7-18-01 - Red Rocks, Morrison, CO

Date: Mon, 23 Jul 2001 16:29:45 -0600
From: Justin Smith [email protected]
Subject: Red Rocks 7*18
 
I'm not usually one for sending reviews, but things are a little slow around
the office today, so what the heck. I've been to 40 odd shows over the since
1993 and I was as excited about these as I've ever been.  It was like seeing
Phish for the first time, except for the fact that it wasn't Phish obviously.
First of all, Red Rocks is amazing. The scenery is incredible, security is
non existent, the sound is huge, and where else can you roll in early, gather
space for you and 10 of your closest friends, and never hear a word about it.
The vibe inside is just amazing, everyone in the place is as psyched as the
next to be there. I'm not really sure of the names of any of the songs, or
exactly what most of them are supposed to sound like, but that was nice. I
wasn't worried about hearing my favorites, or trying to duck Harry Hood or
Mike's, every song was like a new adventure. After the first night I was
actually excited to hear some repeats, just so I could get the feel of songs
I'd never heard before. After a sweet Mozambique opener and couple other
bouncy little numbers, I was feeling a little mushy and decided to go for a
little jaunt around the venue. "It's GA" I figured so I headed for the front.
Being used to the cutt throat crowds of venues such as Hampton and
Merriweather, I was amazed at the ease of getting right up on the rail, or
rope to be more specific. I found plenty of space and a chill group of people
who didn't even know I was there. I caught the end of huge Last Tube, a dub
like Windora Bug, a nice Burlap, and an  amazing Money Love Whatever. The
last one starts out kind of Heavy Thingsish, but turns into Trey just getting
ballistic. It's kind of ironic too, with ol' Trey singing about "If I had
more money." Yeah.
I ventured back to my crew which was 20 or so rows back and was planning on
hanging there for the rest of the show.
I quickly realized that most of gang was feeling like myself and had
scattered to various parts of the venue. So when the lights went down the
sounds of a nasty Sand started flying around and friend and I headed right to
the front again, with even more space to be found. Sand was selarious, start
stops, deep bass, and once again Trey just mauling his guitar, this was
pretty much the story for the 4 or so tunes.
The horns are a great touch, but when Trey goes off, they might as well leave
the stage, and they often do. Not that I don't want to see the horns, but
when Trey goes ape shit, he might as well be up there alone. As things slowed
down I headed back up, just in time for some solo acoustic. This was a big
treat for me, for I'd missed out on the other solo tours. Big Radon Balloon
was a great number, but Bathtub Gin was incredible. With everyone in the
place singing along, it was one of the best musical moments I've ever
witnessed.
With a nice Moesha encore, I can say that this was one of the best shows I've
ever seen. Throw Team Hampton up in the mix we've got an easy number 1, if
it's not already. And just on a final note, for all you salty ass people just
stay home. Boo hoo, they're repeating stuff, Boo hoo people (inlcuding
myself) are hooting and cheering during the jams (sorry if were excited and
you're not). It's not Phish and it's not supposed to be, and at this point it
may be better, cooler crowd, new tunes, what' not to like. Take it light from
Breckenridge.
 
Pauly
 
Justin Smith

Date: Sat, 21 Jul 2001 22:25:46 EDT
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: Red Rocks     7-18-01
 
Colorado, in all her love...
 
    Trey Anastasio ~ Red Rocks ~ Wihtin the Red Rockian garden, moments
within the breezes, recollections of the good ole days.  The magic, the
power, the passion, the connection to the phlow... again we commune to the
Red Rock palace..  Powerfull the place is, within the grace of Trey, the
tour, is soulfully touching... atmosphere, smooth and welcoming...
 
    The power that resides and phlows within the rocks and the hillside
feels heavenly.  The sun dipping into the big mountains, the winds blowing
through, gazing out into a view...   hmmmm...  the view and beyond, watching
thunderclouds drift across the mountains out into the plains, collecting into
huge thunderheads, the colors of sunset glowing upon the clouds, the rainbow
floating over the mountainside valley, the lightning during the show !!! ,
the fireworks over the rocks and venue, :-), the friends... hee, hee,  The
GIN !!!        We all realize how special this place really is...  :-)
 
    The first set is strong and gracefull, trance inducing, we transcend
into the moment, phew Trey's guitar sound,  mmmmmmmm.  The band is so
polished at this point in the tour.  Well within the set, at one point... the
music lays inbetween songs, the skies draped with dark blue clouds, the rocks
take up a purple hue, unlike their usual red, then as if a calling from
above...   Thunderous rumbles bellow within the skies above...  Trey
immediately was pulled to the power, looking directly into the clouds...  As
if a sign from the Spirit above, the power once again touched at Red Rocks...
 Why, we're on top of the cliff, we're on top of the cliff, and we're
wondering if we should leave...  :-)
 
    Enticingly, with Trey's intriguing touch...  Windora Bug emerges, a
soulfull moment of connection, a sweeeeet jam floats throughout Red Rocks...
 
   All the Marshmellows and Tortillas, the ballons, the streamers in the
wind, the streamers you could see them dancing in the wind.
 
 
 
 
     Sand opens the second set and becomes an incredible extended jam, the
Jibboo, acoustic, Oh Raddon... Raddon Balloon, The BATHTUB GIN !!!  WOW !!!
 
 In's and out's and back again, the music funky, gooey, rolling oh so
smoothly, the music, the feeling, on this night is amazing !!!   Tearfully
touched Trey & Audience sings out GIN over Trey's guitar...  Incredibly
Stoked!!!
 
 An incredible night of magic @ Red Rocks !!!  :-)    LONG LIVE RED ROCKS
!!!
 
 Peace ~

Date: Thu, 19 Jul 2001 20:21:35 -0600
From: Dan Walsh [email protected]
Subject: 7-18-01 Red Rocks
 
Kudos Trey,  tonight was soooo much better than the previous.  I actually
wrote an unfavorable review about 7-17-01, but I decided to go back and give
it another shot, and from the opening song on, it was 1000x better.  I didn't
even mind hearing the repeats, because I'm still getting use to them, and
they were played much better tonight.  I was also stoked to hear some
familiar songs (i.e. Sand, Jiboo, W.Bug, and Bathtub Gin).  Now that acoustic
Bathtub was truly cool when the whole crowd took over the melody, and Trey
was flabbergasted that we all nailed it.  I think what really made the
difference in the two nights is that Trey took more of a standout roll in the
band and really tried to make things happen, and all in all, he did.  The
light show was even better,  I gotta say they did some cool shit with the
lights in this show.  Anyway, I just wanted to write in and let everyone know
that I did have a good time at this show, but I still stand behind my review
of the previous show.  Oh, and don't let my last review steer you from going
and checking this show out, because you just might catch a smokin' show like
I did.


Date: Thu, 19 Jul 2001 15:14:45 -0600
From: Craig Lindsley [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: Reviews-Red Rocks 7/18/2001
 
         It's kind of funny, opinions are like assholes we all have one.
One person thinks the shows are grrreeaaat, another say they suck.
Please go see for yourself, Please think for yourself. The fact that
some of the reviewers loved the first night of the Greek but not the
second could be attributed to them being  so high one night and then way
beat the next. I'm quite a bit older than your average phan (41) but
I've seen this over and over during the last 24 years of seeing live
music. Both Red Rocks shows and both Greek shows were very entertaining
high energy affairs. As far as song repeats go , yeah there are some but
there were only 5 between the two Red Rocks shows, thats not too bad.
For those who complain so much, is there someone or something that is
making you go on tour? I find alot of young kids "playing hippy" quite
amusing, they're far from "hip" the root meaning of the word "hippy".
They chug down venue beers at $7.50 a pop and chain smoke cigarettes (
supporting two of the giant corporate industries they claim to disdain,
all the while making the giant corparates rich and slowly killing their
self in the process ) while virtually ignoring the musical magic taking
place in front of them. May those who have ears to listen - hear.
            And now off my soapbax and on to the review. The show
started off with a powerful Mozambique displaying the masterful
interplay in the horn section. It was apparent from the start that the
band was ready to have some big fun on their last night on the rocks, as
the horn section danced on to the stage shortly after Trey, Tony, Russ,
& Ray were getting things started. Jennifer, Tony, Andy & Russ2 were
quickly joined by Trey in their playful choreography. It's nice to see
Trey having so much fun!  A solid Caymen Review followed by a fun and up
tempo Happy Coffee song set the stage for Last Tube. This version is a
new arrangement and has lyrics. The crowd for the most part were up and
dancing the whole set. Windora Bug seemed  to be a crowd favorite,
probably because more people had heard it before and knew the words.
Burlap Sack & Pumps was next ,which Trey obviously loves, is my prime
candidate for less rotation . I 've seen it seven times in eight Trey
shows. However  the Money, Love & Change, also in heavy rotation, to end
the set just keeps getting better and better and provides a sort of tour
theme.
            Sand opened the second set with a sonic boom. Seems that
some people complain if a song that Phish played doesn't sound exactly
like it did when they played it. Isn't that the reason why we see so
many shows? I think it's refered to as variations on the theme. A new
song played for the first time at the Greek I think is called Plasma was
next, followed by a rocking Mr. Completely!! Trey rips it up on this
one. Jibbo of couse was another crowd favorite. Trey then slowed it down
just a bit to do two acoustic solo songs Raydon Balloon, which according
to Trey will be on the new Oysterhead disc and was called something else
(waves) but now has words and a new title. He also said "And you heard
it hear first !". Bathtub Gin  with crowd sing along was next, the Red
Rocks choir in it's full glory!!
              The encore was very special for me because during a
rousing rendition of Moesha Trey added the line " Moesha be Jerry,
Moesha be Trey " an obvious reference to the late great Mr. Garcia. What
fun on just a gorgeous night at one of the most beautiful settings in
this country!!! Good times were had by almost all , one notable
exception being the drunken tour rat in the rest room late in the show
lamenting his fate. A line from  a song from the afore mentioned Garcia
seemed to sum it up best " whining boy ain't got no place to go".


Date: Thu, 19 Jul 2001 13:36:16 -0700 (PDT)
From: Eric Kesler [email protected]
Subject: Trey Anastasio 7.18.01
 
The first person that speaks to us when we arrive in
the lots on Wednesday is a cop.
"Hey guys, how you doin' today?"
"Oh man, we're great!"
"Alright...here's the deal:  don't sell any beer or
t-shirts...everything else is okay!"
"Can we give away Jaeger for a smile?"
"As long as no money changes hands, I don't care if
they moon you for it."
Colorado.  I almost asked him if he'd be willing to go
speak on concert ettiquete to the Va. Beach PD.
Gorgeous day, blazing sun filtered now and again
through a wispy haze of clouds.  Hawks in the canyon,
frisbees in the air, excitement in the crowd.  This
place is beautiful.  Most of the reviews I heard from
the night before were positive, although there are
some who just aren't into what Trey's doing.  I don't
mind people who don't like the band.  I definitely
mind whoever it was down near the front who was
passing out stickers that said "Trey is Gay-Same Set
Every Day".  But that's their issue, and doesn't
affect what comes out of the speakers.
 
*solo acoustic
 
high notes-
Mozambique to open up...good song, gets the crowd
moving...shaking, dancing, pausing only long enough to
watch the wacky marching band thing going on on stage
w/Trey and the horns.
Double rainbow over northern Denver during Cayman
Review.
Good horn solos in Happy Coffee Song.  The sun cleared
the furthest visible part of the horizon during this
one.
Tony's first bass note in Windorabug coincided
perfectly with an ominous peal of thunder from behind
the venue, but the grey cloud hanging there never let
fly with the rainstorm...(thanks grey cloud).  Trey
and Ray had a dual keyboard jam during this
one...Trey's use of the keys was a bit more judicious
than it had been in the past.
Burlap started out slower than the night before, but
worked into a much stronger jam by the end.  Andy took
the first solo and easily held his own, then Grippo on
the Baritone, and then Jen, who continues to happily
(suggestively?) trade licks with Trey.  Everyone on
stage (save Tony) is playing with their entire
body...it's obvious how excited they are.
Money Love & Change was also longer and stronger than
the night before.  Very upbeat, rolling jam.
Setbreak Jam:  Midnite Vultures...some stand and
dance, many sit and puff.  Full night is upon us.
Out they come, a little noodling (Trey isn't afraid to
run an arpeggio or talk through the monitors to the
band...gone is the Micromug), and then into a
monstrous Sand.  I heard lots of different timings for
this one, but I'm with those who claim it was in the
25-30 minute range.  Really intense...with this band
the jams don't build in a straight arc from low to
high ala hood or slave etc...they achieve plateaus,
ride them until your head wants to burst, and then
storm forcefully to an even higher plateau.  They
brought it back down at the end, then Tony took a
couple of solo bars, back into the jam, then Ray and
Trey took a long chunkofunky break, staring one
another down.  Lots of wide-eyed smiling kids hugging
each other at the end of this one.
The next song was a low and slinky jam with a
mediteranean feel to it...not sure of the title, as I
was in motion at the time and didn't catch the lyrics,
but there was a lot of clarinet work.  Spooky (but not
that spooky).  The jam eventually worked itself down
to nothing, spaced out casually for about three
minutes, and then ripped into Mister Completely.
Possibly a little shorter than last night, this song
is still a sweet little haven for anyone who grew up
as a metal fan...Tony's bass line could easily be
worked into a Helmet song.  This is also where Trey
gets into some of his most ferocious stab you in the
spine soloing.
Trey is still a Jedi.
Jibboo didn't stand out in my mind as any more or any
less incredible than other versions I'd heard...by
which I mean I thought it kicked ass.
Instrumental after this...I'm guessing at the Barbecue
b/c it had almost the same feel as at the Gazebo
does.  A nice three minute breather; drink some water,
close the eyes, listen to the music.
Then everyone walks off the stage, Trey brings up the
acoustic and the stool, CK9mm brings up the spotlight.
 
"I'm gonna play a song now that's... actually ..going
to be on the Oysterhead album."
-audience explodes, then gathers itself-
"anyway, it's called Radon Balloon......I used...it
used to be called something different when I played it
but now it's changed and it's got lyrics and it's
called Radon Balloon."
Peaceful, soulful tune with quirky lyrics sung from
the point of view of (surprise) a radon balloon.
Guitar work was all trey, but the lyrics had a little
les claypool flavor to them.  I can't wait for the
fall tour.
Trey puts that guitar back and picks up another one.
He plugs it in, strums a few times, then abruptly
jumps up and goes back for a third guitar, which seems
more to his liking.
The audience, incidentally, is as respectful as I've
ever heard a crowd during an acoustic moment, Trey,
Phish or otherwise.
And out comes Bathtub Gin.  The crowd explodes and
then immediately silences itself...no one wants to
miss a note.  The air is overflowing with energy.
When Trey gets to the chourus part he starts to
whistle it, but he only makes it two notes before the
audience takes over, singing the part in tune and
softly enough to compliment the guitar work rather
than drown it out. Trey lets the crowd take it,
punctuating now and then with quick strums.  He's
easily sixty or more yards away from me, and I can
tell that he's laughing.  No jam to speak of at the
end of this song...he plays a couple of lines past the
last chourus and then stops, saying in a flabbergasted
tone something like  "guys, that was so
great...incredible...thank you so much. Thanks."
Everyone (around me anyway) is radiant.
Back out for the encore with the full band and before
they start Trey gushes a bit more:  "Thank you guys so
much for being the most supportive, patient...this is
really just an incredible...thanks..." etc etc.  in
his classic disjointed style.
The band then rips into Moesha.  This song is so damn
hokey, but so damn danceable at the same time.  This
is another of the tunes where Trey's soloing is not
joking around...he steps straight to the meat and
breaks off a hock o jam.  The key to the encore was
the additional lines added at the end, which I hope
becomes a staple of this song...There were a lot of
extra lines; these were the ones I caught:
Moesha me down, Moesha me up
Moesha me Avalanche, Moesha me Cup
Moesha me straight, Moesha me gay
Moesha me Jerry, Moesha me Trey
and the final couplet-
Moesha me Red, Moesha me ROCKS.
And that was it...out into the night to watch the
occasional firework (hopefully headed up and not
towards), have a beer, and stare at the lights of
Denver.  Trey is not phish, and I wouldn't see TACo a
hundred times, but they're easily one of the best
bands out there, if you can hang up your hang ups and
shake that ass.


Date: Thu, 19 Jul 2001 13:58:13 -0600 (MDT)
From: Ben Knowles [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: trey@redrocks, 7/18/01
 
this is my first review. i'm fairly new to the scene (couple years) but
i'm passionate about the music. i'm not gonna do a track-by-track (since
the setlist hasn't been posted yet and i don't know the track titles well
enough yet) but i'll throw out some general comments:
 
the lot scene: in general pretty mellow, somewhat sparse. lots of extra
tickets floating around, which made it hard to get rid of mine. someone
finally offered me $25 which was probably about as good as i was gonna
get. oh shit, but i have to comment about something that REALLY pissed me
off:  some people were passing out little flyers that said "TREY IS GAY -
SAME SONG EVERY DAY." whoever the unappreciative homophobic assholes are
that thought that up do not belong anywhere near a trey or phish show.
i'll reiterate what others have said - THIS IS NOT PHISH! sure he could go
out and play phish tunes, but he's been doing that for 17 years - give him
a break! absolutely ridiculous how childish some people can be. if you
don't like it, go somewhere else, don't try to impose your shitty vibe on
the people that are there to dance and have a good time. anyway...
 
the venue: well duh, it's red rocks. near-perfect weather, a couple small
rainbows even... there was some threat of rain, but it never quite
happened, thankfully.
 
the music (general): i guess my opinion on this band and their material is
that sometimes it works, sometimes not. they are very tight, they know how
to control intensity and respond to the crowd, but i think they are often
limited by the format. i mean, trey obviously is going for a very solid
rhythm/bass thing, mostly pre-arranged horns, and then improvisation of
horns/guitar/keyboard over the top. this is okay for, say, the first 10
minutes or so, but some of these jams were just going on forever! with
phish this would be great, but there's just not enough going on outside
the guitar/horns to make it interesting for that long. the songs
themselves are fine, i don't think that's a problem, but the jam format
needs a little work. note this is not to say i didn't enjoy the show - i
thought it was pretty great, with occasional moments of brilliance, but
there were definitely parts that dragged.
 
the music (first set): since i don't wanna guess at which songs were
played and get them wrong, i'll just try to describe the feeling of what
happened. the first set was, i'm pretty sure, all new material, and seemed
VERY long. dragged at times, rocked at times. crowd seemed pretty into it,
although... well, i guess the energy just wasn't entirely there. but we
were all entertained. trey was taking a lot of solos, which i was told was
a big change from the previous night. i remember a lot of blues-y riffs,
and also lots of builds and releases and jams that seem to fall over the
edge before bringing you back to the chorus or beginning or whatever.
pretty cool stuff, but bottom line: it's only the first set, let's wait
and see what happens...
 
the music (second set): they definitely stepped up the intensity for the
first couple songs, then brought it back down with some slower spacey
ska-ish stuff (including windora bug and ?). honestly i can't remember
what was played - i was somewhat distracted by my girlfriend not feeling
well - but i do remember dancing my ass off through a lot of it. a few
glowrings were being thrown around, but no war ever broke out
(unfortunately!). the set culminated in (i think - forgive me if my
pot-addled memory fails me!) a sand -> gotta jiboo combo that was utterly
rocking, and (aside from the sand) a bit unexpected. this was some
quality, intense, energetic jamming, and the crowd knew it. then at the
end of giboo and a VERY short set, the band just walks off stage and i'm
thinking "what now?" the answer to that question gets a new section:
 
spiritual enlightenment pt 1 - the new song: trey comes back out alone and
picks up one of three acoustic guitars sitting at the front of the stage.
then he decides he doesn't want that one and grabs another. then he
introduces the next song as "from the oysterhead album - you heard it here
first." man, what a song. some very intricate all-over-the guitar almost
leo kottke-esque fingerpicking (i swear i'm not kidding!) that i'm sure
gave goosebumps to anyone there with a pulse. pretty vocals too.
beautiful, beautiful stuff. and just when you thought he'd outdone
himself, he fucking starts up with...
 
spiritual enlightenment pt 2 - bathtub gin: total surprise. the crowd was
beyond psyched, of course. how can i describe this 'gin? there really are
no words. i mean this was something to be experienced. trey sang the
verses (with the obligatory crowd chanting along with "we love to take a
bath!") and when we came around to the intrumental chorus part, everyone
knew the notes and "doo-doo-doo"-ed right along. it sounded amazing. at
that point i felt like the bond between trey and the music and the
audience was complete and total. it was a beautiful, teary, life-changing
experience.  afterwords you could tell trey was a bit choked up, as he
left the stage with what sounded like an almost-overwhelmed "thanks."
thank *you* trey.
 
denouement: people will probably complain about the "moesha" that closed
out the show, but come on... it would have been impossible to follow up
that 'gin with anything, i don't care if he played fucking YEM on solo
guitar. all they could do is play something rocking, which is what they
did. it was fine. before they started he thanked the crowd again,
something like "thank you for being so patient... i want you to know that
it's really appreciated" - he sounded very emotional. now by "patient" i'm
not sure if he was referring to the phish hiatus, or the wait between
songs, or referring to the solo tour in general... maybe all three. but in
any case it was a good thing to hear.
 
the end: when it was over the crowd was pretty much drained. the long walk
down the steps was quiet - almost silent at times. everyone just
reflecting on what they had seen and heard. i heard a few people - frat
boys! - saying "wow, that was really special" and stuff like that. so you
know it had to be. thank you thank you thank you trey, for everything.
 
peace,
nub
 
ps. the guy that thought the night before sucked and sold his ticket for
7/18 lost out BIGTIME. i just want you to know that, dude - you missed
something very beautiful and special. i'll never hear 'gin the same way
from now on...

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