This was without a doubt my craziest Phish experience. My cousin and another buddy cruised down from Hamilton, Ontario for the two nights. It's about a 7-8 hour trip. My cousin and I had tix but our buddy did not. He was able to wrangle some in the lot. After night one, we didn't have a hotel so we just drove aimlessly on the interstate and finally said screw it and crashd in my old beat up Ford Tempo. I affectionately still call it the "Phishmobile".

The next morning the car wouldn't start. We were freaking. We slept at a rest stop and so we pushed it around to the service area and there was a mechanic there. We thought it was the starter so he drove to get a new one but it didn't work. He eventually gave up and we towed the car to a mechanic shop and left the key inside the shop drop box. We then had to take a cab to the venue to hit the show. We were several miles away from the venue so the fare was $60. We planned on taking a bus home the next day.

When we got out of the cab, the first person we see is an old friend from back in Hamilton. She was down at the shows with her boyfriend and they had a hotel and it was just the two of them and they said they could take the 3 of us back home in their back seat. SCORE!!!!!

We then proceeded to party and my cousin realizes he lost his wallet. We're right back in the gutter again. We go back to where we got out of the cab and we're checking the ground the whole way. No dice. We call the cab company and she was just dropping off a fare and she had the wallet. UNREAL!!! It cost another $150 for her to bring it back to us. Finally my cousin has his wallet and his ticket.

By show time I was so amped b/c of the shit we just went through.

Set 1 was standard fare for 1999. Nothing crazy until we got to Vultures. Love this tune and I have never seen it since. Stash is my favorite song and when they launched into that, I lost it. After the craziness with the car and finding a ride home from friends when we were miles away from home and the wallet fiasco, I knew this Stash was meant for me. I have never seen this song since and I beg for it everytime I see a show. It seems to elude me. This version may not rank up there with the all time great Stashes but, for me, it is my favourite ever live Phish performance just because of the emotion of that moment. The jam is so dark and spacey and Trey's builds it up just right to a sweet climax that makes me remember that night everytime I hear it.

Set 2 was solid. Glowstick war during the ambient jam to start off was cool and then a solid YEM>Caspian. Bathtub is great as well and the Misty Mountain Hop was great to see. I got the bustout of it in Toronto on summer tour so it was cool to get this one again. Love my Zeppelin. My cousin and I still talk about the adventures to this day and I know the karma was riding high this night. Thanks to the big guy upstairs that made sure we made it back safe after this show.

On an unbelieveable side note, I called the mechanic a few days later. They said it was dirty battery terminals and they wouldn't charge me anything. I wound up taking a bus from Hamilton down to the town outside of Albany (forgot name - 8 hour ride) and when I get to the town I call a cab to take me to the mechanic shop. It's the same cab driver from show night. She said she would have never brought the wallet all the way back and she would have just mailed it to my cousin. However, she looked inside and saw his ticket was in there so she said that was the only reason she brought it all the way back to Albany. Talk about friggin Karma. I picked up the car and drove another 7 hours back that sameday. 15 hours on the road for the day but memories to last a lifetime. What a long strange trip........

Does your username include a reference to a song, lyric or memory? Mine references this show. While I didn't become a professor until a few years after this show, this is where the Jibboo part originates from.

In 1999, I was a 1L in law school - I had moved away from all of my friends for school - and for whatever reason, my enthusiasm for Phish had waned. 10/9/99 was my first show solo - and - even though I love the show now - I walked out wondering if I was losing interest.

But the next night, 10/10/99 - the first set started with Farmhouse and then was followed by a string of five songs that I had never heard at all before - Gotta Jibboo, Heavy Things, First Tube, Dirt and Vultures. There was nothing mind-blowing about any of the songs....but something happened....it triggered a happy feeling that I just let go of the concerns I had and let my limbs go - with absolutely no idea where any of those songs would take me - literally having no idea where I'd end up. In a span of less than 24 hours, I had gone from questioning whether I was done with Phish to fully understanding that I love this band and always will. I've never looked back since, and it all started with Gotta Jibboo.

The show was pedestrian at best comparably to late 1.0 leading up to the peak event of Phish's 1.0 existence....but it is not without merit and shouldn't be forgotten. As a whole, a far more spacey show than people tend to remember from that 1999 period.

Stash was noticeable. It was really probably that last truly jammed out Stash of 1.0. Sure they played scorchers after, but nothing that truly stood out as different. This one featured a great staccato section in the final 5-6 minutes by Trey not very different from some of his recent summer 2013 playing in jams. The Stash was also the set I closer and it closed spectacularly. It was a precipitated by a way-above-average Vultures that quite literally evoked soaring majesties as I re-fell in love with the band.

The YEM is also remarkable. The whole second set begins with a 5-6 minute ambient jam that slowly builds up to the YEM. Counting that ambient intro, the band launched into another jam mid YEM, resulting in a well-over 30 minute rendition of spacey goodness...not the most fun to dance to at the show if looking to rock a second set, but a great piece of exploration worthy of a listen on the couch.

Overall: recommended for a dark-horse sleeper show when looking for a chill evening on the couch.

Set 1 is pretty standard in terms of song selection (well, at least it seems so these days - back in '99 these songs were still relatively new), albeit with everything played reasonably well, until the end of the set brings one highlight with an extended and pumped-up Vultures (rather similar to today's Type I Gins) and another with a personal favorite Stash. This Stash starts off in the usual darkness, Trey occasionally going to chords instead of simply playing notes, before hitting a nice major-chord jam. You can really hear Mike's bass insistently pushing things along on the SBD version as Trey's guitar work lifts the jam towards the heavens, before things neatly drop back into the usual Stash jam and Trey starts picking out some staccato notes (per the jam chart). The jam seems to sway back and forth, with Page and Mike now combining to move the jam forward, before building to a furious finish. That's a darn fine way to end any set.

Set 2 kicks off with a warm, patient ambient jam, with Page building a fog amid Trey's piercing solos and Fish's cymbal washes. This is exactly what ambient era Phish is all about, and it leads into an absolutely big-time You Enjoy Myself (leading off a set, no less - well, kind of). The first jam segment is powerful right of the gates, Page really showing off on the keys as Trey is content to sit back and crank out licks, and rolls into a gloriously assured groove as Page goes to the piano and shines there as well. Fish starts hammering away as the jam continues to build energy and Trey pushes his way into the forefront...then Page goes more contemplative and the jam relaxes into what feels like the usual YEM finish before the vocal jam. But, instead, the band keeps rolling with their groove, with sharper stabbing notes from Trey, as Mike now gets a turn in the spotlight, before things seem to come to a close. But that's another false finish, as they pick the pace back up and turn on the hose for a triumphant finale. All told, this is as good as YEM ever got outside Fall '95 (and 11/17/97), and is also a personal favorite.

A nice ambient jam followed up by a heart-stopping YEM is probably enough for an entire set's worth of jamming, and things take an understandably more mellow turn with Caspian and Train Song (which I miss), but Gin brings another swell rockin' jam (Fish's clanging rhythm work is the star here IMO), and a nice double-rarity encore sends things off nicely. I wouldn't call this show any sort of upper-echelon show or anything, but both the Stash and the YEM (ESPECIALLY the YEM) are worth hitting up on Phishtracks.

(old review of the YEM from this show)

10/10/99 Pepsi Arena, Albany, NY

YEM begins after an interesting "ambient jam" which starts the second set. Opening is uneventful. There's a typically spacey and harmonious pre-Snoopy segment. Snoopy at 4:35. Mike thunks melodically in his solo-section. Pre-charge section is strong, too.

"Boy" at 7:58 after a good scream. Boy Man God Shit Wash Uffizi Drive Me to Firenzi ("BMGS/WUDMTF") segment is punchy and fun, but nothing over the top.

Tramps jam begins at 10:12 and Mike signals for the trampolines moves. Crowd is really into the tramps moves. Lots of audience cheering and hollering [Note: Trey apparently fell off of a trampoline!] Page plays well on organ.

Jam segment begins at about 11:30. Trey patiently and repetitively plays along -- texturally -- with the funky jam (no attempts to lead or solo melodically). Mike is very up front in the mix and is quite melodic. Solid funky groove in here (12:50), to be sure, but nothing stellar. Yet. Trey starts melodically soloing at 13:04. It's a very engaging, collective jam -- no one is really leading it. Fish is throwing out all sorts of fills, Page is playing strong on the piano, Mike is thunderously accompanying Trey's soloing. There's a great
climax at around 17:10 or so! An excellent jam segment!

Around 17:30 the jam begins cooling off -- comes down from the climax. But this "cooling off period" only lasts a few measures. Trey noodles around a bit (18 mins), but the jam in here is still very collective. They are all clearly listening to each other.

And FISH!!! I mean, FISH is just tearing it up! Trey starts chording in an almost Moma-Dance-like fashion for a few measures around 18:30. By 19:35 the jam seems to wander a bit, and Mike repeats a very melodic, charming riff around 19:50. Trey accompanies it well with a riff of his own. Page is on the keys accompanying well, too. At 20:22, the jam cools magically, wistfully, again. It sounds like the vocal jam should be starting any minute (20:48), as they all just cool
off. But Trey fortunately doesn't start a vocal jam. Rather, Mike
and Fish lock-in for a few measures on a single note, repeating it on every beat, and quickly at 21:17, the whole band launches into a BADASS MOTHER F*CKER OF A JAM!!!! =^]

Trey starts melodically soloing anew -- with a sense of purpose behind the notes. It's really an enchanting, major-key, HAPPY HAPPY HOSE jam!! (22:07) The accompaniment from Mike, Fish and Page is just incredible. This collective jam SOARS! This is one of the most Almighty jams in "You Enjoy Myself" *ever* -- trust me. I think you'll like it. It's mellifluous and complex and intricate and mesmerizingly cool. Finally, around 26 mins, the jam cools off in a melodic, magically misty haze, and Trey starts playing Caspian's opening chords at 26:20. An excellent genuine -> segue into Caspian.

That's right, there was no vocal jam. (just *TWO* excellent jam segments)

It would be a crime against Phishtory not to give this YEM an "A" rating. There's magnificent playing by all parties in a collective fashion reminiscent of Fall 1995 (or premonitory of many December 1999 jams, depending on your point of view). Hear it at all costs.

two cents
charlie

Got a ticket in the lot, thanks to those who could help a ticket less bastard like myself out. SET ONE- Farmhouse, a decent follow up from last night's Albany gem. Jibboo >Heavy Things, eh nothing special. First Tube followed, is it just me or is this the best version of First Tube ever, this song really had some energy going for us. I love the screaming of Fishman during the climax of the jam towards the 7.50 min mark. Dirt > Vultures, eh. Not to impressed with this set one. Was hoping for some older tunes rather than Farmhouse but well will see what closes this set, Stash. This version of Stash is top 5 IMO. The Stash ends up going into this ambient jam which is a mix of ambient space and Trey's unique playing style with the rest of the band made this set one bust into something of a must hear, just for the fact that Stash and First Tube were two of the best.
SET TWO- Ambient Jam Intro- very spooky very dark, seemed to be blossoming into something unique, Ghost maybe? YEM. This YEM had no vocal jam, the ambient intro was just the First of many. YEM contained some pepper and some Trey Hot Sauce, Between jamming and playing the piss out of this they come out with Caspian which was a great, near flawless version. Trainsong followed, another one of my favorites off Billy Breathes, Gin was rather short but sweet, Character o closed out the show, eh. The YEM was the highlight of set two, in fact it was Set 2.
Encore- Contact, wow! a rare treat, I'll take it. Gordo on vocals is always something i look forward to, Misty Mountain to close the show. Nice job.
First Tube, Stash and YEM were beyond anything ive heard Phish play in shows prior in 99, thanks 'yall.

SET 1: Farmhouse, Gotta Jibboo, Heavy Things, First Tube, Dirt: Holy Farmhouse album Batman.

Vultures: Outstanding version. Trey dominates.

Stash: Wow! An unbelievable jam that has some major key jamming early on. Big, big peak on this one, a must listen for any Stash fan. Plenty of trilling in the last minute. The ending is a bit rushed/messed up.

First set summary: Vultures was cool, and Stash was GREAT. All the Farmhouse material all back-to-back like that was a bit much. Decent set.

SET 2: Jam: This jam is quite cool and sets up what is to come perfectly… >

You Enjoy Myself: A true groove monster. If that is your thing, you will love this YEM. Perfect Dance Party USA track, Mike crushes this one. >

Prince Caspian > Train Song: Standard.

Bathtub Gin: Solid and short jam.

Character Zero: Zero’d.

ENCORE: Contact > Misty Mountain Hop: And that’s a wrap folks. Good encore.

Second set summary: Outside of YEM, this was a pretty disappointing set to end such an outstanding tour. Outside of Vultures, Stash, and YEM all have replay value, especially that wicked Stash. Did they run out of gas? Burnout? Too much too fast at the break? I would rate this show as a 3.4 out of 5. Pretty average show. I have truly enjoyed revisiting each show on this tour in its entirety over the course of the last 28 days. Some great shows in some out of the way places – markets they just had not explored too much in the past.

The first set is pretty standard and straightforward for the majority of it. Dirt is strong and yet another strong version of Vultures. Stash is "The Business" though. It goes into a lush sea of sound that is just beautiful, very reminiscent of a Simple jam. This builds slowly into a absolutely phenomenal peak. One of the best Stashes I've ever heard.

Set two starts with a cool ambient jam that casually moves into YEM. YEM is very cohesive and strong. The jam section is also a standout among other versions. No vocal jam but the jam is very pretty coming out of the song. The best version of YEM I've heard from 1999. Gin goes into a jam very quickly and it is a very fast paced gin like jam before quickly going back to Gin proper.

Contact/Misty Mountain Hop is a fun encore.

Overall a very mild average show with the huge exception of Stash and YEM.

Y'all: this is a total sleeper of a show. Textbook example of a show that looks mediocre on paper, but is actually something special.

First set features a string of "new" songs, all capably performed, followed by a cooldown in Dirt. Then, as others have noted, a highlight of a Vultures, and (here's where you need to start paying attention) possibly the Last Great Stash of the Classic Phish Era. Second set opens with a mysterious ambient jam, that leads into what is certainly the Last Great YEM of the Classic Phish Era (and possibly any era), and then some other stuff happens.

Look, every show has its headlines: this night the big stuff was wrapped around setbreak. The beginning moves right along; the ending... well, it's not like it completely falls apart. Put it all together, it's a nice way to spend a few hours!

All these years later, this show and Las Cruces 9/22 remain my go-to Fall 1999 tapes. No, I didn't mispronounce Boise—you heard me correctly! No, I didn't confuse one night of Albany for the other! To continue with this blasphemous talk, since December 1999 (inclusive of Big Cypress) is mostly overrated, and Summer 1999 is just kind of weird and icky (at least the North American part), I think these two shows get the most attention from me out of this entire strange (and sometimes wonderful) year. Anyways, give it a listen, and see what you think....