Phil & Friends 7.07.01---OWOWOWOW

[ForbinHood]

Can someone help me pick my lip up off the floor after seeing that second set...god am i jealous!

[Davey Boy 2.0]

I heard William Shatner guested in on Lucey In the Sky with Diamonds

[Booche]

THIS TOUR IS A KILLER!

(I am gonna get a Darkstar in Alpine or Deer Creek)

Red Rocks Amphitheatre

Morrison, CO

Set 1:

Jam>

Shakedown Street>

Blue Sky

Lay Of The Sunflower

Mason's Children>

Built To Last

Set 2:

Jam>

Help On The Way>

Slipknot!>

The Eleven>

Slipknot!>

Franklin's Tower

Dark Star>

Lucy In The Sky>

Dark Star>

I Know You Rider

E: Saint Stephen >

Not Fade Away

[Booche]

Here is a review:

Phil & Friends 7/7/01

Red Rocks Amphitheatre

Morrison, CO

The mood of the amphitheatre and the energy of the crowd simply ignited with the first note of the jam Phil, Warren, Jimmy, Rob and John struck up in prelude to a stunning "Shakedown Street". Setting the pattern for the later jams, Haynes and Herring traded sizzling guitar licks in a cascade of increasingly complex riffs that eventually mellowed to the emergence of strikingly beautiful slide play by Haynes.

Shakedown Street itself hasn't sounded that energetic, that brand-new, that inspired in years. In a long jam, perhaps four movements in length, John Molo drove the quintet into strange spaces that resonated with the very rock of the amphitheatre. Highlights included a longish, funkified guitar conversation between Haynes and Herring that raised spectres of the Dead's more clarified visions.

Returning to more conventional play, a beautifully timed Blue Sky followed Shakedown Street. The familiar guitar licks were once again guided into place by Molo's incredibly deft percussion. The lovely ballad, Lay of the Sunflower, followed immediately, with another heart-wrenching performance by Warren Haynes, especially in a early break.

After a few seconds, the band, gathering momentum at every turn, launched into an appropriately psychedelic Mason's Children, highlighted this time by Rob Barraco's switch from electric piano to B3 organ, a decidedly welcome ingredient to this vintage tune. The extensive jam modulated in ways old-time Deadheads would have remembered with non-pharmaceutical nostalgia before breaking into a surprising set closer, Built to Last, featuring the tireless Haynes on vocals.

The 45 minute break allowed the crowd to catch some breath and prepare for the unknown oddyssey of the second set, which opened with an extremely tasteful Help on the Way/Slipknot. The character of the second set was firmly established by the opening jam, one that wandered into the rarified atmospheres of intuitive interplay possible only between five musicians completely comfortable with one another and the material at hand. A tease of "The Eleven" cropped up midway through the early jam, beautifully realized when the band turned an abrupt corner into the main body of The Eleven. The emotional tone established in the first set with Mason's Children truly blossomed in The Eleven, an exploration into strange musical territory with P&F as our experienced Sherpa guides.

Not missing a step, Franklin's Tower exploded amidst a weird, asynchronous jam at the end the The Eleven. Featuring spectacular guitar work by Herring, Franklin's ripped the fabric of the space-time continuum, generating quantum particles of sheer inspiration between the players. As it evolved into Dark Star, as it was destined to, the band and the crowd reached a new plateau of involvement. The undeniable southern rock guitar influences here reached a poignant fusion that was pretty much unbelievable. And when Star suddenly morphed into Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds, the enthusiasm of the band and the crowd could've solved California's energy crisis for years to come. Lucy didn't stay long, though, before returning the stage to Dark Star for another creative reprise on an elevated, mystical note before a crowd-pleasing Know You Rider, with its mandatory Colorado reference, closed out the set with a massive energy.

Phil's pre-encore speech included descriptions of Red Rocks as his favorite outdoor venue in the USA, a statement that drew rousing responses from the audience. He also complimented the crowd, saying "I'd play for you people any time, anywhere", whereupon a seatmate captured the evening's mood by shouting "OK, take a break, we'll wait here!".

St. Stephen began the encore, allowing all the players ample room to push this hoary old gem to new limits. In keeping with their modus operandi, P&F explored this new region with a lengthy dual guitar conversation punctuated by Barraco's impeccable piano, Molo's precisely hammered percussion, and some of the best bass playing Phil has brought out in a long while. Stephen eventually gave way to the audience participation of Not Fade Away, perhaps a less than ideal choice for the show closer. As listeners, I give the typical Phil audience high marks, but as singers and percussionists, we do lack a few essentials, like singing on key and rhythmn. We also don't know when to quit.

Saturday night was simply the best P&F show I've had the pleasure to hear. A brief downpour balanced by the arrival of a beautiful orange moonrise simply added a natural exclamation point to the marvelous organic experience. Phil, in his speech, thanked the audience for "making music with us". It couldn't have been better said.

Pax,

Dean

[Booche]

The following makes me want to see Phil even more now than I had before:

7-7-2001 Red Rocks

I believe a totally fantastic show....and I am a head from way back...but here is a few thoughts/questions....did anybody else get a little tired of the way out there jamming and want a few more songs? I mean the jamming was awesome if a bit undanceable but Franklins and Rider are basically three chord songs and went too far out there. Warren was learning Built to Last as he played. I thought that song and the Not Fade were Phil statements for sure.

This show was way cool but I was left a little lost with the jamming out central.

Booche again:

Wishlist?

Set 1

Jam>jam>DarkstarJam

Set2

Jam>Darkstar>Jam

Encore:

Jam