Phish Debuts ‘Home’ On Fall Tour 2016

This year marks 25 years since Phish’s historic Fall Tour 1995. In recognition of that noteworthy tour and to make up for the lack of shows this fall, JamBase presents a daily retrospective highlighting a noteworthy moment from a Phish fall tour concert that took place on that date over the past 25 years (read a note on Fall 1997 here). The 25 Years Of Phish Fall Tour series runs each day between the start of Phish Fall Tour 1995 on September 27 through that tour’s finale on December 17.

Phish kicked off a 13-show excursion with a performance at North Charleston Coliseum in North Charleston, South Carolina on this date to begin Fall Tour 2016. The concert featured the debut of three songs from their Big Boat studio album, including the Page McConnell-penned “Home.”

Big Boat, Phish’s 14th studio album, was released via JEMP Records one week prior to the tour opener. The LP was the band’s first to include three songs written by McConnell as he contributed “Things People Do” and “I Always Wanted It This Way” in addition to “Home.” Page’s family moved to South Carolina shortly after Phish was formed and McConnell’s mother, Mary Ellen, was in attendance at the North Charleston Coliseum.

Bob Ezrin produced Big Boat as he did 2014’s Fuego. “He pushed us to go as personal, with as much emotional depth, as possible,” McConnell told the Wall Street Journal in 2016 interview. “Collectively, that has not been our strong suit, and it was a good change.” Page got personal in North Charleston when he dedicated the Phish premiere of “Home” to his mother. The keyboardist said the following before the band started the tune:

Thanks everybody, we’re so happy to be here. I just want to say hi to my mom out there. Mom, thank you for coming. It’s great to be back and see her again. We haven’t been here in a couple of years, so I want to send this one out to you.

The first ever live performance of “Home” came in the middle of a first set that began with the Phish premiere of Big Boat track “Petrichor.” While “Home” featured the closest thing to a “jam” on the album, the song has yet to pass the 10-minute mark in concert. The version in North Charleston was the second-longest of the seven played by Phish.

“Home” was followed by “Poor Heart,” “Bathtub Gin,” “555” and the debut of “More” to end the first set in North Charleston. The second set started with a 30-minute run of “No Men In No Man’s Land” > “Down With Disease” > “Cities.” Next up was “Roggae” and “Twenty Years Later” ahead of “Light,” which along with the set-closing “Harry Hood” were the improvisational highlights of the concert. Phish ended opening night by pairing “Winterqueen” and “Tube” as the encore.

Watch Phish unveil “Home” on October 14, 2016 below: