Latest Phish News | Live Phish DVD, Mike Gordon Album, and Trey Graduates Drug Court

Although we haven’t heard any new rumors of a reunion, we have gotten a few updates from the Phish camp this week. Check it out…

Mike Gordon has announced the release of his new solo effort, Green Sparrow, to match that summer tour he’s been setting up. The pre-order of the new disc includes a contest with an interesting grand prize:

One Grand Prize Winner will be the beneficiary of two tickets to any of the shows on Mike’s summer tour plus a bona fide Rendez-Mike™: A bass lesson, chess game, a vegetarian feast, it’s your call.

I think an evening with Mike could be a rather odd yet interesting endeavor. But I digress.

Big news, of course, was Phish announcing a new DVD release from the band’s performance at Walnut Creek in Raleigh, NC on July 22, 1997. Although I don’t really know this show all that well, word around town is that it’s pretty killer. Phish.com says:

Rather than cancel the gig, the band played on with the music mirroring the peaks in the storm’s intensity. Highlights include “Down With Disease” that slowly segues into “Mike’s Song” – the first and only time these two classic tunes were ever paired together in such a way-as well as “Taste,” complete with near Biblical thunder and lightning display.

Plus, being a summer ’97 show with a decent setlist like this, we figure it’s got to be a solid selection…

PHISH WALNUT CREEK DVD TRACKLISTING

DISC ONE
Runaway Jim
My Soul
Water In The Sky
Stash
Bouncing Around The Room
Vultures
Bye Bye Foot
Taste

DISC TWO
Down With Disease
Mike’s Song
Simple
I Am Hydrogen
Weekapaug Groove
Hello My Baby
When The Circus Comes
Harry Hood

Also, they’re offering a bonus disc “Phish: Left Nuts,” as an add-on with any pre-order of the DVD. Although I am not so sure about that name, the tracklist includes the following cuts from previous Walnut Creek excursions:

1. Runaway Jim – Walnut Creek 6/16/95
2. Free – Walnut Creek 6/16/95
3. Reba – Walnut Creek 6/29/94
4. Dog Faced Boy – Walnut Creek 6/16/95
5. Catapult – Walnut Creek 6/16/95
6. Split Open and Melt – Walnut Creek 6/16/95
7. Carolina – Walnut Creek 6/16/95

And last but not least in Phish land, Trey graduated from drug court in what we hope is the end of a long battle with illegal substances and the law.

While this whole thing has been embarrassing and a bit sad, this video captures something very heartfelt and honest from Big Red. Trey always sort of put his emotions out there for everyone to see, and I think it is this side of him that always kept fans supporting him, even while they criticized him for pulling the band apart. Here’s hoping he stays on track and feels re-energized as he heads back out on the road this summer.