Phil & Friends - 10/31/99; UIC Pavilion, Chicago
Looking back on a Halloween concert from the turn-of-the-century as we mourn the loss of a musical genius..
Hauntology Now! is the Substack of interdisciplinary artist, designer, musician, academic writer, and cultural critic J. Simpson, where he writes about all things hauntological, atemporal, philosophical, as well as sharing thoughts, reflections, and musings on music, movies, books, and life.
On October 25, 2024, we lost yet another of the last remaining giants of 20th-Century music with the passing of Phil Lesh, bassist and agent provocateur of the Grateful Dead. It offers an opportunity to listen back to his monumental contributions to modern music, which would take several lifetimes to properly assess.
Today, we're looking back on a Halloween show from the UIC Pavilion in Chicago, with Phil Lesh opening for Bob Dylan. Some kind soul was generous enough to upload the whole show, on delicious late-90s VHS to boot, giving us a chance to listen again an re-assess.
For this show, the band was Phil Lesh on his trademarked 6-string bass, Paul Barrere and Billy Payne of Little Feat, on guitar and keys respectively; Derek Trucks of The Allman Brothers; and John Molo on drums. They begin with a rather raging version of "St. Stephen" which devolves into an unexpected and surprisingly musically challenging breakdown that's more Schoenburg than the Shangri-Las, before crystallizing into some stride cut piano and then the calypso complexity of "Blue Sky Jam." This set the pace for the remainder of the set, as the band weave in and out of Grateful Dead songs into longform extended jams. "Mountains of the Moon" stands out as a highlight and personal favorite all these years later, namely due to Phil's warm, Celtic-sounding vocal although i'm sure the "Wolfman's Brother" cover emerging out of "Viola Lee Blues" would've set me to salivating at the time, devout Phish-head that i was. Phil had learned it, no doubt, when he was joined by Page McConnell and Trey Anastasio for a run of shows in April of that year, when Phil miraculously recovered from a liver transplant. It's still fun, but i find the nuanced, sensitive playing on "Mountains of the Moon" more moving and inspired, largely due to Billy Payne's virtuosic keys, which get my vote for the real MVP of this show.
Bob Dylan also played, following a set from deadpan comedian Steven Wright. You'd never get a comedian joking about committing suicide as a warmup for a jam band in 2024!
I wish i could tell you more about my own impressions and recollections of being there, but alas, it was a long time ago and all the shows i saw at the UIC Pavilion tend to run together. I recall vague impressions of knit caps beneath cottony white skies, the scent of fried meat and weed and grilled cheese clinging to the chilly breeze. I seem to recall not being totally blown away by either Phil & Friends or Bob Dylan. I used to find Phil's jams too formless and aimless for my tastes, being used to the relatively propulsive prog-funk of Phish, but my attitude towards that has largely flipped. Now it sounds like a compelling blend of bebop, modern classical, and early rock 'n roll that's made up on the spot. This is improvised music of the highest order - sometimes you just need to have the ears to hear!
It was a memorable Halloween and some incredible music from one of the most inspired, boundary-pushing musicians rock 'n roll ever produced. Goodbye old friend...
R.I.P. Phil Lesh 3.15.40 - 10.25.24
This post originally appeared on Forestpunk.
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