Watch Phish Share Stage With Wynonna Judd, Del McCoury, Sam Bush & More Near Nashville In 2000
Wynonna led Phish through what still stands as their lone non-a capella cover of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Free Bird.”
By Scott Bernstein Jun 22, 2023 • 6:18 am PDT
On June 22, 2000, Phish began the North American portion of Summer Tour with a guest-filled performance at AmSouth Amphitheatre in Antioch, Tennessee. The concert still stands as one of the best tour-opening shows in the foursome’s history.
The first set in Antioch was a fairly straight forward affair filled with staples, but the real fun comes in the second set. Phish began “Harry Hood” following an impressive and well-jammed “Gotta Jibboo” > “Also Sprach Zarathrustra” > “Sand” sequence. Out of nowhere, the quartet inserted rarity “Dog Faced Boy” within the opening section of “Harry Hood.” After finishing the Hoist ballad, they picked back up where they left off in “Harry Hood.” The evening’s first guests came out for the jam as Robbie McCoury (banjo), Ronnie McCoury (mandolin) and Sam Bush (fiddle) added to the action.
Advertisement
Phish then hosted more guests for a three-song mini-set of bluegrass favorites. Robbie, Ronnie, Sam, Del McCoury (guitar), Ricky Skaggs (mandolin), Mike Bub (upright bass) and Jason Carter (fiddle) augmented the quartet on “I’m Blue, I’m Lonesome,” “Hold Whatcha Got” and “Uncle Pen.”
If the set would’ve ended at that point, fans still would’ve gone home well satiated but the biggest surprise of the night closed the second set. Country legend Wynonna Judd walked on stage to lead Phish and all of the other guests on a full version of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Free Bird” as opposed to the a capella versions the Vermonters had performed at other points of their career. Wynonna told the crowd she was singing “Free Bird” to celebrate the one year anniversary of her divorce and was in fine form as she fronted the ensemble. Phish still had one more trick up their sleeves as when they returned for the encore they treated fans to a full “You Enjoy Myself.” Not a bad way to start a tour.
Watch fan-shot video featuring the entire show below via the JamBase Live Video Archive (JBLVA):
June 22, 2000
| 00:00:36 | |
| 00:08:35 | |
| 00:20:37 | |
| 00:23:39 | |
| 00:28:09 | |
| 00:40:29 | |
| 00:49:50 | |
| 00:52:12 | |
| 01:00:10 | |
| 01:10:29 | |
| 01:23:16 | |
| 01:30:51 | |
| 01:42:13 | |
| 01:44:41 | |
| 01:47:00 | |
| 02:04:37 | |
| 02:08:10 | |
| 02:13:05 | |
| 02:19:04 | |
| 02:32:50 |
| The Pharchive (See 50 videos) | |
| Phish (See 4,307 videos) |
Phish will continue commemorating their 40th anniversary with a 23-date Summer Tour 2023. The run starts in Huntsville, Alabama on July 11 and 12, where the quartet will make their debut at the year-old Orion Amphitheater. Additional stops include seven nights at New York City’s Madison Square Garden, three nights near Atlanta at Ameris Bank Amphitheatre, the band’s first performances at Live Oak Bank Pavilion in Wilmington, North Carolina and more. Phish’s traditional Labor Day Weekend run at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colorado wraps up the trek.
Loading tour dates
Advertisement
Setlist (via Phish.net)
Set 1: First Tube, Wolfman's Brother > Beauty of My Dreams > Golgi Apparatus > Limb By Limb, Bug, Poor Heart > Roggae, Chalk Dust Torture
Set 2: Gotta Jibboo > Also Sprach Zarathustra > Sand > Harry Hood -> Dog Faced Boy > Harry Hood [1], I'm Blue, I'm Lonesome [2], Hold Whatcha Got [3], Uncle Pen [4], Free Bird [5]
Encore: You Enjoy Myself
Wolfman’s included an In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida tease. Hood featured Robbie McCoury on banjo, Ronnie McCoury on mandolin and Sam Bush on fiddle. I’m Blue I’m Lonesome, the Phish debut of Hold Whatcha Got, Uncle Pen, and Free Bird also included Del McCoury on guitar, Ricky Skaggs on mandolin, Mike Bub on upright double-bass, and Jason Carter on fiddle in addition to those already on stage. Free Bird featured Wynonna Judd on lead vocals and was played with full instrumentation, as opposed to the usual a cappella arrangement.
[Originally Published: June 22, 2016, Updated: June 22, 2023]
Related Phish
-
What’s The Use With Words? — Phish’s Instrumental Song’s Lost Lyrics
-
Mexican Concerts Again: Phish Announces Riviera Maya 2024 Destination Event
-
Mike Gordon Kicks Off Summer Tour With Several New Songs & Cover Debuts
-
Step Into Phish Keyboardist Page McConnell's Contributions To 43-Minute 'Tweezer' At The Greek
-
Phish Bassist Mike Gordon Had ‘Peak Pot Experience’ At 1994 Spartanburg Concert Featured On New Live Archival Release
-
The 2 Songs Phish Drummer Jon Fishman Wrote About The Same Relationship
-
This 'Geek' Is A Phreak: Actor Samm Levine Weighs In On His Phish Fandom
