These are two of the best PB shows I ever saw and unfortunately I will never be able go back and re-live them through the music...but I have the some great memories of these two or three days spent with them.
November 7th, 2002 - La Choza; Pittsfield, MA
I: Sylvia > Dig, No Glove No Love, Escher\'s Etchings > What The Funk > Sundance
II: Peace Frog > Buquebus > Bugs, LDZ > Frankly Po Zest > Good To Your Earhole > Frankly Po Zest,
Phaddy Boom Baddy, Score, Drum Solo, Scarlet Begonias
E: jam > Taboo Or Not Taboot
November 8th, 2002 – Café Zacquor; Gloversville, NY
I: Attraction To Shade Ditty > The Chase, Hard Luck Harry > In Memory of Elizabeth Reed,
Cosmic Spaceway Rhyme, Mooboo’s Voodoo (Episode 2) > Crossroads > Mooboo’s Voodoo, Beef Barley
II: May Fly Disarray, Rufus > Wild Pack of Asscracks, Sir Psycho Sexy > Son of Simpleton,
Language of the Gods, Beat Box jam > Superfly Phaddy Fat > Drum Solo, Wake Up in a Coma >
U.S. Blues, See the Light > Phaddy Boom Baddy, Roadhouse Blues, Jam > The Vermont Song*,
In the Flesh
E: Crazy Train Jam > Cut Me Some Slack, Drunk Monk Bar**, 2001
* Jessica teases
** Standing on the Verge teases
I had just harvested a good amount of cheeba (enough that I traded an ounce so I could see my only NYE Phish show at the end of that year...so I basically paid $350-400 for it but I didn\'t even care) and I wanted to see the boys (11/02/02 had left me wanting more) so I figured, Pittsfields not that far and grabbed some cash and some herbs and headed up route 8 from Naugatuck.
I think the show had already started when I got there so I grabbed a nice bomber of a local stout and sat down in this nice little cafe\'...the tables along the wall were tall and tiny and I think there was a candle burning on it, strange place. I remember asking for the Sundance in the 1st set and the Frankly in the 2nd. I also rememeber the kid who was doing merch at the time scored or almost scored a hummer behind the establishment, priceless:)
So it was the boys, Josh and "he whos name I forget" that made the trip up. After the show we went to a nearby motel and they bought a cheap room and I bought the one with the hot tub...unfortunely only Josh and Adrian used it, noone else would get in it after that and I wasn\'t about to clean it:) But hey, if it helped to relax "Gimli" for the next show then it was well worth it. The next morning/afternoon (probabaly afternoon) we all went and ate breakfast at a really cool little diner in downtown Pittsfield that had lots of signed photos of famous people adorning the walls.
After breakfast Timmy convinced me to head up with them to Gloversville to this new place called Café Zacquor and I was having so much fun that I agreed. But I was low on cash and herbs and decided to drive back to Naugatuck to replenish...I think they went and hit golf balls at a nearby driving range before heading up to Gloversville.
With my trusty directions in hand I set out for a much longer then anticipated drive to, what I would consider, upstate NY. Snow White (my busted up white \'93 Subaru wagon) was pushed as hard as I had ever pushed her I could get there in time and not miss anything. As I got closer I started noticing how much fucking snow these guys upstate get and once I got to Gloversville there was like four or so foot high snowbanks on the side of the road. Apparently they had just gotten dumped on.
I made it there with enough time to help carry in the equipment and hang out before the show with the owner (who shared the same passion for the sacred seed as I) and listen to one of the best jukeboxes I had ever heard...it had one of the live Phish shows they were releasing at the time and I remember Adrian really diggin\' on the Llama. Musically the show was great, as always...but what stuck out to me the most was, here\'s a room full of old and young folks who had probably never seen the band before (or heard them) yet they were soooo into it.
After the show all the locals wanted the band to stay and hang out but they decided to pack everything up and head home...except Timmy of course:) So we hoped in Snow White and headed god knows where to a house with a bunch of pretty cool kats and kittens. They were up in Timmy\'s earhole all night so I grabbed some carpet and passed out for an hour or two. We left Gloversville and headed for Staven and I managed to drive atleast 60 miles with my gas cap lodged into my roof rack (give me a break, it was a rough couple days) and when we stopped for gas in CT I finally noticed it.
After I dropped Timmy off at his then egg-shaped mini van I drove back to Naugatuck thinking...this is what I want to do with the rest of my life:) Unfortunately for me I chose a different path and though I live with no regrets, I wonder what kind difference I could of made if I poured all my energy into helping them achieve there goal. I never stopped listening to them or believing in them and I never will.
So to all the folks out there who love this band and have supported them one way or another through the years...I salute you:) IMO they still havn\'t peaked musically, hence why everyone always says "that was the best version ever" after every show. So do whatever you can to spread the word and most of all HAVE FAITH!!!
