Nice job, Phillip. Thanks for transcribing the complete Icculus narration. Glad to read about them having so much fun on stage.

Throughout the tour there were many times when Trey didn't do such a hot job leading his bandmates in jams, often cutting things short just when the improv was getting good. Ghost was the exact opposite situation. Anastasio took control of the jam with authority, seemed to have a clear vision of what he wanted to accomplish and executed to near-perfection. The peak of the Ghost jam was marvelous with some of the first "jaw-dropping" riffs of 2011. Phish hasn't had a problem generating energy this year, so it was nice to use them harness that energy the way they did during last night's Ghost.

Only quibble is that I must say I'm not sure why the Merriweather shows - which imho each featured better first sets than Charlotte - are lumped in as being part of this "slump" you feel Phish went through. Those performances featured creative setlists, scorching guitar work from Trey, a mighty display of creativity from Page, one of the few "fun" encores since Hampton and so much more. Do I wish there were more jams and did the Alaska and BDTNL nearly kill the final set? Yes, but if those two shows were judged for their merits outside of falling in between Camden and Alpharetta, I don't see how they were below-average Phish gigs.