Hamptonlog

[Schwa.]

Todd rules! thanks buddy

[StoneMtn]

Wow to all of you. "Contact" fricken' SUCKS!!

An opinion's an opinion. Some people like some art; others don't. I'd be hard-pressed to ever say that any particular piece "sucks", given that it's completely subjective, but okay.

[ollie]

Wow to all of you. "Contact" fricken' SUCKS!!

An opinion's an opinion. Some people like some art; others don't. I'd be hard-pressed to ever say that any particular piece "sucks"' date=' given that it's completely subjective, but okay.[/quote']

So you agree it sucks then?

Excuse my vernacular. Just wanted to poo-poo the Contact love-in and help prove Todd's original point.

Great logs Todd!!

[StoneMtn]

Please don't use "poo-poo" and "logs" in the same post again.

[phishtaper]

Some people like some art

I find that very hard to believe

[bouche]

Am I the only Contact lover?

Im with ya' date=' I love Contact. But I suspect we are member of a rather exclusive club. [/quote']

Really?

Count me in on that exclusive group. I"ve been a member for nearly two decades now. I didn't even know we were a small group, actually.

That's one of the first Phish songs that showed me their sense of humour. I couldn't wait to hear it at the Clifford Ball.

[killatokes]

more great Hampton weekend reviews found here:

http://www.melophobe.com/concert-reviews/phish-hampton-va-friday-march-6/

well summed up Friday night review!

HAMPTON, VA

I thought about a lot of things inside the Hampton Coliseum tonight. Some of them even had to do with the astonishing, gorgeous, triumphant sounds that Phish was playing. The rest of my thoughts had less to do with music. I thought about how lucky I am that life put me in a position to capitalize on this opportunity to see Phish again. I thought about all the incredible people I am surrounded by every day who helped get me to this perfect time and place. I thought about the camp counselors who got me into Phish. I thought about everyone I’ve ever been to a Phish show with and what they mean to me. I thought about an old girlfriend who I sang “Waste†with. I watched the people around me giving long hugs to old friends and losing the fight against tears throughout the night. I received texts from 31 different people today, easily the highest of my life.

Why was this so much more than a concert? It is because Phish is the origin and primary driving factor of a large portion of the lifestyle of most fans. If I really boil it down, probably ¾ of my friends and half of what I do can be directly or indirectly traced back to Phish. This is normal amongst Phish fans. The only people who have had more of an impact over where my life has gone than Phish are my parents. When Phish quit on us, it was like becoming estranged from your parents; you could still do all the things that make you happy and talk to all the people you enjoy despite the loss, but the basis of all of it was gone. Phish coming back in a huge way was like getting back together with your estranged parent and having a great time with them all over again. It was that emotional.

Thank you to everybody in my life for helping to align me to be in the Hampton Coliseum tonight. I love you.

Now then, speaking of coming back in a huge way, let’s get down to the nitty gritty! That enormous “thud†you heard at 7:58 PM was the sound of thousands of Phish fans sitting at home falling out of their chairs when they read that the first song out of the gates was “Fluffhead.†This opening call goes much deeper than the notes themselves. This was a statement song, and the message was very loud and very clear: “We are back and we’re not here to *&$^ around.†What a call. They managed to come up with a colossal bustout that very few people had thought of. And they didn’t just play “Fluffhead,†they nailed it to the freaking wall. All of the notes, all the dynamics, the lights, the mix: owned. After such a mind-blowing debut, I thought they would take it easy with something a little more on the verse/chorus tip. Nope. Forget it. “Divided Sky.†Holy 1989. Nobody could believe what they were seeing. It was like God was a Phish fan and was writing the setlist. Huge props to Trey for not only sticking both songs, but for taking on the pressure of playing that much composed music right from the get-go.

The rest of the set carried on with classic after classic after classic. It really was like one of those tongue-in-cheek dream setlists you write or talk about when you’re horsing around with your Phish friends. Besides “Farmhouse†and “Water In The Sky,†every song could have been played in ‘94 or earlier. At 16 songs and just under two hours it is quantifiably one of the most incredible first sets the band has ever played. The vocals on “Horn,†“Rift,†and “Train Song†were energizing, poignant, and urgent. By the time “Bowie†was closing it out, I had started to wonder if perhaps they had pulled the best-kept secret in Phish history by eliminating setbreaks from the program. They aced everything; vocals, changes, jams (especially exiting jams on the way back into songs), selection, lights, everything. The band was obviously well rehearsed if not just a bit deliberate. It seemed like most songs were played a half-notch slower than usual. Despite the pinch of perceived cautiousness, every song was fried to a perfect golden brown and served extra crispy. We are going to be talking about this set for a long, long time.

Second set featured many more brilliant moments and also eliminated the word “perfect†from the conversation for the show as a whole, which is fine. “Backwards Down the Number Line†is a good new tune, though the placement as second set opener was questionable. The song has some straightforward early verse/chorus before the vocals break into a round a la â€Bouncing Around The Room.†The strong part of the tune comes in Trey’s solo section over some nice changes where he was able to elevate the song. “Tweezer,†“Taste,†and “Possum†all were spectacular. “Theme From The Bottom†has so much going on but they still managed to keep on top of it. “Hood†featured some fantastic new disco ball-like lights that were hanging all throughout the room, sending a spaghetti bowl of thin white beams to all points of the arena. “Hood†and “YEM†were the only times Trey had some struggles, but he got through them okay. Some errors are funny and some aren’t and we got a great example of each during “You Enjoy Myself.†Restarting your signature song isn’t funny, although at this point in the show it was very easily forgiven. Funny is when Trey sings “Boy. Man. Shit.†during YEM, forgetting that “God.†comes third, then coming back with “God….shit.†on the fourth word. That has everyone in stitches. Overall, “YEM†was played very well once they got it going, and I thought the vocal jam might be the best I have ever seen.

The encore left nothing to be desired either. Three-song encores are extremely rare for Phish, so getting an extra twenty minutes or so to enjoy this night was the icing on this welcome-back cake. “Grind†was completely reworked and featured some classic Phish humor with each member singing how many days old they are. “Bouncing†featured another Phish move: the giant balloons that had been hanging from the rafters all night were cut down and allowed to bounce around the room until they popped. These things were big enough that about 20 people could touch them at once, and though most popped very quickly, there was one trooper balloon that made it to the end of the song. “Loving Cup†was a wonderful way to end a glorious night, and let’s not forget that one of the most interesting parts of the encore was the song that wasn’t played: “Tweezer Reprise.â€

Overall, this landmark show bagged all the groceries and cooked them, too. The average price paid per fan to get into this show was almost surely the highest in Phish history, so Phish really had some pressure to deliver on and boy man god shit did they deliver the goods. Ticket values are going nowhere but up if they keep playing like this.

Well, it’s getting light out . . . looks like I’ve spilled the beans with you ‘til dawn. Thank you Phish for pulling it back together, thank you to everyone in my life, past and present, who helped me get to this show tonight, and thank you to all Phish fans for understanding.

Until tomorrow,

Seth Wolfman

quoted from melophobe.com

[RobL]

http://www.phish.net/reviews/shows/2009-03-06.html

more reviews on phish. net

[Velvet]

I found out people don't like Contact when their eyes would roll whenI said I was hoping to hear it.

Stone Mtn was the man who first played me the tune, so I knew he was in the club!

[Velvet]

Stardate 031009

We left Hampton at 10:30am, pointing the truck north and forsaking the 26 degree weather. Without an atlas we were left to follow the internet directions we had, which brought us right into downtown Washington and got us lost. What would normally be a very enjoyable day of driving for me was an exercise in frustration and restraint. A few more fast food burgers and almost nine hours later we made it to NYC.

We had pricelined two rooms for cheap at the Wellington though upon arrival we found them overbooked; they had moved us to their sister property, the Blakely, a four star place around the corner with fabulous rooms. Not bad for $80 a room, all in. We had almost no time to spare so a quick rye and coke later we hailed a cab and made our way to the Beacon. Wolfed down a slice that was heated to molten and booked it into the venue.

The show started as we entered the building, and on our way up to the balcony I stuck my head through the curtains and watched Derek and Warren finish up Little Martha, I believe it's the only time I've seen it played. We had gotten our tickets during presale and ended up with the last row of the balcony. Why they release the last row of a venue for presale is beyond me. Also beyond me was the fact that there were people in our seats. Their tickets must have had them on the roof or something. Anyways, we found places to be and settled in for the show.

The room certainly is a wonder to behold, though at almost 14 million in renovations how could it not be? With such a small venue that price tag works out to about $5,000 per seat. Nice seat, I'll admit, but I wasn't feeling the five grand plush. They musta dumped some of that money into electrical or something. The bar is extensive and expensive, but that's NYC right?

When I returned from a getting a round I found Taj Mahal on stage sitting in with the band. He stuck around for about three songs and the set ended.

When the lights went up for setbreak one could really appreciate the gaudy over-exuberance of the place. Someone did a helluva job, and I assume that will guarantee the Beacon will keep being a venue for years to come.

With the lights up I noticed another drumkit onstage, and by the time the second set started the auxiliary kit had been placed at the front right of the stage. The second set started with the Levon Helm band sitting in. Again, three numbers, this time all from Levon's setlist, with Taj re-emerging for The Weight. A sit-in within a sit-in! Perhaps my first!

Along those lines when we were back to just the Allmans onstage Derek played the Purple Haze riff during their cover of The Other One, a cover withing a cover! Okay, a tease within a cover, but whatever. Soon enough the show was done - not the best Allman's show ever, but a special one to be sure, and it really made me want to come for a few shows next time.

We opted to walk back and made it an earlyish night in hopes of having a few hours before checkout to do a walkabout. I do enjoy this city.

All in all, a fun long weekend away of special shows.

Edited March 11, 2009 by Guest
ahem

[Booche]

Thanks again Velvet! If this setlist is right, I am going to assume during Mountain Jam that you saw a tease within a cover within a song.

Set 1: Little Martha, Don’t Want You No More, It’s Not My Cross To Bear, I Walk On Guilded Splinters, The Same Thing, New Instrumental, Midnight Rider, Leave My Blues At Home, Leaving Trunk*, .44 Blues*, Statesboro Blues*

Set 2: Ophelia$, I Shall Be Released$, The Weight$*, Black Hearted Woman, Stormy Monday, Mountain Jam

Encore: Southbound

$ - w/ Levon Helm, Brian Mitchell, Larry Campbell & Theresa Williams

* - w/ Taj Mahal

[Tooly]

oh come on!! levon helm sittin with the allmans?!?!

you sir are a lucky man. that would be right up there on my dream shows, as i friggin love both bands

ya little bastid lol

[AD]

..., with Taj re-emerging for Take A Load Off Annie.

Ahem. The Weight

Sounds like a sweet show though, if you can get past The Allman Brothers.

[Basher]

Rumours abound that Trey and Page will be sitting in on Thursday.

[tigger]

The Allmans are some of my favourite shows that i've ever been at lucky you.

[Northern Wish]

Nice show to catch after 'the' shows.... Good on ya mate.

[YearsAlongTheSea]

I used to live outside of NYC in High School and remember the ritual two week ABB stands at the Beacon as being an epic part of my musical upbringing. It's an awesome venue and I'd love to see what $14 million did to the place. Thanks for posting that...

[Schwa.]

nice meeting ya on saturday by the way YATS

[YearsAlongTheSea]

Good meeting you too buddy. Always good to put a face to a name to an alias...

[Velvet]

Thanks again Velvet! If this setlist is right, I am going to assume during Mountain Jam that you saw a tease within a cover within a song.

Set 1: Little Martha, Don’t Want You No More, It’s Not My Cross To Bear, I Walk On Guilded Splinters, The Same Thing, New Instrumental, Midnight Rider, Leave My Blues At Home, Leaving Trunk*, .44 Blues*, Statesboro Blues*

Set 2: Ophelia$, I Shall Be Released$, The Weight$*, Black Hearted Woman, Stormy Monday, Mountain Jam

Encore: Southbound

$ - w/ Levon Helm, Brian Mitchell, Larry Campbell & Theresa Williams

* - w/ Taj Mahal

I think phorbesie will back me up that the were playing Other One, but we could be wrong.

I do believe there's an error with the asterisk part of the above setlist, in that I don't think Taj Mahal came back onstage until well into (ahem) The Weight, so didn't play on the first two tunes in the second set.

[phorbesie]

i think where the Other one was, it is labeled there as Black Hearted Woman.

but i thought it was right before stormy monday.

apparently the show was being recorded, but i don't know what for.

Edited March 11, 2009 by Guest

[Velvet]

A final detail - when we were picking up the car from Valet parking at our hotel Jay recognised the doorman as Judd from Survivor Guatemala. Nice fellah.

[Schwa.]

that dude looks just like me!

WTF?

Edited March 11, 2009 by Guest

[Velvet]

That's the dude.

[Blurry]

great read Velvet, thanks!!

I got arrested at Penn State U on the way to the Allmans/Beacon in 2000. Apparently they don't like naked people running around their streets!?!?!