When I read the news yesterday that the rumored union of John Mayer and members of The Grateful Dead was true and that they were touring this fall I felt a bit betrayed. The headlines were misleading though as Phil Lesh is not in the line up. Add to it the revelation that Mayer first turned onto the Dead in 2011 through Pandora and, well, you realize he's no Trey Anastasio.
Leading up to those Grateful Dead shows in Chicago there was a strong debate amongst the Deadheads on whether Anastasio was the right choice to fill in for the late Jerry Garcia. I even heard that in the stadium during the shows which had me scratching my head. Weren't these people hearing what I heard and saw on stage? Trey filled in admirably and, in fact, shined on many occasions during the five show Fare Thee Well run.
I'm not a huge Phish fan. In the 90s I dismissed them as novelty due to some of their goofball antics and certain cheesy element to some of the songs. I'm still not a fan of Gordon and Fishman. But for me McConnell and Anastasio make it worth embracing the band.
In 2000 a friend of mine burned me a CD of his favorite Phish songs. It was filled with the good stuff and not the hokey. I was hooked and found a true appreciation for the band.
Phish are playing Blossom Music Center tomorrow night. I've seen them there twice before and they've been a blast. It's the closest one can get to that Dead scene which I got to re-live in Chicago in July. Now I need that fix again and Trey is the perfect conduit.
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