Would you believe that this is 3/4 of RANA @ The Clifford Ball, August 1996?

Once upon a time, I listened to nothing but Phish. For years. Seriously.

During high school & on & off through college, I was a diehard Phishhead & proud of it. I saw a baker's dozen Phish shows from 1994-2000, including travels to Chicago for Halloween 1995 & upstate New York for their first giant festival, The Clifford Ball, back in summer 1996. I never fully got back into them after they returned from their year & a half hiatus on 12/31/02 - touring became more limited, ticket prices had gotten out of hand, & they weren't the same band I lost my sh** over at 15. Still, the Phish nation seemed strong. But today came this announcement:

Last Friday night, I got together with Mike, Page and Fish to talk openly about the strong feelings I've been having that Phish has run its course and that we should end it now while it's still on a high note. Once we started talking, it quickly became apparent that the other guys' feelings, while not all the same as mine, were similar in many ways - most importantly, that we all love and respect Phish and the Phish audience far too much to stand by and allow it to drag on beyond the point of vibrancy and health. We don't want to become caricatures of ourselves, or worse yet, a nostalgia act. By the end of the meeting, we realized that after almost twenty-one years together we were faced with the opportunity to graciously step away in unison, as a group, united in our friendship and our feelings of gratitude.

So Coventry will be the final Phish show. We are proud and thrilled that it will be in our home state of Vermont. We're also excited for the June and August shows, our last tour together. For the sake of clarity, I should say that this is not like the hiatus, which was our last attempt to revitalize ourselves. We're done. It's been an amazing and incredible journey. We thank you all for the love and support that you've shown us.

- Trey Anastasio

The end of an era. Coventry will be taking place in the rural Vermont town of the same name on August 14-15. I won't be there, but I'm sure it will be a blast for all who choose to make the trek (& pay the fee). For those who might pay a lesser fee, the band has also announced that it will be simulcasting its 6/17/04 summer tour opener from Coney Island, NY to movie theaters across America:

In conjunction with the release of Phish's new studio album "UNDERMIND" and the kickoff of their summer tourdates, we are pleased to announce that PHISH's June 17 sold-out show at Keyspan Park in Coney Island will be simulcast in high-definition video and Dolby surround sound to 47 select Regal, Edwards and United Artists movie theatres.

The show will be broadcast live: 7:30 pm Eastern time, 6:30 pm Central time, 5:30 pm Mountain time, and 4:30 pm on the west coast.

A full list of participating theatres will not be posted until the shows go on sale on Friday morning, but there will be screenings in or near New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Boston, Dallas, Washington DC, Atlanta, Detroit, Houston, Seattle, Minneapolis, Cleveland, Phoenix, Denver, Sacramento, St. Louis and Baltimore, among other cities.

Tickets are $12.50 in advance, $15.00 day of show (if tickets remain) and will go on sale this Friday, May 28 at 12:00 PM ET at the Regal Events website as well as individual box offices. A service charge may apply when buying online, but there is no service charge when purchased at the box office. Taping and use of cameras and videocameras will be strictly prohibited.

Perhaps I'll take them in one last time...maybe.

11/26/94 @ Orpheum Theater - Minneapolis, MN
10/25/95 @ St. Paul Civic Center - St. Paul, MN
10/31/95 @ Rosemont Horizon - Chicago, IL
08/16/96 @ Clifford Ball - Plattsburgh, NY
08/17/96 @ Clifford Ball - Plattsburgh, NY
11/13/96 @ Target Center - Minneapolis, MN
04/02/98 @ Nassau Colliseum - Long Island, NY
04/03/98 @ Nassau Colliseum - Long Island, NY
12/29/98 @ Madison Square Garden - NYC
12/31/98 @ Madison Square Garden - NYC
10/07/99 @ Nassau Colliseum - Long Island, NY
10/08/99 @ Nassau Colliseum - Long Island, NY
09/24/00 @ Target Center - Minneapolis, MN

That's my "phishtory". Here's the scary thing - I nearly did that list off the top of my head. Some things just stay with you no matter what, I suppose.

This entry was posted by mr gilbert at 5/25/2004 06:00:00 PM.