9/23/17 Umphrey's McGee @ Huntington Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island - Chicago, IL

After work last Friday I drove to Madison, WI where I stayed with longtime friend Soren and his girlfriend Melissa.  It was gracious of them to let me stay.  We ate dinner, played some pool, and watched a movie called "Waking Life".  The next morning I got up and made my way to Milwaukee for the Cubs vs Brewers.  I stopped at my buddy Craig's place in New Berlin on the way.  This was my first time to Miller Park.  It was very hot with temps in the 90s.  It was a noon start but they still continued with the Disco Night theme which I enjoyed.  The crowd was over 44,000 and was sold out.  Hendricks pitched well.  As did Wilson from the bullpen.  Surprisingly it was Wade Davis who blew two leads in the 9th and 10th innings who let us down on this occasion.  The Brewers apparently play Bob Seger "Old Time Rock and Roll" after their wins.  It was a little stressful with the detours and traffic after the game but I made my way to the Lake Forest Oasis where my dinner was Sbarro and Dunkin Donuts.  It made me think of when we had stopped there in previous years going north to Milwaukee.  This time I was rolling south and onto a stretch of interstate 94 that I'm not sure I'd ever traveled right before it connects with 90.  Finally I got off at Lake Shore Drive and parked in the Soldier Field garage.  As I walked into the venue I could hear Umphrey's McGee starting up Nemo. 


I met some good people during the setbreaks.  Before the show I saw my friend Fabian and his brother Francis.  I said hello to Adam Budney as I entered the crowd.  The first set had Jake and Brendan on acoustic guitars.  The rest of the band appeared to be using normal gear.  It was still daylight for the first set which lasted about 45 minutes in duration.  The show started on time at 6:30.  For the record I did not attend the previous attempt when it was rained out.  The acoustic set and rescheduled show was a way of the band making it right.  After a day of watching baseball in the hot sun and battling gridlock on the highway a three set concert may have been a bit ambitious.  I drank a 5 hour energy and continued onward.  There were a few songs in that first set I was not familiar with and had to look up on their Twitter page.  Mike Racky sat in on pedal steel for four songs.  I remembered him from several of the Jake and Brendan Christmas shows.  In the Kitchen with Pony Stasik supplying a strong groove was the clear highlight of this acoustic first set.  I moved closer to the stage for set II. 


Wappy Sprayberry was followed by Crucial Taunt.  This was a hard rocking segment juxtaposed against the more gentle sounds of Passing.  The rest of the set was a Jajunk sandwich with Higgins, Make It Right, and Remind Me.  This portion of the show was a major highlight with the band at the top of the collective game.


The final set and encore was sandwiched with the appropriate Divisions.  On the way home I listened to The Score 670 and listened to the divided opinions on the NFL situation.  There was a smooth segue into The Floor.  Ringo was a solid version followed by the always welcome The Triple Wide.  The dance beat dissipated into the 80's cover of Thompson Twins "Hold Me Now".  At work I listen to 104.9 KIIK.  I recognized what they were doing pretty early.  They finished the Mantis they had started at the previous show in July.  Wizard Burial Ground was a major highlight.  Stasik took a bass solo in the middle.   I thought Joel played well on keyboards.  He's a good guy.  Day Nurse was the first song of the encore and led into the end of Divisions which was end the show.  It was over by the 11 pm curfew. 


I hit major traffic near Bowlingbrook which was the result of a weekend late night construction project.  It turned the drive home into much longer than it needed to be.  After bumper to bumper traffic for several hours I finally stopped at White Castle.  The food was good but I was approached by a person asking for money in the parking lot at 2 am.  I helped the guy but honestly for one of the first times in 18 years of traveling for music I felt in danger.  Also going to White Castle made me miss Nick and Elizabeth who no longer see shows anymore.  That was a postshow ritual for us.  Near Minooka you could see a fire at the top of the nearby oil refinery.  It lit up the night sky for miles.  I stopped for a while at that rest area but with temperatures in the 80s it was hard to sleep.  Finally after getting fuel and coffee at the Pilot McDiesel in Utica I was able to make the final leg of my journey.  In retrospect I have a hard time conjuring the energy for a ballgame and a show in the same day.  To do that in two different states with the concert having an extra set taboot was asking a lot out of my body.   

9/2-3 Phish @ Dick's Sporting Goods Park - Commerce City, CO

A week ago I left work at 2:30 and traveled west.  I started the journey with Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band "Greatest Hits".  The opening track, "Roll Me Away" was the opener at the show I'd seen the previous Saturday in Moline.  I stopped briefly in Tiffin, IA and as I got back on the interstate I saw a hawk flying which is referenced in that song.  The lyrics from that album seemed to fit with my roadtrip.  I even heard "Turn the Page" on the road east of Omaha on radio coming back.  I really enjoyed that Seger show and it was a consolation for having to miss the Friday Dick's Phish show this year.  Next year hopefully I won't have to miss the first night which unfortunately for me turned out to the be the strongest show by a wide margain.  That's the way it goes sometimes.  I had a lot of fun and enjoyed the two shows I saw.  It's inspirational how well Phish is playing right now.  I think it's the best they've played since I was in high school.


I drove from Davenport, IA to York, NE and stayed at the luxurious Motel 6 where Tom Bodette left the light on for me.  I dined on Taco Bell.  After a shower and a few episodes of Modern Family I got a good night's rest.  There was still at least 6 hours of driving left.  Listened to the Nebraska official movie soundtrack.  I can tolerate western Nebraska but eastern Colorado is horrible.  Staring off into nothing for 3 hours is brutal.  It was easy to get to Dick's Sporting Goods Park and the Quebec St. area from 76 using rt. 2.  I camped with Pat, Ryan, Heather, Jeff, and Katherine.  There was a good crew of other people camping nearby who made the weekend fun.  They played songs from The Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1 which made them good people in my book.  However, it was very hot.  90 degrees on Saturday and 96 degrees on Sunday. 


The first set on Saturday was very impressive.  Though nowhere near the Chicago Simple this was a good version for an opener.  Martian Monster seemed explored more than earlier this summer.  Reba was a major highlight of the weekend for me.  Then they kept the momentum up with Sand.  Crazy Sometimes from the Mike solo tour works well with Phish.  Limb by Limb contained a "Follow the Yellowbrick Road" tease by Trey.  Wolfman's Brother was extended beyond normal 3.0 boundaries.  Walls of the Cave was a high energy way to wrap up a set that could pass as a second set on some nights.  I was happy with the first set. 


Everything's Right had a jam that needed a bit more leadership.  It fizzles before heading into Fuego. 
Steam was followed by Chalkdust and by now it was starting to get a little too song oriented.  Too many songs.  The calling card of the Saturday Night Special.  The jamming happened the night before.  This wasn't my first rodeo.  I know how they operate during 3 night runs in this era.  Mike's was straight forward.  Winterqueen was a cool down moment but did yield some brief interesting playing at the end before surprising us with What's the Use? before Weekapaug.  I thought that would wrap it up.  They tacked on Slave to the Traffic Light.  Lizards, Antelope was a very old school generous encore.  The landing during Antelope left something to be desired.  It was a powerhouse setlist but this second set was played almost totally within the box which is disappointing coming on the heels of the Baker's Dozen.  Still we heard a lot of classic Phish songs.  After that Reba everyone was a winner. 


The first set on Sunday was rather pedestrian until a rocking 46 Days and an explored Bathtub Gin to wrap it up.  This was my 145th show.  Pat was with me at my first show 7/24/99 Alpine Valley.  I was glad he was with me for a fun second set and a powerful encore. I liked the dark space that was explored during DWD.  The sentiment of the lyrics of Rise/Come Together are Trey's statement about the nation.  Meatstick reminded me of 7/12/00 and 9/22/00 two other favorite versions .  It sank in how long I've been seeing Phish.  The band didn't necessarily play the songs I wanted to hear during this set but they are playing so well that it didn't really matter.  Waste, First Tube was a good way to end the summer.  The postshow music was Steely Dan "Any Major Dude Will Tell You" which was a nod to the fallen Walter Becker.  The next day I heard "FM" by Steely Dan and decided to listen to the radio the entire way back.  No static at all.  I heard everything from Danzig to Rockwell to Grand Funk Railroad as I was getting closer to my home.  In Nebraska for dinner it felt like an Arby's night.  I stopped briefly in Omaha and then made the final push for home.  Last weekend was a lot of driving but I'm glad I went.  I saw some old friends.  It was good for the soul.