Probably the fan favourite of the runup to NYE '97, and for good reason. The Sneakin' Sally opener sets the tone: light on its feet, celebratory but not anthemic. And it segues right into the Best Version of Taste Ever Played. This is easily Trey's finest Taste solo: patient, spacious, well-organized, climactic, empathetic, and closing out with a riotous group suspension and crescendo as Mr Anastasio wails on that octave. And yeah: Harpua, ADITL, fine Chalkdust, Tom Marshall, the whole works.

But the sheer scope of the thing is what'll bring you back. The Hood tumbles into My Soul, alas, but prior to that (excellent) segue it's a charming, chiming, complicated performance - a great Hood despite it all. The AC/DC Bag is a top-3 version (maybe you'll take 9/14/99 over this one; maybe I will too), pure late '97 dance-machine badness. Then there's the encore: they were gonna get fined anyhow, so they played a half-hour suite of four songs including, for the love of all that's holy, a Sneakin' Sally reprise to raise the roof. Is this a great BEK I see on the setlist? Heavens no. It's an event: muddy midnight porno-funk to close out a celebration. It's like the joyously unnecessary farewell funk groove on 4/5/98: if you can throw down that kind of nastiness off the cuff, for the sheer unadulterated hell of it, you have permission to rock the stage however you damn well please.

12/29 is maybe a deeper show (check out both SBD releases and decide for yourself), but this is Phish in Cinemascope. Wholeheartedly recommended.

I mentioned in my review for the 12/29/97 show that I consider that one to be the superior show, but I'm quite aware that I am in the minority with that opinion, and sometimes I find myself wavering (usually, as you'd guess, when I'm listening to this show). You could argue that there are entire tours that don't have as much to offer as this one show does - an exceptional breakout in Sneakin' Sally; Trey going nuts with one of his best solos ever in Taste; a powerful Stash that guns the engines 11/23/97 style before closing in a near-hush; a mesmerizing set-opening AC/DC Bag that touches on sharp funk, powerful space-rock (a '97 trademark), and explosive '95-style power riffing before transitioning to a very good McGrupp; one of the craziest Harpuas with an amusing Tom Marshall appearance that is immediately followed up with an always-welcome and always-fierce Izabella; a truly lovely Hood that catches fire at the end with a nasty blues workout that naturally leads into My Soul; and, finally, a superb 4-song half-hour encore that peaks with a milkshake-thick BEK that segues brilliantly into a Sneakin' Sally reprise. Whether or not this is the best show of the NYE '97 run, it's certainly the most jam-packed and exciting, and should definitely be a cornerstone of your collection.

I'm pretty sure this is my favorite show of all time, which says something-- I've listened to 400-500 shows including all of 2.0 and 3.0. Sally -> Taste is best ever territory, AC/DC Bag is best ever territory, they play Harpua (!) > Izabella (!) > Hood -> My Soul (crazy Hood!), and then, as if it weren't enough, they played the best encore they've ever played (with BEK -> Sally Reprise?!). If the world really does end tomorrow and you haven't heard this show yet, do EVERYTHING IN YOUR POWER to listen to it immediately! You can buy the video on LivePhish.com...

(Published in the second edition of The Phish Companion...)

You know the feeling -  you're on tour, you're running around, you feel run-down, you're grumpy, and you try so very hard to get up but sometimes you don't get there? I was afraid that I was going to be that way when I headed to my seat. I was so tired that I could barely move -  we were out all night on the 29th and ran around the city all day.
So I was afraid. And then the show started with something funky, something that I didn't quite recognize -  it sounds like -  it couldn't be "Sneaking Sally"! My goodness! There was a roar of euphoria for a song that hadn't been played in over eight years (although "Mustang Sally" would have been a lot funnier given the location of the net.gathering earlier that day)! By the end of the set, there were no problems in the world. Wasn't I tired? I didn't remember anymore!
Anyone who has ever traveled with tapers knows that there's usually some deck-spinning in the hotel room after a show. On this night, there was a daisy chain of DATs rolling into the wee hours of the morning. Where to put the tape flips for analogs? How to best fit this night onto some kind of recording medium? WHAT HAD WE JUST HEARD?

as i mentioned in the my review of the 12/29/97 show, it is really a tough call to say which of the ny run shows from this year is the top dog. i tend to lean toward this show, but anyone that wants to argue 12/29 or 12/31 ,well, who am i to say. they all have their moments.

this show starts off with one hell of a grand moment. the triumphant return of sneaking sally. this is a nice funky opener. sure, it does not reach the depths of say the one from deer creek in 03 or the gorge in 09, but as an opener and a first time play since the 80's, this one is pretty gravy. this one dips nicely into a surprisingly good taste. this, the second song in, stands out as one of the musical highlights of a pretty stacked show. trey, in particular, is very strong on this one, with some good support from page. the rest of the first set is pretty "high-end standard." stash stands out as a good early show jammer.

the 97 ny run seemed to serve as phish's "best of 97" shows. they repeated a lot of killer grooves and some seques that wowed in the fall and summer tour. this ac/dc bag is a good example of that. they hit some really nice funky grooves. they revisit the past glory of the now legendary dayton show. they tinker with psycho killer here, but they drive past it and go alot further. this is a truly original jam with some friendly nods to the supremely great playing through out the year. eventually, this one finds its way into a very sharp mcgrupp. page really steps it up here for an eery solo. harpua blows the place up. there is an interesting story about a pentagram, which explains some of the "decorations" inside the garden. also, tom marshall comes out for a pretty humorous take on 500 miles. they come out of harpua and blaze into their new "hendrix toy," izabella. this one rocks out and drops right into a vewry nice harry hood. the hood jam just takes off and never comes back home. this might be the most focused jam of the ny run. trey and page expertly navigate through this thick hood jam as they eventually find their way into the most overplayed song of 97, my soul. sure, people griped all fall when this popped in like 3 out of every 4 shows or 2/3, whatever it was, but i have feeling, there was not a lot of bitching when they jumped into this one. most would assume that would close it down, but they give sleeping monkey a quick walk through before kicking into a very nice guyute. this bad boy is flawless, and it closes down a monster set in style. this is another tune that helped make 97 what it was. like fluff head in 09, this one had not been seen for a hot minute, and the times that it did come out were few and far between. then in 97, this song got lavished with attention. being played so much, they really nailed this one night in and night out. good stuff.

well, phish was already past curfew, so they made the executive decision just to rock out for another hour- hell, they payed for it. after being played heavily in europe, carini had had no love in the u.s. this one really catches the crowd off guard, and it gets them nice and jacked for this very nice extended encore. the black eyed katy that follows, another 97 keeper, really went deep. this was not your average 1st set version. this is the we have played straight until 1am in so long funk! they get so immersed in the funk that they find themselves back where they started, right in the depths of the sneaking sally reprise. the double dose of funk sent the crowd into a frenzy, and the phish threw a nice big cherry on top, frankenstein. once again, this is not your average version. everybody took this one to the absurd deep end making sure to get their hours worth.

this show, despite a somewhat standard 2nd half of the first set, is loaded with unique music and killer jams, even for 97. plus, the fact that this one went well past the curfew gives it some extra cool points.

highlights:

set 1:

sneaking sally>taste, stash

set 2:

bag>mcgrupp, hood>my soul, be katy>sneaking sally reprise

One of the finest examples of Black Eyed Katy prior to Moma. The segue between Katy and Sally is as flawless as the 12/7/97 Nutter AC/DC->Psycho. Hood was also a testiment to how smooth the band had began to perform in the late 90s.

hands down one of the best shows I ever attended...the night before was good and new years eve, the following night, was also good...but this was the highlight of this 3 night NYE run...

Set I

Sneakin Sally was brought out of retirement and it was such a good way to kick of the show...funky start to what we knew was going to be a good night..

Taste...good tune..jammed out nicely

Water in the sky..nothing out of the ordinary

PYITE...always a crowd pleaser...and was really happy to hear this one

Stash...not one of my favorite songs...jam gets a little dark at times..but this seems to be the reoccuring theme for fall/winter 97

CDT...one of my favorites...gets the crowd going..although this place was already rockin at this point...good version of this song

A day in the life...I'm a big Beatles fan..and I thought this was a great tune and a great way to end the first set..

Set II

This is the bread and butter of this show..the meat and potatos..

ACDC bag...my favorite version of this song to date..clocks in around 25 minutes...dark, and funky at times...Trey and the boys really take this one out there...

mcgrupp...great seque into this song from bag...and another crowd pleaser...

Harpua...great story..and at times no one knew where this one was going..trey was really enjoying this one...he even mentioned how he loves playing at the garden, because the place bounces up and down when certain grooves get going...the story was about trey growing up and acquiring different food products to place onto a pentagram behind his school..this caused a tornado...tom marshall comes out and busts into 500 miles..

Izabella...Trey really got the crowd amped up with this one...

harry Hood...really good unfinished version...during jam...all the lights were turned off and trey started catching glowsticks in the pitch black..

My soul...great seque from hood into this song

Sleeping monkey > guyute...seemed like they just did not want to stop playing...and nor did we want them to..

Encore: trey announced they were going to play until it was new years eve and everyone couldn't be happier especially after a four song encore which included Carini,BEK, Sneakin and a Frankenstein with vacuum..

If you have not listened to this show..it's a must have..

How is there only 3 reviews for this show? first off, proud to say I was there. Yes, I was in the bathroom first set barely avoiding puking until awakened by AC/DC bag set 2...which was one of the greater sets ever played.

In fact this entire show is now widely accepted as one of the top 10 Phish shows ever. Best Harpua ever...Isabella!!!

Come on Phish, bring back Isabella!

My question with a show like -- who are these raters who are NOT giving it 5 stars? If this isn't a five star show....there is no five star show.

Everything any person could ever want from a concert. And more. And more. And yes, there's more.

Perhaps *the* classic show, from arguably Phish's greatest creative peak.

tl;dr - this is definitely must-hear material. There is a reason why, as of the date of this review (04-22-2020) that this show is listed #2 as Phish's greatest concerts ever.

My highlights:

1) Sneakin' Sally: bust out is played with palpable excitement. Mike using talk box effect. Super funky
2) Taste: brilliantly executed. Trey's noodly-jamming really shines and great peak ~8 min in
3) *Stash*: Flirts with insanity and starts seething at the mouth with rabies-filled dissonance. Very strong version.
4) *AC/DC Bag*: Starts strong with the funk with Mike taking lead. At ~16 min., Tret starts this highly psychedlic/trippy loop which dissolves into bliss. At ~21 min, Trey comes charging back in to lead the band into full-on attack mode. Must hear
5) *McGrupp*: OMG, I freaking love this counterpoint jam going on between Page and Trey. The darkness that develops when Fish and Mike come back in... Must hear.
6) Izabella: Trey slays
7) *Harry Hood*: Among the best Hoods I've ever heard. After reaching a gorgeous peak about 15 min in, suddenly it becomes a rocking blues jam (!?). WTF? The transition into "My soul" is smoothhhhhh
8) Sneakin' Sally (the return): This whole entire encore is amazing, but the transition from BEK back into Sneaking Sally to cap the night... Wow. Bravo Phish, bravo
9) *Frankenstein*: Well if you are going to break curfew, might as well jam the f*** out of Frankenstein for good measure, right? There is ~ 4 minutes of extended ambient noise darkness and when Fishman jumps back on drums to execute the ending refrain of the song its one of the most "f*** yeah!!!" moments ever

Other notes:
-The "Slim Jim" Harpua is goofy, and the yelling of "hannibal lectur" during 500 miles is hilarious

Segue fans' delight! A Sneakin' Sally Through the Alley bustout opens the show -> Taste, and some phans' opinion is that this is the best Taste ever played (now possibly in contention with 8/2/17 from the Baker's Dozen.) Stash has some, well, what I'd have to call "fizzly" type diminuendi (?) from Trey; they're in the latter half of the jam, and you'll have to listen for yourself. AC/DC Bag is my favorite version: it starts led by Page on clavinet, and then Trey takes the lead for the lion's share of the jam. McGrupp and the Watchful Hosemasters follows, and it resolves into a queer sort of piano jam, one that's probably unique in its Phishtory. There's the classic Pentagram Harpua with Proclaimers cover featuring Tom Marshall > Izabella > Harry Hood which is unfinished and goes Type II for a few minutes, -> My Soul. Guyute is a great set-closer, but there's still a long quadruple encore to go! The Carini here jams a bit, too, and segues cleverly into Black-Eyed Katy, the great lost Fall '97 debut, and then *that* segues into a Sneakin' Sally quasi-reprise, finally to wrap up in what I think is the longest Frankenstein ever. I absolutely had to rate this show 5 stars out of 5: just a magnificent climax to what may be the best year of Phish yet.

After more than 17 years I think I finally get this show. I attended this MSG run and always felt that the 29th was the best. That is a special show in a style I like very much (tight, concise jams and great song selection), but the 30th is different. Much different. Different to the point that I can't think of another show like it.

At the time I was just taken aback. I wasn't quite sure what to make of it. But upon recent listenings its brilliance shines through. The band came to play that night, obvious by their breaking curfew, but apparent all throughout with the special twists and turns they do throughout the show. Each song is a highlight. If you haven't heard it in a while give it a listen.

PHISH, TUESDAY 12/30/1997
MADISON SQUARE GARDEN
New York, NY

SET 1:

Sneakin' Sally Through the Alley[1] - What a huge surprise this was! Absolutely love Mike’s tone in the early going of this jam. Delicious. Pretty chill jam. Trey hits some loops and things get very mellow for the last minute. Check out Fish in this segment, his work on the kit sounds exactly like the “Montana” segment from A Live One (Bozeman Tweezer). Nice little segue into Taste. ->

Taste: Incredible trilling at 8:10, blistering. Again at 8:48 and then the final coda from there. 1997 was the best year for this song and the last one they played this year was no exception. A thrilling version right here, completely smoked. Trey puts on a master class. Page’s section was more mellow than usual.

Water in the Sky: Standard. >

Punch You in the Eye: Standard version. But the effects at the end are bonkers. Cool how Trey keeps making them higher and higher and then intense space and then the cool segue into Stash. >

Stash: As the jam begins, check out Mike’s interesting tone. I don’t think it’s quite a major mode type deal, but it is definitely different than you would expect. This lasts for at least 30 seconds. At the 9 minute mark things start getting very intense as Trey shifts his tone into that nasty summer 97 crunch. Very aggressive in here, hold on to your hats. Around the 10:30 mark, they deescalate all that intensity and before you know it this jam is quiet and pensive. Masters of their domain. The jam like this for two minutes and then sneak in through the backdoor with the ending coda. No big crazy finish like usual. Would recommend.

Chalk Dust Torture: Standard.

A Day in the Life: Standard.

SET 2:

AC/DC Bag: On the LivePhish you can hear Trey call out for “Bag” like 4 times in a questioning manner. The way this jam starts, you almost know immediately that they have big plans for this. It’s different. Page quietly funking away but the rest of the band is coordinating around his lines with Trey assertively strumming to what he is laying down. Around the 7 minute mark Trey puts some loops in play and then starts playing the twangiest stuff you can imagine, so weird and catchy. This jam stays consistently in the same vein from here until about 16:05 where Trey busts out the big, old HOSE and just goes to TOWN. Magical moment right here. At 20.45 things take on a much faster pace and it sounds like there is potential for a segue into Izabella. No dice there and this intense segment peters out in the mid 22:00’s to space and Trey getting funky. This goes on for a few minutes and then segues into McGrupp. This Bag is an easy all timer. It’s either this or Boise for the best ever. Highly recommended. >

McGrupp and the Watchful Hosemasters: Absolutely awesome interplay between Trey and Page which Fish and Mike eventually get in on and things get intense! Fantastic and unique version, highly recommended!

Harpua[2] > I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)[3] > Harpua: Very funny story and gag with Tom Marshall. Great stuff! >

Izabella: Another rager. >

Harry Hood[4] Great jam! Has tons of staying power. I can still remember how badly I wanted a big, traditional climax and got major blue balls when they segued into My Soul. Oddly enough, at 12.13.97 Fish tried so hard to hijack that Harry Hood and Trey wouldn’t give into him and when on to a very good climax. Maybe he made a deal with Fish that the next time they played Hood he would let him take it into My Soul? I would recommend this version for the body of work that is great and for the uniqueness of it not finishing and instead segueing into My Soul and thereby satisfying Fishman’s urge from 12.1 ->

My Soul: Standard. >

Sleeping Monkey: Standard. LOL at Trey saying we want to keep playing but we can’t but let’s play Guyute. >

Guyute: Standard.

ENCORE:

Carini: Good stuff. That little riff Page hits about 10 or 15 seconds before they start up BEK is so choice. ->

Black-Eyed Katy: More of that icky, sticky funk, very nice! ->

Sneakin' Sally Through the Alley[1] - I guess they enjoyed busting this one out so much that they just had to play it again! >

Frankenstein[5] - Pretty crazy, goes way, way out there with Fishman on his vacuum and this just felt like it was never going to end. Insanity.

Summary: This show was only 9 minutes shorter than the New Year’s Eve show, a true marathon two set show. Incredible show. My one and only time at Madsion Square Garden. Can I pick ‘em or what, lol!!! This show checks all the boxes and scratches every single itch. I remember seeing the setlist from 12.29 before we left for 12.30 and being devastated – what is even left to play. LOL. They showed us a thing or two. I agree with the current rating on .net of 4.7/5 (776 ratings) – a show for the ages and I cannot believe I was there to witness it.

Replay Value: Sneakin' Sally Through the Alley, Taste, Stash, AC/DC Bag, McGrupp and the Watchful Hosemasters, Harry Hood, Sneakin' Sally Through the Alley, Frankenstein

[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.

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 (921 shows). Neither of the Sallys contained vocal jams. This show is available as an archival release on LivePhish.com.

SHOW RATING
Your rating:
Overall: 4.7/5 (776 ratings)
JAM CHART VERSIONS
Sneakin' Sally Through the Alley, Taste, Stash, AC/DC Bag, McGrupp and the Watchful Hosemasters, Harry Hood, Sneakin' Sally Through the Alley, Frankenstein
TEASES
Third Stone From the Sun and Psycho Killer teases in AC/DC Bag, A Night in Tunisia tease in Stash, A Day in the Life quote in I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)