3-1-03 - Greensboro Coliseum, Greensboro, NC

Date: Sun, 30 Mar 2003 22:21:57 EST
From: JasonBuddy@aol.com
Subject: Greensboro 3/1/03

This was an all-around awesome show.  other than a little mishap with my
friend nik and a security guy, the preshow had a good feel.  the crowd had
a lot of energy before we even got in so we were all more then ready for
the boys to come on stage.  when the lights went down a rush of happieness
seemed to blanket the entire crowd. 

CHALKDUST:  very tight. i knew from the begining that we were in for an
amazing night.  they played off of eachother well and mike and jon had
some good complimenting going on. a somewhat predictable opener but hey i
was glad to hear a classic.

THE MOMA DANCE: my friends andy, nik, and carrie had predicted that this
would come up at some point in time. when it did we all felt it.  VERY
funky and i thought that it was a good length. not too short or too long. 
very well done.

FOAM:  wow... they played this song perfectly.  trey tore the shit out of
this song.  i couldn't believe what i was hearing. this song REALLY let me
know that it was gonna be a kick ass show.

LAWN BOY:  good to see this song.  it was chill and a chance to sit down
while page entertained us.  when he grabbed treys mic it was pretty cool.

CHARACTER ZERO:  great song. a lot of people don't like it but i cant seem
to figure out why. it had a lot of energy and trey took it away. im glad
they played it despite its criticism.  its a good song for leading into a
masterpeice like...

DIVIDED SKY:  HOLLLY SHIT!  i love this song! it was unbelivable to hear
them, but i thought it was slave in the first moment.  no real flukes here
as there could have been in a song like this.  the glow-stick war blew my
mind.  there was SOOO much energy in that place.  trey and mike caught a
few and tossed them back.  a good moment.  when they came back in they
just flowed. the rest of the song was smooth as butter.  i loved it. 
easily one of the best songs of the night.

MIST: really chill.  a good catch-your-breath tune. i sat down and just
let the music do all the work. i might have chosen another song to follow
divided sky but well played.

WAVES: another chill, but great song.  i was glad to hear some new phish. 
i wasnt sure how they were going to play it but they surprised me by doing 
it really well.

SAMPLE: rockin song! good song to go out on.  once again a song that a lot
of people dont like but screw them cus it was good.  nice closer. it
really brought a good end to the first set.

SET I:  i thought that they did an amazing job in the first set. they knew
what they were doing and were on top of things.  i wouldnt changed a
moment.

not too long of a set break.  everyone was just kinda walkin around and we
were all thinkin "ya theyre on tonight" when the lights went down the
second time the fun really began.

ROCK AND ROLL: awesome.  it was one of the coolest versions id heard in a
while. a good song to come back with. itgot everyone pumped.

WILSON: the place nearly exploded on the first note.  i was surprised to
hear it. pleasently at that.  wilson is a great classis phish song.  im
glad they pulled it out.  it was a really good one too. high energy. -->

PIPER:  probably the best piper in a long time.  energy like crazy.  as
carrie would say it was "mack dawg" they really jammed it out and its a
good thing.  the build was unbelivable seeing as trey didnt go off too
much. great piper.

ALSO SPRACH ZARATHUSTRA:  as soon as they started playing ambient stuff my
thoughts were either 2001 or down with disease.  i was just chillin and
then all of the sudden fish kicked the beat out and i lost it. not just me
everyone.  iv heard better 2001's but i wasn't disapointed at all.  it
could have used a tad more phunk but it still pumped me up.  thank god for
chris karoda.  the fog and lights always make 2001 unforgetable.

WOLFMANS BROTHER:  good transition. page played the first chord and then
we were all in the groove. awesome song, well played, couldnt ask for
more. mike had some incredible shit that he was playin and then he started
to tease into... no way...

BOOGIE ON RAGGAE WOMAN:  hell ya! this song is one of my favorite covers. 
mikes 70s porno funk effect was crazy.  the groove was just right.

WADING IN THE VELVET SEA: this song is great.  the whole place jut chilled
out while phish carried us to new levels.  smooth solo for trey. i felt
it.

RUN LIKE AN ANTELOPE:  now THIS was crazy.  they built and built and kept
on building. so much tension and such good energy. one of the better
antelopes iv heard. fish was so on in this song. and then when he was
introduced as marco, it became an even better song.

CAROLINA:  they had me thinking that it was the end of set II but then
they walked to the mic and i knew what was comin. A CAPELLA! wow i couldnt
beleive that we got one and it fit seeing as we were in north carolina.
they sang really well as usual and THEN i was ready for the set to end.

SET II:  unbelievable.  there was a lot of energy in this set and they
just perfected all of the songs.  well done.

ENCORE: i knew we were gonna get something good.  but i didnt dream for
what we got.

FIRST TUBE: they know how to please the crowd.  this song is so pumpin and
treys bouncin only adds to it.  great groove song. amazing energy in the
end. perfect. then they ended it and trey said something to jon.
1...2...3...4

YEM!!!!!!!!!!!!   THIS WAS IT! the perfect end to an awesome night.  they
played it flawlussly save treys BOY, MAN, SHIT, SHIT. but it got a good
laugh.  then the funk came on. and to top it off TRAMPOLINES! no way this
isnt happening.  me and my friends looked at eachother like no fucking
way!  the vocal jam was awesome and then proud marry!  this was a yem to
remember.

a great show. im glad i went.



-jason kincaid

Date: Tue, 04 Mar 2003 15:11:16 -0500
From: dvs2@georgetown.edu
Subject: GBror Review

First of all, despite the rain, looked like there was a pretty decent 
lot scene with a decent Shakedown, but I was waiting in line since 2PM 
so I couldn't experience it unfortunately.

Second of all, this venue was huge. Monsterous. I was worried about the 
sound, but being on the front row right in front of Mister Michael 
Gordon, I didn't have to worry about that. Boys took the stage and Trey 
and Page gave me huge smiles and nods when I held up my BROTHER sign 
for all to here. Thought maybe they'd play it. There were song signs 
EVERYWHERE! My friend had a PEACHES sing next to me, there was a 
BLOWJOBS 4 GUMBO banner, a STIIIILLLL WAITING banner, a TMWSIY sign 
(although they held it up and yelled obnoxiously during Mist, so I told 
them to shut up), and a huge Camel wearing tennis shoes banner for 
Camel Walk. Awesome stuff. 

On to the show. I predicted Chalkdust or PYITE as opener, and for the 
4th time I've seen Chalkdust open a show. I will never complain about 
it either. This one ripped. Probably about 8 minutes long, and the most 
solid straight up Chalkdust I've ever seen (i've seen pretty much most 
of the jammed out CDTs-7/10/99, 7/15/99, and 1/2/03 in recent years). 
You coudl tell right from the get go that these boys were gonna be ON 
FIRE tonight. Peaked well and into the final refrain.


MOMA was next. Hadn't seen this song since before hiatus, so I was 
very very happy. Anything with Mike playing a prominent role makes me 
happy, but he was prominent the ENTIRE SHOW. THIS WAS THE SHOW OF MIKE 
GORDON. Not just because I was standing in front of him. But he was 
leading EVERY jam, especially in Set 2, and even in Trey-dominated 
songs like Antelope, he pulled the jam into D-major once and was 
playing some ridiculous stuff underneath the soloing. I mean real 
dissonant, technical shit. He knew he was on too. He kept looking at me 
when Trey would be soloinng and I'd be fixated on him. He knew it. He 
was on. MOMA was short and to the point, which I prefer. Jammed out 
Momas aren't for me. I like them tight and funky.

FOAM was next!!!! After the Hampton Massacre, I was hoping they'd 
redeem themselves. And boy did they. This was flawless. Trey soloed so 
confidently over the changes, and the composed parts were done 
beautifully. Excellent. This song can be a train wreck if screwed up. 
No complaints here. I love this tune.

LAWN BOY to follow. Anytime Page gets to come to the center of the 
stage and belt out some lines, I'm a happy man. He's so cute (hey, come 
on, he is). 

CHARACTER ZERO. Looked at my watch and it was only 35-40 minutes into 
the set so I was thrilled. A mid-set Zero is fun and you know it's not 
ending the set, so whatever. Take it for what it is. Trey cumming on 
his guitar. It was fun. I've seen it 4 shows straight now. Whatever, 
it's still fun.

DIVIDED SKY!! Wheeeeeeeeeee!!!! This one was gorgeous and the glowstick 
war was more massive than anything I'd ever experienced before. In the 
upper deck, these fiery red-orange glowsticks erupted all at once when 
the pause started. Seriously the crowd was freaking nuts at this point. 
Trey caught a couple glowsticks, Mike caught one and didn't look amused 
(does he ever? haha), and we were back into the swing of things. Much 
better than the NYE Divided Sky, which, quite honestly, wasn't quite as 
good as many people think.

MOUNTAINS IN THE MIST. This song is beautiful, and it sure as hell is 
better than a Dreams or Anything But Me. I didn't feel like this killed 
any momentum. It's a pretty tune with fascinating lyrics.

WAVES: Best tune of Round Room, and much happier this was played than 
another Pebbles and Marbles or something. Short and segued nicely into

-> SAMPLE: Fine with me! Go out rocking.

Overall, a solid solid first set. nothing earth-shattering. No 
unbelievable jams. But god damnit was it well played. it was energetic. 
and the boys KNEW they were on top of their game. Seriously, they knew.
I had high hopes for Set 2 and I wasn't disappointed.

ROCK AND ROLL: It was alllllllright baby. They began to take this jam 
out there, and I thought we might get a 9/17/00 affair where it melted 
into Theme, but Trey brought it back to the main theme and that was 
that. 10-12 minutes of pure joy.

I've never been so excited to hear a WILSON. Jesus Christ. I like my 
Wilsons short and raging, and this was just that. 

Here's where the set took off:
PIPER: THE BEST DAMN PIPER THEY HAVE PLAYED IN A LONG LONG LONG TIME.
Piper is often, or at least on this tour, an excuse for Trey to go off 
for 10-15 minutes. There was NO Trey solo in this version, thank GOD!! 
It reminded me of the collective groove they had going in 1997. Mike 
dominated this jam and totally led it. Finally! This is EXACTLY what I 
was looking for out of 2003 Phish. This was a piece of art. It was 
intense, even if it was mellow. It was intensely mellow like 12/30/98 
Set II (Disease especially). If you've heard that, you know what I"m 
atlking about. Jesus Christ, I could have walked out right there and 
been happy. As the jam began to creep into space, I knew 2001 would 
come out.

Sure enough, Fish kicks the drum beat..

-> 2001. I've been wanting this since the last time I saw it in Philly 
99. It's been way too long. I lost my mind. The lights. The lights. 
The lights. The lights.

> Wolfman's Brother. Believe it or not, this was my first Wolfman's, 
and although I never really liked the song, I always appreciate the jam 
that comes out of it. This version converted me. I love the song now 
hahaha. the jam was short but christ was it funky! Again, Mike was 
ALL OVER this jam. I thought they were gonna keep funking it out until 
they took it into Sneaking Sally, but Mike had other plans, and at 
about 8-9 minutes, he totally switched keys taking it right into...

-> BOOGIE ON! Oh my God, Mike had this crazy porno-funk effect going on 
his bass. I've never heard him play Boogie On (or anything for that 
matter) with this effect before! Is it new? He had it again during the 
bass solo going into the YEM vocal jam. It's like SUPER envelope 
filter + Meatball + crazy shit. It was tight. Short Boogie On. Thank 
you. I'm not a fan of the 9/18/99 Boogie On or lengthy ones for some 
reason.

VELVET SEA. As long as it's not an encore, I have no qualms with this 
tune. Page was really really into it, so that made me happy.

ANTELOPE. Mindfuckelope. Good lord. Trey was very active in the pre-
jam section, and Mike ruled the jam. They pulled it into major 
territory so much I thought they could drop a Have Mercy on us or 
something. But Mike jumps back to E-minor and provides the foundation 
for Trey to explode. And explode it did. This Antelope was crazy. 
Seriously. crazy.

CAROLINA. Just when you thought the set ended, out they step to the 
front of the stage to do acapella! YAY!!!!! Seriously, they sing REALLY 
well when they're doing barbershop. Soemtimes I wonder why they dont' 
always sing like that haha. 

Oh the encore...always a guessing game this tour. Would it be Friday? 
Anything But Me? Golgi and done?

FIRST TUBE!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YES!!!!!!!!!!!! First one post-hiatus and I 
couldn't have been happier to hear this song. I LOVE it. You can retire 
Jiboo and Sand, but give me my FIRST TUBE BABY!!!!! Trey jumping up 
and down like usual and being the guitar god that we all aspire to be. 
For me, this would have been a wonderful way to end the tour.

But....Trey goes over to Fishman..I'm thinking "sweet! A bonus Golgi or 
Cavern!" oh no..ohhhhhh no you don't...I've missed this song by 1 show 
for the past 3 years...you're not really going to are you? are you 
serious? 

1..2..1, 2, 3, 4 
YEM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Page saw me practically jump over the railing at the start of this one, 
and gave me a huge laugh. Composed part done very very well. Anyone 
else notice that Trey sustains the "NOTE" the 1st time around and solos 
the 2nd now, rather than vice versa as he had always done? 

AHHHHHH BOY!!!! MAN!!!!! SHIT!!! SHIT!!!!! hahahahahaha. Who fucks up 4 
words that they've been singing since 1985? hahahaha i love Ernesto G. 
the III. hahahaha he looked thouroghly embarrassed. Seriously, who 
forgets God hahahahahaah. Awesome. I love lyric flubs. This was a great 
one. 

Jammy jam...Another One Bites the Dust post-tramp section. This was 
fucking sweet. Not quite as pronounced as the 9/14/99 Gumbo, but we all 
knew what it was. Nice Trey solo, then porno-funk Mike slaps it out 
until...

Washa Uffize Drive Me to Firenze. Vocal jam started out in sync to the 
spinning lights ( i love you CK5). Then they start getting on 
the "whoooa whooa whooa" theme they like to do. EXCEPT...this one 
devolved into PROUD MARY!!! A more or less full rendition of PROUD MARY 
in the vocal jam!!!! You kidding me???? YES!!!!! 

I walked out of this show happier than ever. Granted most of the songs 
were repeats, granted Wolfman's and Carolina were the only 2 songs I'd 
never seen before, but who the hell cares. This show raged, and Mike 
was so prominent and so dominant at times that I lost my mind. That's 
what I look for in Phish. Collective groove. This show had it in the 
2nd set, and the 1st set was just solid well-played Phish. A 35 minute 
encore 1st Tube>YEM is just more than one can ask for. 

Thank you for an amazing tour. Philly was fun too, although this show 
kicked Philly in the balls and sent it into its corner where it 
belongs. 

Salvo

Date: Tue, 04 Mar 2003 03:31:51 -0500
From: Lutz lutzda0@wfu.edu
Subject: review of 3-01-03 (sorry it took so long)

I normally post under blutz@covad.net or sometimes wakkondot, but this
is my school addy

3-1-03

1: Chalk Dust Torture, Moma Dance, Foam, Lawn Boy,
Character Zero, Divided Sky, Mist,
Waves, Sample in a Jar

2: Rock and Roll, Wilson, Piper, Also Sprach
Zarathustra, Wolfman's Brother, Boogie
on Reggae Woman, Wading in the Velvet Sea, Run Like an
Antelope, Carolina

E: First Tube, You Enjoy Myself>Proud Mary

Well, how do i start this long review? how about at 3AM on friday night.
after checking out rmp and finding out that they played destiny, i
called up longtime show goer salvo of rmp fame and discussed. Anyways,
me and my buddy Hugh left Wake at 3AM with jello shots for the lots. we
arrived there to see many dixie chicks fans awaiting their show to go on
sale. we wandered around, inside and outside of the arena, checking out
all possible ways to get in fastest. we talked to a groundskeeper and
set up our bags at a lower entrance. There we slept, on the concrete,
determined to get front row - for as all my fellow rail lovers know -
once you see a show there, nothing else is acceptable. We slept there
for about 4 hours, to be moved by the cold and security to another
location. Long story short, we kicked it alone at the collesium for
about 14 hours prior to the show. if that is not determination, i don't
know what is. So eventually we make our way to the main gate. This is at
about 1 and we had eaten some mickey d's along there somewhere. We were
cold, tired, yet managed to make friends with Blithe, and a few other
nice folk. We met up with Salvo there, thought about predictions, etc. 
Unfortunately, the man opening the gate opened the left side first, thus
eliminating our 12 hours of waiting for a front row seat. DOH! somehow i
managed to sit through the line and make my sign - alas not a slave sign
this time, bc of the philly show, but instead a peaches. I knew they
wouldn't play it, but hey, if youre gonna go, you gotta make a sign. So,
i sprint in, and somehow, i dont know how, get front row rail in front
of Cactus himself...great place to be.

enough pre-show info, heres the real review...

Set I

Chalkdust: Salvo Called the opener. Very high energy - I noticed Fish
playing well and you can even hear it through the tapes. They lost their
way at one point, but managed to kick back into it fairly strong. The
main idea was how much energy they had. This Chalkdust was rather long -
trey threw in some major rippage and although there wasn't a huge peak,
it was good enough to let me know that we were in for a stellar show...
very high energy!!! Front row was the place to be where you can control
the band by giving it your all...

Moma Dance: Not expecting this one yet it was performed well i remember.
I remember the sound being very very crisp. much more than both nights
of cincy. This one was really it, this is what did it. Man i've never
seen a moma like this, they were really really on at this point - more
so than hampton although it was too early to compare to pre-hiatus
shows. anytime fish is singing at the end of moma, thats a good sign.

Foam: Now i really don't like Foam. and my 1-3-03 review of foam shows
that it can get me excited, but this one...well, i was really not
looking forward to, however, however, trey NAILED his part. dang, they
must have practiced it, it sounded 90's esque, which is quite rare. I
really noticed what he does with his part, it is absolutely nuts. do
yourself a favor and examine the tabs and see what trey plays for this
song. There's a reason why trey calls it the hardest in their repetoire.
Anyway, the playing was fascinating, so crisp and clear, no real flubs,
and high energy, even for a FOAM! Trey was hitting the high notes, no
flubs this time, man and page was on fire too...wow. at this point i
looked at salvo and knew 'twas over

Lawn Boy: Lawn boy, yah yah i've seen it a billion times, but page
seemed a little more into it this time. ok at this point - take note -
Mike started his dominance of the show. I mean, i was right next to him,
but wow, he DOMINATES this show, he is everywhere, i'm talking april 92
levels here. anyways, page stood up and whatnot, it was good but i was
paying attention to the groove machine...gotta hate 17 year old girls
who sing instead of page though

Zero: A muffled intro, not a bad zero. quite the energy level. that is
really what its all about for songs like that, who cares if they rip it
right...there's always a better version, as long as they're playin hard
it'll lead to better jams later. this version had a fair amount of
intensity

Divided Sky: Now if you listen to the first 1 second, Trey is definately
playing Slave to the Traffic light. this caused me to leap out of my
seat and have mike look at me. It was a let-down but i mean, divided sky
isn't that bad either. Mike was everywhere in this version, i just
couldn't believe how on he was...man. At the glowstick part, these
fire-like glowsticks appeared in the back left and lit up the arena, it
was by far the nastiest glowar indoors i've seen post-hiatus. there
weren't any flubs at all though, which is always good. There were some
problems in the mid-late section, but otherwise they nailed most of it.
I heard lots of Waves soloing stuff from trey, so i called that
later...good version - Fish was nailing his touches which is great for
me to watch.

Mist: Ahhh. I love slow songs anymore and Mist is a great one imo. Being
up close really just makes the experience so intense, i really felt like
the whole band was into this one, you could see it on their faces.
version wise i'm sure there's better but man this just seemed so honest
and true, an excellent choice I thought and the playing was meaningful.

Waves: Yes. I love this new song, it's my favorite by far and was
dissapointed at not being able to hear it in cincy bc chi-town stole it.
this version wasn't ecspecially great in my opinion, but i was soooooo
excited to hear it it didn't matter. I just don't get how people don't
like it...oh well. Like everyone else says, watch out, eventually they
will NAIL this with like a 30 minute version and blow a show apart. I
was pretty damn happy from hearing this and didnt expect:

Sample: man. that A chord confused me again. Once again i thought -
SLAVE! DOHHHH. another sample, i could really get along wihtout sample.
It was pretty good but i thought the cincy version was much much better.
anyways, you could tell that it was a good set. and LONG! that's always
a good sign. when they leave early, you can never tell. Annoying girl
sang again during sample.
setbreak i didn't move...i couldn't improve my spot, so why bother?

Set II
Rock & roll: YES! this is the kinda song selection i want. They nailed
this one. Man mike was everywhere, the whole band was on fire! Me and
salvo knew what was up. We were jumpin trying to get trey onto it. I got
several looks from him, and they upped their play immediately. Things
didn't really start to jump in intensity until i'd say about halfway
through there, then at one point they just upped it, into a different
gear...Fish increased his speed i guess and then we were off to a set of
craziness. trey was very very much on and using the crowd as was mike.
Great Type-I jam in here, it really was nice ot hear them play like that
again. Mike was grooving.

Wilson: Again, like sample, i couldn't really be bothered by another
short rocker, the rock and roll showed me that they were on so i didn't
mind the wilson which normally i would've been frustrated with. anyways,
regular wilson but then...

PIPER: WOW. Definately the song of the show. This was the best piper
i've heard in terms of exploring and it was very very very well founded.
Mike laid down some great grooves in here. Trey picked up quickly and
Fish was going back and forth on this cowbell beat, damn it was nasty.
Check this one out, i really can't explain the ideas they were bringing
about here, it was just one after the other. GREAT PIPER - made the
show, wow, it was really really good. Man they were listening to
eachother really well, you could tell. Perfection really, a perfect
piper in my opinion. The best comparison i can give is a latin-funk beat
dominated by mikes groove but essentially set up by fish's use of the
snare. please check this one out, it it nuts

2001: salvo was screaming at this point to the band - "2001! we know you
are going ot play it, just do it now". so they did. he freaked, it was a
pretty good 2001, not very long but mike was just so on fire that it
didn't matter. i just LOVED watching him move up and down on the
fretboard, he was out there, man not a single bad note. the lights were
amazing as they alwasy are when youre close

Wolfmans: more spotlight on mike. people say page was on tonight, but
damn MIke was the man, we all knew it. listen to your tapes when you get
them...i am sure he is everywhere. absoluetly everywhere, filling left
and right. This had some typical 99 trey-chords from sneakin sally and
wolfmans, reminscent of Oswego, except mike was SO ON! WOW! he
completely led it into....

Boogie On: This is notable because mike turns on the effect that is on
the original stevie wonder album. if you don't know what i'm talking
about, check it out, it sounded EXACTLY like the album and fits it so
much better. A shout out to my friend Dre who helped move the momentum
at this point - trey was staring into his soul and grinning. What a
funny scene.

Wading: Oh god. I absoluetely hate this song, every time they play it.
there is no exception save cypress. i hate it, i will never like it and
this version i just sat there, i mean, i just don't get why they play
it. anyways, i just hurried them into 

Antelope: you knew it was coming. This climax was similar to 12-29-97
which i'm particulalry fond of - just straight up NOISE!
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH Climax. good ending but a little short, overall
pretty good antelope, better than most. Fishman had a little solo in
here it was pretty funny

Caroline: great a capella part in here. thats always the sign of a good
show

encore

First Tube: I liked it but was hoping for more and then...

YEM: OH MY GOD!! YEM!! OH MY GOD!!! this was nuts. we were not expecting
this one...at ALL! everyone freaked out. i couldn't believe it. What a
great great great surprise. This version is particularly crisp too. You
should check it out. They brought back the B+D segment and Mike grooved
throughout. They also teased another one bites the dust ala 9-14-99. The
vocal jam actually materialized into a song, thats rare anymore so it
seems, but it was very very well played

What a show! what an event. man i miss front row shows! you really need
to get this show just for the piper, it was sweet, plus i think this was
by far the best show i have ever seen mike play in 20 shows. He was
everywhere, maybe its just my placement in front of him, but listen to
your downloaded shn's, he is no doubt everywhere in this one. Great
show. thanks for readin, i know it was a long review... and yeah i
really did sleep over
hit me back with pictures if you got em

unfortunatamente i will be in peru most likely for summer tour - enjoy
it all

~ SlavePhanLutz
(dave)

Date: Thu, 6 Mar 2003 12:42:03 -0500
From: Kelli Okuma kbokuma@mchsi.com
Subject: Greensboro

This is the first review I have ever written, but then this is one of the funnest
shows I have ever seen.  Not too many treats out of the ordinary for me except for
Foam, Carolina, and Proud Mary, but this was the perfect show considering that it
was the only one in the south.  Of course they have to throw in some of the
favorites like Character Zero, Sample and Wading, but everything was perfectly
placed and perfectly played.  Nasty ass Divided Sky, Foam, Wilson, Piper,
Antelope, YEM and everything else was awesome too.  I was a little surprised
Pebbles and Marbles didn't come out though, but Waves was nice.  The boys know
exactly what they are doing and they hit me very deep with this show.  What a
memorable show!  When do we get to see Phish again?  Man wouldn't another 3 day
Phish festival be nice this summer?

Date: Thu, 06 Mar 2003 14:31:35 +0000
From: Michael Marks jawaka202@hotmail.com
Subject: 3/1/03 Greensboro

I have to put my two cents in on the "messed up lyrics" in YEM.  I'm a 
Yankee living in North Carolina and one thing that I learned pretty quick 
was that this is a very Christian culture down here.  Phrases like "Jesus H. 
Christ" and "God damn" are much worse to say in the South than the "F" word. 
  It's silly, but true.  My opinion is that they left out the "God" lyric so 
as not to offend anyone in the audience that may take offence to that.  In 
Charlotte, the religious community was successful in getting Howard Stern 
off the air and maybe Phish didn't want to get a bad reputation with the 
people running the Greensboro Coliseum.  Who knows, someone like Billy 
Graham or Pat Robertson may have some financial interest in the arena.  It's 
not as far fetched as you might think.

The rest of my review is on another section of this page.

God bless,

Rev. Richard Spurtz

Date: Wed, 5 Mar 2003 08:18:53 -0800 (PST)
From: chong yim 
To: dws@phish.net
Subject: review 3-01-03

I drove back from the Greensboro show enveloped in a
soupy fog, a bit tired and entirely satisfied. It
seemed like I had been waiting forever to see the boys
come alive again, and beyond that instant of light and
music, I had a bittersweet epiphany. Phish connects me
to a time when the world was more innocent. Before we
knew the fragility of our sense of security. Before
the warning lights had turned us into cattle. Phish is
a sweet release from this barbed wire mesh, if only
for a short while. 

One of my companions had been dreaming of Chalkdust
ever since we had the tickets in hand. So when Trey
started stroking the first notes...I felt giant sparks
of energy from everyone around me. I was hoping for a
My Soul opener, but CHALKDUST got the crowd in the
right frame of mind for the ridiculous set to follow.
The boys definitely brought some funk into the MOMA
DANCE. It's not my favorite tune, but choosing between
songs is like choosing between Kool-Aid and Sunny D.
Either way, you win. FOAM was a nice old school song
to throw into the rotation, and Page was sounding
mighty fine as usual. One of my friends had bought a
Lawnboy shirt earlier that day, so the LAWNBOY was a
nice treat. Which brings me to CHARACTER ZERO...Why
all this playa-hatin' on this tune? Sorry. I mean, why
am I hearing negative comments about the song? I know
it is one of "those" songs that appeals to everyone
with ears, but is that a bad thing? Can't we all just
get along? I love the song, and it got me bouncing up
and down entirely too much. Divided Sky was the best
song of the first set. Period. I haven't heard
something that beautiful since Clinton was in
office...such a long, long time ago. MIST and WAVES
were nice, but I haven't quite developed a flavor for
them. But I'm sure that I will. SAMPLE was a nice
crowd-pleaser and a good change of pace from WAVES.
End of first set: sweaty, disoriented, ears ringing,
grinning like a madman. Excellent.

The second set was a fantasy set. ROCK AND ROLL is
always a great tune. But I started feeling the tingles
during WILSON. It really is a spectacle to hear an
entire venue shouting "Wilson!" at the top of their
lungs. By the way, the orange glowsticks (you know the
ones) were causing me severe joy throughout the show.
PIPER is the name of my car, so I always root for a
good one. The long jam during PIPER was some of the
best atonal noodling from Trey that I have heard in a
while. 2001 (or sprchtengustenoodle zathustrachastra)
is one of my favorite concert songs. They always use
this song to turn it up a notch on the lights. It
really had my buddies moving like Richard Simmons in a
blender. WOLFMAN'S BROTHER was a nice sing-along. But
REGGAE WOMAN was making me move muscles that I haven't
used in...well, a long time. VELVET SEA is one of my
favorite songs. I am a sucker for Phish ballads, and
this one was beautiful. I had a feeling that they were
going to play ANTELOPE. It was the one song I was
expecting all night. And it's always a great
set-closer. The climaxes in the song were driving me
crazy. CAROLINA (predictable but wonderful,like the
X-Files.) End of second set: drenched in perspiration,
dangerously dehydrated, imminent bladder explosion,
grinning like a madman. Most Excellent.

Encore mania. FIRST TUBE is a nice encore. It always
makes me feel strange, like I'm lost in the middle of
a sea of vinegar in a pickle raft. But the YEM was
more than I could hope for. I had three newcomers
along for the ride, and I really wanted a YEM to blow
their minds. The song represents both the seriousness
of their musicianship and the zany eggplant-like humor
that Phish represents. PROUD MARY came down from the
aural limbo and blanketed me like a warm friend. To
quote my friend Joe Bell (first show), "My faith in
humanity is reaffirmed." What more could I say?

Date: Tue, 4 Mar 2003 09:06:02 -0500 
From: "Mulgrew, Julie" MulgrewJ@advisory.com
Subject: my Greensboro review

Shit.  Shit.

Date: Mon, 3 Mar 2003 17:35:26 -0800 (PST)
From: Annie Price anniekm@yahoo.com
Subject: Review 3-1-03

Hello fellow Phish friends.  Although I am worn out
from a difficult day back at work after the fantastic
weekend I feel like I have to put some of my thoughts
out there about Saturday^Òs show.  I am so grateful for
all of the experiences that I have had in the surreal
world of Phish over the years and I am thankful for
all of the positive people that are on the scene who
are there for the music and to share in the collective
groove.  On Saturday our extended circle of Phish
friends were able to all sit together a few rows up
from Page and we were treated to a high energy,
beautifully composed show.  That being said, here are
a few particular highlights for me.  
    I had been thinking about Chalkdust in the days
prior to the show and was hoping for a rocking opener
and this one really fit the bill.  Then my greatest
hope was for the funk to come our way and Moma Dance
helped us to get loose and limber for the rest of the
show.  Foam tickled me because of very silly memories
of a night in Hampton and reinforced how each and
every song has a contingency of fans who cherish it
for their very own reasons and how much we share
between us as a whole without words.  Lawn Boy was
lovely.  I really thought Page was on top of his game
throughout the whole evening. He seemed to bring in a
complexity that helped to tailor the whole show.
Character Zero was solid and enthusiastic and managed
to convert a Zero basher next to me that it is a song
with merit.  I will probably never think that there is
a Divided Sky that will surpass the Gorge in 97 but I
sure enjoyed it on Saturday, it always feels like a
gift to hear it.  Waves was a big show highlight for
me, I had not heard it live yet and found myself
completely enveloped in melody.   Sample is sounding
better than it ever has, I didn^Òt know if I really
ever wanted it back but they proved me so wrong.
     However, the second set is where I believe that
the real action took place.  I couldn^Òt have asked for
a better set opener, Rock n Roll has been the song I
have been waiting to hear for awhile. I always happen
to miss it and to be so close to Page and remember how
it felt to first get turned onto rock and roll in
general was a buzz in itself.  The versions of 2001
and Antelope were up there for me as some of the very
best that I have heard, I could have taken a tad more
funk on 2001 but it was really very well played
throughout. I really didn^Òt want it to end at all, and
it seemed as if  they felt the same way. The First
Tube and YEM encore was so well done and the lights
and the Proud Mary vocal jam enhanced it immensely. 
Trey and Mike were dialed in on their trampolines.  I
must say that I was almost nervous about returning to
the Phish scene after the hiatus because I feared that
it couldn^Òt possibly contain the same level of
intimacy and raw excitement that it once did. 
However, when the lights go down and the music begins
I feel myself transcend to the place that I have
access to only during a Phish show.  One in which I
can find myself laughing out loud, voyaging to other
areas of my life that bring me happiness, and
loosening places within that are in need of grease.
Today I was once again reminded that nobody outside of
it ever really gets it no matter how you try to
explain it. Even with all of this rambling I still
haven^Òt quite put my finger on exactly why I had such
a good show.  

Annie Price
Blacksburg, VA

Date: Mon, 3 Mar 2003 17:52:53 -0800 (PST)
From: Alex
Subject: 3/1/03 show review ,

03/01/03
Greensboro, NC

1: Chalk Dust Torture, Moma Dance, Foam, Lawn Boy,
Character Zero, Divided Sky, Mist,
Waves, Sample in a Jar

2: Rock and Roll, Wilson, Piper, Also Sprach
Zarathustra, Wolfman's Brother, Boogie
on Reggae Woman, Wading in the Velvet Sea, Run Like an
Antelope, Carolina

E: First Tube, You Enjoy Myself>Proud Mary

After just looking at the setlist, you can already see that this was quite an amazing
show to attend. What made it even more amazing, is that it was my first ever. I had
probabally one of the best nights of my life that night. It was freakin incredible.

I'll start the review by telling all the pre-show crap we saw too, so that i can look
back on this review archive in 50 years and hopefully 500 show later (at least) and
remember my first show and what an amazing night it was.

That morning i had 4 lacrosse games, which i left from in the middle of one of the
games. Thats right, at 11:30, I walked off the field and within thirty minutes we were
on the road to greensboro.

I was so excited that morning that when i got to my friends house to go to the show, I
just started giggling and i couldn't stop for about 15 minutes all from the show. We
got to Greensboro in about 1.5 hours and checked into the hotel and we walked the mile
and a half from the HoJo to the venue.

Now i had heard that the lot scene was cool, but i was completely unprepared for what
i saw we walked around the main tent area for about 15 minutes until we saw all these
people getting busted by narcs, so we headed up at about 4:05 and got in line for the
show.

We were on the far left of the bridge and we were right at the edge of the last metal
fence/ divider. When it started to rain we all put on the empty trash bags and put the
trash cans over our heads, it was really funny. We also met some cool canadian heads
in line too.

About every 15 minutes up until doors, people in line would start cheering and
clapping. The energy level was so high. I just was dancing in line because i was so
excited. So if you saw some big goofy looking guy bouncin around in the line with a
plastic bag and blue and grey toboggan on, it was me.

When they opened the doors, we ran through as fast as possible. Security was so light
at this show, they let me bring in a sandwich. We ran up the hallway and down into the
arena and we got sat down on the floor about 15 feet from the stage, dead center. I
stood up to look at the stage and just started laughing maniacally and yelling.

Up until the show started, there was all sorts of antics. Cool signs being put up,
Crowd waves around the arena, random cheers and clapping fits, lots of laughs, lots of
good people, lots of fun.

When the lights dropped, the real fun began. All of a sudden, the house lights came
down and the stage was covered in this cool blue light. When Trey, Mike, Page, and
Fish walked out, the crowd went nuts. Now for the real fun

8:00ish 

Chalkdust: Perfect opener in my opinion. It really got the energy up high. The lights
were amazing Trey was really ripping it up on this one, he kept pulling everyone else
higher and higher. It was great

Moma Dance: Nice, I love the cow funk. A nice groove that got the whole crowd bobbing
their heads It was a really fun song, and when i turned around and saw 23,000 people
grooving behind me, i just danced as hard as i could.

Foam: Foam!!! no way i thought i would catch one of these. This song is where page
really shined he tore this foam up. it was great

Lawn Boy: Ahhhh perfect placement. I love this song, Page has such a voice. no phatty
bass jam from mike, but it was real tight and sounded great. He is just the coolest
dude when he gets up front singing this one...Ah...olfactory hues indeed

Character Zero: I don't know what everyone was complaining about before. I like this
song, and the solo that trey had brought the energy way up. Very nice selection and
perfectly played

Divided Sky: this was another amazing song. So good sogood sogood. I don't know how
else to describe it, it took me to another level, the lights, the huge glowstick war,
the MUSIC, it all took me to another level, i felt like i was flying through a sky.
btw: my friend caught the glowstick trey threw back. And to the people with the orange
glowsticks: that was the coolest looking thing ever

Mist: didn't know this one, a nice chill song, allow me to catch my breath

Waves: eh, i don't really like this one too much, but they played it well

Sample in a Jar: Ah yes, classic phish rock. I loved it, i called it the set closer
during the show it was so rockin, trey was on fire tonight.

   all in all, damn good set, a nice start on a fine evening, but the second set was
where things were taken to another level. We moved from the floor up to the top of the
second level b/c we were so tired and a guy puked on us, and we wanted to see the
lights and have seats.

10:00ish

Rock and Roll: I didn't know this song either, but it was a nice opener, i was still
so tired so i didn't really dance during this one, i just enjoyed it and chilled. very
good song

WILSON: the song that made me love phish. That E-Chord and the whole crowd was roaring
WILSON it was so loud. It was so cool. I loved it, this got me all my energy back and
more.

Piper: No freakin way, i couldn't believe it, they did this funny jam at the beginning
that made me think that it was just a piper tease, but then they got into it and
jammed it very well not the best piper ever, but quite a good one.

Also Sprach Zarathustra: No Way, i lost it on this one. i was just jumping up and down
in front of my seat, my friend thought i was crazy. oh my god, they were grooving so
hard. And the lights were incredible, on that climax note the wall of fog and white
light. I was about to pee my pants the energy on this freakin skyrocketed.

Wolfmans Brother: SWEET! more funk. they really dug into this one too. I loved every
second of it i don't really remember much more from this song besides the sweet
groove. and then mike hit the bass notes to:

Boogie on Reggae Woman: Insane, i love this song, and this version was really great
imo. Mike just kept going and going. He was really kicking this songs butt. And
hearing 23,000 people yelling "I want to do it to you...until you holler for more" was
cool too.

Wading in the Velvet Sea: What perfect placement. A beautiful song during a beautiful
set.  i loved everyone in that room as well as the rest of the world at that moment. i
would have been more than happy if the show had ended there, but the boys had more
tricks up their sleeves.

Antelope: I jumped out of my seat on the first chord. I started screaming, omg, get
this show just for this antelope. I have heard quite a few antelopes from my
collection of show discs, and they all pale in comparison to this sucker. They just
kept building and building it before the release. Soooo thick, so badass. It was
incredible. I just kept expecting the drop, and it never happend by the last run
through of that part of the song, the room was dripping in tension. I was jumping up
and down, and then they hit it. So good, so so good, unbelievable. GET THIS ANTELOPE

Carolina: i love the barbershop quartet. The whole place got so quiet for this. the
band sounded great, it was the perfect set closer. utter bliss is what i was feeling.

Now time for the most insane encore ever:

First Tube: Sweet!! really jammed and funkified to the max trey tried to set up his
digital delay loop, but it just wasn't working too well with the song. but the other
three lit this up while he was screwing with his effects.

YEM: holy crap. I saw trey turn around and say something to everyone else. I thought
the show was over, but when he turned around, i was saying to myself YEM...YEM...YEM,
and they played it. The first notes came out and the place went nuts, everyone went
crazy. insane done to perfection. Soooo good mike really nailed the bass jam, and took
it to a new level. They jammed the crap out of this. trey said shit instead of god on
accident, and then he said shit again. everyone laughed.  at the ending jamming right
before the vocal jam, trey took off his guitar and let the others take the
instrumental home. Then the truly amazing stuff started:

Vocal Jam>Proud Mary: Kuroda's lights were insane, flying all around the whole stadium
in varying speeds and the band changing speed with the lights. It was so great. And
then they sung proud mary i heard the beginning of it and went nuts. It was wonderful,
a great end to a great night.

it ended at like 11:50

I just want to thank everyone who went with me: blair, rob, taylor. I also want to
thank everyon at the lot who made it into such a fun experience. I want to thank
everyone inside the show everybody was so nice and made me have such a great time. I
will definitely be back for many, many more. What a great night.

-Alex

sorry this was so long, i just want to remember it all

Date: Mon, 03 Mar 2003 15:03:22 -0500
From: Julai julai@charter.net
Subject: Greensboro 3-01-03

Phish Greensboro NC 3-01-03
Bryan Steele dean@steele.org

My goodness what a show. Except the terrible luck we kept having. Before the show, my
friend locked his key in his car with his TICKETS. The staff helped open his window
and got inside. I have loved Phish for years now, and sadly I have only seen them
once at Lakewood 06/23/00.  I have spent so much time in my life getting my mind
blown by the beautiful music that comes out of the speakers in my room as I played a
great Phish show. Now I can finally see them again.
         The trip started off driving to NC in my brother's car. We knew they were
going to play a sick show, and along the way down we were thinking of the songs they
might play. We even thought Forbins> Mockingbird might appear, but what they did play
perfect sets to set the night in stone. The only bummer, and it really did get me mad
and sad that it happened at a show I have been waiting years to see, was inside the
coliseum I was running and I guess my glasses fell out of my pocket and I lost them.
When I got to my seat, I noticed and was bummed. Not only do I have to but new ones,
but I also can't even see the band or the stage at all. That had me bummed and
depressed the whole time until.......  
        CHALKDUST- Hell yeah, the sound could have been better from where I was but
it was awesome. They seemed to play the song pretty well and it was a solid opener.  
        MOMA DANCE- As soon as I heard them blast into the phunk, I knew Moma dance
had arrived. This was funky as hell in the beginning and end, and had a very intense
jam in the middle. Great job phish. Great song to follow Chalkdust. I was waiting to
hear the opening notes to their next song. Soon all I heard was some slapping by Mike
and I knew it was...
         FOAM- I Love foam. The first part was great, lyrics were good. The jam came
up and Mike and Page let us know who is boss. Trey, I thought was not playing good in
this jam, which is sad because I love where Trey goes in that jam section. Next up...
        LAWN BOY- Great place for the song. Page got up for the last verse and it was
funny to see.
        CHARACTER ZERO- I love this song, but I always thought of it as a set closer.
It was great though. Trey was playing pretty good, and Fish was doing some great
fill-ins. I turned to my brother who also thought this song to be a closer, and sorry
to say, thought the set might be over. But I knew there was no way, I was remembering
Trey's short first set at the Tabernacle, but all of a sudden I hear...
        DIVIDED SKY!!!- Oh MY GOD!! I could not believe what was happening. This was
a moment in my life that will never be erased. The played it perfectly. The silent
part had a pretty good glow stick war, and Trey even caught one of the bright orange
ones. They came ripping into the sustain part and it was really beautiful.
        MIST- I really love this song. I think the lyrics are great and the jam was
beautifully done. Great choice.
        WAVES- I was hopping they would play this. I heard it from NYE and it was
awesome. This time it was a great jam in the middle of the verses and it really had
me dancing >
        SAMPLE- I knew this was the set closer and what a closer it was. Trey was
playing really good and they played the song extremely well. I am glad to see they
are playing good again, because I'm sorry for those who liked it, but Hampton Sucked.
Plain and simply they were way too rusty and their jams were not PHISH. It sounded
like they needed practice. This show they had enough practice to make it golden and
they did so. Set break we sat and talked about how awesome that was. Once again, our
luck went bad. My brother lost his car keys. We were fucked. The whole set break we
were thinking about what to do.  To top it off we didn't have a phone to call
anybody. All of a sudden....
        ROCK AND ROLL- "It was alright". That was good as hell. When I saw them at
Lakewood, they opened the 2nd set with this, and this was a perfect song to end our
problem. The jam was unbelievable. I was amazed by how good they were all playing. I
knew from this moment, that phish has a long career ahead of themselves. After some
good improv, the song ended and we heard....
        PIPER-  I used to not be a big fan of piper until I hear it from NYE. This
piper had everyone dancing and having a great time. The jam was EXTREMELY AWESOME.
This is a jam band. No other jam band around can improvise like this and peak a song,
take it to a new formula peak it again, new stage and peak again and again and
again.... I was in musical heaven. Fish was playing a seven below type of beat and it
had some serious phunky grooves in it. This bled into what was a visual orgasm thanks
to CK5....
         2001- I have always dreamed of seeing this song live because I knew the
light went insane, but I had no idea. The silhouette of the band playing an awesome
2001 on stage, with lots of fog pouring out and the lights changing and going insane
let me realize that no other band has a light show like this. Not only is the music
extremely awesome at a Phish show, but the lights are something to pay attention to.
Now  I understand why Chris is the fifth member. After some serious dancing, and by
the way PAGE WAS PLAYING AWESOME AS HELL, serious groovin, I could not expect they
would play...
        WOLFMANS- Could this be the best moment of my life? It was like a story that
was written in 20,000 BC. This night was going so well that I could not ask for more.
It was " like a cross between a hurricane, and a ship that’s run aground". The
crowd behind me kept saying "what song is this" and hardly moving at all, while I was
fucking groovin to Mikes excellent playing and the solo and place that Trey took them
to was absolutely perfect. This Grooved into...
        BOOGIE ON- The funk in this song was really think. I could smell this foul
stench coming out of the speakers and a thick purple phunk cloud drifting over head.
The solo could have been better, but after what they did to me tonight, It would be
selfish of me to complain about a little mistake.
        WADING- Great time to hear this song. This was one of the best, if not the
best Wading I have ever heard. The lights were as smooth as the song and the guitar
solo was glorious. I could feel a Mikes groove coming in but what we got instead
seemed like phish were telling me, " thanks for being a fan even during the hiatus,
here you go Bryan; enjoy".
        ANTELOPE- The intro gave me bumps, and they went solidly into the jam and
built it up like a statue. Trey's solo was ripping like a ton of bricks to the face.
I felt myself want to scream obscenities to Trey for bleeding away at the guitar. The
climax could have been done better, and Trey really messed up in the end of the jam,
but Marco Esquandolas came and they had the place pouncing with energy as the
Antelope part came. I had an enormous smile on my face the whole time I was yelling
"RUN LIKE AN ANTELOPE OUT OF CONTROL". It was insanely awesome.
        CAROLINA- Great closer, and reminded me of phish's vocal talent. Before the
encore Phish played a sick joke to me. I have noticed their weak encores this tour
and was anticipating a great one for their last show. What I anticipatingly waited
for was...
        FIRST TUBE!?!?- I'm not at all a fan of this song. It's good to dance to, and
the jam was pretty god in the end. All I remember hearing were some trendy's behind
me saying " I’ve heard this on the radio, cool I didn't know they played this
song"
This got me bummed. They had to go and play what I thought of as their most mediocre
song for an encore and I’m going to leave not fulfilled. Little did I
know.......
         YEM- OHH MYY GOD!!!! Phish put the exclamation point to this show with this
song. I can't explain how much this had me going. I LOVE YOU PHISH. Thanks for making
greensboro, GREENSBORO!!!!!!!!
        After the show we remembered about the car and walked to it and chilled for a
while borrowing cell phones trying to think of what to do. Then we see our friend
Chris come up from nowhere. We haven't seen him since set 1, and he had the keys. We
drove to my friend's hotel, nut instead got lost for 2 hours. We ended up at a ghetto
gas station getting gas, and asking a hustler with a box of churches chicken in hand,
how to get there. It was one of the strangest and best nights in my life. THANK YOU
`
Date: Mon, 03 Mar 2003 15:46:39 -0500
From: James Houck james_houck@hotmail.com
Subject: greensboro review

Well, well, well....Phish in good ol' G-boro.....i lived here for four years,
pre-hiatus, always hoping they'd make a trip to the colesium, always having to settle
for shows at Winston-Salem, Raleigh, Charlotte (great shows to boot).....Having known
the G-boro Colesium to be a decent place to catch a show (Furthur Fest, BB King,
etc...), i didn't care much for the rumors of "southern inhospitality" regarding
security, the po-po's, etc....I was proven right by the fact the scene was chill,
there were zero hassles, little complaining (save for the bad weather).....a
side-note, i noticed more xtras for this show than many i've been to in years
past......
 
The energy leading up to the show was wonderful, absolutely gorgeous....the most i've
seen since Hampton 98....outside=soaked pholks in line with nothing better to do than
yelp continuously in anticpation....inside="the crowd wave" going round n round the
rafters.....so much fun and the music hadn't even started......Then the lights drop
and a sick Chalkdust follows suit.....the build-ups and releases were taut and hit
with precision.....So, it was a great start to what would be a great show.....We got
some rock to start, some funk in Moma, some trippy jazz with Foam, loungin' kicks
with Lawnboy, rockstar solos n vocals thru Character Zero, and then the best part of
the set in my opinion.....the three-song selection of Divided Sky, Mist, Waves was
incredibly chill and relaxed with some fantastic interplay between the band and
the audience and between each of the bandmembers themselves.....The boys were
smiling, clearly enjoying themselves onstage....The Sample set closer was alot of
fun, raw energy abound....i felt great for a couple of my friends who were seeing
these guys for the first time (this was about my 30th show).......
 
Set break was very enjoyable for me.....i wondered around the colesium, circling
maybe two or three times, enjoying the smiling faces.....bathroom lines weren't as
bad as some pholks would have you believe....again, the scene was very positive.....
 
Second set was a kick in the ass from start to finish.....Mostly ol' school Phish...a
couple songs led into lengthy jams (Rock n Roll, Wolfman's to name two), but for the
most part Phish was short, solid and hard rockin' with each selection....Piper  was
boisterous and quick, even 2001 was short, played in similiar fashion as in
1993-94.....It was a fantastic selection of songs overall, giving everyone and anyone
the chance to show off their best dance moves......The double encore (triple, if you
exclude Proud Mary from YEM's vocal jam) couldn't have been more of a
delight.....perhaps the most jammed and lengthy encore of the tour....Overall this
was one of the best shows i've seen...or maybe i'm just saying because it had been
2.5 yrs. since i last saw them....either way, this is one to download....worth the
$15, no doubt.....This show will stand the test of time as one of the better shows of
this tour.....peace~J

Date: Mon, 3 Mar 2003 16:26:47 -0500
From: raj mitra raj@thirteen.net
Subject: 3/1 review

I saw Phish three times this week--in Jersey, in Worcester, and finally in
Greensboro. As a standalone show, Greensboro is great. The first set contained
some great songs, including "Foam" and "Divided Sky". However, none of the
tunes were "jammed out". All were straight ahead, rocking songs with
lots of energy coming off the crowd.  
The second set kicked off with a great version of "Rock and Roll",
although I don't know if this version is any better than that Hampton '03
version, which was stellar. I'll have to wait until I hear the tapes to make a
judgement like
that. But it was a fun song and I was quite happy to hear it. Wilson was
another rocker, which everyone was into. 
The Piper alone, however, made this show worth it. I had been complaining
during setbreak that there was no grooves in any of the songs. Piper had THE
groove. It took some great turns and twists, and featured amazing GROUP work by
the band.

2001 is a fun song, but this version was pretty standard. (Standard, when it
comes to Phish, by the way, means "Very good"). Having just heard
Wolfman's at NJ, I must say this version didn't really do much for me. NJ and
Hampton's versions were much better. Mike quickly forced the band in to "Boogie
On", which is a great dance number, but again, no groovy jam.  "Wading" was
nice, and "Antelope" was a very high-energy version, but  "Carolina"
was the real treat. Obviously, there is no jam in this song, but to hear the
boys do the acapella thing again was great.
I knew 1st Tube was going to be the encore, and it rocked, but the YEM topped
it.  Fantastic Trey solo, including Another ONe Bites the Dust jam, and Proud
Mary vocal jam. 
Possibly the best setlist of any show this tour. However, given the lack of
jams (save Piper and YEM), the show doesn't edge out Worcester, which had
amazing jams in 5 of the songs played (versus 2 here). Worceter's Moma blew this
one away (and most others!) and the YEM from Worcester is as good as this
version (although very different, I must say, since one was an opener and one
was an encore!). Greensboro was definitely better than NJ, overall, but Worcester
wins out as the best of the three. Seek out the Piper and YEM from the
Greensboro show, and also go get the whole Worcester show.

Date: Mon, 03 Mar 2003 14:17:37 -0700
From: Jon Kirsch kirschjon@hotmail.com
Subject: review of 3-1 Greensboro


I read the glowing reviews of the Nassau show. Wow. It surely seems like the 
love between band and fan is alive and well in the world of Phish. I flew to 
Greensboro Saturday morning by myself to catch the show. I read someones 
review that said tickets were easy to come by. They were not. I was 
ticketless and fruitlessly worked it real hard for almost four hours without 
so much as a nibble. The only tickets available were >$100, although I did 
see someone get miracled. Plus, it was cold and very rainy. I finally scored 
a ticket after I worked some magic at the will call booth at about 6:30. It 
would have been such a bummer to fly in from Boulder and not see the show.
The show opened with a short but raucus Chalkdust. During the next few 
songs, I had my problem for the evening. The show was GA and I was sitting 
way up there on Page's side of the rafters. Before the show started, I made 
friends with the people around me and everything was very cool. However, 
during the Moma, this couple invaded our space and the girl asked if they 
could dance there. I said they could as long as there was enough room, which 
there wasn't already. I decided now was as good a time as any to use the 
restroom. When I came back, the couple was still there. At this point I told 
the female that it was actually crowded. Rudely, she said, "Come On, Dude!" 
So I decided to dance a few rows above us where I spotted some open space. 
Anyways, about ten minutes later, the rightful owner of the seet I had taken 
returned. I told the couple they had to move. They got angry and started to 
call me an asshole. Anyway, they moved. I was irritated at this point. It 
reminded me of the 2-18 Denver show, when during the spiritual quietness of 
the YEM, a fratboy behind me was screaming his guts out. I told him to curb 
the enthusiastic screaming, at which point he started to act like he wanted 
to kick my ass. The point of this diatribe about show conduct is as follows: 
  Use the golden rule always. Treat your brother and sister phishheads the 
way you want to be treated by them. Those that impose their energy on others 
in a negative manner risk making the Phish experience less than it can be.
Back to the music. Thank God! After the imposers left, the people around me 
made me feel real good again, especially Cassie and Matt from Georgia. 
Thanks so much! The first set repeated the gems from the Denver show: Moma 
and Divided sky. They were played real well. Unlike others, I love Mountains 
in the Mist. However, I must admit that Mist followed by Waves followed by 
sample left me wondering if the boys had lost the energy of the crowd. 
However, I knew the second set would blow the 24,000 cavernous arena up.
It did. Rock and Roll wailed, with a loud intense "Alright!" section. It was 
awesome! Wilson followed suit. Then the mothership took off and we all went 
deep into outer space. From Piper through 2001 into Wolfman's, Phish 
explored territory where no band has gone before. This is why I love Phish. 
The energy was palpable with lots of APPROPRIATE enthusiasm, love, hugs. and 
high fives going around. Boogie On was so cool. Everybody's getting off. 
Velvet Sea was perfectly placed. Everyone needed a cooldown before the 
Antelope ripped our heads off one last time (I thought). What a second set! 
What a show! Even though it was tour closer, I wasn't expecting much from 
the encore. In true Phish fashion, they gave us the unexpected. First Tube 
was incredible. The jam kind of resembled a DWD jam. Then came the YEM, 
where the quiet spiritual part remained so. Noone was screaming like a 
banchee and disturbing my prayer. And pray I did. After 11 years, Phish 
still has the magic. And if we're lucky and open to it, we can have it too.
After the show, it was still cold and rainy and Greensboro's hotels were 
booked because of power outages in the area due to an ice storm. I had no 
plan. I called the taxi company that dropped my off their earlier. I was 
picked up by an old black man. He asked me where I was going and I said the 
airport. He said I was cold and rainy and the airport was not the place for 
me. He invited back to his home. He was such a nice man. We talked and
puffed. It turns out he's a minister. I brought an XXL Trey batik from 
Boulder to try to get into the show with. I still had it. I gave it to my 
man. He was so happy. I woke up the next morning and thought to myself, 
indeed, how nothing could be finer than to be in Carolina on this morning. 
Now, there will be a black preacher man walking around Greensboro with a 
smiling Trey on his shirt. Is this not what it's all about?

ate: Mon, 3 Mar 2003 17:27:14 EST
From: Yamar81374@aol.com
Subject: greensboro review 

here are some of my reflections and experiences from greensboro.  I have chosen to
focus less on the music (which was pristine!!!) and more on the crowd and how it
effected my concert experience.

When we got to the lot it was cold and raining.  This didnt dampen our spirits at
all.  Talking to the people next to us we realized it was their first show.....I have
to say that it was like half of the crowds first show.  After getting nice and toasty
I decided to embark to the doors to catch Phish for my 14th time....my first show
since Lakewood run from 2000.  Did anyone else notice that at the convention center
right next to the venue there was an actual "FISHING expo" going on?  It was crazy to
see all these rednecks carrying fishing poles.  They had no idea who PHish was.  It
was funny.

Once inside the venue (security was a joke.....laughed as i lifted my pant leg) we
went right for our seats our friend from the ATL saved us in section 123.  Now this
is where my experience gets a little jaded.  One thing i noticed at this show was the
utter lack of respect by the fellow fans sitting by me.  I was excited about being
the end of our row of people.  I wanted to meet some cool new people.  This was going
smoothly untill it backfired in my face.  This guy who i was sitting next to seemed
like a cool guy at first.  He told me he was shrooming or something which is
fine....each unto his own.  But before the house lights went down i could tell this
guy wasnt the best person to be stuck next to.  His personality quickly changed from
someone excited to be seeing phish to a guy who should have left and went to the
lobby to freak out.  Since i was on the end of our row i wanted to include this guy
in on a huge smokey treat I had brought.  So I handed it to him instructing him to
blaze it once the house lights went down.  So he takes it and proceedes to lose my
J.  So when the lights went down i asked this guy to fire it up.  He looks at me
funny and tells me he lost it.  i said fuck it and decided not to let this bother
me...heck one J went down for the cause.  It was what happened next that totally put
my first set experience in check.  THis guy who was obviously not in his right mind
decides to fall over into my seat during foam.  It was cool i didnt mind him sitting
down.....but when he landed in my seat and took over my room I had no room left to
dance and i was crushed up against my friend on my other side.  I tried to be
courtious and explain that he had mistakenly taken my seat but this guy was drooling
or something and he wouldnt respond.  I tried to tell the people who he was with that
he had stolen my seat and my space.......they looked at me like i was crazy. 
So for the entire first set i was really crushed and not able to dance.....THe music
sounded great and i finally got my first foam and divided sky but was not able to
fully appreciate due to this person ( and his whole group of little girlfriends)
being rude, yelling at me to move ect....who sits down during a phish show anyway?

So during set break I try and explain what happened to this tripping guy's
friends...and they start yelling at me saying "Your being a dick....i thought people
were nice at Phish shows ect...."  So then i decided that i wasnt going to let these
ignorant people ruin the rest of my show (which i paid over $150 on ebay to see).  So
i decide to tell my buddies that these people are destryoing my show. So i went to
move up into the back rafters.  Apparently when i was gone these people i was stting
next to kept yelling at my friends....and they actually found the J that their
tripping friend dropped in his beer (last time i checked beer and fire dont mix too
well).  They then proceede to give the wet J back to my friends with a mean ass "HERE
is your J!" with an attitude problem.  Eventually my friends that i had left told me
that they had to tell these people to leave them alone because they were bothering
them too during the second set. 

The people up in the rafters were the people i expected to find at a phish
show....courtious, friendly, and just happy to be there.  THe show was
awesome...exceeded my expectations......and the view from up top was unreal.

So what i came away with from this show really jaded my view of the Phish crowds
these days.  If it is your first show...please dont be an asshole to the people who
are sitting around you who are there for the music. And to all those assholes who
like to hurl glowsticks at trey's face when he is soloing...what the hell are you
thinking?  If i were trey and somone threw a glowstick in my eye i would stop
playing.  Think morons think! I know this was supposed to be a review of the
show.....but the ignorant people almost destroyed my experience.  I atually had the
idea that Phish shows should have to be 21 and up like a bar to cut down on the
ignorance and stupidity a little.

I thought this was a monster show..Over 20 songs played extremely well....super tight
encore.  The now infamous double shit YEM!

greensboro rocked....thank you PHISH
and crazy tripping people...next time be aware that you might be infringing on other
people's good times by acting all drugged out and stupid....have some respect.

mike s

Date: Mon, 03 Mar 2003 19:57:10 -0500
From: Matthew Baetz MBaetz@tgcinc.com
Subject: Greensboro, March 1st 2003

1: Chalk Dust Torture, Moma Dance, Foam, Lawn Boy, Character Zero, Divided Sky, Mist,
Waves, Sample in a Jar 

2: Rock and Roll, Wilson, Piper, Also Sprach Zarathustra, Wolfman's Brother, Boogie on
Reggae Woman, Wading in the Velvet Sea, Run Like an Antelope, Carolina*

E: First Tube, You Enjoy Myself **

My review is simple.  I'm 24 and I live in Florida.  Phish shows are rare to begin 
with and
I consider myself lucky to get in the door.  Therefore my review is this and only this 
. .
. Greensboro was classic.   I got to see a show with my brother and our girlfriends 
for the
first time since Merriweather when they played Sabotage.   

Side Note:  I just saw John Daly, the golfer,  I said hey, he said whats up?

Sorry, back to the review.  Phish to me means, good times with friends, a few
extracurricular activities and hopefully a few solid numbers from some great 
musicians. 
Greensboro was all of this and if you guys from Phish ever read this, Thank you for
providing a fun night full of good times and great oldies.  Seeing these concerts will
always be something I treasure.

Matt Baetz


Date: Mon, 03 Mar 2003 21:04:31 -0500
From: Zack Brown loukrs1@hotmail.com
Subject: review

This was my first show of the tour and mine and my girlfriend's first show ever,
although it had been a long time in the coming.  I've been an avid fan since around
the time the hiatus began.  So, needless to say I was stoked.  We got to the lot
about four and wandered around for a little while.  The scene was pretty cool, but it
was rainy.  We got in line at around 5:30 and got seats on the floor about halfway
back, center.  The boys came on pretty late but it just added to everyone's
anticipation.  Finally, they came on and...
 
Chalkdust: yes, very nice way to get the show started.  Very energetic, but pretty
standard.
 
Moma: funk-ee to rockin and back to funky again, very fun, but also pretty standard
 
Foam: wow, cool.  Didn't expect this one.  Very tight and right on all the changes. 
Page is playing beautifully.  Actually, I was very impressed with Page's performance
the whole show and his decision to step up.  Everyone's levels are about right.  Mike
could've been a little higher though. 
 
Lawnboy: cool, more Page.  Very fun and everybody was singin.
 
Character 0: got the crowd pumped.  Standard but always rockin.
 
Divided:  wo!  My phirst show is turning out to be a dream come true, so many good
solid songs already.  This was definately the highlight of the first set to me. 
Executed very nicely and great climaxes. Beautiful.  The point in the song where
there is silence was surreal.  Glowsticks rained from the sky.  The connection
between everyone in the room and the band was amazing.  This was a truly magical
musical moment when no music was being played.
 
Mist: very nice slow down song.  Great tune and not very common (it just keeps
getting better.
 
Waves: I like this song and I think it has potential, but it didn't really regain the
energy after mist.  I think they want to use this song kind of like Piper in that
it's a slow buildup.  But it just never got to the point that I think they were
shooting for.  It wasn't bad mind you, just a tad slow but it's all good because they
close with...
 
Sample:  always rockin.  Great way to end the set.  I did have a moment
of enlightenment during this song.  I finally understood what the song was about.  I
must have heard a hundred times but not until I saw it live did I grasp the meaning. 
Anyways... 
 
A great first set.  Solid song selection and placement.  Couldn't wait to hear what
they gave us next.
 
Rock and Roll:  verrry nice.  Rockin but also with a good jam with some great
explorations.
 
Wilson:  I had a dream that they would open with this.  They didn't, but it was still
in there.  Kept the place jumping.
 
Piper: got off to a slow start but picked up after the vocal section.  Very nice
jam.  Would've enjoyed a lot more if the kid behind me would have stopped yelling in
my ear and leaning in to me to talk to his buddies.  grrrr.  But anyways, very good,
slowed down into...
 
2001: funk-ee.  Pretty standard, but hey, standard 2001 still kicks ass right?  Let
me say that everything I heard about Kuroda is true.  He is a part of the band when
they play live as far as I'm concerned.  The lights were unbelievable.  He was right
on every change and captured every mood(created new ones).  Damn! all I can say.
 Wolfman's: much more emotional live than on any recording.  Very fun and then...
 
Boogie On: oh yeah, another great tune.  Both this and wolfman were pretty short but
good.
 
Wading: a very much needed breather.  And I don't care what anybody says, I love this
song.  It's so beautifull and I think Trey shows so much emotion during his soloing
on this song, probably more than any other.  Excellent placement to because look out!
here comes an...
 
Antelope!: raging!  Kept climaxing, never thought it was going to end.  Very sick
antelope.
 
Carolina: how cool is that.  This just shows how talented and diverse the band really
is.
 
Encore:
First Tube: very good, energetic.  Before I even had time to think, "ok, it's over"
they start playing...
 
YEM!!!!:  shit, I was so excited I was jumping up and down.  Very tight on the
changes and good jam.  Vocal jam was almost too much to handle and then with the
segue into an acapella Proud Mary, what an encore.
 
I was so dehydrated and overheated by this point I could barely stand.  I danced my
ass off.  I know everyone in the crowd and the band had to be just as tired.  But
they finished up unbelievably strong, look at the encore.  Phish kicked our asses and
we loved it.  Overall the show was great, for a phirst show it was unbelievable. 
Although, the band could have literally "pissed in my eardrums and I would have
lapped it up."  The show by far exceeded all my hopes and expectations.  Except for
the guy behind me ("what song is this?") the crowd was awesome, very into it. So,
thanks to Phish (esp. Mike for getting the guys back together) and thanks to crowd
for making my phirst show an unforgettable one.  Hello to Mike and to the Slippery
Rock crew.

Date: Sun, 2 Mar 2003 21:29:38 EST
From: Hale84@aol.com
Subject: greensboro review

03/01/03 - Greensboro, NC

1: Chalk Dust Torture, Moma Dance, Foam, Lawn Boy, Character Zero, Divided Sky, Mist,
Waves, Sample in a Jar

2: Rock and Roll, Wilson, Piper, Also Sprach Zarathustra, Wolfman's Brother, Boogie
on Reggae Woman, Wading in the Velvet Sea, Run Like an Antelope, Carolina

E: First Tube, You Enjoy Myself>Proud Mary

Finally I get to see Phish. Yes, this is my first show ever. I waited 4 years for
this night, and I was very happy with what I saw. I skipped a soccer game for this,
and I will pay dearly for doing so, but it was worth it. I would do it again without
a doubt. I was able to first crawl my way to about 15 rows of people back from Page.
If I was asked to pick the songs for the night I would have picked almost all of
them, it was unreal.

chalkdust-opening with this told me that i was in store for a great night. i went
nuts, and felt feeling i have wanted for such a long time. trey was making the guitar
scream

moma dance-very funky, i loved to hear it, one of my favorites from the ghost cd

foam-a guy i talked to for a while during set break said i was lucky to be at my
first show and hear foam, i agree, only if i had known what was to come after they
jammed this one really well

lawn boy-this one gives me chills, whenever i hear page sing i always get so
overwhelmed

character zero-one of my favorites, i was pumped to hear this song, the crowd was
rockin' as was the band

divided sky-wow, the song was made that much better by the glowstick war, again just
another one of my favorites, the night was shaping up for a huge second set

mist-good song brought it down after an awesome first 5 songs, pretty chillin song

waves-i haven't listened to round room too much, but this is one of the better songs
on the cd, i like it, pretty chillin song

sample in a jar-man, what a way to end my very first set, just a great song to sing
and dance to, another one of my favorites glad i was able to see it in my first show

rock and roll-an amazing start to the second set. my friend that was with me is a
huge velvet underground fan. by then i was 2 rows back, and i was in such aww, i had
one of those unreal jolts of energy, i loved every minute of it.

wilson-what a classic, i always pretended i was in at the show when i'd listen to
this song yelling wilson with the crowd, it was pretty much a dream come true

piper-my all-time favorite song, period. i really had made the connection with the 4
on stage, it was chilling when i heard the first few chords, i had to slap myself to
make sure this wasn't just another dream

2001-oh shit, it couldn't be. my friend joe and i were in shock when they started.
the fog machine made the boys seem larger than life, it made the hair on my neck
stand up, the band was rockin'

wolfman's brother-by then, it was kind of like trey was reading my mind with what i
wouldn't mind hearing next. then again, i would have loved to hear anything, because
then i was satisfied with what i got, but fortunately for me and everyone else, they
weren't.

boogie on a reggae woman-great cover, a great song to boogie to, the band was
clicking on all cylinders.

wading in the velvet sea-a great song to bring it down some, i fell in love with this
song that night.

run like and antelope-this set was huge, and playing this all-time great jam just
added fuel to the fire, amazing. being that close to trey playing the guitar was
something i can't put into words.

carolina-i love the acapela numbers they do. i was right in front of the band when
they sang. if laid down i would have been at their feet. what a night, but there were
still two songs left...

first tube-man, this song is awesome. they set up the grand finale perfectly

yem-tears came to my eyes when this song started, because i knew that it was going to
be over in 20 minutes, but i lived those 20 minutes to the fullest. what a great way
to end an unreal night of music. the vocal jam was all-time, i was like a little kid
on christmas day.

-I was finally in, I had seen Phish, and I can say just a few of the songs at my
first show were chalkdust, momma, foam, zero, lawn boy, divided sky, sample, wilson,
piper, 2001, wolfaman's antelope, and yem.

-Hale McGranahan

Date: Mon, 3 Mar 2003 01:48:57 -0500 (EST)
From: Adam S. Rogers asr5z@unix.mail.virginia.edu
Subject: Greensboro 3/1 review

heyall,
this is my first review so here goes, i'll just preface a little saying
i've been into the band only since 98, seen about 15 shows now, saw the
last night at hampton and this the only one on this tour. needless to say
checking out the woosta and nassau setlists i was psyched. overall, i had
a fun time.

CHALKDUST--pretty rippin', but nothing extraordinary, this is a TV song.
energy, but only teen spirit. gotta admit i love yellin out "can't i live
while i'm young?" with a bunch of kids to our invisible parents though.

MOMA--nice. diggin dancin' (in my 1.5ftX1.5ft human cubicle on the floor)
and i like trey to play rhythm

FOAM--nice. there was one point where they were about to spill over into
nirvana but they didn't... a nice trippy sound nonetheless

LAWNBOY--highlight number one: lovely page serenade and nice mike solos...
"I get so overwhelmed..."

CHARACTER0--No sir, I did not like it. Bad placement, maybe? Too much trey
rockstar, esp. after chalkdust, and right after a short focus on page &
mike.

DIVIDED SKY--nice tune, but not a particularly good version... the silence
(if you can call it that)/one note section was a very long period of trey
feeding the crowd's plastic glowything fetish and I thought it weird. made
divided really long and i got tired of it (!). the end of this song rocks,
though. perfect phish punchline.

MIST--one of their better "new" slow songs, but with some cheesy lines.
there was a line "now i'm soaring far too high" where i was like, "no
shit"... but really, i kinda like this tune except for the "I'm on the
road again" line.

WAVES--more cheesy lyrics "if you could see the waves" but the jam on this
song was really sweet from what i remember, or maybe i just dug hearing
something different since they weren't improvising much.

SAMPLE--another trey rocker.

--SETBREAK--
well, i wasn't very impressed, not too pleased with the
chaldust-character-sample and the lack of jamming. it seemed all trey
getting to high notes and playing composed stuff, all soloing and no
jamming. what happened to the group improv?

maybe i was grumpified because this place was PACKED. they sold more
tickets than had ever been sold at this place before, an absurd amount,
all the seats (literally, all the seats) were taken and the floor was a
sea of bodies. getting to the bathroom was no fun. they need to sell like
5000 less tickets to play here, unfortunately. so they can't play here
again. it especially pissed me off in light of recent happenings in RI and
chicago, it is absurd not being able to move around at a concert. Rant
off.

Funny, in the bathroom this guy had the hiccups and I said "Shit,
used to be Phish could scare away the hiccups."

SET TWO: up in the seats, back page side, pretty good sound, and a nice
new view of kuroda's mastery. by the way, kuroda killed during chalkdust.

ROCKNROLL--great to hear page singing again, i love his voice. not much of
a jam here, from what i remember. more treycentric stuff, someone said in
a review last week that try being high in the mix and playing long high
notes tends to drown out and/or draw focus away from the rest of the sound
and i totally feel that.

PIPER--nothing too special, though i love this song. there was a second i
thought what's the use was coming next and i wasn't looking forward to
that.

2001--standard, somewhat short, hope i'm not sounding too negative here, i
just really wanted to hear a segueway jam, really wanted the band to
loosen up and take risks, risk making mistakes, and they weren't doing it.
2001 seemed really predictable and not fulfilling.

WOLFMAN'S--was nice because it showcased a little more bass and keys
jamming, got me dancing again and thinking about trey with hair growing
out his ears

VELVET SEA--softy feelgood. the chicks and guys with chicks love it.

ANTELOPE--alright... dug it. had to cringe when trey rushed to "rye rye
rocco" because pre-rocco part of the 12-31-99 antelope (best part of
all of cypress in my opinion) is forever etched in my brain and i heard
page moving towards that jam, really getting there and then "rye rye
rocco" i felt like he'd stepped on a cool-looking bug or something. argh,
stretch it out! but then they took the outta control jam to the edge much
like foam had and i was diggin it, actually hoping it would end the set.

CAROLINA--wonderful and was wonderfully placed, literally.

--ENCORE--
FIRST TUBE--too much trey, thank god for the fan with the big YEM sign on
the floor (by the way, whoever was holding the TMWSIY DAMNIT sign, you
suck, but if they had played it i wouldve loved you) because trey let the
hyperdrive end of 1sttube trail on while he told the boys to get into

YOU ENJOY MYSELF--hey, this WAS a good show! highlight: mike's solo
section was fing awesome. mike gordon is the true rockstar hidd under a
floppy mop. i wanna see him play with bela fleck. page, fish, all of them
sounded great.

even trey.

and the best part of the night?
VOCAL JAM>PROUD MARY--vocal  jam was intense, kuroda turned the place into
a planetarium of sorts, a dark night sky of people with swirling circular
constellations and the boys did what they do best when they do it,
improvise. after all the whoos and wahs (and a minute tease of Raffi's
"Down By the Bay"--look for it) someone came up with ooowen,
rowwing, rollin on a river, and i was singin' along left a good job in the
ssssitay, woikin' foi the man evey nightindayand they fulfilled with the
whole song and a nice soft creamy ending.

had to run down to the bars and watch the band hop down from the stage,
just four guys. had to heckle trey, callin' him TINA! TINA! (Turner, of
course)

fun time. got some negative vibes in the parking lot, basically there are
some scrappy kids who are with you so long as you do what they want, but
if you don't give them what they ask they can be mean.... hey, you guys
have a right to be pissed at this tour, given its stingy
two-weeks-coast-to-coast dates, the total lack of extra tickets and
few miracles, police hassles, everything, character zeroes..
just, please, don't circulate negativity, don't take it out on me when i
won't let you use the back of my car to cut up ten-strips, for example.
all in all i had a great time with some of my favorite people in the whole
world, and gotta say my end thought was love. I love this band, and it's
great to have them back.

Peace,
Adam Rogers
Charlottesville, VA

Date: Sun, 2 Mar 2003 20:32:08 -0500
From: Heather and Peter 
To: dws@gadiel.com
Subject: 3/1/03 Review

Having seen approximately 80+ shows over the past 11 years and Nassau's 
epic show the night earlier, we were extremely excited about the tour 
closer.

The first set, imho, was a complete wash. Sample is pure trash and is 
completely overplayed junk. Phish is so much greater than a Sample 
closer. Other than Moma Dance, the song selection seemed to please the 
throngs of glowstick throwers and clappers alike. I know some feel that 
D-sky was good, however, this D-sky never really fully blossomed and 
was mediocre at best. Any real music listening would be relegated to 
the second set.

3/1/03 Greensboro Set 2 aka what you'll remember!
Rock & Roll, Wilson-->Piper-->2001-->Wolfman's-->Boogie On-->Wading, 
Antelope, Carolina E: First Tube, YEM(with Bites the Dust jam)-->Proud 
Mary

Set 2 of Greensboro provide some of the most memorable and creative 
music that Phish has ever performed. Rock & Roll was explosive and a 
perfect choice to kick off this great set. Wilson was..well...Wilson!

Piper, now the real shit starts. There was 10-15 of a groove that was 
thick with interesting twists and turns. Not typical crescendos, but 
smooth silky funk patterns that propelled the energy in the arena. At 
this point I remembered why i flew to see this show after Nassau.

The segue into 2001 was excellent. 2001 was very strong and super high 
energy abounded. This 2K1 was not too long, but was just right....then 
bam into Wolfman's Brother. This song is a whole new beast. They have 
finally figured out how to really play this song. It was not over the 
top but accentuated the strong syncopation that we so love about this 
diddy.

The jam that ensued and flowed into Boogie on Reggae Woman was of epic 
proportion. I feel that this was clearly one of the strong points of 
the show. The Funk just got thicker and now the band was really in a 
full-on groove.

  Finally, after checking my pulse and just overall freaking out at the 
pure joy of this moment they brought it down and went into Wading. I 
for one, feel that this is one of Phish's greatest slow numbers. They 
have worked and crafted this into a real gem. The song placement was 
perfect...ala Grateful Dead placing a Morning Dew towards the end of a 
second set. I feel that this song gets overlooked and is Phish's 
Morning Dew. This version was very tight with a shining solo from 
Trey...just pure beauty coming of the stage. He is getting so much 
better at fabricating soft cascading solos.

  Thinking this could be the end of the set, Phish deilvers a true 
classic version of Antelope. This one , like all, was for the ages. 
This Antelope raged and truly tore my head apart. What a great way to 
cap a great set. Then Carolina!!!... How obvious...and how great to 
hear after so many years, I have always loved this one.

The encore of First Tube and YEM was excellent. The YEM was so strong 
and incrediby funked out. Oh yeah, Boy, Man, Shit?!?, Shit was how they 
decide to screw up the four lines of this beauty. Who cares? The jam is 
why we listen. This jam was excellent, it had real direction that was 
set up by the "Another One Bites the Dust" theme running thoughout the 
song. Ultimately climaxing through a vocal jam in to Proud Mary. Fully 
song with a crowd singalong by the conclusion. Great show, amazing 
second set. Not quite the level of Nassau, but still incredible 
nonetheless.

Date: Sun, 02 Mar 2003 20:41:00 -0500
From: hoge ronemus hogeronemus@hotmail.com
Subject: Greensboro Show

First of all I still can not believe Phish played the tour ending show in my 
backyard.  After a few tour runs in the summer and fall of 95 and Europe in 
98, I finally did not have to travel miles to get to a show.  Phish has 
always been a medium that has connected my friends and I and for them to 
come to Greensboro was fantastic.  The show was fabulous in my opinion and 
the best one I have been to.  I am getting older now and although the scene 
is the same the music has evolved and the maturity of these four musicians 
have too.  I believe the hiatus was the best thing for the band.  It has 
given them the chance to grow and experiment playing with different styles.  
I could evaluate every song but I am not going to. I definately enjoyed the 
carolina and the encore. The yem was outstanding and the band looked as if 
they were having a great time and when the trampolines were brought out the 
youthfulness I used to feel at shows resurfaced and delighted me.  The 
weather was the only downside of the show as we have been hit with numerius 
ice storms and clouds.  This was actually the first show I have gone to in 
the coliseum, so I did not know what to expect from the sound.  The coliseum 
sounded great and I was pleased that the coliseum finally brought some 
quality music to our town.  So as life goes on and I cannot travel all over 
to attend shows like in my younger years, I cannot thank Phish enough for 
the ten years of fun, and exposure to improvisational creativity.  The band 
has given me the ear to explore Jazz, bluegrass, funk and other non 
mainstream music. I wish the band well and hope they will play until my kids 
can experience the same feeling I had when I checked out my first show in 
chapel hill in 93. Thank you Phish and all the fans that make the show such 
a positive experience and hope Greensboro was kind to you.

Date: Mon, 3 Mar 2003 02:02:40 -0500 (EST)
From: Adam S. Rogers asr5z@unix.mail.virginia.edu
Subject: RE: 3/1 Greensboro review

totally forgot wilson & boogie on... guess i was in the glow of the
encore which eclipsed the second set, boogie on was tight and nice,
brought me back to hampton 1/4/03, and everytime page hit his top right
keyboard i said yes, keep doing that, yes.
wilson i remember being good...
seeyall soon, peace,
adam

Date: Mon, 3 Mar 2003 07:23:45 EST
From: FlyersMS31@aol.com
Subject: Let's Stay Together: 3/1/03

Just a note to point out the nice book-ends from Phish.
Both the post-show music at MSG after New Year's and the tour closer in Greensboro,
NC included the song:
"Let's Stay Together"

Ain't that sweet?  Show was a lot of fun, read the reviews, but more importantly,
listen to the music for yourself.
-Matt

Date: Mon, 3 Mar 2003 06:25:34 -0800 (PST)
From: Archie DeLoach aldeloach@yahoo.com
Subject: greensboro review

I thought I'd try my hand at a review since now having such capability.  Being the
idiot that I am and never learning from my past experiences naturally I stayed out
the night before this show until around 3:30 am and had to get up at 6:30 to pack and
such.  Finally got on my way about 8 am and picked up my traveling companion at 9:30
am.  It's about a 4.5 hr drive to Greensboro from where I live in Hampton, SC.  We
had a nice drive up and landed in Greensboro around 2:30.  We had a coupon for Econo
Lodge but it had expired by one day.  After trying 3 or 4 motels with no luck, we
decided to hit the lot and worry about accommodations later. 

Getting into the lot was quite a hassle although not as bad as previous experiences
I've had at Horizon in Charlotte, Lakewood in Atlanta or Merriweather Pavilion
Columbia, MD.  Finally we're in the lot.  Nice oh so nice to be in this culture
again.  We met some people from Columbia, SC which was cool (I use to live there). 
Some of them went to USC.  I couldn't resist my old USC joke to them of; "Hey,
they'll let you in that place with an expired fishing license right."  I later felt
their pain as they locked the keys in their car.  What a bummer.   We did the lot
scene and patiently waited having a few brews.  Kudos to the girl that sold me those
chocolates.  I have cussed chocolates before for being bunked but I certainly was not
cussing these.  They were straight.  I ate the first one kind of early but anyway....

OK it started to pour so since the doors were now open we went inside.  This place is
quite large I thought.  First set, we just found a set.  Way up top.  Not all the way
but quite high.  We had some  cool neighbors.  Sweet girl named Cathy sat behind me. 
We hugged constantly.  Other people from Columbia, SC again around us.  This
is strange, I thought.   Now I'm sitting here quite pleased with myself and the
surroundings.  I just keep saying,  "Lights go down now please!!!!"

Finally.>>>   Chalkdust.  I've seen Phish open with this quite a few times.  It
kicked good.  A lot tighter than Hampton on 01/02.  I turned to the sweet gal Cathy
and said; "I think there might be something to this."  She said, "Something to it,
yeah there's something to it alright, awesome that's what it is." She gave me a big
sweet hug and started messing up my wet hair which felt really good.  Moma Dance
next.  The funk was alive, I'm feeling the funk, the funk is in me, dance fool
dance.  Then comes Foam.  Hampton was my first one in 18 shows.  Now I can't get away
from it.  Not my favorite song except for the fact that it's old Phish.  Lawnboy: 
Welcome to Pageland.  The crowd was generally pleased.  Mike doing his thing on the
bass solo.  Character Zero, A lot of Phish Heads bash this song but I enjoyed
it>>>great guitar work.  Divided Sky; first time ever for me.  Scary.  I felt for
poor Trey bombarded by the glowsticks.  He really should not have tried to catch them
and throw them back because that only caused more to fly.  "Oh wow let's see if he'll
catch mine and throw it back."  What a bunch of morons.  Mountains of the mist had
the good slow groove.  Again better than Hampton. I especially like the harmony at
the end.    Waves:  I didn't recognize this song.  I hadn't listened to the new cd
for a while. I knew I had heard it before though but not at a show.  Sample:  I knew
the first set was about over.  Not since 98 for me.  Good choice to close.  I turned
to my friend and said this is nice but I want to get closer.  Boy did I ever get my
wish.

Grabbed some beer at intermission and just started walking down the wet steps very
cautiously.  I envisioned myself falling down and spilling both my beers but the
gravity gods just didn't want me at that point.  I get almost to the floor and see
that you have to climb down.  My friend Jerry climbs down first.  I hand him both my
beers & start to go.  This big fat shaved head asshole security guard says: "Use the
steps, if you climb down I'm throwing you out of here."  I then looked up and noticed
that I had an unobstructed view of the stage about 30 yards away on Mike's side.  I
thought this is perfect.  As close as i have ever been in now 19 shows.  I was
happy.  Thanks, asshole dude.   

Second set.  Rock-n-roll.  Velvet cover.  Trey really looked like he was having a
good time and Mike with his scraggly little beard.  I've never seen Mike when he
wasn't clean shaved.  Wilson, the evil king of Prussia.  Bang bang bang I'm having
phun now.  Piper next.  I have to admit I never really thought much of this tune
before although most heads brag on it.  I now have a renewed sense of respect for
it.  That was the heaviest Piper I have ever heard. 2001>  the spaceship's taking off
again.  Nice smoke from behind and I could hear it going off every time too. 
 Wolfman's Brother> always a good scene for sure.  chilly and funky.  Boogie on
>>another treat for me>  The crowd goes nuts when they want to do it to us until we
holler for more. So we did.   Velvet Sea>>ok don't ruin this show for me.  Well at
least it's not the encore.  I nearly cried at Deer Creek in 2000 when thy left me
with this song.  Antelope>>now we're going somewhere.  This version seemed a bit
shorter than some I've heard but  the lights  Oh god the lights especially near the
end.  Carolina>>I kind of figured we get this as I did at Greenville in 98.  Funny> I
know it's got to be hard to pick up the harmony with all the crowd noise and again
kids throwing things.  Why do they do that???

Encore:  1st tube, first of the tour.  Trey jumping up and down and the crowd bobbing
with him.  Now I realize why he's so happy.  The tour's almost over.  It's like the
last day of work before vacation again.  Then YEM>sick>sick>sick.  I knew this was
the last song.  Such a way to close the tour.  Proud mary and another one bites the
dust teases which picked up us all.

Musically and scene-wise this was one of the best show i have attended.  Right up
there with Winston/Salem 98, Birmingham 99, second night Hampton 99, 1st and 2nd
night Deer Creek 2000.  Peace and Love to you all>  I hope to get to some summer
shows  Atlanta and Raleigh hopefully.  Archie AKA Busternutbag.

Date: Mon, 3 Mar 2003 08:49:43 -0700
From: phil plucks@attbi.com
Subject: 3-1-03 gboro review

I usually dont write reviews, but this one made me do it!
On the wensday before the show, i decided to buy a plane ticket to go out to NC and
meet up with some friends how had an extra.  After the vegas and denver show i was
having second thoughts about making the trip and risking another mexican cousin
encore....little did i know
We got to the venue at 3:15 and got in line hoping for a pollock, but there was no
poster at all.  It started to rain, but we were all in good spirits and remained
relatively warm and dry uner the ripped up cardboard trashcans, now used as roofs. 
Finally, 6 pm and the doors open.  Since we were second in line in our row, we were
stoked.  The plan was 2 of us get posters and the other grab a spot in front...but i
didnt get through security b/c i had a bag w/my dat deck and they made me walk to the
otherside of the building!  i was pissed...not a good way to start off.  Anyways, i
got it after 20 minutes of walking and standing in line to find out there werent any
posters and that we had a spot 3 rows back dead center.  Sweet! Slowly the southern
teenies tried pushing through and still momements before the show, people are trying
to get in front of us because it's their right to and i quote "since it's g.a., we
can do what we want."  That's not the right kind of mentality.  Anyways, the lights
finally go off and chaos begins.
Lets just put it this way, during chalkdust, there were punches about to be thrown by
the same wasted girl who jumped on stage in bonaroo, so my review of chalkdust is not
good...too crowded.  Then, once the wasted girl had everyone tell her to leave,
things got a lot better. 
Moma was good funk-rock and didn't break any ground, but carried on the good energy. 
Then came Foam!!  hell yeah, since 96 i have missed this song at every show i've been
to...so i was stoked.  third row and they nailed it!  perfect version.  The only
downside?  the 30 kids standing there with their arms crossed because they didnt know
what it was and couldnt sing along with it, well at least i got some good pics since
everyone around me was standing still...damn newbies dont know whats up
Then LawnBoy....i've seen this in denver and i thought the devner version had a
better cactus solo, but then again, in the 3rd row, it was great to see them having
fun!
Character 0...none of us were really excited to hear it, but the kids around us had a
fun time singning the chorus...it was a good version though.  Trey loves being a rock
star
Divided!  This was the first time in a while that i got chills from having a great
time and good energy.  The section in back with the industrial strength glowsticks
got trey's attention during the pause and a huge glowstick fight ensued....just out
of curiosity, does every show have to have one of these?  People were hucking them at
the stange and mike was getting pissed. Anyways, this divided was great, and
flawless...way better than denver's.  I have managed to catch all the divided's
played since they've been back.  What are the chances?  before the hiatus, i had seen
2 in 4 years, now it's 3 in 3 months!
Mist was a good song to hear up close....Waves is a good song...one of the better of
the new album.  Wasn't as good as the nye version, but still a fun song. 
Sample...the kids next to us were on their phones calling their buddies!  "they're
playing sample dude!"  i can do nothing but shake my head and laugh.  After the set
we decided, no more front row!  so we moved back and i ran into my friend who i
hadn't seen in 3 years.  so i kicked it with him for the second set.  We knew they
had to throw down for set 2 and boy did they!
Rock and Roll was a sick opener and trey was in his fine form of machine gunning it! 
great version.  the one from hampton was awesome too...is this their new fav?
Wilson is wilson, but i swear trey missed a verse...was it me?
Now is when the shit started to get crazy...the beginning of piper had me go take a
piss break, which was nice b/c no one was there.  When i got back, they had just
started into the jam...it wasn;t the normal raginng piper, but had more of the funk
element to it.  i leaned over while page was on the clav and said, 2000....Then the
funk escalated, the blue lights went on stage and it quieted down, until fishman laid
down the beat...2001!!!!  Yess!  The intro was funky and i was finally able to get
down.  haven't been able to truly get down at a show in years.  12-29-98 was the last
time i had a feeling this good.  THis was a solid version, but a little shorter than
hoped.  But its OK, they kept the groove going and went into a wolfmans...totally
didnt expect this.  Nice version with some licks by page and trey.  i am starting to
remember why i loved this band so much.  When they play well, it's the best thing out
there...
then they bust into boogie on...not my fav, but it kept up with the them of the set,
funk!  it was good to hear mike slapping his heart out on the bass.  they kinda faded
out and then page starts into velvet sea....how many groans did i hear?  a
lot...almost as many as the damn clappers who don't realize that they are musicians
and they dont need help keeping beats.  Anyways, i like velvet sea.  but not as an
encore (nye) and not in the middle of a set that is raging.  Oh well, i guess a
breather was needed after that intense playing so far.  So, what's next?  i was
thinking...Antelope.  This one was ripping and roaring and i haven't seen such
perfect timing between kuroda and the band when they stop and the blue lights come
on...perfecto!  Carolina acapella was a great way to end the set...couldn't have
asked for anything else.  And the rush of people who moved up front to try and get
closer!  i didnt think there was room to do that after the first set.  Awesome
closer!
Now, this is what capped off the night as best as i have seen since 12/30/97.  first
tube>yem!  I woulda been happy with the first tube, but when i saw trey whirling the
finger around to signal another song...i began having flashbacks to the crap they
ended vegas and denver with.  But then...is that what i think!!!??  Oh yeah!  Busting
out a yem as the second song in the encore?  it ended up being a 30 minute encore, at
least, and it was a fine fine fine yem.  they nailed it again, as did denver's
version.  The buildup to bmgs was actually boy, man, shit, shit!  funny shit!  The
tramps were solid and trey has been getting risky with those 270's in both
directions.  The jam was sick, but too short.  i understand they had a time issue (
wonder if they went over) and the vocal jam with the proud mary singing was as good
as it gets to end a tour in the south.  Well, i have to say, this was the best show i
saw post hiatus.  The best i've seen since nye run 98, maybe 10-2-99. 
About the scene, i really do miss the days of crowds that knew more of what's going
on in the show.  it just adds to the intensity of it.  i dont have a problem with new
kids coming, b/c everyone has a first show, but a lot of em concentrated in a small
area, sitting down during rock and roll, standing w/arms crossed during foam...come
on!  that's not how it's supposed to be. 
anyways, this show left me off feeling good about the boys again.  they are much
tighter than any of the shows so far since they've been back.  I've got some pictures
up:  http://lucksp.tripod.com/showpics
thanks for reading

Date: Mon, 3 Mar 2003 11:54:54 -0500
From: Matt Allen mallen@hpidirect.net
Subject: The Greensboro Imprint

I have never been so mentally and physically drained after a show excpet for
Big Cypress, but nothing really compare to that.  This was my second show of
the tour and was hoping for some extreme energy which eluded us in Chicago.
Wow - the energy of this show was of epic proportions - it reminded me of
Hampton of years past.
We arrived late, about 6:30 and missed out on any lot scene there may have
been despite the cold rain. I just made it back to my seat when the lights
went down - my wife was so excited she threw her arms up punching me in the
eye and knocking my contact out. Not the way I had hoped to begin this
event.
While I struggled unsuccessfully to regain my vision in one eye, Trey
started shreading. From the first note of Chalkdust he never looked back all
night feeding us tremendous amounts of high octane. Moma was equally as high
pitched, hard, and fast. Like most of the jams of the night, it was short
and fueled by fire.  Then came the first of my favorites for the night -
Foam was played to near perfection. When Page is on fire nothing can go
wrong. The interplay here was beautifully defined with some improvisational
play - Trey could have peaked his jam a little more at the climax, but I am
definately not complaining. I had perma-grin from ear to ear.  I finally got
a Lawnboy where I was close enough to see the stage and Page pimping it out.
It was a blast.  Now I must admit when Trey started Character my first
thought was, "Atleast it's not closing the set."  Again, like the entire
show, the jam was loud and hard and full of energy. Then came the next
miracle of the evening - it's been so long since I've heard a Divided Sky
that I almost passed out. It was as moving as ever. The interplay was
there - weaving in and out.  A glowstick war ensued for the first half of
the song thru the long pause. Trey was just egging them on by catching the
glowsticks and throwing them back. After he hit "the note" Trey got hit with
a glowstick and scolded us with a hard feedback thrust on his guitar telling
us "That's enough!"  The energy in the crowd was insane throughout the rest
of this jam. Mist was very nice and soothing & could not have been more
prefectly placed followed by another beautiful Waves.  The whole Sky, Mist,
Waves portion of this set was euphoric - even for someone like me who was
mostly sober.  I heard this in Chicago and loved it. Well it was even better
here!  Trey's sweet singing guitar licks sent us floating thru the ocean and
the sky. Then another amazing, short, high energy jam hit us with Sample.
Somehow this song has eluded me for the past 24 shows and I embraced it with
open arms.  This set may not look fab on paper, but when you listen to this
recording you'll hear the excitement and energy.  The were ON tonight.
Rock & Roll could not have been more perfect of a opener for the 2nd set.
They showed us what pure Rock & Roll was about all night. This jam was as
tight and wild as ever. The place was booming as they hit the first few
cords of Wilson - NUTS!!!  This place was about to explode.  The jam
reflected it, too - it was straight adrenaline. Loud, hard, & vicious - just
like Wilson. The sweat and energy are just oozing by now - could this get
any more crazy?  Ah, yes it can.  This is how I love Piper, when they take
their time building the intro much like they used to do in 97 and 98.  The
main jam to this didn't last too long, but they finally took off into the
nights only real type II jam.  The boys were very patient with each other
giving each other time do develop a crazy jam and passed it back and forth
very carefully.  Fish and Mike laid the foundation(s) while Trey and Page
were like two ferocious kids on a junglegym.  It was as close to sheer
perfection as I can ever remember hearing. I thought they were heading into
a Twist Around until it slowed down to an ambiet jam and Fish kicked in the
beat to 2001. Wow - could this be anymore perfect?  While it was a short
2001, they laid down the funk here. The lights were phenominal and the crowd
wild.  The Wolfman's could only be defined as a pleasant surprise.  Mike and
Page got the funk out and the jam that ensued was just plain FUN shakin' and
goovin'.  Then came Mike's teases into Boogie on - now this is when it
officially became a huge party. This jam was nothing remarkable, just a fun
groove. Velvet Sea was VERY dramatic. This song tends to get a bad rap, but
it was perfectly placed here and Trey nailed it. Then it came - this was a
rocketship into space. I have heard some great Antelopes, but I didn't know
this was possible!  This song killed me, brought me back to life, and killed
me again.  It started fairly normal, pretty upbeat. The jam took off and was
heavy with Trey's guitar, then it built up and up and up...........my eyes
popped out of my head, I don't know how Chris kept up the lights but they
were incredible. It was like an explosion.  Trey turned to Fish as if to
introduce him as Marco, and we all thanked him thouroughly.  I almost forgot
about Carolina.  This was one of the best a capella version of any song I've
heard, and a nice tribute, too.
By now the show was pretty lengthy as it was about 11:30.  I was stoked to
get the 1st 1st Tube back. I thought, man, how can they keep up this level
of energy?  But what better way to end such a high powered show than with
one of the most high powered tunes there is!?  But somehow they created more
power and energy as they climbed higher and higher. I couldn't jump high
enough!  When it finally peaked with a boom, out came a thick YEM.  Holy
Shit!!!  More!!!  By now they could have pissed in my ear and I would have
enjoied it.  Ofcourse it was very energetic - the lights and the build were
perfect.  I actually thought that I had screwed up singing the Boy, Man,
God, Shit verse. Then came to realize Trey said Shit twice which was rather
humourous.  Mike showcased the jam with some heavy funking thumping.  I
loved the Another One Bites the Dust tease.  The vocal jam started with some
very weird sounds and then came the Rolling.....Rolling.....Proud Mary
vocals that actually segued into a full song a capella Proud Mary ending.
This one was a total crowd pleaser.  The set list was long and solid.  While
it wasn't your exploratory long jam-based improve show, it was a phenomial
Punch-You-In-The-Eye, sheer explosive rock n' roll show.  I have rarely
heard them when they jammed together this well - they were very clean and
sharp. This is why we do this and why I keep coming back.  Thanks guys,
can't wait to see you outdoors................


Matt Allen

Date: Mon, 03 Mar 2003 17:25:46 +0000
From: Michael Marks jawaka202@hotmail.com
Subject: 3/1/03 Greensboro Review

This was the first show I've seen since Darien Lake 2000.  I have been 
hearing a lot of mixed reviews about the Post-Hiatus Phish.  I thought 
Saturday's show was definitely a good show.  Not the best I've ever seen, 
but real good.  The first set was really good up until they played Mist.  
This was the first time I heard that song and I've heard nothing but bad 
things about it.  I'd like to hear it again before I say if I like it or 
not, but it just seemed to zap the energy out of the crowd.  Waves seemed 
pretty tame and I'm not a huge Sample fan, so it seemed that the band sort 
of tapered off at the end of set I.  But, Foam, Divided Sky, Lawn Boy, 
Character Zero & Moma were great as usual.  Set II started off with one of 
my favorite covers, Rock and Roll.  Wilson got nasty and Piper thru Reggae 
Woman kept everyone's ass shakin'.  Velvet Sea was a nice breather and I 
think it may have been, technically, the best played tune all night.  
Antelope was sweet to hear and Carolina was a nice way to close the set.  I 
kept yelling "Dale Jarret's comin' out with the band tonight!"  For those of 
you that don't know, Dale Jarret's a NASCAR driver.  Obviously he didn't 
come out, but I thought that the Southern Phish Heads might get a kick out 
of hearing a NASCAR reference at the show.  I thought that First Tube would 
be it.  I would have been happy with it like that, just because they weren't 
closing with a slow tune.  So, when they busted out with YEM I was 
flabbergasted.  They kicked ass on that and the vocal jam was one of the 
best I've heard since Vernon Downs.  If I had to rate the show, I'd give it 
7 out of 10.  But don't listen to me, listen to the show yourself and make 
up your own mind.

Richard Spurtz


Date: Sun, 2 Mar 2003 14:03:19 -0800 (PST)
From: G Antczak g_antczak@yahoo.com
Subject: 3/1/03 Review

Last night's show at the Greensboro Coliseum had been highly anticipated for some
time. As the tour closer, many phans would have high expectations. We left my
friend's house around 4:30, allowing us enough time to make the short trek across the
urban wasteland. We could see the gargantuan structure hovering in the distance. The
lot scene was a bit subdued from the cold drizzle, but the crowd gathered at the
gates remained focused and undeterred. Congrats to Berto, whom we met in line before
doors opened for calling the opener.

We staked out piece of front-of-board real estate we dubbed the 'G-spot'. The
acoustics were excellent. Time seemed to grind to a halt waiting for the show. The
opening Chalkdust set the tone for the evening. The jam built and climaxed several
times, despite being of modest length. Moma Dance kicked off in classic funk fashion.
It was delicate and all the changes were tight, Fish's vocals sounded great and
Mike's tone rang deep and bright. The slap of Foam came off next, and though it's not
one of my favorites, the sound was excellent and Page's piano riffs were crisp and
clean. Lawn Boy was one of three slow numbers of the night, and as the others came at
an appropriate time. Foam had lulled the crowd into a hypnotic stupor, and Page's
swoons brought some relief, with help from a clever Cactus solo. Character Zero
brought back the hard rock Trey leads that would be the feature of the evening, each
crest soaked with riveting fills from the rhythm section. The mood was then set for
the sets main event, the epic Divided Sky. A full-on glowstick war occurred around
the time of the Pause, with some of the attack being trained at the band, one even
hit Trey's guitar during one of the more delicate passages. The ending jam to Divided
brought more awe inspiring peaks and made for a strong overall execution. Mist gave
some rest and proved a peaceful and serene contrast to soaring jams that dominated
the show. Waves was charming and calm, less spectacular than the other jams, but it
complemented the overall flavor of the set well. A Sample closer was strong, but
still left plenty of space for second set.

The first set primarily showcased long composed sequences separated by swelling and
energetic jams, though lacking in explorativity. Strong showings by Moma and
Divided^×songs that rely on structured improvisation^×were not supported by anything
exceptionally creative. Overall C+.

The opening chords of Rock and Roll broke the second set out with force. Writhing and
furious, it set a strong precedent for the set. Wilson was hard, dark and brooding
with thunderous pulses. Then came the jam of the night, Piper. It came in soft and
patient, slowing building into the lyric portion. The jam soon turned away from the
Piper and worked its way to a theme reminiscent of 'Twist' or 'Oye Como Va'. The
group interplay wound around several themes and Page, who played shotgun for much of
the show, continued to step up and pull off enchanting clav, piano, and organ leads.
As the jam wound down, the sound settled briefly into ambient peace before kicking in
2001, a solid version with the usual sick funk grooves. Wolfman's was tight and
followed suit with more pumping and pounding bass lines that eventually jumpstarted
Boogie On. Trey delivered solid vocals, but the jam seemed to stall, and gave up in a
soft decrescendo. A brief rest was in order and Wading fit the bill. The arena was
lulled and the bouncing intro to Antelope breathed life back into crowd. The Antelope
did justice to the evening's themes. The jam broke through the crowd like a
torrential flood. I was swept up and tossed asunder in a maelstrom of crashing waves,
each one more violent and terrifying.

The band didn't quite make it offstage before a pair of microphones were set in front
of Page's rig. The crowd let forth shouts of glee between the verses of Carolina. A
delicious treat indeed.

The second set was built on forceful, arc of peaking style jams. Piper boasted the
only remarkable deviation from conventional jamming, but the songs selection was well
balanced and had a good overall flow. Overall B.

A First Tube encore looked to close out. The song really just sounded good, and as
for most of the show the way the tones of the instruments blended made every piece
more enjoyable. Trey was absolutely tearing it up and remained passionate and focused
as he had throughout the night. Someone mid-floor held up a YEM sign during the final
surge, and as it was already nearly 11:30 this seemed highly unlikely. As First Tube
died off, it was YEM after all. As YEMs go, it was good. Not perfect but not far from
the mark either. The jam came on with Mikes liquid bass and teased Another One Bites
the Dust. The vocal jam was interesting, but the boys did seem a little tired, which
was not surprising after so many high-energy jams. Finally a sweet acapella Proud
Mary rose to round off a delightful evening.

The show featured a heavy guitar-oriented rock and roll theme, and though I prefer
more exploratory group oriented jams, this show was in no way a disappointment. On
the contrary, this show had more balls-to-the-wall high gear energy than any concert
I've seen in recent years, certainly a feat for a show that went five minutes shy of
midnight. Overall A-.


Date: Sun, 2 Mar 2003 15:43:26 -0800 (PST)
From: C Thomas champsmom27@yahoo.com
Subject: Phish - 3/1/03 Greensboro NC.

I wasn't able to get tickets Hampton, my back yard,
but, I did get tickets to Greensboro.  Since it was
the first time since Hampton 98' I have been able to
go with my ol' Phish friends, our first time back
together at a show was OFF THE HOOK.  Here is how I
took it from the first level of seating, front row,
even with CK5 on the Right hand side of the stage.  At
7:53pm on my watch, the lights went out.  

Chalkdust opened up and set the pace for some good
stuff.  Got the crowd buzzing.  Moma was so funky I
thought someone farted.  Foam was similar to the
Hampton 2K3 but, a bit punchier.  I think it was Mikes
bass.  It was great to see Page ham it up front and
center with Lawnboy.  Sorta like Radio City 2000..
good clean crooning.  Character Zero came in with the
quickness and made you remember it was Phish on the
marquee.  As the energy was drifting on cloud 9 with
so many strong songs, Divided Sky opened up the love
and poured down A+ playing by all.  Damn fine song. 
The glow stick war was in full effect.  I got pelted
in the head, picked it up and heaved it forward.  Even
Trey was bare handing them and chucking them back into
the mix.  Made me think of the chess games of 95' with
interaction like that.  That's why Phish rules.  Mt.
in the Mist was similar to Hampton 2K3.  Great to see
that song played again.  Always a good tune.  Waves
was a very melodic and was a great transition set up
song for Sample.  Sample in a jar always rocks.  What
a way to end a strong set.  

What ever could set two provide that set one hasn't
offered??

At a little after 10, the band took the stage to show
us.  Rock N Roll started up set two and reminded us it
was all right.  Wilson came after and was the
heaviest, most powerful sound I have ever heard.  I
thought there for a second it was a Slayer ballad
instead of Phish's Wilson.  Heavy and strong.  Piper
was a good way to open the door for another show
stopper (as always) 2001.  I watched as CK5 light the
room into a frenzy and the band provided every other
sense needed to float around space a bit.  Nothing
like hearing it in the Mothership but, close.  Solid
shit going down.  Wolfmans Brother was a great way to
loosen Mike up.  He tore it down.  Sweet runs and full
funk approach.  Boogie on was a good cover to toss in
the mix.  Velvet Sea made me grab a seat and collect
myself.  I love that tune so much it's a sit down and
take it all in sorta song for me.  Sounded so good. 
Then, (after Divided Sky tore it down and 2001 lifted
it off).. Antalope comes prancing through the fields. 
I love this song and, they played it like they heard
me talking about it on the drive down from VA.  Full
on, no holds barred, pulling out all the stops. 
Killer tune.  At the end of it all I admit, I was
winded.  When the guitar went down and the side mic
got set up, I was thinking Freebird.  Then, I though..
we're in NC.  Sure enough, Carolina came through
crystal clear in full throwback barbershop style. 
Them boys sure know how to put on a damn fine show.  I
was dumbstruck.  Set two was over, I wasn't quiet sure
what I just saw and the room was lit up like a
thousand stars waiting for the encore.  At 11:15 on
the watch, I knew it would be a long encore...

First tube came out and pulled the crowd into a
overdrive frenzy.  Strong as hell.  Pulling out every
bass thump as Trey laid guitar licks like a ninja
dismantling enemys.  Fat ass tune.  Fat I said.  Just
as Phish made you beleive that First tube was the end,
YEM busts out of nowhere like a angry pimp and bitch
smacks the crowds wig straight.  I saw jaws drop as
the band began to lay into it.  Thinking it was a last
chance hooray (since I middle floor in Hampton for
their "re-start" to which they killed it), this had to
have been one of the tightest renditions of YEM I have
ever seen.  Every note, break, tempo change, run,
twist and turn was on the money.  The "Another One
Bites The Dust" teaser got picked up as the jam
progressed and the "Proud Mary" ending made me think
the band was bringing it full circle from their first
show singing Proud Mary over and over to this show
ending it up with the big wheel still turning.  I have
seen many a show and know, this show proved why they
are still number one in my book after all these years.

Thank you Phish for being the band that links us all. 
Thank you black haired natty dread with the kindness
dancing near the handrail and sharing your goodies. 
Thank you Greensboro for allowing me to travel to your
town and feel welcomed. Thank you everyone for making
that show one of the greatest experiences yet.  I look
forward to the next.

Glad to glide,

Shane T.
Newport News, VA

Date: Sun, 02 Mar 2003 17:29:35 -0500
From: sam kennedy kennedys@email.unc.edu
Subject: review for greensboro 3.1.03

LISTEN TO THE PIPER!!!!!
 this show, while having a strong first set, with some great tunes--FOAM
anyone? and a spectacular divided sky with a glowstick avalanche from
the upper level that left trey and mike looking out at the crown in awe,
last night at greensboro was all about what happened after set break . 
the second set started off with rock and roll, always a fun time, and
super tight with serious explorations by trey during the end segment.
just rocking. then a wilson which got the crowd riled up (as if we
werent pumped already, cause everyone definitely was)and ended with a
very evil end section. we were all quite impressed with the energy of
the band and couldnt wait to hear what was next. 

then came the piper. 
now normally, piper is a quiet unasuming kind of guy. he sneaks up
quietly, then gently, slowly, gracefully raises his voice shakes your
hand and you both go off skipping through the flowers and have a fun
time for about 7-10 minutes.
the piper we met on saturday night was no ordinary piper. 
he came on strong at the beginning , with all the energy from wilson
already being funnelled into the youthful body of little piper. he was
LOUD, INSISTENT. he needed to be heard. then something happened. he got
funky. groovy, just groovy, with trey sporting a huge shit- eating grin
and laying IT DOWN!! PIPER WAS A MAN! HE WAS GETTING FREAKY!! 
this definite piper->JAM was why i came to see phish. lasting a good 20
minutes, it was the highlight of the night for me. the guys really were
walking out on the tigh rope in this one, with some strange, strange,
beautiful jamming by everyone in the band, especially mike and page. it
reminded me of the runaway jim of worchester 97 ( i know that is a bold
comparison but it was that good). i would have never expected them to
take piper to this level. please get the cds. for your own good. if you
ahve any doubts that phish is back and at the top of their game, look no
further then the second set of this night. 

how could they follow such a bomb of a piper? well they did a hell of a
job, with some funky FUNKY 2001>wolfman's>BORW which had me hugging
everyone in my immediate vicinity. the transition into Boogie On is
amazing too. trey just looked back at fishman, and suddenly there it
was. absolutely seamless, and with the tempo and key change that is
quite a feat. reminded me of the excellent wolfmans>makisupsa from
11.19.97. please forgive all the fall 97 comparisons but that is the
only way to describe the weiht of the FUNK that was dropped on
greensboro. 

i wont even go into the antelope, but lets just say it was antelope.
wow. 
the encore was a surprise for me, no one expected a first tube, but this
was was exceellent, adn when trey looked back to fishman and said "you
enjoy myself" i think i may have wet myself. seriously. they could have
stopped with first tube, but they obviously were having a ball, and
didnt want to quit just yet. please get the tapes. the vocal jam is the
tighest ive ever heard, and ive listened to a good 400 hours of phish
and countless YEMs (all of the ones from  97, and many spectacular ones
like the 5-5-93 with aru) even charlie dirksen will agree that this YEM
was something special. 
phish came to play yall. and we came to listen. 
thats the way it is supposed to be.

Date: Sun, 2 Mar 2003 12:18:46 -0800 (PST)
From: Nathan Coblentz phrodo41@binarycortex.com
Subject: greensboro

Set I:
Chalkdust: solid, strong opener, but nothing memorable.  Just good.

Moma: again, solid, danceable, and strong.  These are good, low-risk warmup songs so 
far.

Foam: as tight as ever.  Page's solo was absolutely sublime.

Lawn Boy: got a huge response from the crowd.  Page is having a great night so far.

Character Zero: well, at least it's not a set closer.  

Divided: This is when things started to get good.  Flubs were kept to a minimum.  At
some point mike and Trey started jumping together.  There was a Glowstick Apocalypse
during the pause, like none I've ever seen.  Apparently someone hit trey's guitar with
a glowstick after he played the note, so I heard this chord from out of nowhere (I was
standing on the floor and couldn't see much) and thought something else was going to
happen.  But trey recovered, and the ensuing jam was inspired.  Definately the best
part of the first set.

Mist: good placement, we needed to breathe for a minute.  One of my favorite chillout
songs.

Waves: I liked this alot, but they seemed to be losing the crowd.  Everyone was like,
oh, new song.  I don't think Waves has reached its full potential yet.  Still, I was
enjoying this Waves immensely, probably much more than everyone around me.  Secondary
first set highlight. Sample: high energy, trey led rocker.  Good set closer.

This first set gets a solid 7 for tight and focused, but low risk playing and no major
flubs, with a gorgeous Divided Sky and Waves.

Set II: 

Rock and Roll: Huge jam out of this one.  Went into some type II territory and just
when we thought it was gonna segue into something, reprised the main theme.  Lots of
sloppy All Right yelling. Wilson: evil, evil, dark, red lighted wilson.

Piper: This was unlike any piper I've heard.  It departed away from the traditional
build very early into the jam and went into a throbbing, morphing minor key
trance-metal thing (for lack of a better term) that was very reminiscent of the 46
Days in Hampton.  Soon Trey was toying with Oye Como Va.  This jam just kept going out
and out until it melted away into some space, leading up to:.  

Also Sprach Zarathustra:can phish ever play a really bad ASZ?  I don't think it's
possible.  A big crowd pleaser

Wolfman's Brother: and the crowd pleasing continues!  This jam went into a minor key
with lots of slick clav work, and then revisted some of the same jam territory from
Piper.  More vague oye como va teases.

Boogie On Reggae Woman: And then out of nowhere comes a Boogie On!  I don't know how
they pulled this segue off.  It was pretty jolting because of the key change, but the
band somehow didn't miss a step.  The groove-fest continues.  sooo much grooving.
Wading in the Velvet Sea: probably the only song they played that I don't really care
for.  But I had to sit down so it was a good change of pace.  I think Phish has been
getting better with their set placement, and relearning where all the slow songs
should go.  Of course velvet was pretty and all.

Run Like An Antelope: I think we all knew this was coming.  Beautiful interplay
between page and trey during the buildup.  The big tension part was excruciating.  It
built, built, built, and gave a few measures of release before building some more.  I
could have used some more release.  But this was a perfect set closer.

Carolina* - I sort of halfway called this in the lot, given the location of course.

Encore:

First Tube: first first tube since the haitus, if I'm not mistaken.  Totally peaked
out, blissful closing.  Then nobody put their guitars down.  I figured we'd maybe get
a golgi or something.  But instead:

YEM!!!:  if anyone complains about this encore, they should be banned from the phish
world forever.  This was a GREAT yem with all kinds of quirks and teases.  Trey
accidentally said shit instead of God, and everybody laughed.  The jam was thick and
chunky, leaning more at first towards the "playing as one" style.  But then that same
oye como va started creeping in again, only this was a full-blown quote.  At some
point there was a big Another One Bites The Dust tease.  A nice trippy vocal jam
followed by a full-blown proud mary.  Possibly the best developed vocal jam I've
heard.

all in all, a strong 8.5 show, and the best one I've seen yet.  First set gets a 7 for
the divided and overall solid playing.  Second set/encore gets a 9.  We were all
hoping for a reba or a gamehenge story, but couldn't have asked for anything better
than what they gave us.

And to all you phish snobs out there, this was SHOW NUMBER SIX for me.  If you want to
send me hate mail because I'm reviewing a show here and I haven't dedicated my life to
following the band around since 91 like you probably have, feel free, but I will
probably post our correspondence on a message board so people can make fun you.

Date: Sun, 2 Mar 2003 16:33:19 -0500
From: Brian Davis 
Subject: greensboro review

My body still aches from all the dancing I did last night! Last show of the tour and
those crazy cats from Vermont brought the house down. First off, I live about 30
minutes down I40 from the Gboro coliseum, so this was pretty much a hometown show for
me. So many familiar faces from places near and far. Didn't see everybody, but it
didn't matter. The lot scene was packed and positive, even though occasional cold
showers would send many scurrying for cover. Still, there weren't too many people
with their finger in the air and it seemed like there were plenty of miracles to be
had. A friend of mine almost got screwed when she drove two hours to raleigh for a
ticket from someone off of ebay only to be stood up. Luckily, the ticket I had saved
for someone else was given up at the last second, so my friend managed to get one for
face despite the Raleigh experience. After selling enough crystals on shakedown
street to pay for my ticket, I grab some friends on return to the cars. After a quick
session, about 10 of us roll out and get in a THICK line at the top of the stairs.
Some confusion with other doors opening and venue staff who like to mess with the
Phish kids, but we finally got in and scoped out the arena. Floor was already packed
and it was barely 6pm. We settled on the 200 level on Mike's side back around the
soundboard. Found some more peeps and next thing you know we've got 4 rows of 6 seats
each all to ourself. Wonderful to be surrounded by family. As for the music, I don't
remember any of that. Who goes to a Phish show for the music anyway? Just kidding!
I've seen some big Phish shows in my time. I got a late start, but I've been to every
NYE show since 98...along with some other gems. This show stands as the best two sets
from Phish I've ever heard. Nothing compares to the 8hour madness of Cypress.
Frontrow at Roseland Ballroom might be on par, but I got my three favrote phish songs
last night so I might be a little partial to Gboro. It started off with chalkdust. I
knew this was coming when, right before the lights go down, the girl I had a ticket
for turned to me and asked if they had played chalkdust the night before (because she
didn't want to hear it), "At least they're getting it out of the way," I tell her as
Trey starts into his favorite song. Despite my friend's feelings about the song, it
rocked. "Can't I live while I'm young," resonates strongly with Phish's fanbase. I
don't think it would fly as high with a Dead audience. Probably be some broken hips
and heart attacks from trying to keep up Trey's blazing 'try to steal the show'
guitar prowess. Not that Jerry couldn't teach him a thing or ten, but that's a whole
nother story. Next up is Moma Dance. Somewhere in here it becomes apparent that Paige
is ON tonight. Filling space with melodious movements, he knew just when to let up
and let beat take over. This one let everyone settle into their groove after the
Chalkdust accelerated everyones pulse. As it wraps up I hear something I'd never
experienced before: FOAM. Somehow this gem had eluded me for years, but with the
limited visibility created by the fog in the preceding 24 hours....it seemed to be an
appropriate pick. Really tight version, with Paige really going to town. This put a
smile on a lot of peoples' faces. And then a Lawn Boy. Nice and slow we go. Sit down,
take a breath, and pack it up, not neccessarily in that order. Next up, character 0.
Not a big phan of this one for some reason, but still a good song nonetheless. When
it's followed by Divided Sky, well it simply doesn't matter what they play. They
could play fart noises with their armpits, and I wouldn't be disappointed so long as
they followed it with a Sky. My second one ever, and first since NYE. This one might
have been better. I really need to hear the tapes. I certainly felt some
transcendental joy during this one not unlike what I felt when Barraco laid it down
during the UJB from the Kaiser two NYE's ago. For me, that was the climax of the
first set right there. During the pause, a plethora of bright glowsticks emerged from
the nosebleeds up amongst the rafters of the Greensboro coloseum. As they made there
way down to the floor, sticks were thrown at the band. Trey was eating it up,
catching what he could and tossing it back out into the crowd. I'm sure someone was
slinging Trey's glowstick on Shakedown later that night. They followed with Mountains
in the Mist, which I had last heard in Cincinnati a week before. Not bad, and
definately a reference to the western half of the state. They took us to the beach
next, however, with a nice rendition of Waves. Towards the end, it started getting
spacey, much to my delight. Before they could explore the underwater world that they
had manifested with their melodies, a familiar first set closer was wensed. Sample in
a Jar. Good, typical version, I suppose. Everyone was upbeat during intermission.
Smiles everywhere, except the lines to the bathroom. Was barefoot, so I sure as hell
wasn't going in there. Eventually returned to my seat and soon enough the second set
started. I was really hoping for a Mike's sonf, but I guess I was lucky enough to
hear it and a Groove 13 songs later during the two nights in Cincinnati. Instead,
they threw their cards on the table and showed us what they're all about. Rock and
Roll. Everything was allright for this tune. The energy in the house was incredible.
Last set of the tour....don't know what else is coming, but it's gonna be good. They
decided to rock the house even more with the next one. The familiar Wilson rift got
the chant going and trey played rock god when it was time to unleash a sonic
onslaught upon the feverish crowd. Things got even hotter when the Piper started
playing his tune. Without a doubt, one of the best Pipers I've ever heard. Everybody
was on and locked in, pumping out a groove that grew into a giant red worm the likes
of which few have ever experienced. 5th gear, rocking out, rhythm replaced by sheer
propulsion. Gotta bring it back to a sustainable speed. Trey's train slows down a
bit, and Mike brings out the funk. Sick 2001, with Paige and Mike showing that they
got the goods as well. The whole time, but here especially, Kuroda is showing that he
too is part of the band. Instead of giving us a much needed breather, the funk keeps
coming with a soulful wolfman's brother. This got the goosebumps going and the crowd
exuberant, with lots of singing along. Right into Boogie on Reggae Woman. A good
version that fit in well with where the set had been going. Not quite as funky as in
cincinatti, but there wasn't really much space for Mike to get his sound in. Everyone
was doing there part. Much needed opportunity to sit down during velvet sea. Not
really a favorite, but they can time it well. Definately prefer it as a breather in
between dancing than as an encore. As it ends, what's that I hear? ANTELOPE! Oh man,
this brought it back into 5th gear. One of the best antelopes I've ever heard. I
can't even begin to describe it other than orgasmic. That's the energy that this one
generated. An explosion of euphoria. Absolutely must hear this one again in order to
properly evaluate. I thought that might have been it, with everyone putting down
their instruments. Instead, they come to the front of the stage and sing an acappela
Carolina. Man, nothing could be finer. Encore was amazing. First tube, often an
opener and not yet played this tour i believe, was powerful as usual. Definately
surprised everyone. Everyone thought it was over, but then it came. I'd been calling
a YEM encore all weeklong, and we got it. The third of my three favorte songs.
Divided Sky in the first, Antelope in the secong, and YEM in the encore. Life doesn't
get much sweeter. Vocal jam was reminiscent of the one from 98 LJVM, only right were
heloise williams came on in 98 with some real spookiness, they started singing
rolling.....rollin.......rolling on a river. Riiiiiiight. I wonder if that says
something about Phish lot. Anyway, a great show all in all. Would write more, but
it's 4:19...peace!

 
Date: Sun, 02 Mar 2003 20:07:42 +0000 
From: Mike Walker mikew30@hotmail.com
Subject: 3/1/03 review


This was the only show I attended on this tour, so I was hoping for brilliance.  Of
course, I witnessed brilliance. 

First of all, the drive up from Richmond was terrible (endless construction and
delays), and the weather was horrendus (cold and very rainy).  But everything was
a-OK once we entered the coliseum.  By the way, the police and security from my view
were very tame and friendly throughout the show. 

As I just got back from Greensboro, I'll offer some comments on what I thought were
highlights of the show.

Chalkdust: standard, well-played.  But it was the perfect compliment to the
audience's very high energy.

Moma: Very well-played, no flubs.  Unfortunately, it was awfully short.  Nonetheless,
a welcome tune.

Foam: This was all Paige; excellent piano work.  That said, however, I was a little
disappointed with Trey's solo.  Frankly, it was a little monotonous and boring.

Divided Sky: This is the gem of the first set.  The entire band was in to it and
extended the final section/jam to the crowd's delight.  A monster glowstick war
erupted at the pause in the middle.  Trey and Mike caught some glowsticks from the
numbskulls that threw them on stage.  Fortunately, the seemed to take it in stride.

Overall, the first set was tight and well-played.  But I didn't sense anything
extraordinary.  But then came set II....

Rock & Roll: Extremely tight and jammed out just enough to get the audience moving
with their fists in the air (and it's alright....ALRIGHT, ALRIGHT, ALRIGHT!!)

Wilson: Again, very tight.  Trey was in to it (as was the audience).  Kuroda bathed
the stage in blood red lights.  Actually, it was a little creepy when taken in the
context of a nation on the bring of war...

Piper: GET THIS BOOTLEG AND LISTEN TO THIS PIPER.  At the very beginning, one could
tell that this would be no ordinary Piper as the tempo from the outset was slower
than normer.  Actually, the beginning seemed to resember the old-school 1997
openings.  The band was playing together throughout the whole Type III exploratory
jam.  Trey backed up and let Paige and Mike take control for a good portion of the
jam.  Just wonderful!  Then it's feedback into...

Also Sprach Zarathustra: Extremely tight with Trey complimenting Mike's hard-hitting
base.  Kuroda's lights (and fog machine) were INCREDIBLE.  I thought that I was going
to have to sit down :)

Wolfman's: Trey signals to the other three to jump into Wolfman's and Paige plunks
out the opening notes coming out of the feedback from 2001.  Nice and meandering
(a-la Hampton).  I even think some of the security guards were grooving.

Boogie on: standard, not much to say

Antelope: a perfect ending (or would it be??).  The band was gentle at the beginning
the jam; in other words, they didn't rush and gradually increased the tempo to a
stellar climax.  Trey points to Fish during "Marco Esquandolas;" Fish stands up and
waves.  Everyone is having a blast.

Carolina: a nice touch; well-received by the audience.  You could tell that all four
of the guys were ecstatic about this show.
Encore: what could it be??

First Tube: Wow!  What a way to close the tour.  At this point, I'm exhausted and am
drenched in sweat, but I dance my little heart out thinking that this it for the
tour, but then Trey starts to give Fish and Page a strange swirly signal with his
finger.  Hmmmm................

YEM!!: AHHH!  I had to sit down for a second.  I pushed my sweat-drenched hair back
and just shook my head.  Oh my god!  So wonderful, but so much!!  The YEM was
perfect; I detected no flubs (outside of a minor lyrical mistake by Trey).  Mike and
Fish lead the YEM throughout the jam.  Right before the vocal jam, Trey removes his
guitar and lets and Mike and Fish take it home.  The vocal jam was even off the hook,
with a little Proud Mary sing a long at the end.

In summary: The second set is an absolute gem; the second set is why I love Phish and
improvisational music in general.  Were I to rank the show as a whole on a 1-10
scale, I would put it around a 8.  But the second set clearly is a 9.5 or 10.  Kudos
to all four (and to Kuroda).  But Paige was clearly dominant in the first set and
Trey mastered the second set.  Until the next time.......

Mike

Date: Sun, 2 Mar 2003 11:06:26 -0800 (PST)
From: John Kern jwkern3@yahoo.com
Subject: 3.1.03 Review

What a show, what a dance party.  I'm half awake right now, just trying to get a
handle on what happened last night. 

Whew.

The energy level of the crowd was Hampton level, possibly higher.  People screaming
every lyric, dancing their asses off.  It was a beautiful thing.  I was lucky to be a
part of it all.

And it was really nice to be able to bring more than 2 or 3 other people to the
show.  Every 2003 show I've seen has been with a skeleton crew (for ticket scarcity
reasons), so it was a real treat to roll out there with 10 kids, albeit it was total
chaos once we finially got the group assembled.  (chaos in a good way though...)

It has occurred to me that there's two ways to look at how "into it" the crowd is. 
There's the energy level on the micro level, that's just concerned with how good a
time your friends are having, and there's the macro level, that's the total
audience.  For the first time since the hiatus, my crew's eagerness topped the rest,
and I think it both frustrated and inspired people around us.  Hey, it the floor at a
GA Phish gig, it's gonna get rowdy, right?

Anyhow, Marlan Brando, a semi quasi lurker/infrequent poster of the foley board,
forgot his ticket in Raleigh, and din't figure it out til lot time.  He proceeded to
bend time and space in his accord and was able to get back into the venue by show
start.  He even managed to find us by Sample, something we were sure wouldn't
happen.  We had written him off as a tour casualty.

Oh yeah, the show.  Carolina breakout.  Very smooth.  No 'puas or Gamehenges, but to
be honest, I didn't really care.  The Divided Sky was rare & nice, a first for a few
of us.  The glowstick madness erupted during this one, and the band literally stopped
playing while the mayhem was taking place.  I think they didn't play a note for at
least 2-3 minutes, seemed like a long time to me. 

The highlite of the evening for me was probably the Piper.  I've always long
consdiered the Oswego piper as the best, and now I'll need to do some analysis to
figure out whether it's been dethroned.  I'm leaning toward saying the G-boro Piper
was the stuff you tell your grandkids about.

The Wolfmans was great again, it came off very much like the Hampton one, only the
band didn't take the song to the high tempo rock star ending, which to me, was
better.  That smooth, crunchy, Wolfman's jam is where's its at, and was a great segue
into Boogie.

The Cinci Boogie was better.  It had band dropouts with Mike fills.  Nuff said.

Antelope was great.  I put it up there with the Hershey cut.  Great tune, insane
build up, great lights.
The encore was fucking fan-tigggity-tastic.  I was positive the show was over post
1st tube, and then BAM!, we get 20 more minutes of great music.  The YEM jam had
"Another one bites the dust" teases and slowly morphed into Proud Mary.  They did Ike
and Tina proud by pretty much doing the entire song.  Again, lots of crowd sing along
and clapping.

When the lights came up I was totally spent, shit I still am.  What a great show. 
Musically, it was top ten for me, Phish crowd energy level it was top 5, and my
hometown friends pushed this one to the top.  We must have group hugged 10 times last
night.  (Which might have had something to do with the decent looking girls that got
drafted into coming along with us.)  A great show, a great time.  Much thanks to the
band and all the cool people who check em out.  I really feel lucky to have stumbled
across such a great scene.  see you guys this summer.
- Jack



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