This one will be short because as the saying goes, “what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.” And as for these shows, you almost wish they had never happened.
April 2004 was my first trip to Las Vegas. I flew in on Spirit Airlines as I recall, and waited in a taxi line for about half hour to get from the airport to the strip. Thanks to NB, I would be living up this first trip to Vegas in style, well, kinda. NB got us a room at theHotel at Manadalay Bay which had only been open a few months as I recall. For those of you who have never stayed at theHotel, well, you’re missing out. Flat screen in the sitting room, flat screen in the bedroom, and tvs in the bathroom. The only word to describe theHotel is sexy. The only thing unstylish was having to share the room with 6 or 7 other people. Fortunately, some of those people really didn’t take advantage of the room and instead chose to party the entire time we were there. I slept on the floor for the most part except for one night after a show when the dryness of the desert and partying really got to my head.
As I recall, the shows were on a Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. The shows in Vegas, musically, were pretty bad. The first night was probably the biggest joke of all, so things could only get better after that, which they did. The second night wasn’t awful, nor was the third night, but I think the cheesiness of the Meatstick Reprise symbolized how much of a joke the music was the previous 2 days. Still, we were in Vegas, so how bad could it be?
After the first night’s show, I decided to lounge by the pool with the future Mrs. NB and take it easy. In fact, I don’t feel that I ever really ventured the strip until my 3rd visit to Vegas. The first two visits were limited to theHotel and Mandalay Bay, which isn’t a bad situation to be in.
Relaxation was key to having a good time that 2nd night. The show improved, but I remember that our seats were bad all 3 nights. We had a pretty raucous crowd which helped make up for how bad the music was.
I recall eating at the House of Blues, hanging out in the sportsbook, and doing a little bit of gambling. Actually, I recall the last day playing blackjack for 8 hours straight on the same $100, never going up and never cashing out. I don’t consider myself a big gambler, unlike some people I know who seem to be on sports a lot. I just had nothing to do until my red eye flight that night.
The other big highlight of the weekend was Champagne Brunch @ Mandalay Bay. If you’ve never gone, I highly recommend it.
So the best part of the weekend was the awesome hotel. I think we saw Keyshaun Johnson at one point (just throw the man the damn ball) in theHotel lobby. My biggest regret was that I didn’t bet on the Pistons at 18-1 to win the NBA finals.
A few weeks after the Vegas shows, Phish announced that their summer tour would be the end of the band. When was announced, I made sure to gobble up tickets and work out my schedule to see as much of the band as I could. After Vegas, you had to question whether the music would get any better, especially given that Miami was a great 4 night run. But I knew this last run would be it, and I wasn’t ready to let go of my youth right away.
Thanks to MW, JK, NB, Mrs. NB, and everyone else who I shared floor space with. And thanks to whomever gave me the bed to sleep off my massive headache the 3rd night.
04/15/04 Thomas & Mack Center - Las Vegas, NV
- 1 (1:16): Buried Alive > AC/DC Bag, Limb by Limb, The Moma Dance, The Old Home Place, Roggae, Water in the Sky, All of These Dreams, Stash -> Timber Ho
- 2: 46 Days, Drowned > 2001 > Down With Disease > Free > Scent of a Mule, Girls Girls Girls -> Scent of a Mule, Secret Smile, Crowd Control, Slave to the Traffic Light
- E: Sneakin' Sally Through the Alley > "Coconut" Vocal Jam -> "Sonic Dress" Rap -> Vocal Jam
- Notes: Fenton Williams (Dave Matthews Band crew) was at the light board in place of Chris Kuroda. "Girls" is a Jay-Z cover (first time played); with Jen Hartswick assisting on vocals. "Secret Smile" featured a wholly new arrangement (about 7 minutes long). "Sally" led loosely into a vocal jam akin to the kind found in 1980s versions, then a vocal jam around the song "Coconut" (Harry Nilsson song, from his 1971 album "Nilsson Schmilsson"), then into a rap by Trey about Fish's sonic dress (which was not played), and then into a free-form vocal jam.
- Thanks to JDG, Erik Swain, ZZYZX, and Phish.com.
- 1: Seven Below, Rock and Roll, Boogie On Reggae Woman, Back on the Train -> Possum, Strange Design, Gumbo, Brian and Robert, Taste
- 2: Gotta Jibboo, Twist, Camel Walk > Wilson, HYHU > Love You > HYHU, Waves > Lifeboy, The Horse > Silent in the Morning, Loving Cup
- E: Harry Hood
- Notes: Fenton Williams (Dave Matthews Band crew) was at the light board in place of Chris Kuroda. Toward the end of "Wilson," Trey teased "Little Drummer Boy." "Love You" featured the debut of Fish's Sonic Dress. The fabric of the dress is woven from audiotape taken from Fish's own collection, and Jon uses special tape-head gloves to "play" it. (Some said it sounded much like Fish playing a washboard under his dress.) For more information, see artist-creator Alyce Santoro's website.
- Thanks to Erik Swain and Phish.com.
04/17/04 Thomas & Mack Center - Las Vegas, NV
- 1: Soul Shakedown Party, Halley's Comet > Tweezer, Ginseng Sullivan, Horn, Sample in a Jar, Piper -> Frankenstein, David Bowie
- 2: Meatstick, Pebbles and Marbles > Prince Caspian -> Simple > Friday, Ghost, You Enjoy Myself -> Tweezer Reprise
- E: Wolfman's Brother, The Squirming Coil
- Notes: Fenton Williams (Dave Matthews Band crew) was at the light board in place of Chris Kuroda. "Meatstick" included Trey and Mike removing their instruments to do the full dance as usual, and the Japanese lyrics were sung. This "YEM" might better be called "You Enjoy My Meatstick": After the trampolines segment, Trey took off his guitar to do the Meatsick Dance while Fish played a drum solo. The crowd erupted in the Meatstick chant. Trey then did the Dance two more times (first while Mike soloed on the bass, and then Page on the keys). There was no standard vocal jam. "Wolfman's" had teases of "Sneakin' Sally," "Possum, and "Meatstick." The "Tweezer Reprise" lyrics were replaced by alternate "Meatstick" lines ("time for the Meatstick"; "won't you step into the Meatstick").
- Thanks to Erik Swain and 'anonymous.'
