Not a review, just a cool memory from way back.

This was at a time before Phish had made it big, so it was pretty easy to get up close and even have a conversation with the guys in the band.

Before the show we were tailgating in the little parking lot behind the Agora when one of us looked over at the back door of the theatre and said something like "Isn't that the guitarist right there?" Being a redhead, it's kinda hard to mistake Trey.

3 or 4 of us walked over to where Trey and Mike were standing and started talking to them. They we're super cool, friendly and nice.

I'm not exactly sure what we talked about, but at some point a joint appeared and was offered to Mike and Trey. They graciously passed and Trey said something like "We don't smoke or drink before shows because we're really focusing on our music right now."

That comment always stuck with me because even if it was just a nice way to avoid smoking with a bunch of fans, looking back, it seemed like at that point in their career, Phish as a band had decided that they we're going to be serious. That they we're going to really practice, write, tour and do whatever they need to do to "make it".

Over the next few years, 92-95 it was obvious that their hard work paid off as their music and live shows continued to get better and better.

By 1997 I remember thinking at a show (as I sat in a seat 100 miles from the stage) "these guys are unbelievable. They can literally do whatever they want."

Good show in Cleveland, nice audience tape. Somebody was sweeping through the frequencies of the EQ during the second set. Not sure if it was Paul at the board or the taper. Good amount of Page.

Almost sounds like Mike is teasing the Band-Aid jingle again when Trey starts the count for a good Suzy opener. Poor Heart and Buried Alive are good. My Friend is getting tighter although a few rough spots in the intro tonight. Foam also has a few spots but otherwise good. Jim is good. Trey and Mike coax Page into an official circus theme Esther intro. A few rough spots in there too. Melt is good as is Rift and Guelah. Possum has the usual teases and language from this time period. Still not sure what song they are teasing this whole tour.

Here's where I noticed the EQ noises during a good Landlady opener, however Fishman kind of bungles the end. Sparkle is ok. More EQ sweeping noise. Tweezer was a little rough coming out of the Ebeneezer breakdown, but a good jam. Trey added extra lyrics to Fluff. "Asking for some bills, to my house." Pretty good Fluff. Glide is good as is Mike's song and jam. Hydrogen has it's problems tonight and it also sounds like an unintentional breakdown in Weekapaug but the song is saved and has a nice unique jam to it. You can hear Trey laugh during the Fee singing, assuming it's because of the palm tree mentioned in the show notes. Which leads us to a Cold As Ice and rare disjointed Bike. Still funny though. Sounds like Mike is going back into Terrapin instead during the vac solo. Surprisingly no Cold As Ice outro, just a weird jam. Coil is good and Tweeprise is a good closer.

Triple encores started with the hushing of the crowd for Adeline. A nice Monkey to follow and a super charged Rocky Top!

Really good show. A few rough spots here and there keep this one from being five star.