Phish Summer tour 99 part DEUX!

11 days after returning back to Detroit from the Nashville>Atlanta run, we set off for Oswego, NY on the night of July 16^th. We had a big crew with us for Oswego that included LE, her sister BE, NB2, JG, bigD, and my good friend NB. For those of you who are not familiar with Oswego, it’s not far from Syracuse and Vernon Downs where Phish had played the previous summer. The drive there isn’t bad (6 to 7 hours) and we encountered no problems at either border going through Canada. We arrived at the end of the line of cars at Oswego sometime in the middle of the night, but would not set up our campsite in the dust until mid-morning the next day. I don’t recall if I got any sleep before the show on the 17^th.

I remember the shakedown at Oswego being very vibrant, but the weather was extremely hot. I remember BE getting very sunburned and having major raccoon eyes from wearing her shades. I forgot to mention that PS was there with JD (and maybe someone else) but they spent most of their time in their air-conditioned RV. Pfft!

And now for the setlists….

07-17-99 Oswego County Airport, Volney, NY

Soundcheck: Also Sprach Zarathustra, Blues Jam (about "Mr Sausage", one of the vendors near the 2nd stage; to the tune of "Dear Mrs. Reagan"), Beauty of my Dreams, Carini, (more?)

1: Tube, Boogie on Reggae Woman, Birds of a Feather, Guelah Papyrus, My Sweet One, Roggae, Tweezer -> Have Mercy*, Taste, Character Zero (~1:30)

2: Funky Bitch**, On My Knees**, On My Knees Reprise#, Down With Disease*, Wolfman's Brother -> Sneakin' Sally Through the Alley -> Wolfman's Brother -> Timber (Jerry), You Enjoy Myself

E: The Squirming Coil, Tweezer Reprise (2+E 1:55)

*Trey on keys. **With Son Seals. #Short blues jam played as Son Seals exited.

07-18-99 Oswego County Airport, Volney, NY

1: Punch You in the Eye, This Is a Farmhouse, Water in the Sky, Bathtub Gin, Get Back on the Train*, If You Need a Fool*, I'm Blue I'm Lonesome*^, Beauty of My Dreams*, The Moma Dance, Reba, Chalk Dust Torture

2: Runaway Jim# -> Free, The Meatstick**, Guyute, Axilla##, Llama (1:00)

3: My Soul, Piper### > Prince Caspian > Wilson -> Catapult^ -> Icculus^^, Quinn the Eskimo, Fluffhead

E: Harry Hood^^^ (3+E 1:50)

*With the Del McCoury Band. ^Del McCoury broke a string. **Trey explains the record attempt; Sofi Dillof dances on-stage dancing; Guinness Book of World Records staff videotaping the event; the record was not set. #With "Psycho Killer" jam. ##Entire Part I. ###With glowrings, and Trey on keys. ^Followed by banter and toying, all continuing an E chord from the end of "Wilson" (which was never finished). Trey gabbed about TV, books, and Deep Purple, teased "Smoke on the Water," compared it to "Cat Scratch Fever," and more. ^^Followed by more talking, band introductions, a mention of the fan group CK5, and teases of "Miss You" (Rolling Stones). ^^^With fireworks.

What can I say except that the music was truly amazing. I really commend the band for putting on the festival in the middle of the tour and the location was convenient for Phish’s strong northeast pull. It was really great to hear Have Mercy since I had been introduced to it during a Bowie on a 93 tape I had. I really can’t say a whole lot more about the show since I have not actually listened to the first night since being there. I would love to get a copy of it because the show had so many great highlights. I remember the jam with Son Seals. This was one of Phish’s few concert experiences where side bands like Son Seals and Ozomatli were playing. In fact, I had seen Ozo twice already that summer when they toured with Santana.

I remember much more about the second night for some odd reason. The Free was something that really got me excited along with the Icculus. I have listened to this show since and it is definitely a show to have. The band was having great fun this night. After the show, NB and I got incredibly lost for what seemed like an eternity, but finally located our campsite and enjoyed the cool down. Oswego was a great time.

The next morning, I woke up exhausted and sunburned. Cloud cover and the light rain made for relaxing travel weather as NB, LE, JG drove to Niagara Falls for the night. The rest of our crew headed back to Detroit to pick up the tour later. We found a HoJo to stay at, got some dinner, and visited the Canadian side of the Falls for a few beers.

The next day we headed for Toronto. I remember the venue (Molson Amphitheatre is right on the shore of Lake Ontario with a surrounding park), and that NB and I had some pretty good seats once we found each other. The music was great and I remember the first set as being pretty long. I just got this show recently so I’m going to take a good listen soon. Here is the setlist.

07-20-99 Molson Amphitheatre, Toronto, Ontario

Soundcheck: My Soul, How Long Has This Been Going On, Dream Weaver

1: Chalk Dust Torture, Sample in a Jar, Cars Trucks Buses, The Sloth, The Divided Sky, Waste, Ghost, Wilson, You Enjoy Myself*

2: Twist, The Moma Dance, What's the Use, Train Song, Also Sprach Zarathustra, Misty Mountain Hop**

E: Guyute, Hello My Baby

*With Caribbean "hey ho" vocal jam. **First time played (but played in soundchecks since ~1993); Led Zeppelin tune.

This was a solid show, and it was great to be able to see a show in Canada. I regret not going into downtown Toronto (and still have not), but there was not enough time.

After the show, we really didn’t have a plan of where to stay so we got on the road. NB and I were the only ones of our group to be going on to the show the next night in Pittsburgh, so we sought out a hotel room. Unfortunately, we knew really little about where we were in Canada, and even though some differences are slight between the U.S. and Canada, somehow in the U.S. you never feel too far from civilization on the interstates. We found this horrible little hotel run by an Asian family in the middle of what seemed like nowhere. They didn’t seem too happy when we ended up cramming 5 or 6 people into that little room. It was cozy and every Phish fan has gone through it at some point. They were happy to see us take off early the next morning.

The next day, NB and I got on the road, went back through Niagara Falls, and headed south to Pittsburgh for the show at Starlake. We met up with my good buddy JCT and SK at a Super 8 motel. We headed to the show with high hopes, especially since we saw Mike “Cactus” Gordon for the 2^nd time on lot before a show. Unfortunately, I do not have very many positive things to say about the music that night. I wasn’t very impressed, but every show can’t be unbelievable (just wait until my review of 4/15/04). Here is the setlist.

07-21-99 Star Lake Amphitheatre, Burgettstown, PA

1: AC/DC Bag > Cities, Gold Soundz*, Ginseng Sullivan, Limb By Limb, Funky Bitch, The Moma Dance, When The Circus Comes, Taste, Bittersweet Motel

2: Mike's Song > Simple > My Left Toe > Prince Caspian > Weekapaug Groove, Golgi Apparatus

E: Brian and Robert, Bold as Love

*Pavement cover; first time played.

After the show, we witnessed something pretty bad which added to my negative recollection of the Starlake show. We watched some head get beat up really bad by some other guys back in the parking lot, perhaps for selling fake drugs. Since it was dark, it wasn’t something that drew a huge crowd and we didn’t really do much so not to get involved and get the wooks riled up. I was happy to make our drive back to the Super 8 that night and get a good night sleep. It was great hanging with JCT and SK, but we pretty much had a few beers, played some cards, and called it a night. Our plan was to skip the show in Columbus (taking into consideration our Wall Mart experience from 1998) and instead drive up to West Lafayette, IN to meet up with CC.

If I am correct, CC had not been with us to a show since the Palace in 1997. He was stuck in West Lafayette for the summer taking classes which I imagine to be pretty damn boring. He didn’t originally plan to go with us to Alpine, rather just Deer Creek, but I believe we had extra tickets and he didn’t have much to do. It was nice to get a night off from touring when we crashed in West Lafayette, except that drive up to Alpine from there would be an absolute pain in the ass the next day.

The Midwest in the middle of July is really damn humid, and the Mazda still didn’t have air-conditioning. And the summer time is the prime time for road construction as was the case on the way to Chicago. We (ok, I) made the big mistake of not taking the Indiana Toll Road>Chicago Skyway and we go stuck on 80/90. After not moving in our car for about a half hour, I tweaked and got off the road. We ended up on a road called Indianapolis Ave which runs north-south and is no more than a few miles from the Illinois Border. We were trying to make up time and get to the skyway when I found myself being pulled over by the cops for driving 59 in a 35 zone. Obviously when anyone gets pulled over, you get pretty nervous and these cops totally freaked me out by asking me to get out of the car and get into the back seat of the cop car. I now realize they likely did this so that they could write me the ticket in their air-conditioned vehicle, but I was still a little paranoid. They recognized the name of my home town and asked about an infamous kid from our town who had gotten a lot of press for fooling around with some females that were a little too young. We had a few laughs, they didn’t write me a ticket for reckless driving (I think anything 20 mph over is considered reckless), and they let us go on our way. I paid a hefty fine later and some points were added to my driving record, but nothing worse.

From here on forward, my ex ladyfriend acquaintance will be referred to as “Shafty” although all of us including myself are deserving at the title at some point.

So we dropped my ladyfriend Shafty’s place in Chicago before going up to Alpine. I believe she went to the show, but I don’t know that we stayed at her place after the show. I’ll need a little help. In any case, here is the setlist from Alpine 99.

07-24-99 Alpine Valley, East Troy, WI

1: Guyute, Fluffhead*# > The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday > Avenu Malkenu > The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday > The Wedge, Character Zero** (1:11)

2: Tweezer* -> Catapult## -> Tweezer, The Mango Song^, The Happy Whip and Dung Song, Waste, Chalk Dust Torture^^ (0:56)

E: Glide, Camel Walk, Alumni Blues, Tweezer Reprise (0:21)

*Trey on small keyboard. #Trailed into a lengthy jam. **Trey waves his guitar to produce feedback. ##Trey and Mike sing "Catapult" over "Tweezer." ^With glowrings. ^^Start/stop jamming; Trey waves his guitar to produce feedback.

This show was great. We got a long Fluffhead out of it, a great Tweezer set, and some major rarities for the encore. I have really good memories of the music at this show, but I remember little else about the experience. We had okay seats I recall. I think that I got incredibly lost after the show (which has happened to me more than once at Alpine). I have listened to parts of this show before, but the recording quality is rarely spectacular at Alpine Valley. There’s always a ton of people you know at Alpine, so you know if you were there.

After crashing at Shafty’s house and being treated to gourmet cooking by Shafty’s mom (sick bacon cheeseburgers), we drove back down toward Deer Creek. This would be our first year camping at 40 acres, under the tree that we would call home again in 2000. CC and NB would end up camping under the same giant tree in 2004. I believe our full crew consisted of myself, NB, CC, then PS and NB’s sis QB came down from the big D. LE, JG, JTC, SK, BE, & NB2 were also there at another campsite. So we had pretty much everyone from the Summer 99 gathered in Deer Creek to see Phish’s final 2 shows of the tour.

I really took a liking to the chill, laid back style of the 40 Acres campsite. For those of you who have never been to Deer Creek, it’s a venue in the middle of corn fields. Drums echoed from the woods, people talking while you sip the tastiest beers and take in life with the fellow heads around you – I was living. Our first year, they even had showers at 40 Acres, although going into one of those icy well water showers after sitting in 90 degree humidity will completely take your breath away. The local folks at 40 Acres sold sweet corn and other good food. It’s hard to describe to people who cool the feeling to be a part of a little colony, living without luxuries, in the middle of cornfields and woods. I felt a part of the coolest get together ever conceived.

^^^Babble tangent^^^

And after a mile of walking to the venue, I witnessed one of the best Phish shows of my life.

07-25-99 Deer Creek Music Center, Noblesville, IN

Soundcheck: Mike's Song, Back at the Chicken Shack, Beauty of my Dreams, Day Tripper, (more?)

1: Meat*, My Friend My Friend -> My Left Toe -> Whipping Post**, Makisupa Policeman#, I Saw It Again, Boogie on Reggae Woman, Cavern## (1:03)

2: Birds of a Feather^ > Walk Away, Run Like an Antelope^^, Suzie Greenberg^^^, Hold Your Head Up > Purple Rain### > Hold Your Head Up, You Enjoy Myself+

E: Loving Cup (2+E 1:30)

First time as show opener; bass solo. **Trey on vocals. #Keywords were "gooballs, brownies, stink kind, nugs and kief"; Trey announces lighting director Chris Kuroda's birthday and asks everybody to sing; Trey interrupts "Happy Birthday" to say, "We're going to get you so wasted tonight"; Mike takes a "Happy Birthday bass solo"; Fish says, "You roll up a fat spliff and you don't pass it to no one" (in a Jamaican accent); Kuroda takes a one-minute silent light solo, then thanks the band for the birthday wishes after "Makisupa." ##Trey waves guitar to produce feedback. ^"My Left Toe" teases. ^^"Stash" tease; with glowrings. ^^^With Page start/stop jam; "I Wish" (Stevie Wonder) teases. ###Fish forgets lyrics; improvises. +"Boogie on Reggae Woman" jam.

I am pretty confident that we were in the Pavilion both nights. I had the time of my life at this show. The Meat was a good laugh of an opener until Trey begins My Friend, My Friend into an ambient jam (My Left Toe), the music got dark then Trey started rocking out Whipping Post, a song that my close friends had really grown up on back in the day. Makisupa was a celebration, and the Boogie On was jammed out for a long time. The second set Birds>Walk Away was amazing, the Antelope was amazing, Page was tearing it up on the Suzie, we got Fishman running around like a mad man, a sweet YEM and a classic Loving Cup. I firmly believe this was the best show of 1999 and could be the best show I ever saw. Just absolute fun.

We headed back to our campsite for some late night relaxing. The show was so good that the show the next night wouldn’t be able to top it. I hear people really put down 7/26/99 but I didn’t care that the show wasn’t that special. At this show, Trey mentions how cool the Phish scene was in light of the mayhem at Woodstock. I totally agree, and there was no place I would rather be at that moment in my life. Here’s the setlist from 7/26

07-26-99 Deer Creek Music Center, Noblesville, IN

Soundcheck: Birds of a Feather (on tape, from the night before), (more?)

1: This Is a Farmhouse, Get Back on the Train, Vultures, Sleep, Gumbo > NICU, Beauty of My Dreams, Bathtub Gin, Mountains in the Mist, Axilla*, Stash**

2: Wolfman's Brother, Piper, Theme from the Bottom > Down with Disease, Jam# > Split Open and Melt##

E: Woodstock^ > Julius (2+E 1:26)

*With "Axilla (Part II)" ending. **With long intro and glowrings. #Lots of feedback. ##Followed by Trey talking about Woodstock '99, how different the Phish scene is, how happy he is to be a part of the latter rather than the former, etc. ^First time played; unfinished (Joni Mitchell tune).

Nothing too special about this show. I was bummed out that the band decided to go into Split Open and Melt toward the end instead of 2001. Everything else was fine and I wasn’t too disappointed about this being the end of a long tour. I had seen a great amount of music, been to a lot places, chilled with a lot of great people, and would have great memories for a lifetime. It’s too bad that I don’t remember more, but there are other things I choose not to talk about. I want to thank everyone who was there to share these good times – you guys rule.

That’s about it for Summer Tour 99. Considering I went to two Santana shows, a Trey show, a DMB show, an Allman Brothers show, and a few other small gigs, this was a summer to remember. Thanks for reading.

Peace.