Phish performed their first of three shows at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in downtown San Francisco, CA last night. The city has been a bit hectic as of late, as the hometown San Francisco Giants are in the midst of a neck-and-neck World Series against the Kansas City Royals. Despite all of that, Phish delivered an energetic performance.
The band opened the show with a bust-out “Walfredo,” a song on which Jon Fishman plays bass, Mike Gordon plays guitar, Trey Anastasio sits on the keys, and Page McConnell plays the drum kit. It’s a testament to their talent as musicians, or to their indelible silliness. The song hadn’t been played since 2010; here’s a video from that performance:
The “Walfredo” tune was actually the result of a campaign, organized by phans, to honor a fallen Phish fan named Adam Berger. Phish honored the request, showing the intimate bond between fans and band. The song has only been played seven times.
Continuing the set, the group teased a “World Series” spell-out with “Ocelot” in the number two spot of the batting order… err… set list, but quickly veered from that motif by playing “Camel Walk.” They did make a nod to the World Series in the encore, however, by debuting an instrumental rendition of “Take Me Out To The Ballgame.” While the tune is probably best suited for 7th inning stretches, it was nice for the band to acknowledge the city’s athletic efforts.
Setlist:
Set 1: Walfredo, Ocelot > Camel Walk, Axilla, Rift, 555, Maze, Brian and Robert, Stash, Party Time, 46 Days
Set 2: Sand > Birds of a Feather, Waiting All Night, Ghost > Bug > Seven Below > I Didn’t Know, Chalk Dust Torture, Also Sprach Zarathustra > Slave to the Traffic Light
Encore: Take Me Out to the Ballgame[1], Winterqueen, A Day in the Life
[1] Phish debut; instrumental.
Notes: Walfredo was played for the first time since June 27, 2010 (186 shows). Trey teased Simple in Camel Walk.  Take Me Out to the Ballgame was a Phish debut, and was played as an instrumental.