Phish - December 30th, 1997
Madison Square Garden · New York · NY
1 No vocal jam.
2 "Pentagram Harpua;" also included a narrative about Lost in Space.
3 Phish debut; Tom Marshall on vocals.
4 Unfinished.
5 Fish on vacuum.
6 Harpua Sandwich: Harpua bookended I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles) in Set 2 - the 12th on record, the first since December 29th, 1996.
Song length in play order. Tap a point for that song. Swipe the chart to see the rest.
Tonight's unique songs by the era Phish first played them.
- '83-'897
- '90-'944
- '95-'008
The studio home of each song, from phish.net. Covers count as one slice.
- A Picture of Nectar2
- The Story of the Ghost2
- Billy Breathes1
- The White Tape1
- Covers6
- No studio album7
Shows since each song's previous appearance. A big number is a bustout.
- 1-23
- 3-54
- 6-159
- 16-501
- 51+ · bustout1
Whose songbook tonight drew from.
- Phish original13
- Clifton Chenier1
- Jimi Hendrix Experience1
- Lee Dorsey1
- The Beatles1
- The Edgar Winter Group1
- The Proclaimers1
A typical night, rotation-wise - 1 song shelved 50+ shows.
Gap = shows since the song was last played, at the moment it was played.
First performance in 920 shows, opens first set of a highly regarded show. Nice '97 style funk/rock groove follows the lyrical section. A very unhurried, patient feel to this one. -> to "Taste", and is reprised and finished in the 4-part funk-fest encore.
-> in from an historic "Sneakin' Sally." Strong version, but quite different from most of the Fall '97 versions. Here, Trey solos beautifully, but Page's role seems far more restrained. There is far less of a full band build towards the end than musical support for Trey's incredible soloing. To some ears, the best "Taste" ever. To others, it's too one dimensional.
Great version where Mike and Fish drive the jam into improvisational territory, including some "Manteca"-like jamming around 8:20, and the ending section dissolves in a quiet but tense manner.
Opening an incredible 2 1/4 hour-long Set II, the second monster "Bag" combines the same elements as the first - funk, rock, and delicate space, but in a completely different manner and configuration. Includes "Third Stone From The Sun" and "Psycho Killer" teases with a > to "McGrupp." A must-hear dynamo that belies a short description.
With Mike and Page out front early, Trey ultimately enters the fray, and he and Page break into an eerie, counterpoint-based duet of sorts, with Mike and Fish nearly absent from the mix. Mike and Fish finally jump back in, creating a tense, throbbing sentiment which gradually dissipates with no concluding section, and instead spills into an epic "Harpua."
With no final refrain, an atypically uptempo jam breaks into a rocking/bluesy groove at 16:45 and -> to "My Soul."
In from BEK ->, the second "Sneakin' Sally" of this fan favorite show functions as a funky reprisal of the major bust-out that opened the evening's festivities. Jumps right into a jammed-out show-closing > Frankenstein.
> in from "Sneakin' Sally." Part 4 of an incredible 4-song encore, and this "Frankenstein" is jammed-out, taboot!
Versions phish.net's jam charts single out as noteworthy.
Trey teased A Night in Tunisia in Stash. AC/DC Bag included Third Stone From the Sun and Psycho Killer teases. I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles) made its Phish debut, was sung by Tom Marshall, contained an A Day in the Life quote from Tom referencing Big Phil (a fan who was in attendance that night), and was part of the “Pentagram Harpua,” which also included a narrative about Lost in Space. Hood was unfinished. Pete Carini made an appearance on-stage during the encore. Frankenstein included a segment with Fish coming center stage with his vacuum. The encore was unusually long; once the band realized they were going to be fined for playing past midnight, they decided to play well past midnight. Sneakin’ Sally was played for the first time since May 28, 1989 (925 shows). Neither of the Sallys contained vocal jams. This show is available as an archival release on LivePhish.com.
Setlist, gaps, jam charts, and notes from phish.net, a project of the non-profit Mockingbird Foundation.