Phish Summer Tour 2019: Dick’s Night 2 – Setlist, Recap & The Skinny

Phish continued their ninth Labor Day weekend at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colorado Saturday night with a rock-solid show that had something for fans of all stripes. A bustout in “Access Me,” jams that were alternately desk-flippingly blissful or gloriously evil and a whole lot of excellent playing throughout — it was all there, as Phish appears well on their way to extending their nine-year undefeated streak at the soccer stadium just outside Denver.

“The Moma Dance,” like a good lead-off hitter in baseball, did its job with a nice base hit up the middle. “The Final Hurrah” featured some fine work on the frets from Trey Anastasio, then “Gumbo” gave Page McConnell a chance to show off on the ivories. Next up was the night’s biggest bustout: “Access Me,” which hadn’t been played since 2012. The “Funky Bitch” that followed gave Trey a chance to show off some of the blues licks he picked up from Derek Trucks when they collaborated last weekend.

In “Ghost,” the band had its first opportunity for some deep improv, and go deep they did. This was not the simple “funk groove into bliss jam” that many first set “Ghosts” have featured. Far from it. It settled into an intense, driving groove, with each band member contributing equally — with Page occasionally standing out on his proggy synths.

“Tube” didn’t go quite as deep, but included some soaring major key riffs from Trey that might have made the song the highlight of a less jammy set. Next up was another rarity, “Mountains In The Mist,” last seen in 2018. Its lovely, delicate jam faded into nothingness, before “Drift While You’re Sleeping” closed out the set.

A classic “Mike’s Groove” opened the second set, featuring a straight-ahead rocking “Mike’s Song” and a “Weekapaug Groove” that was notable mostly for a sparse outro that morphed into “46 Days.” That song, whose lyrics were changed to “the plague is drawing near,” again rocked, but stayed firmly in standard “46 Days” territory.

The set’s first extended improvisation occurred within “Set Your Soul Free,” which visited a jagged yet upbeat psychedelic realm for a few minutes before returning to the song’s refrain. “Down With Disease” went significantly further out, winding in and out of various jam spaces before drummer Jon Fishman took control, riding his lower-pitched drums, fueling Trey as he proceeded to steer the rest of the band to an ecstatic peak. A short funk jam transitioned seamlessly into “NICU,” and “Bug” provided a landing pad. After a quick take on “The Wedge,” the band brought the set to a soaring conclusion with “Slave To The Traffic Light.” The band returned to the stage for a double encore: the quiet “Brian And Robert,” followed by a very raucous “Character Zero.”

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