LivePhish will bring listeners back to October 29th, 1994 at the Spartanburg Memorial Auditorium in South Carolina with the next Phish archival release. Set to hit the band’s official streaming platform on Friday, this show marked the band’s last date ahead of the White Album Halloween concert in Glen Falls, NY two days later.
For decades, October 29th has been often cast in the shadow of Phish’s historic 1994 Halloween show, the band’s first execution of a “musical costume” featuring the complete performance of a classic album. While the proceeding Halloween concert displayed the creativity and ingenuity that would make Phish a captivating and theatrical live act for decades to come, the show in South Carolina displayed the raw power of a band in the midst of an early career peak.
On the recording, the band quickly catches fire with an evil opening “My Friend, My Friend” before the continuous movement of “Sparkle” and “Simple” leads into a relentless “Runaway Jim”. There’s something for everyone here as the “Runaway Jim”, brimming with the energy of four young musicians, gives way to the technical precision of “Foam”. The Chairman of the Boards, Page McConnell, takes his turn in the spotlight for “Lawn Boy” before a segue train as unconventional as it is exciting closes the set with a wild and weird “Split Open and Melt” into “Buffalo Bill” into “Makisupa Policeman” into the only first set-closing “Rift” to date.
In another surprising stat, the second set outnumbers the first in songs, 11 to 10. Set two opens with a brash “Down With Disease” that, at only 11 minutes, stands among the longest songs of the show. The second set becomes all about segues, as the classic sandwich of “The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday” into the traditional “Avenu Malkanu” back into “TMWSIY” follows. More unconventional pairings arrive with “Sparks” > “Uncle Pen”, showing the limitless possibilities of what Phish could deliver on a nightly basis back in those days.
While the ensuing “You Enjoy Myself” takes home the trophy for longest song of the show, at 19 minutes it’s still comparatively short for Phish’s touchstone composition. The ending vocal jam puts the band in a strange mood, strange enough to turn the show over to drummer Jon Fishman with “Hold Your Head Up” into an extra-trippy cover of Syd Barrett‘s “Bike”. The pinnacle of segues from the October 29th show then arrives with the set-closing sandwich of “Run Like An Antelope” > “Sleeping Monkey” > “Antelope” before a cascading “Harry Hood” encore closes the book on Spartanburg.
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Soundboard tape recordings of 10/29/94 have long circulated, but Friday’s release will feature multi-track recordings, the same source the band used for A Live One, also recorded on Phish’s 1994 fall tour. Check out an audience recording of Phish’s October 29th, 1994 show at Spartanburg Memorial Auditorium in South Carolina and stream the upgraded audio on Friday via LivePhish.
Phish – Spartanburg Memorial Auditorium – Spartanburg, SC – 10/29/94 – Full Audio
[Video: fromtheaquarium]
Setlist: Phish | Spartanburg Memorial Auditorium | Spartanburg, SC | 10/29/94
SET 1: My Friend, My Friend, Sparkle > Simple -> Runaway Jim, Foam, Lawn Boy, Split Open and Melt[1] -> Buffalo Bill -> Makisupa Policeman -> Rift
SET 2: Down with Disease -> The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday > Avenu Malkenu > The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday -> Sparks > Uncle Pen, You Enjoy Myself, Hold Your Head Up > Bike > Hold Your Head Up, Run Like an Antelope -> Sleeping Monkey > Run Like an Antelope
ENCORE:Â Harry Hood
[1] Unfinished.
Trey teased Simple in Runaway Jim. Melt was unfinished. Buffalo Bill was played for the first time since November 21, 1992 (225 shows). Makisupa ended with a BBFCFM tease from Trey and Fish. During Bike, Fish made reference to the new dress he was given that afternoon and wore to the show. Antelope contained a May the Force Be With You tease from Trey.