listened to your boots and gone to your shows, take a listen to
this DWD, and there's no question about it...the band has minimal coherency
for the first 8 minutes or so.  It's a matter of Trey struggling to find a
groove and the other guys keeping the boat steady but not sailing sharply
behind him.  They finally locked in for about 2 minutes before diverging
again, and climaxed together though far from the orgasmic level that we have
all heard.  Twist was the highlight of this set, with a smooth descent into
some type II jamming, but then the ending didn't do anything.  Piper was the
weakest I have ever heard it.  It's still Piper, but this was straight-up 4
minute album style and a good Piper is NOT 4 minutes long (Oswego...'nuff
said).  Song-by-song isn't necessary here, just look at the setlist and what
you see is basically what you get.
     Every band is entitled to off nights.  Unfortunately, I think this is
where Phish is at right now.  The last 6 Phish shows I have seen (besides
Cypress because obviously only Phish could have pulled off that spectacle)
are 7/12/99, 7/13, 10/9, 10/10, 12/12, and 5/21/00.  In that same time
frame, I have seen all of the following jam-rock bands put on shows better
than any one of those:  SCI, Strangefolk, The Zen Tricksters, The Disco
Biscuits, Psychedelic Breakfast, and moe. and for non jambands Bela Fleck
and the Flecktones, Maceo Parker, and Victor Wooten.  The jambands listed
above put on incredible jams and coherent, well-planned shows.  That, of
course, is what has us in love with Phish in the first place, but there are
other bands doing it much, much better right now.  I sat in the front row of
the 2nd mezzanine tonight and could see the entire floor, and let me tell
you, the place was NOT getting down, and this is PHISH for pete's sake!
I've seen way more dancing energy expended at the other bands listed above.
Phish just isn't yanking it from us the way they used to.  Listen to the
tapes.  It's plain to hear, I'm afraid.
     Tonight, Phish was out there for all the world to see.  These 2 nights
are their chance to show the world what jam-rock is all about. This crazy
type of music that we all know and love is being showcased these two nights,
and it is up to Phish to represent it.  They are the undisputed kings of the
craft...it will be a long, long time until another jamband dares descend
into Radio City Music Hall and it will be a long, long time until any
jamband again brings 80,000 people to the most remote corner of the country
for $150 a pop.  These two shows should be the epitome of jam-rock, two of
the greatest jam-rock shows ever produced, played by the undisputed greatest
jam-rock band ever.  They fell far, far short of that tonight.  Considering
that they know what people went through to get in tonight, a segue or a
rarity tune or even just a few mindblowing jams or ANYTHING to make the show
a standout is not too much to ask.  The building itself and the ticket
availability were fantastic standouts tonight.  The boys' playing should
have been there with it.
 
-Wolfman
terrapinwolf@hotmail.com

Date: Mon, 22 May 2000 08:30:46 EDT
From: HPB24@aol.com
To: dws@archive.phish.net, dws@gadiel.com
Subject: 5/21/00 Show Review
 
Last night's show was simply amazing. Whether it was a combination of the
talented performance, the the electricity of being in the Radio City Music
Hall, the show will go down in history. Having Gotta Jiboo as a second set
opener blew me away. The setlist for the show is outstanding. Thanks.
 
-Mike M. (HPB24@aol.com)

Date: Mon, 22 May 2000 12:05:07 EDT
From: JWen984924@aol.com
To: dws@archive.phish.net
Subject: radio city 1st night
 
     my last 5 phish shows have been dissappointing and this one was the
same. Not tight at all very weak jams no inspiration and no surprises like
mound ice friend destiny new songs arent doing for me sorry im not
complaining just stating that phish is going down a different path which i
dont want to take selling summer tour tickets to follow string cheese
                                             sorry for the my sad outlook
Bear

 
Date: Tue, 23 May 2000 20:50:11 -0700 (PDT)
From: Sam Fensterstock slapshotsam@yahoo.com
Reply-To: samf@creditriskmonitor.com
To: dws@gadiel.com
Subject: 5/21/00 RCMH Review
 
I usually am never one to post reviews about shows - but after reading some of
the postings here I just had some thoughts I wanted to put down that relate to
some of the negative reviews I have read here.
 
First - I want to say that the Sunday show was great - Radio City is the best
place in the U.S. to see a show and I had a wonderful time.
 
Second - I want to say to all of the negative posters - you are all are
entitled to your opinions and yes everyone has their point of view about how a
show was - how good or bad they jammed, what songs they played, their energy
level and so forth - but remember this - seeing a blah Phish show is better
than seeing no Phish show at all.
 
I started going to Phish shows in 1990 and really enjoyed them.  But, until
1995 the Dead were it for me.  As like many of the readers here about Phish, I
was very critical about the Dead's performance when I went to see them,
especially if I was seeing several shows within a few days.  I left most shows
critiquing every song, how it was played, how it was sung, the jam and the
mood.  Looking back now, what I find is that after seeing the Dead 100 times -
I was way to critical about their performance.  I loved them - but often they
could rarely do me 100% justice - and you know what? I was greedy - because in
1995 it all got pulled out from under me when Jerry died.  Now I have no Dead
at all - and I miss it.  I would rather still be able to see the WORST Dead
show that be stuck like I am now - being able to see no Dead shows at all.
(thank god for a little Phish)
 
So what I am trying to say to all of you phans is simple - you go to see this
band because you love their music and it does something too you.  The same way
Mark McGuire does not hit a home run every time he goes to bat - a band will
never be 100% every night. Learn from us stupid critical deadheads - and DON'T
be so critical.  Love it no matter what - because when it^Òs gone (and
hopefully that will not be for years) - man does it suck.
 
 
=====
Sam Fensterstock
Vice President - Sales Development
516-327-2400 ext 237
samf@creditriskmonitor.com


Date: Mon, 22 May 2000 12:39:34 EDT
From: daniel sage dsage19@hotmail.com
To: dws@archive.phish.net
Subject: 5/21/00 review
 
I have to disagree with some of the disappointed reviewers.  I agree that the
1st set was nothing particularly special (except for first tube which rocked),
but the second set had some serious highlights.  Gotta Jiboo was very very
good, disease absolutely rocked, and piper - piper I think has been kind of
underrated in the reviews I've read so far.  I was present at the prague and
oswego pipers, and I think this one easily held its own, if not surpassing
them at some points.  Mike was simply all over the place (think gorge 98
weekapaug, the really fast part near the end - it kind of was like that, but
for 8-10 minutes, quick chord changes, extremely tight). Twist Around the
highlight of the set?  Huh?  I almost fell asleep - easily the low point for
me.  Instead of rocking out the jam, it got kind of slow and spacey, not that
that's bad, but this had no direction at all.  The hood was okay, loving cup
was fantastic.  Did I expect more from this show?  Not really, it kind of
surpassed my expectations.  It's the first show of the year.  Sure, it's a
small theater, and the boys tend to play above and beyond for small intimate
crowds.  Take a look at 12/6/96 - that was the end of the tour, though.  This
is the first show of the tour, and for what it's worth, I think they did a
pretty solid job.  If they are playing like this right from the start, it will
only get better.  I think we can expect a fantastic summer and fall tour.  
Considering it was their first real show since their break, they sounded
pretty damn tight to me.
 
cheers
 
dan

Date: Mon, 22 May 2000 13:00:02 -0400
From: brian perla brian@musicvision.com
To: dws@archive.phish.net
Subject: radio city review
 
Brian Perla
brian@musicvision.com
 
Phans,
    Im really not sure what show wolfman was at, but I have to say, this show
was intense.Yes, the first set was straight forward, but you know what? I
loved it. To hear the core of the songs so clearly at Radio City is quite a
thing to hear. I was on the 1st mez 3rd row, and from where I was standing, I
could see the whole place getting down big time. At least the section I was in
was completely going off, having a blast. The second set was certainly more
peanut butter and jammy, and there were a few times where I thought the roof
might start cracking and crumbling due to the boys massive, screeching,
building (and straight out ripping) solos. There was a sharp contrast between
the clarity of the songs and the jams they did last night. THe songs were so
crystal clear, while, for the most part, the jams were hairy and crazy. Trey
used the loops a lot too which added to that sound considerably. I don't see
how anyone could have criticized the band for this performance. It was clean,
solid and full of grooves worthy of ANY band known to get down. I had an
extremely good time and everyone around me did as well. Phish is alive and
well people, and let me tell you, even from the 1st mez level, you could tell
the furious four wanted to be there more than anyone else. See you all dancing
in the aisles! -Brian


Date: Mon, 22 May 2000 12:08:56 -0500
From: Jared.Siegel@bmge.com
To: dws@gadiel.com
Subject: Radio City Music Hall!
 
Radio Phishy Music Hall! See you tonight in front of the Red Mercedes....I can
feel good, good about hood!


 
 Date: May 22, 2000
 From: jsbend619@aol.com
 To: dws@www.phish.net
 Subject: Review Radio City Music Hall Sunday Night Show
 
I would like to give my thoughts on the show Sunday May 21 at Radio City.  I
have seen a number of shows.  I don't know exactly how many now, but I am sure
that it is not nearly what most of you have seen.  However I listen to a great
deal of music and would like to give my take.
 
        With that said, I thought that the show was incredible.  I have seen
them play certain songs better that we could go back and forth about this one
or that one but I think that some people miss what made it such a great show.  
It has been since New Years since we have seen them play and they showed how
sometimes a break from touring can make them have a new found energy.  I feel
weather you like everything that they played or not they play the heck out of
everything.  They all seemed to have an intensity that I haven't seen in a
long time.  It was one of those shows where everything that they played from
First Tube through Loving Cup was intense.  I think that with diversity of
fans being what it is (that some people are looking for the real spacey jams
and others are looking for the more traditional shows) they came out on fire
really showing an intensity which showed there love for playing together and
playing to their fans.  I think that this was apparent when Trey attempted to
tell the fans how much he loved playing for us and with Page, Mike, Fishman.  
It was hard to hear since no one wanted to let him speak without yelling out
(it would have been nice to hear him, but it is nice to know that we love them
and there is no need to thanks us).
 
        All and all I thought that it was a great show.  I wish that people
would just appreciate the show in its whole rather then which song was better
or which show was better.  This was a great venue and a great performance with
an intensity that you have to love.  From start to finish this was a great
show that will be talked about for years.  Thanks for giving me the
opportunity to voice my opinion.  See you all in June!!!


Date: Tue, 23 May 2000 02:05:53 EDT
From: Phishyleo@cs.com
To: dws@archive.phish.net
Subject: radio city (5/21/2000)

    There are to many negative reviews about this show swirling around. Have
most of us lost that " i'm just happy to be in" mentallity. there were so many
people who would have killed to be in the lucky position of those who got in
to Radio City. A kid i used to hang with back in the day won tickets to the
show and asked me to go with him. i felt as though i was the luckiest dude in
the world.  I've been to tons of shows and i can truley say that i had a
blast. We are definately expecting way to much from these guys, instead of
appreciating them.  Think about it, it's the first show of the tour and many
people are already bitchin. This show was definately a way to stretch there
legs and start the summer/fall tour on a new level. Didn't Trey say how much
they appreciate all the love we as fans give them. Now i say it's our time to
give back to them what they have given us, 15 years of beautiful music and
great times we'll be tellin our kids about when thereold enough for there 1st
show.  We all have our great versions of songs that no other music and great
times we'll be tellin our kids about when thereold enough for there 1st show.  
We all have our great versions of songs that no other version could ever
compare to, but who cares enjoy the Music; Isn't this why we are all into
phish. Everyone says that many of the songs were standard versions, but are
quick to add "but that's not necessarily bad". Obviously many phans are
griping about standards, but without standards there would be no monster
versions of any songs. Come on, did we ever think that maybe Trey, Page, mike
and john were really excited to be playing Radio City that they might have
just wanted to get in as many tunes as possible.  Maybe the sound of the hall
was just to good to pass up and they wanted to hear what this or that would
sound like. Everyone let's remember that we are some of the luckiest people in
the world that we get to see this great band as many times as we do. let's
start appreciating the music more than criticizing it. We are lucky to have
seen them in such a beautiful and crisp sounding venue. who cares that a
particular song didn't quite make it into the annals of Phishtory as the cream
of the crop. instaed remember waht trey said to us and remember Radio city as
a "Beautful Buzz, O What A Beautiful Buzz"

Leo A.


...Below are reviews that are directed at other reviewers...

Date: Mon, 22 May 2000 10:23:31 -0700 (PDT)
From: john marshall johnnybob00@yahoo.com
To: dws@archive.phish.net
Subject: NYC reviews
 
I will keep this short and hopefully you will get the point of this. When you
(phans) began listening to Phish it was about the music, now some phans feel
that they are such HUGE phans that they can become a critic. The whole "This
show was nothing compared to 9/27/99, 6/7/97 or 3/7/95, I have heard Possum
just too many times and this one just fell to pieces." type of jargon has to
go. Once you start going to shows and then posting negative reviews you have
lost touch with the whole reason you started listening to Phish in the first
place. IT IS ABOUT THE MUSIC! NOT ABOUT REVIEWS! I believe Trey has an
excellent quote on one of his "pedals" about critics.
 
I have addressed this question of "reviewers and the music" to Trey for an
upcoming internet interview session, I am interested in what he has to say.
 
Thank you, see you on tour :)

Date: Tue, 23 May 2000 02:41:03 EDT
From: Speadrcr1@aol.com
To: dws@archive.phish.net
Subject: reviews of...reviews

I would like to thank the guy who wrote about the people writing reviews.
Seriously now, there has been way too much negativity generating from heads
lately and I am really not liking it.  People need to stop all their bitching
about phish and thank god that they still play and deliver to you such vibrant
sounds that no matter what, they please the ear.  PHISH is the best thing to
happen to music ever and you suppos'sed "phisheads" who complain al the time
need to really get a reality check and re-learn how to appreciate our saviors,
PHISH. on a lighter note i cant wait until phish takes over the world soon,
soon

                                                        peace, zev

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