8/16/98 - The Lemonwheel, Limestone, ME


ok, ok, I'm really bored and I figured I've done my three reviews, I may
as well make it complete...(in case any of you are actually reading them).
Thankfully, I had recovered slightly from my severe cold by Sunday morning
(pretty much). thanks in part to an amazing Gumbo and the 4th set, which
was extremely therapeutic.  Anyways, I had a decent view for the first set
Fishman side...

Ginseng: strange choice for an opener, but noteworthy....they actually
sang the lyrics correctly....that's right...It's a long way TO the delta
FROM the north Georgia hills.  I mean before, no wonder the dude's never
making it back to his Mississippi delta home...he's always going to
Georgia....now he's finally going the right way :)  I think they were
actually stressing those words too.  Nice to hear...

Bathtub Gin: busting it out early in the day....afternoon Gins are always
nice...this one had lots of promise, but didn't really connect.  It
started going places, and just when I thought it was about to take off, it
died down. nice segue into...

Rift: another repeat from Vernon, but after being on such a long hiatus, I
was psyched to hear it.  Well played...

PYITE: recognized it as soon as Trey started strumming....this song is
much better in the dark or indoors....kind of low energy for a Punch...not
bad, though...

Lawn Boy: this song seems to follow me around like the plague...luckily I
spaced out for a few seconds, and by the time I zoned back in it was over.  

Ya Mar: psyched to hear it, but this version was kind of weak.  After the
funky Albany version and the nice, mellow Providence version, this was
sort a let-down....I guess my expectations are getting too high.  

AC/DC Bag: not much of a segue...standard, rocking Bag...back to the
basics...Fishman kicks it into double time.  old ending, as well....I like
both Bags and it's nice to see they mix up the funk Bag and the kick-ass
bag...

Relax: eh....kind of chill, not too great....intro sort of sounds like a
MLB jam.

BOAF: nice, I can see BOAF sort of turning into the same level as a
Character Zero, rocking closer-type song.  Of course, it could also turn
into a jamming monster...this one was the former...but it didn't close

Gyute: surprised to hear this early, but it was nice....perfectly played,
only a small flub by Trey...

Possum: still no signals...I miss the Simpsons....oh well, standard
Possum....rocking way to close the set...

Nothing really too noteworthy in this set.  Bathtub was pretty good, AC/DC
Bag was good...Gyute was well-played...overall a 4.0

SET TWO: when it gets dark...the jams come out.
Sun set 'round 8:00-ish..only two sets left

Down w/Disease - not much of a surprise...but nice, standard type I
Disease jamming, started going places, then sort faded off into...

Piper - after a big Piper kick in the fall, I hadn't listened to this song
much lately...but it still kicks ass...nice build, high energy....short
jam after second lyrics segment I believe, then standard ending

Ghost - what the hell did they do to this song??!!!  Please, please,
please bring the old ghost back.  Why aren't you slapping and funking it
up in the intro to this Mike?  When I heard they added an intro to this
song, I figured it would have lots of potential...there's no doubt in my
mind....old Ghost...good....new ghost bad...maybe I"m just overreacting,
but I do like the old arrangement much better.  The jam out of this wasn't
bad, but I was still in shock at the new arrangement..there was a pretty
intense glowstick war during this...different feel from the Slave one the
night before, but not nearly as good..

Fluffhead - ahhhh, redemption...I love Fluff...perfectly played...it's
amazing how well they play this, considered how rarely they play it.  

Circus - nice placement...good break...slow songs are always a must after
Fluffhead

Wading - at first I was like...ugghh another slow song...but I actually
enjoyed this...it was only my second or third time hearing this song and
my first time live.  Did they rework it?  I think I heard someone mention
something about that....anyways, cool song, although not the best
placement.

Sexual Healing - ahhh, the beautiful notes of HYHU to get Fishman off his
kit....they kepy teasing Fishman with it like they did at Alpine two
years ago...I was hoping for a Bike...apparently, we were close to getting
a Terrapin...but Sexual Healing was hilarious!!! "Ahh, the sounds of
love." and a vacuum solo...nice.

Antelope - woohoo!!!!! Rocking Antelope...the outro wasn't as funked out
and jammed like the fall versions, but it was nice to hear....

Great set...good jams...not quite as good as the previous nights second
sets, but good nonetheless...a 7.5.

THIRD SET..I was really far back for this set, kind of a neat view of the
stage, but the sound wasn't the best.

Sabotage - YES!!! As a big Beasties fan, I was psyched to ehar this (I'll
compare real Beasties to Phish Beasties after I see them in Worcester
tonight).  Trey actually did a surprisingly good job with this one...and
the bass line just rules...

2001 - IMHO, aside from Chris's lights, this was kind of weak.  just sort
of dragged on...Trey was doing some interesting noodling...

Wilson - surprising choice after a 2001 - again, kind of low energy.  this
may be because I was so far back and really tired....

Mango - YES! I was psyched to hear this and it got me out of my groggy
state...well played, I was just excited to hear it after so long (hershey
'96)

Character Zero - standard, rocking Zero....nicely played

Bittersweet Motel - while this song was ok at Starlake, I can see it
getting old fast...especially if they keep playing it as often as they
do...

WMGGW - nice surprise...great choice, completely unexpected...well played,
nice soloing by Trey.  

Average set...good song choices, but no real jams....a 4.5

ENCORE
Harry Hood - I was really tired at this point and just wanted to go
home....I sat down and enjoyed it....was great, might have been better if
I was closer up....kind of expected too as an encore..

Fireworks - amazing fireworks show....possibly better than the Boston 4th
of July ones....the Baby Elephant Walk was great too...
I wanted to run up and see who was playing the horn, but it was too late
and I was too tired..

Sorry if this review kind of fizzled at the end, but the third set is sort
of a blur as I was exhausted and drained and don't really remember much of
it.  anyways, take it easy everyone and send me comments if you want to
mchoh@emerald.tufts.edu.  and no, I don't have Wheel tapes yet.

-Mark



My friends and I were pumped for the second night of the wheel.  They hadn't played one Gamehenge Song during the first night and we
prayed to the powers that be that Trey would finally set it loose after three years.  Of course he didn't, but it was still a great show.  
 
Set I:  I have never been that into Ginseng, especially after having seen nearly ten of them, but then came the Bathtub, and that was incredible. 
Now it wasn't as amazing as the one that they played at the Went, but it was up there.  The Punch You and the Lawn Boy were pretty standard. 
I was truly moved by the Birds of a Feather, having missed the Island Tour.  Trey kept taking the jam higher and higher and no one knew where
he was going to peak out at.  The Possum was fine, but I was a little dissapointed that they repeated it from Vernon.
 
Set II:  Now we're cooking!  The Down With Disease was a power house.  Trey busted out so loud that you could barely hear Mike's opening
bass licks.  I wasn't prepared for the new Ghost and I don't think the band was either.  They screwed up the bridge, but recovered nicely.  Now
the Fluffhead was where it was at.  I must have been lifted ten feet off the ground.  The end jam was out of this world!!  It beat out Red Rocks
'93.  I cannot possibly describe how amazing this Fluff was in words.  The Sexual Healing was funny as always, but then came the Antelope and
the crowd went nutzo.  Everyone was dancing their skulls off while the band raged through the song.
 
Set III:  The crowd at Maryland went crazy for the Sabatage and the crowd at the Wheel enjoyed it just as much.  I could hear the front of the
crowd singing the lines of Destiny, but the band refussed to unleash that beast.  I felt that the 2001 was one of the best I had ever seen.  It
destroyed all of the New Years versions, and the intro was one of the most funkified things Phish has unraveled.  Dare I saw that the Wilson
was actually good, and Character Zero always rages.  The whole audience stared in awe as Trey took While My Guitar Gently Weeps to a
whole new level.
 
E:  We all knew that it was time for the Hood and the glow sticks.  The band did not dissapoint.  It was one of the most beautiful things to enter
my ears.  Beautifully built up and it unleashed a tremendous amount of energy by the end of it.  Then the fuse was lit, the fireworks went off, the
elephant blew water and smoke, and the band busted out with Baby Elephant walk as the creature was moved throughout the audience.  Then it
was time to hop in the car and drive a eight hours that night.  All in all not another great weekend up in Maine.  It always makes going back to
school that much harder.


First off, I was a little disappointed int he atmosphere. In between the 
first and second set I decided to lay down and check out the sky because 
last year they had all kinds of crazy gliders and planes flying around. 
Well at first, nothing then a prop plane began writing int he sky. Cool, 
began to wonder what it was going to write. Well when it was done it 
said "dew it" followed by the pepsi symol. This irritated me because I 
felt phish asked us to come to maine to be away from it all and form a 
little community for the weekend to enjoy in fun, friends, and good 
music. I will really get pissed if the event turns into an advertising 
frenzy for the neo-hippie market share with companys thinking they could 
sell to this market by putting tye-dye on an ice-tea bottle or some crap 
like that. Anyway on to the show.

Set I:
Ginseng Sul- Always love this song, the people around me were really 
getting down which makes the song more even more fun. Ho-down, arms 
swinging, spinning people you've never met before, tons of fun.(standard 
version)
Bathtub- lost my shit, the opening notes from page always send chills 
down my back, and he really pounded them out. Nice long Gin, about 5 or 
6 'drops' at the end. Well done.
Rift- Did not think I'd here this one this weekend, An absolutly perfect 
rift which took me all over the place. I thought it was well placed in 
the set. This song seemd to continue with a theme of older songs that 
they busted out the entire weekend. 
PYITE- Let the shit fly. No matter how many times I hear this song I 
love it to death. If you can't move during that intro I think there are 
problems. I had a fun time watching a crazy little phan act out the 
whole song. It was fun. Standard version.
Lawn boy- page the ham, so touching
Ya Mar- standard version, treys solo at the end was nice, but shorter 
than what I am used to hearing. Trey also changes the lyrics a little, 
to relate to the event but forgot what they were.
AC/DC-  this in combo with yamar got the place going wild. Standard 
version. "Mr palmer is concerned......"
Relax- This song did it for me. I felt like I was floating, literally, I 
was looking around in absolut peace and tranquility as trey assured us 
that "the world would suck us in" and I felt there was nothing we could 
do about it. Absolutly marvoulous.
BOAF- Knew we would hear this one, timing was the question. I loved this 
new song, kind of reminds me of maze structure. Great lyrics, not too 
crazy about the intro though, always reminds me of corini. This version 
was way better then Nassau, the only other version I saw
Guyute- Could here this one coming, trey strummed the first few notes 
then stopped. Then they picked it up. Standard version, great as always.
Possum- Very excited to here it but the version really wasn't the best 
I've heard. I am a big possum fan though and am kind of picky on lengtgh 
and speed. This one was about average in both.
SET II\
DWD- they came out and you could hear the low base, signifying DWD, and 
it was, nice jam, came out of it. Timing couldn't been better, the sun 
was almost down and tep was perfect. It was such a surreal setting. Trey 
had that smile on when he sang "a thousand barfoot children outside 
dancing on my lawn"
piper- the second dwd closed out you could hear the build up of this one 
begin. Was as long as merriweather but was still satisfying
Ghost- after that crappy ghost last year (imo) I feel the did justice to 
this one. The intro is more funky, and mellow. The jam was a little 
shorter though.
Fluffhead- awe yeah, those opening notes just send me, and you know what 
is about to come, FLUFFHEAD!!! Almost Flawless, fluffhead, I followed 
all the journeys in my head with my eyes closed, only opening  them when 
I knew the lights would be bright, and just smiled.
Circus- I don't know about anyone else, but I love this song, was well 
place after fluff. Love trey solo in this. Trey even paused before the 
solo and then kicked it in a la smashing pumpkin style. (began wondering 
if they picked that up from watching them play live, aledegly trey and 
fish were spotted at a smashing pump concert in texas, mmmmmmmmmmm)
WITVS- usually don't like this song, but was very relaxing, I do love 
the vocal arrangment on this.
HYHU-SEX-HYHU- SAME AS MERRIWEATHER, suscpcious minds of 98? I love when 
fishman hides and then pops out again. When he came to the front of the 
stage he iontroduced the band which I don't think has been done in a 
while.
Antelope- everyone knew they wouldn;t end on this note, and when they 
opend up those infamous notes the place was going wild. This antelope 
wasn't the craziest, but definately good, no crazy change ups, just when 
they went to 'marco esquandolas' trey introduce bob weaver agian.
SET III
Sabotage-I thought they would open with 2001, but sabatage (again) Hey I 
love the song and the beasties, but we just saw it in MD. I thought a 
one time playing of this was appropriate, but I guess they couldn't pass 
up playing it for 70,000 +. It was fun, but lets not make it part of the 
rotation boys.
2001- game time, no way were they going to top the wents last year but 
this one was pretty darn good. Nice long spacey jam  before they brought 
it back one more time. 
Wilson- haven't heard it in some time. Once again keeping with that 
older song theme. Pausse at the end was super long, then BOOM'- can you 
still have any fun!!1
Mango Song- nice treat, well done, people seemed fairly recieptive 
toward it.
Character 0- wierd spot for it IMO, standard version, I actually heard 
people groan when they started to play it, it had a nice groove to it. 
Bittersweet- nice cover (neil young I believe) this songs, even though 
written by someone else fits nice into phish repitore. Well done, but 
odd place for it.
Guitar- I was waiting for something bigger then Guitar. I really wanted 
to hear YEM or something maybe new cover considering the streak they 
have been on. I was even actually a little irratated listening to 
guitar, but it did sound nice. I had a feeling they would end with this.
Encore- Harry Hood- nice long hood, page fucked a little with the keys 
in the begining. I honestly thought this was coming after the slave the 
previous night. the drum intro and everything was there but then they 
just stopped it. Nice build up. I still don't understand why people 
throw glowsticks at the band members. It obvilously pissed them off in 
philly cause they never finished the hood. I thouhgt the glow sticks 
were to create that beautiful display of lights like what happend during 
the slave. Of well lets just ry to keep them in the audience. At the 
close of Harry, the lit a fuse, which travel across the stage, across 
the audince, at to a large elephant, which stood on its hind legs and 
shot water in the air. It then tunred around and walked out, while the 
band played baby elephant walk. It was pretty cool, and quite amusing. 
And that was the show, I don't know what I was expecting but I felt a 
little left short. They were fantastic though, and the second day left a 
good feeling till the next time. 
See yoou in Vegas
greg



Sunday at Limestone was probably my greatest Phish experience yet.  
After a somewhat disappointing Saturday, we were all sure that Sunday 
was going to be huge.  How huge, no one really knew.  Things started off 
normal enough.  Ginseng Sullivan was a good starter.  Much better than 
Mike's the day before.  Frankly, Mike's was awful on Saturday.  They 
played it with no feeling at all.  Ginseng kind of let them ease into 
the day.  Well, I was expecting a mellow first set that would ultimately 
lead into a huge finale.  I was wrong.  That was the best first set I've 
ever heard.  Gin was great, PYITE was very good AC/DC was also good.  I 
was really impressed with Birds of a Feather.  Although it sounds a bit 
too much like Llama for me I thought they played it super well.  They 
really raised the energy level for that one.  Guyute was sweet and 
Possum ended the set with a bang.  Everyone kind of looked at eachother 
after the set was over thinking, 'how will they top that?'.
Well, they did.  Set 2 started right where set 1 left off.  DwD was a 
great opener, reminiscent of day 2 set 2 at the Great Went.  Piper was 
great and it was the best Ghost I ever heard.  It was a lot faster and a 
bit funkier than I've heard in the past.  Fluffhead was incredible, 
definitely the best song I'd heard all weekend to that point.  Circus 
and Velvet were placed perfectly in the set.  Nice and mellow, kind of 
brought everyone back to earth for a while.  I was close to tears after 
that.  Fishman brought everyone back with Sexual Healing.  It was great. 
 I heard it the week before down in Maryland and was hoping that I'd 
hear it again.  Antelope was the highlight of the weekend.  I've been 
waiting for a long time for that and I wasn't disappointed.  Antelope 
was huge, a great way to end an incredible set.
The 3rd set was very good too.  Sabatoge started it off with a bang and 
2001 was more lively than the one's I've heard lately.  Wilson was good 
although the crowd sounded somewhat lethargic when chanting out 'Wilson' 
at the beginning of the song.  Mango was great  as was the rest of the 
show.  While My Guitar Gently Weeps was a great way to end the set.  
They played it with a lot of feeling and emotion.
The Encore was great.  Hood's always good to hear and they played it 
well.  I had been on an anti Hood kick for a while (since 12/30/97) so 
it was good to hear a great one again.  The elephant walk thing was 
funny, but who wanted it to end?
Overall, Sunday was incredible.  I can't wait to get some tapes.  My 
only complaint of the weekend was the glowstick wars.  It seems like any 
time they go into an extended jam people have to start throwing their 
sticks.  It's bad enough to throw them in the crowd, but people have got 
to stope throwing them at the band.  
Looking forward to Vegas.
Take it easy
Jayson Tonkon

After a complete exhausting 6 hours of music the day before and a 
beautiful Sunday, I was more pumped for this show then the previous two. 
I have no idea why, it's just a personal feeling that I woke up with.  As 
a whole I think the 16th was the better of the two shows.  Each show had 
it's highlights and even though none of the sets were as tight as the 2nd 
set of the 15th, this show had it's own treats and unusual occurances and 
a few personal firsts.

Set 1

GINSENG--To Open???  Very suprised to hear this one as the first tune.  
Then again, if they could open a show with MY OLD HOME PLACE, then why 
not this one since they are similar tunes.  I'm not a fan of the country 
tunes to open a show, but then on the other hand they are good tunes to 
warm up to and settle into the show mode.  I liked this tune a lot more 
when it was rare and acoustic (ala '93).  Played too often these days.  
I'd rather here MOHP or MMGAMOIO, but not to open a show.

BATHTUB--I don't call tunes because I don't really care what's played as 
long as it's played well, but I knew this was coming and was not upset in 
the least.  I love Gins, they danceable, singable and most of all they 
can trail into a variety of directions.

RIFT--I think it's back.  Maybe the boys missed this one and are bringing 
it back into the rotation.  The 3rd one in 18 months and all this summer. 
Played in Vernon, and it was still fun to hear again.  One of those songs 
that when not played for a while you learn to appreciate more.  Played 
well.

PYITE--Another song that seems to be always the same but is still 
welcome.  Being played quite frequent the past year.  The beginning 
builds with that rockish-technoish beat that had everyone on their feet 
and pumped.  One of those songs that's way better live then on tape.  
Not exceptional, just solid.

LAWN BOY--was.....Lawn Boy.  Another song thats fun to see and not hear. 
Page does his crooner style lounge singing.  The thing I like most is 
that it's a quickie.

YA MAR--I just don't get sick of this song.  I catch it all the time and 
love it.  I think I have a soft spot for the Mike tunes.  I don't know 
why but I like all his songs (Train Song not included).  This Ya Mar was 
the weakest I've heard, but it was good and I liked hearing it mid-set as 
opposed to it's usual early set spot.

AC/DC BAG--We could tell it was going to be another epic set that just 
went on and on.  Bag's another song I don't get sick of.  The ultimate 
fast paced build-up tune.  This one was just that.  It went on and on and 
on and on, and was the highlight of the set (to this point)

RELAX--First time seeing it, though I've heard it on the spring tapes.  
I'm numb on this one.  I see potential but it still needs work.  I like 
it better then ROGET.  I was hoping for Bird Of a Feather.

BIRDS....FEATHER--Another first for me, and man I dig this song.  The 
best of the new one's ('98 tunes).  Fast, with a nice jam segment and 
catchy lyrics.  This is a keeper for a long time.  Every year it seems 
that one new song represents the year.  In '97 it was Ghost & Guyute, 
'96--Theme From The Bottom, '95--Free, '94--Simple & Sample, and so on.  
Get used to this one.

GUYUTE--Another favorite of mine.  Looking forward to the new album to 
hear how they record this one.  Is always the same length, but is an epic 
song that in my opinion is the best one they play.  Watching Trey's hands 
move during the body of the song justifies that he's among the elite 
players.

POSSUM--Played in Vernon.  Glad to hear that Guyute wasn't the closer.  
Nothing too fancy about this Possum, just solid and danceable.

**A great set, very consistent.  No low points that I could think of.  
Even Relax was a good choice in this set**

Set 2

DWD--A song that can go anywhere at any time.  Played quite often, but 
who cares, when you play a song this well, it deserves to be played a 
lot.  This is another example of a song that started simple and has 
developed into a monster.....a friendly happy monster.

PIPER--People seemed to be mixed on this song.  I love it.  It simple is 
a jam with words thrown in.  I love how it builds to the orgasmic point 
where you can't find your balance and seem to fall over your neighbors 
(at least that's what happened to me).  On a cool night, I was sweating 
big time.

GHOST--My first time hearing this newer slower version and to be honest, 
I like the old funkier version a hell of a lot more.  This one is more 
album friendly, but man, why did they change it.  I really didn't like 
this one, but then again I could have liked it if I wasn't spoiled and 
wrapped up in the '97 versions.  Go back, Go Back!!!!

FLUFFHEAD--I didn't expect this one.  I was thinking a short and sweet 
one.  Glad I was wrong.  I'm a true FLUFF-Head.  I got off on this tune 
everytime I see it.  Played tight and the ending seemed to go one longer 
then usual (but I could be wrong about that).

CIRCUS COMES--I hate this song, and I don't understand why they play it 
so much.  True, Trey sounds great on it, but I don't understand why they 
dig it so much.  I was let down by this.

VELVET SEA--Two slow one's in a row.  What's up with that.  Usually I 
wouldn't be too happy about that, but this was an exception.  This is one 
Page led song that I'd love to see more regularly.  I've been wanting to 
hear this one since they started it.  Glad to see it didn't get lost.  I 
was psyched when they pulled it out earlier in the tour (the first since 
last summer), and was glad to hear it.  I think the lyrics are great, 
and the harmonies are even better.  Why did they hold it back for a 
year???  If they would have played this and not Circus the flow to the 
set would have been stronger.  Most people didn't know what the song was, 
and understandable.  Kind of reminds me of a mix between Slave & 
Bouncin'.  A built up jam to repeated lyrics.

SEXUAL HEALING--I love when Fish takes the mic and was expecting it 
tonight.  And I was expecting this song.  After a long HYHU intro where 
the other three kept it going much to Fish's dismay.  Fish introduced the 
band and himself as Bob Weaver.  His voice sucks, but we all love it.  He 
provides that comical essence which was what got many people into the 
band before many caught on.  Keeping songs like this rare is a good 
thing, as long as they frequent them more then every two years.  Glad to 
see Henrietta back at the mic.  They did a HYHU extro where Fish did his 
old playing up to the crowd.  Fun stuff

ANTELOPE--It was either this or Hood.  Better choice considering there 
was another set coming.  Both tunes are staples in the repertoire and we 
all know it, and we all love it.  Just can't get bored of songs that rock 
like this.  A solid Antelope.  Not as good as some, but better then 
others.

**A set that was a throw back to the early 90's.  A few songs, a jumpy 
pace that goes up and down, and Fish at the mic preluding the powerful 
finshing tune.**  Enjoyable, but definitely seemed to be the most mixed 
reaction of all the sets in the two days

SET 3

SABATOGE--I was wondering when they'd repeat the summer breakout tunes.  
Glad it was this one.  I'm not a huge Beaties fan, but I dig some of 
their stuff and this song is one of them.  Fast and furious and it seemed 
that everyone around me was a Beasties fan 'cause they went nuts.  Great 
choice to open the set.

2001--I'm sick of this song.  It's cool to see and Chris showcases his 
talents.  I like the peak parts of the song, but it's too long and 
there's only so many delay loops one can take.  I liked the song better 
when it was in it's middle stage (like in '95-96).  I just get bored 
after a while.

WILSON--I was expecting to hear this open the set, and was more surprised 
to see it come out of 2001.  It's becoming rarer to see a Wilson these 
days and it's a great crowd pleaser.  This was longer then usual before 
the final part of song.  I'm not sure if they've been doing this a lot or 
if this was rare, but the pre-BLACK..BOOM part was intense.  One of the 
highlights of the set....WILSON???  Yup!!!

MANGO--Didn't expect to get it so late in the show.  I like this song a 
lot.  Glad to see that it's still being played on occasion.  However this 
was a weak version.  The vocals were tight, but maybe because Wilson was 
so powerful and the crowd seemed to be lagging a bit that this seemed 
weak.

CHARACTER ZER0--Played way too often.  Slow down on this one boys.  At 
least they seem to be experimenting with it in different placements.  It 
rocks hards and gets everyone going.  A good way to get the crowd back 
into it.

BITTERSWEET--I expected this one some time tonight.  I was thinking as 
the first encore.  Nice and short.  Keep this one and get rid of Circus. 
Not too much to say about this one because nothing really happens aside 
from the great harmony.

WMGGW--Whooaaaa!!!  I was expecting Hood (as were most people) and was 
glad I was wrong.  The first since Europe (February) '97 and my second 
(10/28/95).  I think they do such a great job on this one.  It builds and 
they have a Beatle sound to it with a major kick in the ass to the 
original.  Keep this one around and nix ADITL.  Great closer, though I 
was still expecting Hood to follow.

**A powerful set with a nice mix of the old and new and the return of 
Guitar Gently Weeps.  Better the then day 2 of last year.  One thing that 
they hadn't done yet was the traditional fireworks (on day 1 of the past 
two years) and aside from the candle set, no gimmick this year.**

ENCORE

HOOD--No surprise here, I was expecting fireworks to accompany the song, 
but that didn't happen.  Before the encore the stagehands hoisted some 
sort of cable over the stage.  We didn't know what it was.  During Hood, 
the glowstick light show was expected and did not dissapoint (it really 
looks cool, and the crowd does its part).  After hood Trey and Page went 
to stage right and lit a torch from the continuously burning candle from 
day before and lit the cable thing over the stage.  It sparked from end 
to end (kind of dull) and eventually made it's way to the elephant 
halfway through the crowd on the stage left side.  The elephant blew 
smoke (or something out of it's trunk).  This was all accompanied by 
continuous delay loops and the ineveitable fireworks show and Fish 
belting out some notes on his trombone (man he sucks).  This was all fun, 
after a solid hood.  It had a circus feel to it.

BABY ELEPHANT WALK--I knew they played this before, but I couldn't place 
my finger on it (thanks to the setlist footnotes I now know).  They 
played this well and it went on and on.  Wasn't really a song being 
played as opposed to accompanying music to the festivities going on 
around us.

Overall, an amazing experience.  They truly put on a great show.  It's 
definitely worth the drive no matter where you are.  The shows are great 
but they are only a partial element in what makes these festivals unique. 
If you can, get there, you won't regret it.  See ya in Vegas!!!

Ari Petroff (dogman@istar.ca)