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Roadtrip of the Month

"Thanks Mike"
by Jeff Waful - waful@unclesammy.com

I got the call about two weeks ago. The caller ID box was showing a Vermont area code and the name Michael Gordon. My friend Mike Blotner lives in Burlington and his middle name happens to be Gordon. Whenever he calls, someone at the house always freaks out when they see the name on the caller ID. Somehow he got a job working at Higher Ground in Winooski and on this particular day, he called with some very interesting news. Trey Anastasio was playing a solo acoustic benefit show at the club and tickets would only be available in Burlington. Out of the goodness of his heart, he thought to offer me a pair. Although the show was taking place on the same day I was starting a new job in Boston, I knew I couldn't pass it up. Thank god I didn't.

I don't own a car and I knew it would be tough to find someone to make the four-hour trek north with me on a Monday night. Then I thought of Dave. Dave Sasvavsky is the Venue of the Month editor for Jambands.com and is a live music addict. He'll drive just about anywhere for a good show. We decided to make the trip. Dave was psyched. The funny thing is, I wasn't really looking forward to the show as much as you'd think. I was expecting more of a logistical nightmare. I knew we'd have to drive back to Boston after the show and make it to work the next morning. I thought the concert would be completely over-sold and we'd barely be able to get in the door even with tickets. I knew I couldn't miss it though. As we made our way onto 93 North, both Dave and I agreed if it were anyone besides Trey playing, we would not be going.

The trip to Vermont was effortless. The roads were dry as a bone and because it was a holiday, there was no traffic. I threw in an Uncle Sammy bootleg and before we knew it, we were on Route 89. After a short nap, I was surprised to see that Burlington was just 11 miles away. It was by far the easiest road trip I've taken in recent memory. We made it to Higher Ground by about 6:30, about a half-hour before doors were scheduled to open. I was expecting there to be a huge mob of people mulling around looking for extras and begging for change. I was wrong.

Vermont is such a mellow place. We were astonished to see that the parking lot was pretty empty. There were maybe ten people outside when we walked up to the front door. Through the glass, I could see Trey sound checking inside. I was excited to see that he had brought his electric guitar. Not only that, but he had his entire stage set-up: the whole rack system, the two Fender amps and good ol' Paul Languedoc behind the soundboard. As we waited for the doors to open Mike Blotner emerged with a smile. He assured us that our names were on the list and that we would have no problems getting in.

By the time the doors opened, only about thirty people had shown up. We were the first ones in and as I was handed my tickets I recognized the lady in the will call booth as Shelly Culbertson. When I walked in, I spotted Trey casually rapping with a few friends by the bar. No one paid much attention to him. I didn't even notice him until I walked by and recognized his familiar voice. We headed up to the stage to secure a spot. As I looked around, I realized that the show was a completely Phish-run event. Brad Sands was walking around with a flashlight. Kuroda was behind the lighting board. Pete Carini was busy tuning Trey's guitars. Tom Marshall was even there drinking beers. There were familiar faces everywhere.

I couldn't get over how relaxed the crowd was. I'm used to people sprinting up to the front at Phish shows as soon as the doors open. An hour went by and there were still only a handful of us up by the stage. A friendly waitress kept bringing us drinks as as Paul played Led Zeppelin's "Physical Graffiti" over the PA. Then a security guard politely asked us to not set our drinks on the stage. To give you an idea of how intimate the setting was, if I had spilled my cocktail, it would have gone all over Trey's pedals. I positioned myself directly in front of Trey's mic stand and waited.

Finally, around 9:20 the room had filled up and Trey walked on stage in his wool hat for the solo acoustic set. I was in awe. I've been in the front row of Phish shows before, but this was a completely different scenario. There were no security guards in my way. There was no gap between the stage and the audience. I was literally two feet from Trey. I could see the texture of the guitar strings. I could see his hand shaking because of his apparent nervousness. He opened the show with the song Dirt and as he started to sing, the room was completely silent. Massive chills ran down my neck and spine. It was incredible. Words can't describe exactly how I felt. As Trey sang to us, I felt this weird sensation come over me like I was having an out of body experience. I didn't even sing along for fear of breaking Trey's concentration. His eyes were closed for almost the whole song and he looked very intense. When the song ended, the crowd went nuts and Trey seemed more at ease. He flashed his familiar grin and seemed more like himself.

The entire acoustic set was comprised of Phish songs. This was a big surprise to me. After "Dog Stole Things" somebody yelled out "Harpua" and Trey giggled. It was such a great moment. When Trey started strumming the opening chords of "Runaway Jim", I nearly screamed, out of habit. I kept it together though. After he sang, "I had a dog his name was Jim," the audience all sang "runaway, runaway, runaway" in unison as if it was rehearsed. Trey gave us a look of approval and seemed amused. Next came "Brian & Robert", which was pretty standard. I had heard that Trey had played "Gyute" during sound check and knew he had done it acoustic at The Bridge Benefit. Still, the opening notes caught me off guard. I was really psyched to see his fingers play the intricate composed sections up close. I still have no idea how he does it, but it was amazing to watch. He missed a note here and there, but simply laughed it off. "Driver" is one of the only Phish tunes that Dave and I had predicted he might play. By this point I had almost become desensitized to the whole situation and had to keep reminding myself of the uniqueness of the moment. Seriously, after a while you become used to surroundings, no matter how surreal they are. After "Driver", Trey thanked us all for coming and said he would do one more song before the break and then would be back for another set. He played the ultimate electric guitar anthem: "Chalkdust." It was typical Trey, always being unpredictable. He even played a ripping guitar solo on the acoustic. It was a very different type of solo obviously, but it still maintained the energy of the song.

Set break was fun. I wandered around and met a lot of cool people. They had a stand set up with the exclusive purpose of selling Tequila shots. I rapped with a few people and recognized a slew of Phish crew members mingling in the crowd. The real Mike Gordon walked by seemingly unnoticed. The taper section was buzzing with excitement. Paul was busy doing something behind the board. When I made it back up to Dave in the front row, Brad Sands walked out on stage. He was taping lyric sheets to Trey's monitor and asked us all of us to not touch them until after the show. Then the lights dimmed again and the band walked out.

Russ Lawton, who plays in Gordon Stone's band, took a seat behind the drums and Tony Markelis, from The Unknown Blues Band, plugged in his bass. Trey had his custom Languedoc and I was eager to see him rip his first real solo of the night. They opened with the Neil Young cover, "Come on Baby Let's go Downtown." It was a pretty straight-ahead rock tune without any jamming. Next came "Jiboo". A few minutes into the tune, the lights turned to red and Trey started playing with his pedals. The familiar sound of his delay loop electrified the crowd. It was so intriguing to see him solo right in front of my face. When he shut his eyes and started rocking back and forth he almost hit us with the neck of his guitar. The jam was funky, but was pretty short and was just a tease of what was yet to come. The classic, "Ooh Child" came next and was well received by the crowd. It's always great to see Trey sing a cover for the first time because he gets so into it. He really plays the role well. The next two songs were "Chasin The Waste", which is an F-Hole Tune, and "Tops Off." I had never heard either one before, but remember one of them had a blues jam in it and the other was pretty damn funky. "I Can See Clearly Now" was another treat. Everyone around me was groovin' and had huge smiles on their faces. It's such an uplifting song. After "Come on #1", Trey looked over to Tony and said, "let's get a little funky." Did they ever. "Mozambique" absolutely raged. Russ laid down a hip hop groove that was so in the pocket, the entire place was dancing. Even Carini was bustin' a move on the side of the stage with the monitor guys. Tony and Russ just played the same groove for about ten minutes and let Trey go to town. It was so infectious. The funk was so deep. It was the absolute highlight of the night for me. Trey has a way of making his guitar come to life and speak to you. For a while, he only played 3 or 4 different notes, but there was so much personality to them. It was so repetitive, yet brilliant. I couldn't stop dancing. Next, was a great version of "Bell Bottom Blues." Trey played the solo perfectly. The harmonies were not so perfect. "First Tube" followed. It's one of the tunes that Trey wrote for The Eight-Foot Florescent Tubes last year. (Tony was also in that line up). Then Trey moved over to a small drum kit and he and Russ jammed for a while. Russ played a very impressive solo, but everyone was paying attention to Trey. After "Drums", I could have sworn I heard Trey say "Possum", but was almost certain that they wouldn't do a Phish tune. Sure enough, Trey started playing that familiar riff. As the crowd erupted, I looked over and made eye contact with Blotner, who was on the side of the stage. I mouthed the words "thank you" to him and he gave me the thumbs up. "Possum" was slower than normal and it was more of a rock-a-billy version. The solo was short and not as explosive as you're used to, but it was still great. Tony missed the ending, but Trey gave him a look like, "who cares" and laughed. "Last Tube" ended the set and feature a blazing solo by Trey. He was wailing and kicking at all of his effects pedals. After the mayhem, Trey once again thanked everyone for coming and walked off stage.

The first song of the encore was "Ribot". Apparently, it's a Marc Ribot tune, but I head never heard it. It was pretty mellow and funky. Then came the big treat. Dave nearly lost it when Trey played the opening notes to "Row Jimmy". I had tears in my eyes a few times. A couple of the roadies on the side of the stage were really digging the song and had peaceful smiles on their faces as they sang along. It was an amazing moment reminiscent of the Virginia Beach encore last summer, except on an intimate level that I can't describe. Once again, chills ran down my back and I got an endorphin rush. I thought for sure it would end the show, but instead Trey opted to finish off the night with "Pistol". It was a bit of an emotional let down, but I kept reminding myself to take in the moment, because chances are, I'll never be that close again.

After the show, I walked up to Mike, gave him a hug and once again thanked him for hooking us with the tickets. It was an experience that I will remember forever and I'm glad that I was sober so my thoughts are vivid. It was not the Road Trip of the Month. It was the road trip of a lifetime. Thanks Mike.

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Jeff Waful is a Jambands.com columinst and manages the Boston-based band, Uncle Sammy.

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Also, we are happy to report that we have a new editor coming on board to take over this section. Mr Rob "Road Trip" Turner will take the reigns next month. Feel free to email your stories to him- basis4aday@aol.com