Phish Play Madison Square Garden for First Time in Seven Years

Posted on Dec 3rd 2009 11:00AM by Colin St. John
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Returning to Madison Square Garden for the first time since their first reunion on New Year's Eve of 2002, beloved jam band Phish held nothing back for its first of three shows this week in New York City. Before the gig, diehard fans were passing out photocopied fliers reminding the crowd that it was the 26th anniversary of the band's formation. Unfortunately, the Phan-driven 'Happy Birthday' serenade never got off the ground before the concert that may or may not have marked a special date.

Not satisfied with these milestones alone, Phish broke out a rendition of Frank Zappa's 'Peaches en Regalia' for the first time since September of 1999. One concertgoer surmised that Zappa covers had been stilted because of legal disputes with Zappa's wife, but, whatever the case, the crowd went wild.

Also on the agenda were plenty of fan faves like 'Sample in a Jar,' 'Golgi Apparatus' and 'Tweezer.' The "World's Most Famous Arena" was packed -- despite the sometimes terribly intense rain outside, it was hard to make out an empty seat in the house. Waves of the converted bobbed and nodded to Trey Anastasio's guitar solos and Mike Gordon's popping bass rhythms below a light show on par with the bursts of the aurora borealis.

By the time the band arrived at 'Harry Hood' late in the second set, it was unarguably apparent to everyone in attendance that the quartet had orchestrated an epic show. Playing its first song of the encore, a cover of the Beatles's 'A Day in the Life,' Phish proved that it was not just any average day for them.