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This show was kind of a bust for a few reasons. That said, it is a New Years show so it does have some historical significance. That said, it kinda sucked. The New Years run in ’90 consisted of the 12/28 show at the Marquee in NYC (which I saw), and a 12/29 show at the Campus Club in Providence (which I skipped). Both shows are pretty hot by 1990 standards and I think each were longer than this one. That is my main gripe with NYE 1990– it was disappointing to say the least that the ENTIRE show was 2 hours long. Two sets, one hour each. Grrrrrr……I definitely blame Chucklehead, “the opening band that would not get off”. A local Boston funk band, we knew them from the scene and they were known as a “decent” funk band, but their set went on and on and on. And on. It was almost comical. I want to say they played for two hours, it was redic. So that was strike number one. The venue itself was a non-descript event hall (still is) and was just a big room, no seats, with some bars in the back. I stayed at the bars for most of Chucklehead getting primed for teh Phishes. The show itself was pretty crowded but it was barely sold out. When we arrived an hour or so before doors, there were kids lined up waiting for the box office to open so they could get “day of” tix…..I doubt that is happening this year (or has since). This was also the site of the first “real” Phish NYE, the band having played here the year before on 12/31/89 (DJ Bagel Boy’s first show as a matter of fact.) Also, the ticket called for “Creative Formal Wear Requested” but most people ignored that. The band did get dressed up though and there are some good pics around of that, I think some are in The Phish Book. So, non-descript venue, random crowd energy and an opening band that would not stop was not exactly setting the stage for a bomb drop. It’s kind of ironic that the actual poster for the gig is a picture of a trainwreck. Still it was not all that bad. At least there was a bar. Still, I can’t fault the boys, they gave it their all (as usual). The playing is actually pretty decent for the most part, it was the venue that blew. Here’s the set:
Set 1: Suzy Greenberg, Divided Sky, I Didn’t Know, The Landlady, Bouncing Around the Room, My Sweet One, Mike’s Song > I Am Hydrogen > Weekapaug Groove -> Auld Lang Syne, Buried Alive > Possum
Set 2: Golgi Apparatus, Stash, The Squirming Coil, Runaway Jim, Magilla, You Enjoy Myself, Rocky Top, Hold Your Head Up > If I Only Had a Brain > Hold Your Head Up > Run Like an Antelope
What’s that you say? I forgot to add the encore? Ummmm, actually, management turned the lights on during the middle of Antelope and ended the show. Yes, that’s right. A two set New Year’s show with no encore. The flyer says 2AM. 2AM my ass. The first set clocks in at a cool 55 minutes. The second set tries to break the 1 hour mark and does so by about 30 seconds. You could tell the band was pretty disappointed. I know I was. Still, the playing contained in those two hours was good with some inspired parts and some of that special New Years energy sprinkled throughout. For instances, the Runaway Jim was the best one to date in my opinion. I’ll also take If I Had a Brain any time I can get it, and believe it or not, Magilla was a highlight. I have a feeling they will be bringing that back

This is pretty funny, but if any of you reviewers who actually attended want to relive that terrible Chucklehead set, here it is in all its glory: https://archive.org/details/chead1990-12-31/chead1990-12-31d1t08.flac />
It runs about 75 mins just in case you were curious. Not good enough to ruin Phish's encore!

Probably the worst NYE show Phish will ever play.

This show has a bizarre vibe to it. It feels unorganized, and the guys are playing like they are very nervous. Perfectly understandable considering that NYE is a big show and let's face it, they're not a big band yet.

However I literally cannot find anything that's noteworthy about this show. A lot of the songs that they know like the back of their hands at this point are stale and bring nothing new or interesting to the table. Even opening the new year with Buried Alive is a questionable choice.

However the way we need to look at it is this is a band that takes mistakes and shortcomings to heart. These are the shows that the band looks back at and works hard to correct in the future. Never again after this will there be an NYE show that doesn't have memorable or noteworthy aspects to it. Shows from these years are stepping stones based on their success as well as their mistakes.

This would be the only bad Phish Show that I've ever attended. Chucklehead, the opening band was so utterly annoying that they almost ruined the evening for everybody - everyone was boo'ing them to get off the stage, but they kept jumping around playing their bad music (some sort of brass-heavy ska). The actual Phish show seemed rushed, as if the band just wanted to get off the stage and call it a night.

The AUD I heard of this show is pitched incredibly high, maybe a whole tone, so songs played in the key of E like MSO and Possum sound like they are in F#. Even with the tape slowed down, though, this show would still be considered brief. Between the "opening band who are desperate to take advantage of being on the bill with Phish" and the encore blue-balls, the deck was stacked against our heroes on this NYE. kipmat says: grab your date, count down to NYE, and then spin 12/28/90, or one of the Fall '90 Colorado shows, instead of this flat tire.

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

Back to the World Trade Center a year later. The show was sold out. Ticketless friends of mine spent two hours telling tales of woe and fame to the poor woman in the ticket booth, who finally gave them tickets just to get rid of them.
There were about three to five times as many folks this year, compared to the year before. The stage was set up near the back of the room, while the year before, the stage had been set up near the middle of the room. Phish didn't go on until pretty late due to the opening band, Chucklehead, overstaying their welcome. The show itself was fairly lackluster, save for a good Antelope to close the show. After the "Antelope", the band got off the stage and was discussing possible encores, while my friends and I were standing right there making our suggestions. Unexpectedly, the house lights came on. The band took the hint, and thus ended the anticlimactic New Year's Eve of 1990.

A pleasant show to rewind to. Not a lot of good recordings exist, but if you have a decent enough system to adjust the quality this is a good listen. I dug this up because it was one of my best friends first shows.

Enough intro, let's dissect.

Opening act - "Chucklehead" was a bunch of knucklehead locals that ran long. Because of this Phish was cut short and had to leave without an encore.

Divided sky was a nice jam this early on, but the highlight of set 1 for me was Mike's song. This show was full of gems though, there really isn't a bad spot in the show.

Set 2 held a nice Run starting at YEM and ending at Antelope. Just a lot of good quality jamming. Rocky Top actually breaks it early but gets back on track.

I think this is definitely an underrated under-appreciated show from the early 1.0

This recording sounds like a possible matrix. It’s hard to really tell with all of the cassette noise, most likely a nice audience recording. Also, the pitch is pretty sharp. Hopefully a master copy makes the rounds some day.

Suzy gets the party started. Nice versions of Sky, ‘Paug and Possum. At the end ‘Paug Trey counted down to the New Year. A recording of Auld Lang Syne was played over the PA.

Golgi kicks off Set 2. Strong Stash and Jim. The recording source seems to change at the start of Magilla. The levels fluctuate a bit but are pretty hot overall. The pitch is better from this point on. Good yet fairly straightforward version of YEM. Brain features Henrietta on a New Years party horn and vacuum. A decent Antelope closes out the set. Not a very exciting New Years gig. The quality of the recording doesn’t help.