Shop Music
Amazon.com Music
Office Supplies
"Napster Official Site"
|
Live Phish Vol. 3: 9 14 00, Darien Lake Performing Arts Center, Darien Center, New York
Home > Complete List of "p" Artists > Phish > Item 46
 |
|
 |
 |
Live Phish Vol. 3: 9 14 00, Darien Lake Performing Arts Center, Darien Center, New York
|
by Phish
Sales Rank: 119948
|
$16.50
At Amazon
on 1-26-2008.
|
|
There was a period there during the early nineties when I caught as many Phish and Dead shows as I could. They were good times. No doubt I lost some precious IQ points, but I had a good time. I used to compare the Dead unfavorably to Phish at least in one respect: Phish didn't sandbag through the first set. They came out and played hard, and sometimes the first set was the better, more intense set, however it happened to work out, but they weren't pacing themselves. It seems so obvious to me now, but I'm not sure if I realized it at the time, but, of course Phish had more energy and gave more to their performances. They were a generation younger. The third installment of the live Phish series shows us that, by 2000, Phish would be the old-timers, getting by on their reputation and the religious fervor of their uncritical fans. The first set here is measured, there are some moments, but the boys are sparing themselves for a bigger effort later in the night. I particularly like hearing Neil Young's "Albuquerque." Anyone who's spent any time in New Mexico understands why that song can't be played too slow or too leisurely. The second set does have some good jamming. It's a good Page show. Page remains the unsung hero of Phish. Pity the poor keyboardist, always with ten times the talent and just a fraction of the glory. The lead guitarists get to be the star, drummers have that visceral allure, and even bass players have at least that brooding mystique. But the man at the keys is the one we all know worked diligently at his piano lessons while his troglodytic neighbors played dodge ball in the streets. I heard Page say in an interview, I think on Bittersweet Motel (this probably only rated DVD bonus footage at that), that it is his job to listen to the other band members, to know exactly what every one is doing on their instruments at all times. And you can tell. He is the one who spices things up with subtle accents and creative chord voicings when they fall into a long slow jam, open space in search of a groove. He is the one who pulls them back together when they start stepping on each other's toes. His presence prevents Trey from completely spinning off with his reckless guitar gymnastics. What would Phish be like without him? Well, have you tried listening to Trey's solo work? I like this series, the Live Phish series, but this wasn't one of my favorites, probably just because it represents Phish from an era when I was barely in touch, rarely caught a show. If you jumped on the bandwagon late in the game, this might appeal to you because these are the shows you saw. And, still, I'd rather listen to any Phish bootleg than just about anything on commercial radio, so it's all relative. I'd love to give it about 3.694 stars, but Amazon is partial to integers. So, four stars. Buy it, enjoy. It'd be cool to have all this whole series loaded in your i-pod, along with the Dick's Picks, all your comfort music right there in one handy place to be thieved on the MBTA.
Comment | Permalink |
(Report this)
|
Live Phish Vol. 3: 9 14 00, Darien Lake Performing Arts Center, Darien Center, New York
Available from Amazon
Price: $16.50
Updated on 1-26-2008.
|
|
