Set List
Show Notes
This was the first show of the U.S. tour and Phish’s first performance at GTE Virginia Beach Amphitheater – a modern shed opened in 1996 with a capacity of 20,000. Tickets cost $27.00 and the show was sold out. The day before this show was tech. rehearsal at North Charleston Coliseum, where the band worked on Wading In The Velvet Sea and Dirt, among others. At this point the Phish touring crew numbered 40. Bathtub Gin featured a big, funky jam with teases of Drowned and some Trey announcements during the music while Fish dropped James Brown-style testimony “welcome to the first show of the North American tour…USA! USA!…we do have a lot of new material for you. I know most of you probably know that already but we did start off the show tonight with four new songs. Just so you get it right and you make sure that you know all the titles of the songs, I’m gonna tell you right now. The first song is called Ghost – that was that funky thing that went into the long jam. The second song was called Dogs Stole Things…that was the bluesy number about how your pets, your dogs and your cats…during the day they’re sleeping and they’re feeling good and everything but during the night they come and try to steal your soul so you’ve gotta watch out for that. Obviously by the way he’s playing they have not stolen Fishman’s soul yet. Song number three was called Piper and that was the one that built way up ‘her words were the words I sailed upon.’ This is the last time I’m gonna say this so those of you who are traveling show to show make sure you remember this because I’m not going to say it again…and the fourth new song which is one of my favorites is called Dirt – that was the slow one about ‘I’d like to live beneath the dirt’ and after that you knew the names of the songs. So we’re gonna do one more and then we’re gonna take a break so don’t go away and don’t do anything I wouldn’t do or you might end up on the back of the worm!” There was a lightning storm off in the distance and, at the beginning of set II, Trey pointed out the huge, full moon. Wolfman’s Brother contained Bathtub Gin teases. The David Bowie intro included a Birdland jam. The jam out of Theme From The Bottom and Funky Bitch both showcased Leroi Moore on saxophone. The Theme Jam featured Leroi playing two saxes, Trey three guitars, Mike two basses and the Cracklin’ Rosie cymbals while Fish used four drumsticks and Page laid out across his keyboards playing them all at once. LeRoi teased the Woody Woodpecker theme during the Theme Jam. The March 1997 Doniac Schvice Phish News set up the tour and contained mail order ticketing info: The US leg of the summer tour features a number of new venues: VA Beach, Southpark Meadows, Starplex, Desert Sky, Ventura Fairgrounds, The Gorge (on-site camping available!) and Star Lake.” After this show the band and crew traveled 180 miles overnight to Raleigh, North Carolina. This show was released in 2020as an archival stream/download at LivePhish.com and on video as ‘Dinner And A Movie’ Ep. 9.