Reed Mathis Performs Phish ‘Gamehendge’ Musical

Reed Mathis gave viewers a trip to Gamehendge on Thursday night as he performed the Phish/Trey Anastasio song suite The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday during a set that was streamed live from his home. Mathis played electric guitar throughout and interspersed narration from Andy Gadiel and Benjy Eisen.

Anastasio originally put together The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday in 1987 while attending Goddard College in Vermont. Trey utilized the piece as his senior thesis and tapes have long circulated amongst fans. Additionally, Phish performed the tale of the land of Gamehendge four times as full sets between 1988 and 1994. Mathis stuck to a similar script song-wise as what was found on The Man That Stepped Into Yesterday recording from 1987.

Reed’s set began with a version of the instrumental “The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday” that incorporated elements of “Wilson” and “Kung.” A recording of Gadiel’s narration played between songs as Mathis worked his way through “The Lizards,” “Tela,” “Wilson” and “AC/DC Bag.” Eisen provided a narration for the times that discussed the coronavirus and quarantining that served as the bridge between “Colonel Forbin’s Ascent” and “Fly Famous Mockingbird.”

More storytelling from Andy followed before and after Mathis served up his interpretation of “The Sloth.” The former Tea Leaf Green and JFJO member closed out his 90-minute Gamehendge set with “Possum.” Watch the entire performance below:

Setlist

Set: Kung, The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday/Overture, Lizards, Tela, Wilson, AC/DC Bag, Colonel Forbin’s Ascent > Fly Famous Mockingbird, The Sloth, Possum

Includes Narration From Andy Gadiel & Benjy Eisen