Phish Aces Forest Hills Finale With 5 Extended Jams

On a summer tour in which the band has reached great heights nearly 42 years after forming on the campus of the University of Vermont, Phish has set the bar extremely high. Wednesday’s show at New York City’s Forest Hills Stadium, the foursome’s second of two at the former home of the U.S. Open Tennis Championship, may get lost in the shuffle as there were no tour debuts or record-breaking jams. But Phish scored a winner with five songs spanning at least 15 minutes and several fun moments that fans in attendance won’t soon forget.

The first set was a mostly old-school affair that brought to mind memories of Summer Tour 1995. Phish spent that summer delivering varied and deep improvisation at nearly every stop and put the focus on a batch of new songs, many of which would be recorded for the band’s 1996 studio album, Billy Breathes. Two of those tunes, “Free” and “Theme From The Bottom” came early on Wednesday.

While Phish didn’t use “Free” as an opener until 2011, over 16 years after its debut, the rocker has since found a regular spot in the one-slot. Last night was the third time the band used “Free” to kick off a show this tour. The well-played version was followed by a languid “Back On The Train” before the quartet went back to Billy Breathes for “Theme From The Bottom.” One of the hallmarks of this tour has been keyboardist Page McConnell crafting beautiful melodies that guitarist Trey Anastasio would pick up on and mirror. Trey built on several of these harmonic ideas during a “Theme” jam that wasn’t expansive but was impressive for the delicate interplay between the guitarist and keyboardist.

Next up was the evening’s first extended foray, a 15-minute cover of “Cities.” It turns out Anastasio had seen Talking Heads perform the song live at the same venue 43 years prior with friend and Phish lyricist Steve “Dude Of Life” Pollak. Trey acknowledged the early start time of 6:30 p.m. due to the strict 10 p.m. curfew by adding the line “bright in the daytime.” Phish pulled off a masterful key change within the “Cities” jam to lead to a blissful progression the band expertly worked into a rolling boil.

“Divided Sky” followed at the huge tennis stadium. The four-piece made it through the complex composition unscathed but the version of the early classic will best be remembered for what happened during “the pause.” Anastasio started looking at different sections of the bowl and fans in that part of the venue would react with huge cheers. Trey noticed what was happening and pointed his guitar at one section and then another with each section trying to give the biggest reaction. He increased the tempo of his movements and the crowd followed along to create a really cool visual and moment.

Phish moved forward with a spot-on rendition of “Timber (Jerry The Mule).” Anastasio lit up the fretboard on a simmering Type I jam using a progression from the Josh White-penned song they’d hit upon again later in the night. From there, the band began “Ether Edge,” the only song played in the first set debuted after 1999. The jam was straight out of Summer ’95 as Phish went deep and well beyond the Evolve track’s typical structure.

The variance in jamming was on display all night long. Phish’s “Ether Edge” exploration was far removed from the funky and blissful “Cities” excursion. The rhythm section of drummer Jon Fishman and bassist Mike Gordon locked in to provide a groovy base over which Anastasio and McConnell traded licks. Trey eventually settled in on an anthemic progression he rode to glory. Page was then spotlighted in the set-closing “The Squirming Coil” just hours after the longtime Mets fan threw out the ceremonial first pitch at nearby Citi Field. One of the statistics tracked in The Skinny is “Average Vintage” to track the average of the year each song was debuted. Fittingly, the average for the first set was 1995.

While the first set may have provided a trip back in time, the second set was a look into the present and future. After launching the frame with “Punch You In The Eye,” Phish showed off the “evil” side of their improvisation within the subsequent “Ghost.” Page gave a tour of his rig, quickly moving between electric piano, acoustic piano, synth and clavinet. Anastasio utilized a swampy tone for the bulk of the jam and focused on rhythmic work. Eventually, Trey pulled the trigger on “A Wave Of Hope.”

The Lonely Trip standout has become one of the band’s latest jam vehicles and the version played on Wednesday was no exception. Phish once again transitioned between blissful major-key and dark minor-key spaces. Gordon had a huge role in keeping the “Wave Of Hope” jam progressing forward. It was a true “Team Phish” affair with all four members contributing to the adventurous 15-minute foray. Near silence was achieved when Anastasio sparked “What’s The Use?,” the lone studio jam featured on 1999’s The Siket Disc to enter the live repertoire.

Another power hour, on a tour filled with them, concluded with an otherworldly “Ruby Waves.” The 20-minute take saw the band return to a progression awfully similar to the “Timber” jam before embarking on a stellar reggae-tinged section of improvisation. Phish ended the closing stanza by pairing high-energy workouts “Backwards Down The Number Line” and “Character Zero.” Most fans’ hands were in the air as the latter hit its peak.

The quartet returned to the stage with “Sneakin’ Sally Through The Alley” to start the encore. Phish kept the Allen Toussaint cover they famously busted out across town at Madison Square Garden on December 30, 1997 concise. Crowd participation was once again employed on “Wilson” ahead of a “Rocky Top” finale. The bluegrass cover sung by Mike Gordon was the only tune last night that didn’t feature Anastasio on lead vocals. Trey called back to McConnell’s appearance at Citi Field. “Sometimes at the end of the game you’ve got to bring in your relief pitcher,” Anastasio said to introduce the keyboardist’s “Rocky Top” solo.

Forest Hills Stadium provided an unusual and fun Phish experience from the early start time to the venue’s pristine acoustics, picturesque setting and lack of obstructed views. Here’s hoping the tennis stadium becomes a regular stop for the band.

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Livestream Phish’s Summer Tour 2025 concerts via LivePhish.com.

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