After celebrating the band’s 2,000th show on night one in Nashville, Phish returned to Bridgestone Arena on Saturday for what was both night two and night 2001.
To mark the occasion, Trey Anastasio, Mike Gordon, Page McConnell, and John Fishman opened with “Also Sprach Zarathustra”, a.k.a. “2001”, the theme from 2001: A Space Odyssey. The 11-minute opening jam set a celebratory tone before the band moved on to a tasty “Gumbo”. Trey then introduced “Beauty of My Dreams” saying the band would “play one for Del here,” the Del McCoury number making its first appearance in a Phish setlist since October 2021.
“Mull”, a track released by Mike Gordon earlier this year on his album Flying Games, brought it back from bluegrass to funk, with a segue back into “2001” before the end of the tune. Next Phish revived “Dirt” for the first time in 72 shows, the longest gap in the song’s 26 year history, and then stretched out on a sprawling 15-minute “Stash” that seemed in the running for deepest and longest jam of the set. It would be topped by “Split Open And Melt”, though, which finished the first frame with 19 minutes of nonstop , but not before a pair of Trey Anastasio solo tunes, “Ether Edge” and “About To Run”.
Set two began with “Life Saving Gun”, off Trey and Page’s duo album, January, from earlier this year, which Phish debuted at Madison Square Garden this summer. The funky jam kicked off a seamless sequence that continued with “Sand”, “Everything’s Right”, “Cities”, and a coveted slow “Llama”, which was a major highlight of the set despite being the shortest jam. To round out the set, Page belted out “I Always Wanted It This Way” before Trey brought it home with a sentimental “Bug”.
Phish – “I Always Wanted It This Way” – 10/7/23
Phish wasn’t done yet though. Upon returning for an encore, the band guided fans through a “Lonely Trip” and ended the night on a high with an ode to “Harry Hood”.
Click below to view fan-shot videos and a gallery of photos from Phish at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena courtesy of photographer Keith Griner.
Phish’s fall tour continues with one more night in Nashville, followed by two nights in Dayton, OH and a three-night run in Chicago. For a complete list of upcoming Phish tour dates, head here.
Fans at home can follow along with live video webcasts and audio replays of the 2023 Phish fall tour via the band’s streaming service LivePhish. Audio will be added to the LivePhish app promptly after each show, with audio available to stream exclusively using LivePhish+. LivePhish+ subscribers can save on the tour webcast pass, or any single night show. For information on how to order your Phish 2023 fall tour webcasts, head here.
Phish – “Beauty Of My Dreams” (The Del McCoury Band) – 10/7/23
[Video: Sojahsey1]
Setlist [via Phish.net]: Phish | Bridgestone Arena | Nashville, TN | 10/7/23
SET 1: Also Sprach Zarathustra (Richard Strauss) > Gumbo, Beauty of My Dreams (The Del McCoury Band), Mull (Mike Gordon) -> Also Sprach Zarathustra (Richard Strauss) -> Mull (Mike Gordon), Dirt, Stash, Ether Edge (Trey Anastasio), About to Run (Trey Anastasio) , Split Open and Melt
SET 2: Life Saving Gun (Page McConnell & Trey Anastasio) -> Sand > Everything’s Right -> Cities (Talking Heads) -> Llama[1], I Always Wanted It This Way, Bug
ENCORE: Lonely Trip (Trey Anastasio), Harry Hood
[1] Performed in an alternate arrangement.
Also Sprach Zarathustra (commonly called 2001) was performed on what the band believed to be their 2,001st show (Mike had discussed a day earlier on Instagram that he had been informed to the best of their knowledge that October 6th was the band’s 2,000th show). Llama was performed in an alternate arrangement.
