Is this not reviewed simply because it's widely recognized as one of the sickest pieces of jam band music ever? OK, this is not machine gun Trey or a dirty Ghost throw down of later '99. No, it is not an aggro-early-90s scorcher, just as it is not disco-funk-face-melt Phish Destroys America fall 1997. This is a world unto itself, merging GDead-Zero-Phish into a once-in-a-lifetime sound.

Much has been said about this show, and this run in particular. For me, in those dark days after the loss of Garcia, I turned away from Grateful Dead music. Then, a friend shipped me these CDs in '00, incredulous I'd never heard it before. Popping in the (auspiciously) unlabeled first set, I was stunned. Suddenly, the foggy Maine evening was a transformed, shiver-worthy wonderland.

Had it not been for the "Phriends" and the heads up, I might not have immediately even noticed that this was Trey and Page supporting Phil and Kimock. They just all blend together so seamlessly that it becomes one sound. When I listen closely, though, it is an amazing expression of patience all around. Trey is distinct, as is Page, but in very subtle ways.

Words fail me. Suffice it to say that the first set alone is one of the most unique concerts that I've ever heard. On the music wall of my temporal lobe, there's a space for this show all by itself.

It's easy, and perhaps commensurate, to view this April '99 Phil and Phriends Warfield run as one big show spread out over three nights. That said, Trey tends to take a more patient approach to his lead guitar in this show, not really ramping it up to Phish levels of intensity until Down with Disease in the second set. This is wonderful, because it means that Steve Kimock has more space in the music for he, himself, to shine on lead guitar. There's a good deal of Phil on vocals in this show, and I'm really a grate phan of Phil on vocals. Dark Star is interwoven throughout the show, making it pretty much the centerpiece--though one could maintain that Terrapin Station to open the second set at about 20 minutes long is a centerpiece in itself--and that's also to the good, because these shows feel most to me like a celebration of Grateful Dead music, and an extension of the musical spirit of Jerry Garcia. They're essential for fans of Phish and Grateful Dead and any of Kimock's various projects, and frankly I feel they carry the legacy forward in a way that set somewhat of a template for future incarnations of The Other Ones, The Dead, and Furthur--and Fare Thee Well and Dead and Company--that had been left partly vacant heretofore.