Phish – The Gorge Washington August 2013
By Andy Goldfinger

It has been over 20 years since I have seen Phish live, but what an opportunity this was. Not only will I get to see them in one of the most majestic venues in all of the united states (The Washington Gorge Amphitheater), but I am meeting my boy and his crew there for a weekend of music and bedlam.

The band was on fire, having recently reformed a few years ago. Their reemerge was done by playing the entire Little Feat, Waiting for Columbus album on Halloween. The shows at the Gorge were outstanding. They ran through all the songs I knew, which was very cool, and they did some new songs that are going to be on a soon to be released new album.

The highlight though was completely unexpected and just unbelievable Known for some of the outstanding cover versions of songs they perform Phish came out and pulled off something I was just left speechless. Knowing their love for Little Feat, as evidenced by their coming out show, I thought they might do a Feat cover or maybe a Grateful Dead song, but no. They come out and they play two true rarities, and not only rarities, but two of my most favorite rarities. The first a Robert Palmer song which features The Meters and Lowell George (yep, Little Feat) and it was “Sneaking Sally Through The Alley” I about lost my mind. Then they go and do my all-time favorite Lynyrd Skynyrd song, “Ballad of Curtis Lowe” and I admit it, I cried. Ti was just overwhelming, and then to share it with my boy, just unbelievable.