From: "J.E. \"Ellis\" Godard"
Subject: 7/1/97 Amsterdam Review
Date: 2 Jul 1997 12:57:20 GMT
set one (80 min).. Story of a Ghost (20 min; weird; groovy but
spacey; possible Spooky tease, here and throughout the show),
HOrn (!, but partially flubbed by Trey near the end), Yamar (good
one, but seemed relatively tame; Fishman having serious fun
here), Limb by Limb (Taste-y, but maybe not as tasty as ghost?),
new song we're calling Aint Love Funny (eh... Mike song maybe?
duets with TA and MG, but definite bluegrass feel), Saw it Again
(IMHO, a WHile MY Guitar Gently Weeps feel with lyrics by J
Geils; JF adding some serious grooves on his own, it seemed, his
eyes closed often from here on out), Dirt (which i yelled for
just before, and decided i should have yelled something else
(maybe destiny) right after), Reba (this one wowed the Dutch
people that were thrown off by all the new stuff; GREAT effect
early on with flashing lights behind the stained glass (the
Paradiso is an old stone church) to the beat!!; ended with
whistling), Dog Stole Things (eh... so .so)
favorite of the new songs(and these are the only ones i've heard,
and this isall that i've heard of them) is saw it again, though
krispy prefers ghose. limb by limb has definite possibilities;
oit will ROCK large venues as it ages
set two (66 minutes, but...) opening piano thing by Fishman that
no one who's done this tour has heard/seen, melded into a jam as
others came on stage one by one and FIsh moved to drums, Timber
Ho (!, some amazing comment i wrote down on my setlist in he dark
and dank but can't read now :), Bathtub gin (!!; the national
drink is a weird gin; Trey messed with the vocals overlays a bit,
adding and skipping beats, very nice!, 19minutes in, Mike stepped
on a bell to the far right of all his pedals, a large black bell
with a mic under it; very weird, and i'd never seen it befroe,
but maybe its been there years and i just dont know cuz i havent
been that close (RIGHT over page; we could look down adn see his
hari... err.. head ;), gin grew into a wicked slowdown jam, into
a HEAVY cities (lyrics and beat and general melody, but about 1/4
the speed) into another jam, into a slow jam, into a wicker mike
bass thang, into anothe jam, into a jam underlying Trey's palying
|WHen the Saints Go Marching in, into a picjup jam, and then a
closeout (40 min from the start of gin to the end of this jam),
Loving Cup (HOT! maybe one of the best of these i've seen?
hmmm... being in amsterdam colors yoursjudgements, not to mention
your perception), a BEAUTIFUL slave (though page sounded flat,
and/or trey sharp, somewhere before the buildup jam at the end)
encore: WHen the circus comes to town (5 min, and folks really
seemed to expect something afterwards...)
the lot scene: not applicable
the security: what, are you kidding|??
the venue: good sound, though not righ above stage; HOT as the
hinges of hell (as my mother says), allow reentry thopugh (!)
pholks: great to meet christian, ashley, andrew, and chris., and
to see gerhard, ralph, aaron, jon, and whoever else i'm
forgettting
merch: really sharp posters, and fun shirts (tho two look like
they could be lot shirts and wll be easy to duplicate)
other stuff: gimme a break. it's time for a cake! :)
more tomorrow....
E
.s
==============================
From: Silke.Siegert@studbox.uni-stuttgart.de (Silke Siegert)
Subject: amsterjam reviews (7-1 and 7-2)
Date: 9 Jul 1997 21:09:44 GMT
Greetings phishnetters,
I don't know if any reviews of these shows have been posted, so here goes.
I am combining these reviews into one because I don't have tapes of them so
I am not sure of specifics such as length of everysong, etc. In general,
these are my two favorite phish shows I have seen (among the Ball and ween
96). =20
Part of it was, if you got there before six (to the Paradiso), you
were no worse than second row. I had never been so close to the band. Part
of it was also the new songs. I was totally surprised; some of them are
VERY good. In particular I liked 'Story of the Ghost,' 'Limb by Limb,'
'Ain't Love Funny,' 'Dirt,' and 'I SAW IT AGAIN.' Regarding the
aforementioned songs, 'Story of the Ghost' was a 20-25 minute opener!!! One
of the songs had whistling, like the whistling in 'Guyute.' 'I Saw it
Again' was incredible. A really (really) hard rocker, like 'Character Zero'
on roids. The ending was Trey stomping around wailing on his guitar, and
every band member yelling 'I saw it again' as loud as possible. Thats
pretty much the first set of the first night. There was also a good 'Reba'
(as always) with the whistling ending. And a yamar where Mike didn't do his
nonsense yell at the end. Trey communicated to everyone that Mike wasn't
gonna do the ending (I have no idea why), but for some reason, Fish didn't
and so just kept going along. It sounds like its about to end three or four
times, but keeps going. Horn was nice.
The second set opened with a jam. Fish walked and just started playing
piano. Then Page joined him and the jam eventually segued into 'Timber Ho.'
There was a similar second set jam opener the next night, but more on that
later. I really liked that idea of just a random jam segueing into a song.
This segue worked really well. As did the jam the next night. The 'Timber
Ho' was really nice. My first. This set as a whole should be called
jamfest. Next was an average 'Bathtub Gin,' by no means a 'monster,' but
fun to hear. This turned into another jam, this one much longer. Then out
of nowhere came 'Cities.' This 'Cities' was the best ever. No joke. Half
as fast as usual, almost reggae. One of the nights highlights. After
'Cities' came again a jam. Somewhere in here something about being on the
'worm' comes up. The worm is talked about much more the next night. 'Lovin
Cup,' 'Slave,' and 'When the Circus...' (encore) closed the show but were
nothing but normal Phish (meaning extraordinary).
dan epstein
Homer J: no beer and no tv make homer something something...
Marge: go crazy?
Homer J: DON'T mind IF i DO!
------------------------------
From: Loertscher
Subject: Amsterdam Reviews (LONG!)
Date: Wed, 09 Jul 1997 16:56:37 -0500
Well, i just got back yesterday from good old Europe and I was one of
the lucky few who had the oppurtunity to see Phish in Amsterdam.
First, before launching into the reviews, let me set up the scene. For
those of you who have never been to Amsterdam, it is a wonderful city.
Yes, you can buy fantastic dope in coffeeshops. But that is only a
small part of this amazing city. Canals, very few cars, and tons of
bicycles make it a really chill place. Everyone is super friendly. The
day before and the day of the show, my friends and I saw Trey,
Fishman, and Mike all over the place. Some very good omens, in our
opinions.
The Paradiso is the coolest concert venue in the world. A converted
church, it is what every club should be. The stained glass windows are
awesome. The inscription above one of them is "Soli Deo Gloria". I
believe this means "Only for the glory of God". I'm not sure though.
Kinda neat though. Really added to the spiritual sense of Phish's
music.
Note: I was really baked at the shows. Keep that in mind, because I
might be glorifying the shows a bit. I doubt it though. I've been to
enough shows to know a good one from a so-so one (There is no such
thing as a bad show).
The first night opened with Ghost. I'd never heard this new tune, but
I really liked it. It is very funky. Trey and Fishman sing it together
(Fishman takes the very low, bass part).They jammed on it for a long
time.Next up, two oldies, Horn and Yamar. Yamar had a very groovy Page
solo. I think Mike forgot to do one of his yelling parts (The one at
the end, over the drums, after which Trey usually wails). I may be
mistaken though. Then came a few more new tunes, all of which I liked.
Limb by Limb sounds almost like a Broadway song (at least to me). Very
good.Then came Reba. The composed part saw Trey fuck up big time (a la
12/31/95). Just before the chill jam, where Chris usually hits the
strobes and Fishman does his bit on the drums, the stained glass
windows where lit up (instead of the strobes) Very cool. The jam
started off well, but it just got sick!!! I was at 10/31/94 and let me
tell you, this was on par, if not better. Then whistling!! At that
point, in that small club, it felt like the good old days.
Second set started with Fishman on the Fender Rhodes, playing a
melodic repetitive little tune which eventually turned into Timber Ho!
Trey flubbed a lyric or two, but the tune kicked ass. My favourite
second set opener, so I was pleased. Bathtub>jam>Cities>jam. Whoa.
Wrods can do it little justice. (I'll leave the review to a pro like
Charlie.) Needless to say, it was bliss. At times I totally forgot
what tune they were 'supposed' to be playing. I just loved it. Loving
Cup, great as usual, with the What a Beautiful Buzz line taking a
special meaning, as well as recalling the great Stones concert which
took place in the Paradiso many years ago. Slave to close. Pretty
good, but nothing special. At some point during the jam fest, the boys
played a little Oh When the Saints... jam. In the Paradiso, this meant
a lot more than I think some of the people realised. I love it when
Phish comments on things through their music. When The Circus Comes to
Town was a nice relaxing closer.
All in all, a great show. I was very happy as we stumbled to our
bikes.
The next day, we went to the Van Gogh museum and the Rijksmuseum
(Culture during the day, culture during the night). We got in a little
earlier and secured a spot on the bench on the right side of the
stage. Again we had seen Trey outside, so we were really psyched.
Opener....MIKE's SONG!! Now if anyone can appreciate this, it is the
people who read Rec.Music.Phish and Rosemary's. My friends, who aren't
quite as into Phish as I am, couldn't understand why I was flipping
out and going beserk. We were third row, and I could see Trey
smililing and looking over at Mike and Fish, as if to say "See, I told
you they'd flip". Anyways, a sweet Mike's song went immediately (even
a little abruptly) into Simple. Simple had a long jam. We were right
in front of Fishman. He had his eyes closed, and was in some sort of
trance, because he totally didn't notice the rest of the band slow
down, nor did he notice Trey try to signal him to slow down.
Eventually, he clued in. Trey siad something to him, which neither he
nor I caught, but Mike explained to him that "Trey said to pay
attention". It was sooo cool hearing these little tidbits. Simple
found itself going into Maze. Now I don't know if it was me, but
Page's solo wasn't too hot. It was pretty long, and I think Trey might
have even been a bit impatient. I don't know though. Wait for the
tapes to make a judgement on this Maze. Trey didn't nail the climaxes
as well as I've heard him do before either. Oh well. A chill set
followed, with Strange Design (What can I say? Same as always),
Ginseng, which is a great bluegrass tune, and two new ones, one of
which was a bit too country western for me. The Weekapaug that closed
the set however was sweet. They jammed before they even got to the
words. Then as the real jam progressed, it just became so funky and so
tight. There is nothing, absolutely nothing, like a great Weekapaug.
Set break was cool, and then the main event, the second set.
Space jam to open, which actually went on for a little bit. At first I
thought 2001, but it was too melodic for that. STASH! What the 12/9/95
YEM is for YEMs, this Stash is for Stashes. Amazing! I guess the jam
definately left the Stash realm at one point, but needless to say I
include it with the Stash. Somehow, we found ourselves in Llama. The
boys weren't extremely tight on the opening but by the time Page
started his solo, they had it together. Awesome. Some more jamming
followed, eventually finding itself into Worm (Is this a new song, or
just a jam? The night before, Trey had also yelled soemthing about
"living on the back of a worm" at some point.) He sang the same thing,
as well as warning us about the worms in th canals and how you could
get sucked down one of the public street urinals and get taken for a
ride. "And if you think I'm kidding, it happened to me last night" he
assured us. This jam was soo long, I 'm sure there was another little
tune or tease in there. Eventually, Wading (Waiting?) in the Velvet
Sea. Unfortunately, there was some sort of siren effect underneath it
all which kind of annoyed me. Trey was playing with his pedals quite a
bit, trying to get rid of it, I think. A great tune though, maybe a
little cheesy, but with a kickass solo.
First Encore: Free. The stained glass windows lit up during parts of
the lyrics again, which was pretty cool. Trey did not have his mini
drum kit, so I was waiting to see what they were going to do. Of
course, they jammed. Funky with some very heavy bass ass-kicking
coming from Mike. Everyone should join the PLM!! Anyways, a very cool
Free, definately different. I'm glad they played it this way. I felt
they had exhausted the jam with Trey on the drum kit and all the
effect loops. They left the stage, and the crowd went nuts. This guy
next to me was totally losing it, barking like a dog, and in general,
just going insane.
The lights stayed off for a little longer than usual, and it was at
that point I knew we were in for a very special treat. A SECOND
ENCORE!! This may even be more special than the Mike's opener. How
many times have they had a second encore? And what did they play? Not
some short little 5 minute Sparkle, but a full on David Bowie. During
the hihat opening, I heard Mike play the Maze bass line and look over
at Page, who smiled back. A little more space and teasing, and then
the fire department took over. Holy shit! I've seen some Bowie's rip
the hell out of a venue, but this one obliterated us (Phish definately
signed some pact with God, or maybe the devil. That kind of power is
not human!) The jam was great, with the boys even doing a little S.O.S
jam, a la morse code. Again, Save Our Souls in the Paradiso, a very
fucking cool reference!! The show ended, and I doubt I have ever been
so satisfied. Even after a kick ass show, you always want them to play
all night long, but after a second encore, and countless jams, I was
full.
Leaving Amsterdam the next day was tough. Those shows were so much
fun. The atmosphere was great. At some of the bigger Phish shows,
there is sometimes a little animosity between the "real" fans and the
other "real" fans. In Amsterdam, everyone was really cool and happy
and friendly. This was an experience that I'll never forget.
I'm a little worried though. Because of my job, the next shows I'll
adjust. If its anything like Clifford though, should be no problem.
Have a great summer everyone and see you at the Went!
Mathias
Join the PLM!!
------------------------------
From: Jon Weber <74111.1427@CompuServe.COM>
Subject: amsterdam review
Date: 6 Jul 1997 07:36:40 GMT
7-1-97 Review
Amsterdam, Paradiso
First of all, the Paradiso is an old church that has been converted into a
performance space, replete with stained glass windows and an ornate double
balcony -- all in the confines of a builiding that holds no more than 1000
people. A very intimate place indeed, and the energy of the crowd was intense
and intent.
The opener "Story of the Ghost" got things off to an easy, Wolfman's type
groove. The jam out of this tune developped significantly -- altogether "Ghost"
clocked in just over 20 minutes -- and at one point, Trey and Fish were singing
their favorite brand new lyric, over a jammed groove : "I THINK YOU KNOW WHERE
YOU ARE...YOU'RE ON THE BACK OF THE WORM!". An auspicious start to the show --
even shutting up some of the cynics around me that were sick of seeing the new
tunes over and over. If "Ghost" gets this kind of treatment in the future, we
no doubt have another thoroughbred in the stable.
"Horn" was next and then "Ya Mar" followed, with a particularly cool drum
segment featuring delicate work by Fishman and a hushed audience. Trey shouted
again about being "On the back of the worm!" during Ya Mar.
"Limb by Limb" was next, which also proved to be an excellent new song. The
vocals are all divergent while convergent and the lyrics are actually quite cool
| -- Mike has a really cool background vocal which totally stands out in a killer
way. The jam out of this tune was damn impressive -- I was finding myself lost
in rhythms that are not typical to your standard Phish jam. After a brief
respite in bass space (Mike doing washes of sound while Page was tweeking his
moogs), they segued into the vaguely celtic lullabye cadence of "Funny as it
Seems". Frankly, this song is a disappointment -- Mike's lyrics are just too
much straightahead cheese lovey dovey. Still, not a bad period of much needed
rest for the next tune...."Saw it Again". This tune kicks, with two separate
sections -- in the first : killer wah effects from Trey and a totally punchy
arrangement of the background vocals, the second section then features a slower
harder groove with everyone singing with a gospel's conviction : "Saw it
Again!". An absolutely killer rock and roll song. (Oh, and Trey was yelling
about being on the back of the worm again during this one also).
"Dirt" followed, a Beatles-y sounding ballad that was maybe placed a little
closer to the also-slow "Funny" than I would've preferred. "Dirt" has a nice
instrumental ending with Trey following the lyric melody. Of all the songs that
seem appropriate for the mention of worms, "Dirt" didn't get one.
Next, they broke into the old bag of tricks and pulled out a magical "Reba" --
Trey was just soaring as Chris K. began involving the stained glass for the
first time (lighting up the glass from behind with pulses of light). Which
brings me to a digression...is Trey God?
"Dog Stole Things closed" out the exhaustive 89-minute set. This is a standard
rocker that doesn't seem like it has much room to go anywhere -- the groove
didn't even seem that cool, kind of flat? Maybe Trey isn't God.
OK, now set 2 is just beyond my ability to be objective. Being in Amsterdam
brings with it certain advantages, and those advantages tend to manifest
themselves most instensely during a setbreak, etc. So take my review with a
grain of salt (or whatever's handy)..
First, Fishman stepped out alone on stage and walked over to Page's electric
piano and started playing a little repetitive ditty. At first I thought that it
was actually Jon Medeski (MMW was playing a week later at a Dutch jazz festival)
because Fishman looks like him, now with his crewcut. This is the first time
I've heard Fishman play keyboards in a way that is listenable. Improvement is a
good thing.
The rest of the guys then came out and Trey began the opening to Timber while
Fishman made his way back to his set. Timber Ho was just ridiculous -- Trey
busting out otherworldly noises and fat chunks, with killer support from the
Chairman of the Boards.
I was floored that my favorite cover tune of theirs (Timber) would be followed
by one of my favorite originals : "Bathtub Gin"! In 45 shows I have only seen
Bathtub 3 times, so I'm still totally batty when they start into it. This
version is truly a Top5 of all Time type affair -- full on synthoslinky bass
from Mike at one point that will blow your mind when you hear the tape.
Timber Ho and Bathtub = 25 minutes
The "Bathtub" jam then led into a slow sex-groove jam version of "Cities" --
slowed down considerably. In fact, the Bathtub jam was just kind of going
along, slowing down and what have you, and then Trey just kept hammering this
one chord slower and slower (it was the Cities chord, but with the effects it
sounded totally different) and then eventually he just spoke into the mic
"Think of London...." and the roof came down.
Aside from playing it at such a slow beat, they were leaving a lot of space
around the music (not spacy, but spare) in "Cities" and the initial part of the
jam followed this effect. Sort of a slow blues feel, again, with nice space
around the music. The blues feel then sort of absorbed the psychedelic vibe in
the room and began mutating into a jam that reminded me of the liquid blues feel
that they had on the 35-minute "Free" from 11/22/95 Landover MD.
Eight minutes into "Cities" the jam loses the more straightahead feeling of the
blues jam and sinks down into another wash of sounds from Mike and Page
"volume swell jam" from the legendary Providence 12.29.94 Bowie -- massive
blocks of sound swelling out and in, sometimes with simulated Doppler effect.
undescribable directions. At one point, when the jam was getting that weeble
wobble feel, Trey yelled out (again) : "I think you know where you are....you're
on the back of the worm!!!!"...to everyone's bewilderment (again).
So, 20 minutes after "Cities" began we're still rolling with this whacked jam
happening and no clear direction in sight. It was sweet! Cities wound up
clocking in at 23 minutes, but it's hard to tell if the last 15 minutes might
have been something distinct. The back of the worm jam, perhaps? Raging
versions of "Loving Cup" and "Slave" closed out the set (not a weak link in set
2!!). Could've sworn they were putting more emphasis on "Oh...what a beautiful
buzz. What a beautiful BUD!" Ahh, Amsterdam....
"Circus Comes to Town" seemed like an appropriately laid-back encore for such an
exhausting evening.
Sent home for a night of rest, we were psyched that we still had one more to go.
And one block away from the venue is The Bulldog coffeeshop as well as several
other lesser-known establishments, so of course, we all had plenty to do before
the next show.
Jon W.
back in SF, CA
------------------------------
Kevin Shewan
Paradiso - Amsterdam 1st July 1997
Okay so the first night I'd slept in a bed for nearly a week ended
suddenly when the alarm clock went off at 7.30 am and I got up to set off
to Amsterdam. I flew from Manchester airport and arrived in Schipol about
2.30 pm. Once in Amsterdam I made my way to the Bulldog Hotel on the
Oudezijds Voorburgwal (or Red Light district). I checked in and was told
that my bed didn't have a locker so I had to leave my bag in the safe. I
went to my room and put my sheets on the bed and set off to the AUB to get
my tickets. Stopping only briefly at the Cafe Homegrown I made my way down
to the Leidersplien and stood in a queue of phishheads getting their
tickets. I then set off to have a few and get in the mood for the show.
The venue opened at around 8 pm and Phish came on at 9.30. I made my way
down to about 6 feet from the front on Fishman's side (I always seem to
end up on Fishman's side - I don't know why!). The band came on and
started the way they meant to go on. The first track was Story of the
Ghost which I think is my favourite of the new songs but this wasn't like
the previous version, it lasted for over 20 minutes. It looked like we
were in for another Amsterdam Jam out show. I remember the guy behind me
saying Horn just seconds before the band started playing it and then they
did Ya Mar.
Next came four new songs, but I didn't realise it until I looked at my
list later. Maybe because I'd heard two of them before or maybe because
they had softened us up with the long jammed out Ghost and two oldies.
Anyway Limb was first. I still think this sounds like an oldie - I think
it's the way the lyrics start off the song. They were Funny as it seems
and Twist around which I hadn't heard before and then Dirt which is really
growing on me (That's not a Glastonbury pun btw)
Reba was just excellent, and lasted nearly 20 minutes itself. Right at
the end Trey had to have a drink of water in order to attempt the
whistling bit and while he was doing that the audience decided he needed
some help and whistled it for him. Smiling he waved them down and started
himself much to everyone's enjoyment. Dog Stole things closed up the hour
and a half first set. I do like this song but I think it will always be a
throw away number like Ginseng or Rockytop.
At this point it was 11 pm and I remember thinking as I headed off to the
bar, "I was on my way home at this time after the Albert Hall".
The start of the second set half an hour later was strange, Fishman
suddenly appeared from Page's side and sat down at the electric piano and
bashed out a little ditty. The rest of the band came on and Page had to
chase the little bloke away. As he wandered back to his kit the band
started off Timber Ho! - they played this and the next song Bathtub gin
last time they were in Amsterdam. Someone once posted a theory on
rec.music.phish that certain venues inspire the band in certain ways and
they often play the same song's there each time - I can see that.
After Bathtub they jammed on and this in turn suddenly became Cities. This
Cities wasn't like the version in London, it was much slower and was
almost unrecognisable as a Talking Heads song. After Trey did the vocal
section the jam/song kept going and eventually lasted about 25 minutes.
The set then closed with Lovin cup (my first) and Slave. The band came
back and encored with Circus which was a bit strange but we were sent off
into the Amsterdam night after a show that lasted almost 3 hours (The
second longest show I've attended). It was about 1 am when we staggered
out in the cool of the night.
I wandered off towards the hotel and had to pass the spot where I was
mugged at knifepoint 9 months and 3 visits previously and even though I
knew the guy was doing 3 years it still put the shits up me! Luckily I was
following 3 or 4 other heads so I didn't feel too alone. To be honest the
only thing I had with me that I cared about losing was the ticket for the
second night!!!!
Back at the hotel I climbed the obligatory 3 sets of steep stairs up to my
room, pausing only to get my bag out of the safe to put my wallet etc.
into it for safety. On arrival in my room I found it in total darkness but
it soon became clear that the bed I thought was mine had someone else in
it.
"That's my bed" I said
"que?" came the reply
Eventually it became clear that I was going to have to put the light on
and annoy everybody, so I did! At this point I found that all the beds in
the room were full so I wandered back down to reception.
"There's someone in my bed" I said "Ah yes there would be - sorry about
that, come with me I'll find you another bed" was the response.
I was duly found another bed and spent 10 minutes trying to put the sheets
on in the dark. Curiously the pillow was two sizes too big for the
pillowcase! Eventually I got into bed and the next thing I knew it was 10
am the following morning.
-----------------------------------------------