Trey Anastasio Revives Acoustic ‘Possum’ In Nashville

Trey Anastasio made the penultimate stop of his solo acoustic tour on Sunday at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium. The show featured Anastasio’s first solo acoustic “Possum” in nearly 14 years and the tale of Phish‘s 1998 appearance at Farm Aid.

Last night’s concert began with a run of “Theme From The Bottom,” “Water In The Sky” and “Brian & Robert.” Anastasio then performed “Free” and “Snowflakes In The Sand” before a sequence of “Summer Of ’89,” “Limb By Limb” and “Blaze On.” Trey noted how much he loves Nashville and shouted out the city’s Gruhn Guitars store. The show continued on with a bevy of Phish classics as well as “Ghosts Of The Forest” from his 2019 album and project of the same name.

Trey dusted off the solo acoustic version of “Possum” towards the end of his set. Anastasio last performed the song solo acoustic on November 10, 2005. A more recent unplugged “Possum” in which Trey was accompanied by Phish bassist Mike Gordon took place on October 9, 2010. Storytime followed as Anastasio told the tale of Phish’s performance at Farm Aid in 1998. Trey recalled getting stoned aboard Willie Nelson‘s bus and plotting with Neil Young to play “Powderfinger” during Phish’s set. Young warned Trey he’s not much of a planner and that bore out when Neil performed “Powderfinger” during his own set. Anastasio was bummed that he wouldn’t get to perform with Young, however Neil crashed Phish’s set for an impromptu jam and version of “Down By The River.” The Phish guitarist previously told the story during a 2018 show in Chicago.

The New Jersey native brought his set to a close with “Waste” and “Bathtub Gin.” Audience members sang the melody of “Gin” throughout the encore leading Trey to play along to start his encore. The night came to a close with a run of “A Life Beyond The Dream,” “The Wedge,” “My Problem Right Here,” “Say It To Me S.A.N.T.O.S.” and “More.”

Watch Trey’s Farm Aid story as captured by the5conks below:

Setlist (via Geedleboo)

Set: Theme From The Bottom, Water In The Sky, Brian & Robert, Free, Snowflakes In The Sand, Summer Of ’89, Limb By Limb, Blaze On, If I Could, Turtle In The Clouds, The Inlaw Josie Wales, Ghosts Of The Forest, Back On The Train, Sample In A Jar, AC/DC Bag, Lifeboy, Backwards Down The Number Line, Possum, Waste, Bathtub Gin

Encore: A Life Beyond The Dream, The Wedge, My Problem Right Here, Say It To Me S.A.N.T.O.S., More