PHISH SUMMER TOUR 99 Part I

1999 was undoubtedly the best year of Phish that I witnessed. I believe that 1995 was the peak of Phish for those who had really grown on them reaching the pinnacle of success in the venues they played, but 1999 was the peak of Phish’s musical endeavor. I saw a total of 16 Phish shows during 1999, the most of any year during my personal career.

Longtime tour staple NB had suggested that we head south for the first few shows of Phish’s summer tour in 1999. While I was not totally on board with the plan at first, I finally agreed to go and I have no regrets whatsoever about going. The shows were solid and I was going to see Phish’s first July 4^th shows ever. And I loved my first venture to the south - really friendly folks down there.

It took us sometime to get out of Detroit due to the traffic associated with the Detroit fireworks, but we eventually got cruising south on 75 toward Nashville. NB and I really didn’t have a plan for if we were going to stop that first night or just get to Nashville early. Well, the car made the decision for us when we discovered the windshield wipers on the Jeep Wrangler didn’t work, so we stopped at a hotel in Middletown, OH – a city halfway between Dayton and Cinci. By the stroke of luck, there was an actual Jeep dealership and shop in Middletown, so we got the car repaired relatively quickly and continued on with our journey the day of the show.

Before heading to the First American Music Center, we sought out some campground in the vicinity of the venue. Unfortunately, everything was full which would later prove to be a good omen. So, without a plan again, we headed for the venue.

The minute we got out of our cars, we saw someone quite familiar cruising around the venue – none other than Phish’s bassist Mike Gordon in his golf cart. NB ran over and got a handshake while I fumbled to find a camera. I saw him for a second before he took off. It’s kinda weird how Mike just likes to cruise around and see what’s going on, but then bolts when a crowd gathers. I suppose I can understand. We also ran into an old friend of ours, FR, with his dog. The weather was warm and beautiful and the people were friendly down in Nashville. Here is the setlist from the show.

07-01-99 First American Music Center, Antioch, TN

Soundcheck: I Saw It Again, Water in the Sky, Brian and Robert, Mountains in the Mist

1: Punch You in the Eye, Billy Breathes, Guyute, Wolfman's Brother*, Beauty of My Dreams#, Doin' My Time#^, Roggae#, Water in the Sky#, Get Back on the Train#, Poor Heart#^ (1:12)

2: Down With Disease, Prince Caspian > You Enjoy Myself**

E: Character Zero (2+E 1:04)

Set 2 short possibly due to thunderstorm. *With Jerry Douglas on dobro. #With Jerry Douglas on dobro, Ronnie McCoury on mandolin and Tim O'Brien on fiddle (and lead vocals on "Doin' My Time"). ^Gary "El Buho" Gazaway on trumpet; each guest took a solo. **Trey on small keyboard before vocal jam.

This show really stands out as a great musical experience for me and really got me hyped for the rest of the tour. I also have an outstanding recording of this show – the first set is especially a show that you can really sit back and listen to with a group of friends and family.

The second set is when things started to get really crazy. Although our seats were in the pavilion, we were on the side and could still get a good birds-eye view of the sky around us. As you can see, the second set was only 3 songs long, but it was one of the most intense moments of Phish that I had witnessed to that point. A thunderstorm developed around us with intense lightning that went along with the beat. By the time YEM had come on, the sky had lit up with lights that seemed to just go along with Kuroda’s lights and the music. It did not begin to rain until the show was finally ending, but by the time we got to the Jeep in the parking lot, we were literally stepping in 1 inch puddles. We made our way out of the venue quickly and got back on the road heading south to Atlanta.

Had we not had the windshield wipers fixed on the car, we would have been in some dire straights after that show. The thunderstorm was very intense. About 15 miles down the highway, we decided to attempt to find a hotel to stay at. We ended up staying at a Super 8 that was incredibly cheap and pretty damn nice. It was a quick solution in the chaos of the rain.

The next morning, we got up early to try and get a decent place to camp down in Atlanta. I remember the drive through the smoky mountains of northern Georgia quite vividly. We arrived at Stone Mountain campground midday on July 2^nd. Stone Mountain is a campground/resort-like area not far at all from downtown Atlanta. There are small streams that run through the campground, and we were lucky enough to get what seemed like one of the last spots left. We happen to set up camp near some other cool phans who were in town for the shows.

NB didn’t bring a chair. He tried sitting on my tripod chair until it broke on him and nearly stabbed him in the groin. It was hot in Hotlanta.

We chilled the first night at the campground, making some friends around us and getting a nice buzz on. We had some fireworks too and fireworks were going off all over the resort. And, Stone Mountain puts on a laser light show on the mountain, so we were able to see that from a distance. Oh, and NB bought a nice chair for himself.

The next day, we visited NB’s aunt, uncle, and cousins in a northeast Atlanta. We were able to get a nice shower and meal in before heading down to the venue on the southside. Kudos to NB’s family for taking us in that day and the next day before the show and allowing us some nice chill time in their beautiful air-conditioned home.

All I can really remember about Lakewood Amphitheatre is that’s it’s in a bad area of Atlanta. The lot seen was okay, and the southern ladies looked quite fine however. We had pavilion seats for both nights of Atlanta. Here are the setlists from the shows.

07-03-99 Lakewood Amphitheatre, Atlanta, GA

Soundcheck: What's the Use, Rock-A-William, Wading in the Velvet Sea, Wading in the Velvet Sea

1: Chalkdust Torture, Gumbo, Sparkle, Cavern, Taste, When the Circus Comes*, Tube, Funky Bitch, NICU**, Waste, The Meatstick (1:21)

2: Twist -> Piper, The Moma Dance, Mountains in the Mist, Run Like an Antelope, Contact, Little Drummer Boy (1:03)

E1: Little Drummer Boy#, Won't You Come Home Bill Bailey^ (0:08)

E2: Harry Hood^^ (0:14)

*Unfinished. **Trey on small keyboard. #Fish on snare, solo; with alternate lyrics. ^With Page's father, Dr. Jack McConnell, on vocals and kazoo. ^^With glowrings.

07-04-99 Lakewood Amphitheatre, Atlanta, GA

Soundcheck: Wading in the Velvet Sea, Wading in the Velvet Sea, Wading in the Velvet Sea, Wading in the Velvet Sea, Rock-A-William, In a Hole, (more?)

1: My Soul, Ya Mar, This Is a Farmhouse, The Oh Kee Pa Ceremony > AC/DC Bag, The Wedge, Vultures, I Didn't Know*, Fast Enough For You, David Bowie (1:23)

2: Ghost -> Slave to the Traffic Light**, The Horse -> Silent in the Morning***, What's the Use, Wilson^, Mike's Song -> Sleeping Monkey -> Weekapaug Groove

E1: Carini^^, The Meatstick^^^

E2: The Star Spangled Banner#

*"Vajonna (Flagina?) Fishman" vac solo (wearing only stars-and-stripes boxers). **"What's the Use" and "Dark Star" teases. ***"Little Drummer Boy" tease and glowrings. ^Trey flubs the lyrics; plays "air guitar"; swings guitar, using his effects pedals and feedback to manipulate the sound. ^^With Pete Carini; lyrics mention Mia Hamm (Trey was wearing a Mia Hamm jersey). ^^^Chorus-only reprise; with crew and fans on stage doing "The Meatstick Dance"; after the song, others leave Trey and Mike on-stage to do the dance alone. #A cappella; band in stars-and-stripes (Fish: boxers; Trey and Page: pants and vests; Mike: tank-top underneath, revealed during the song); ended with eruption of fireworks.

Both of these shows were amazing. Not a lot stands out from the first night except the Meatstick. This was the beginning of the Meatstick. I actually liked it a lot more before they added that cheesy dance to it. The Moma Dance was good, and the Hood, and the Slave for the Traffic Light. The Fast Enough for You from the second night is one of the most emotional versions I have ever heard. The highlight of the whole experience was the great encores, especially the July 4^th double encore with the acapella version of the Star Spangled Banner followed by the most unexpected and amazing fireworks display I had ever witnesses. I was literally cheering at the top of lung in awe of how amazing the experience felt. It was truly one of the top 5 Phish moments of my life.

After the show, I met up with my good friend KP who we ended up driving back to Detroit. She took us on a long tour of the Lakewood area finding her car and saying goodbye to her friends. We walked back to our car to find NB letting off some mortars. The drive home was long, but it was worth it to drive through the night and get back to Detroit, which we did just before noon the next day. KP slept the entire drive home. In retrospect, I should have made the same trip down to Atlanta the next summer, but I was beginning to get burned out with Phish by 2000.

So I hope you have enjoyed Phish Summer Tour 99 Part I. The second half of the summer tour would resume for us at Oswego, NY two weeks later. Thanks for reading and stay tuned…