Phish Rallys Up More Big Jams In Raleigh

Through each of the past week’s Phish shows, there’s been a growing sensation among the fanbase that the band may be in the midst of a historically strong tour. Friday night’s stop at Walnut Creek in Raleigh, North Carolina seemed to confirm this sentiment, as the band extended their streak of indisputable bangers.

There are three core ingredients to the tour’s success.

Number one: play long jams out of songs that have been played hundreds of times with no jam at all.

Number two: play even longer jams out of the songs that always jam.

And number three: make all of those jams frigging awesome. The band did all that and more on Friday, stitching together a stacked first set, a 4 song second, and a 4 song encore.

“Buried Alive” signaled that the band came out to cook, and the “Character Zero” that followed poured gas on the flame.

Exceeding 10 minutes for just the third time ever, according to the Phish.net Jam Chart, the “Zero” jam was laid back — neither as deep nor as dark as the jams that would follow, but perfect for the sunset vibes.

After a tight “Llama” and a relatively quick “Mercury,” the band took “Sample in a Jar” for an unusually long ride. The sexy groove, capped by Page McConnell's synth swells, led to a “Sand”-like funk.

Somehow, seamlessly, the band took a left turn into “Destiny Unbound.” A solid version with a slick “Live and Let Die” tease from bassist Mike Gordon was followed by “Guyute.”

One of the most exciting tricks Phish has kept in this tour’s bag is closing their first set with a jam out of a song that usually includes no jam. “Golgi Apparatus” extended the bit, going into what was essentially a very good “Theme From The Bottom” jam before finding an inspired bit of minimalism that somehow dropped right into the song’s ending.

The surprises continued right after the set break, as “Harry Hood” opened a second set for the first time in exactly 30 years and 6 days. The classic featured a fantastic groove-based jam, with exceptionally precise and creative playing from drummer Jon Fishman, packing a serious punch before returning to the climax.

The “Fuego” that came next included a nod to the anniversary of Phish’s 1999 festival, as Trey sang “inside Oswego.” A sinewy groove emerged from the song, with Page laying down a bed of alien synth textures while Trey wove a web of melodies over top. From there, the quartet settled into a mellower section, with Mike punctuating Trey’s minimalist riffs.

The band transitioned perfectly into “Lizards.” The Gamehendge tune has been in the band’s rotation for over 38 years, and in all that time it had previously been jammed out exactly once, in 1997. The success of Friday’s experiment makes one wonder why it doesn’t get this treatment more often. Riding the song’s island groove, the jam at times sounded like Santana.

The band reached next for “A Wave Of Hope,” a pedal-to-the-metal rendition which brought the set to a boisterous close.

There were still around 40 minutes until curfew, and Phish put them all to good use. The encore started with “Fee,” which Trey began singing with a megaphone, before tossing it to the side, calling it a “piece of shit.”

Upbeat versions of “Meatstick” and “The Mango Song” followed, before the evening came to a close with a ripping version of Jimi Hendrix’s “Izabella,” the night’s first cover.

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Phish Summer Tour 2026 continues tonight with the first of two shows at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland. Livestreams of Phish Summer Tour 2026 shows are available with a LivePhish With subscription.

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