Let me start by saying that I enjoy these “welcome” sets. It’s a great chance for the band to get their feet underneath them and for the fans to meet up with their friends and family - old and new- without the “stakes” of a full on two set show (and yes, I realize that in the grand scheme of what is going on in the world that a phish show has 0.00 stakes).

As the show started with “Lizards,” my head went to “if they play Tela after this, a lot of people are going to start getting very mad”. But alas, phish ducked from a nicely played taste of Gamehendge into a swampy “Moma.” After a ripping peak on the Moma, the drop straight into “Peaches” whipped the crowd into a frenzy. The energy continued with “INYLTB” and “Funky Bitch,” featuring Gord-side, Shore Side (at least I think that’s what I think Trey said, affirming my suspicion that he spends his time on the can like most of us do - surfing .net forum). The jam on Tweezer had an ambient quality that reminded me of the soundcheck jam from Wednesday, but at the same time was way more than just vamping on a single chord. This jam went places. It even took a stop in Gamehendge. The rest of the set took us to the Soul Planet, gave us some Meat on the Water, re-introduced is to the Sci-Fi Soldiers (loved that song, btw), and brought us back to the sand. While this set only had one major jam, that jam was a very good one. From my vantage point, the playing was pretty strong all set and the teases displayed their usual mastery of this music. Not a set I’ll listen to on repeat, but a very nice welcome to paradise.

Unfortunately for the 12/24/22 Tweezer, the encore will be what most people talk about today and beyond when they talk about this show. It was awesome to see Dave and Trey up there having a great time. There is clearly a mutual admiration between those two. I’m not a Dave-hater by any stretch, but I just don’t think the encore from last night is something I’ll listen to very often. It’s not that “So Damn Lucky” and “The Maker” aren’t good songs - they are - but they just didn’t give phish much to do. There are more musically interesting and high energy songs than those two. I loved watching Dave pound the acoustic through “Tweeprise”, and I left smiling as I walked swiftly back to my room to meet our room service order ????.

I think the current rating of 3.3 is pretty spot on. Really fun show for those of us lucky enough to be there, but it won’t be on anyone’s top 10 sets of 2022, in spite of the tremendous “Tweezer.”

Honestly, I thought this show was pretty damn great. Probably won't be the highlight of the run, but for the first live, public performance since Halloween, they sounded very consistently good. Things sort of fell off around Shade for me, but even those lesser favorite tunes were pretty damn well played. And to all the Dave haters...sorry, but this was a great sit-in (I was surprised how great his voice sounded). This set alone was enough to get me super, super excited for MSG in April.

Setlist Thoughts
- Don't believe what they tell you, 1/29/90 was NOT the last time The Lizards opened a show: it's actually never been done (the .net setlist for that night is incomplete, and what is listed as Set 1 is truly Set 2). It's clear in this performance that there's a bit of rust to shake off, but things clean up pretty quickly.
- Moma Dance keeps the dancing on the beach goin. Fishman and Mike sound pretty sweet in the intro section, and Trey's guitar playing is better than I remember from the fall. A lot of spicy licks. I thought this was a pretty great Moma.
- At least on paper, Peaches en Regalia bustout rounds out a fucking awesome opening three. An imperfect performance, to be sure, but definitely still played well enough to get me amped up for my favorite Zappa tune.
- First newer tune could be a lot worse than I Never Needed You Like This Before. A short, but epic jam lets Trey really let it all out. Fishman is going ballistic on these drums.
- Funky Bitch has some great moments from Page and Mike (whose vocals sound pretty great here, all things considered). Trey's solo employs a nice, drawn out crescendo.
- The talk of the beach, Tweezer continues to hit hard (I don't know if it has failed to do so since 12/30/2019?). Very synth-heavy jam starts out fairly laid back. There's some modulation between a few different keys, a kick into double-time, and an awesome moment of Lizards teases from Trey/Page. Pretty unanimously the highlight of the evening.
- No Sand Piper this year, but this one speaks for itself. Lots of high octane jamming with Page and Trey sharing the spotlight a bunch. Fairly seamless -> Soul Planet with some nice Tweezer quotes to slow the groove down.
- Soul Planet -> Meat is smooth and funky. Meat was probably second highlight of the evening for me. A lot of stanky groove, a cheeky Smoke on the Water tease, and a sort of Willy the Pimp riff groove that I wish were longer.
- The first Sci Fi Soldiers song since debut, The Howling was significantly better than it was on Halloween. This performance was compellingly funky, thought probably still needs a little bit more work. Jam was pretty straightforward.
- Shade was pretty, a nice cool down. Thought Evolve was fine. Nothing to write home about.
- Tube jam is pretty groovy. Honestly was mostly impressed with the crescendo and transition back to the swung section before the final verse.
- Sigma Oasis gets the usual Type I jam outro. Trey's been crushing the guitar this show.
- Ah, here's the Sand. A nice finishing touch to the set.
- Dave fuckin Matthews sitting in! Should've expected such after Trey joined him in Mexico only days earlier. Someone on Twitter put it well pointing out that these first two encore songs sound both like Phish and Dave Matthews, which is exactly what you want. I thought this was super nice, and it was clear that Trey was very happy to have this special buddy onstage with him.
- Tweeprise with Dave might not have hit as hard as usual, but watching it live was special. A fun moment where Trey teaches Dave the riff, and you can tell he's loving the rock jam. Would love to see more special guests join the band this year.

I love when friends get together and I know these 2 are tight I love both bands i saw DMB Blossom 2021 Great Show and I just saw 8-2-2022 Phish and I love both bands so very different styles of Jazz Guitarists One is all about acoustics and solos and the other is all about Jam and slathering that shit on the bread and if it goes over the edge the more the merrier I prefer the latter obviously but I will always say that Before These Crowded Streets one of the best albums ever made and up there with Marvin Gaye's Whats Goin' On and Stevie Wonder's Songs in the Key of Life and Thriller and everything 2Pac ever wrote along with Marley Garcia Hendrix and Lennon/McCartney and Clapton Dylan and the best band of all time the BLIMP a LOT that is Zepplin Led

I love you Dave I love you Trey stay sober and keep making amazing Jesus leaving Chicago Music for Jesus People

I mean, the opening quad of tunes is worth the price of admission! Which in my case is streaming 5 months later. Hot damn! This is one of the most impressive Momas I've heard. The Peaches, always welcomed, and a nice compliment of composition after the soaring Moma licks. The won't-say-stop INNYLTB is just on fire - the vocal work from Page and Mike as the song peaks is solid and full of intensity to match Trey's playing.

Love the way Funky Bitch backs off to a quiet, subtle jam, reminiscent of some great quiet blues jams heard in songs like Jesus Just Left Chicago. Then they kick it back in for the strong finish! Oh, here we go - Tweezer time! "Yeah." Page just floods the early part of the jam with warm, soothing tones. Trey teases "We Are Come to Outlive our Brains" or so I hear for a few measures.

The band builds into a more intense section and then we uncover Piper. Fishman as usual is a star here, really driving the peak of the jam. Suddenly Page jumps on the organ, and for a bit it sounds like we are smack in the middle of a Maze jam, but the tempo slows and Trey leads the boys onto the Soul Planet. Trey plays the "ocean" lyrics to its fullest - it's a fun but quick version that suddenly funkifies into a really fun Meat. All the guys take their turns playing with the start/stop theme, with some cool moments of silence while they decide who's next. Wrapping up the Meat but not the funk, The Howling allows for some upbeat grooving.

We haven't really slowed down much all show, so the Shade that follows is an opportunity for everyone to take a breath and sway a bit. Evolve is next, a new tune I've not heard. Nice clean soaring solos for Trey and Page, ala Heavy Things, but not much room for the group interplay.

Tube slinks in to revive the funk. Love how patient this one is, more subtle laid back grooving. A bit longer than your average Tube I think? Sigma Oasis lands very well next. The band and the crowd are very much there, and it's a fitting celebration of the coming days. Page is layering synth effects liberally, then we get a nice spotlight on Mike for his solo. Trey takes it home with another animated dance with the high frets on his Languedoc. What looked like the closer is quickly replaced by a gritty Sand. The band is closing in on a nearly 2 hour set, and this one floods the air with whatever energy they have left. Time for a quick breather and some nourishment before the encore!

The band returns with a friend in tow. The two Dave songs work really well with the band. Page's piano compliments Dave's playing and vocals really well. It's clear they put the time into working these out! The pause in So Damn Lucky is a clear indicator of that. Fish drops fills in all the right places, and Trey sends melodic solos out over the finishing measures. After a quick lesson to orient Dave we get one of the quieter Tweeprise openings ever.... but we finish raucous as expected!

Solid opening show in Mexico. A little rust as to be expected but strong overall. A great sign for the nights to come. I thought the encore with Dave was pretty sweet, The Maker is a very special song and it was nice to hear it.

Must hears of the night: Peaches, INNYLTB, Tweezer, Sand

For a one set warm up on a Thursday in Mexico, this was surely a great time.

3.5/5