After reading all of the reviews for Dick's weekend, I got to say if you were at the stadium, I don't know of anyone who didn't have a good time! If you were watching from the webcast, you'll always get a different perspective of the band as you get to see the band close up. I certainly don't think the sound is better at home?? With that being said I like to provide a perspective (veteran of 128 GD shows and just saw my 199th show on Sunday at Dick's):

There are people who put the band on a pedestal and expectation level to near ridiculousness. There are newbies (no pun intended) that will write how they view their experience. Their best songs will differ from a more experience phans' songs. Then there are people who get IT! The IT crew don't put too much emphasis on the best ever, don't expect too much from the band and wants the band to play well. High expectation for the band from individuals is setting up for a miserable time. Why bother if you own head is going to play the expectation game?? The most important thing is how well the band is playing. If they're on, hold on to your jacket and get ready to take a ride....

Before going further, I have to mention the Fuego album. Personally, I think this is the most focused album since the 1.0 hiatus. The songs are catchy and potential to be exploratory. I've seen Fuego 6 times (including the Halloween show) and will say SPAC and Mann Center versions are my new "Dark Star". If you listen carefully, you'll hear that they are taking us on a journey. The album is a "rough draft" what the band can do. I'm truly looking for fresh, new exploratory, and improvisational territory. The fall tour should be a very interesting time...

Now onto Dicks: The 1st night 1st set was very cool. LUSHINGTON followed by the joke is on us "Ha Ha Ha", then Suzy Greenberg with Jennifer Hartswick and Natalie Cressman. I liked Trey stepping up to the mike after Ha Ha Ha and said "You Asked, We Delivered"! The highlight of the 1st set was Guyute and No Quarter. Guyute had a nice buildup in the middle section that kept going and going before reaching a crescendo, then coming back to earth. Very well played version for 1st played in 2014. No Quarter was a nice mini-breakout (Worcester 10/26/13) and was hauntingly beautiful. Page's vocal was blending in the music so well that it was sounding downright creepy! Enjoyed this 1st set better than the night 2 & 3 1st set lists.

2nd set was shockingly good! Some of my friends thought this was the best 2nd set of the run. I thought all 3 nights had plenty of great moments. Night 1 was without question "Dick's Simple" into "Story of the Ghost". 46 days was more exploratory than recent versions (hit the 10 mins mark) into a solid Back on the Train. Then came Simple. Personally, the lyric is quirky and sophomoric, yet the jam that came out of the lyric was one for the ages. I would be a hypocrite (as I said earlier about the best ever) to say this was one of my "live" favorite versions ever. I would have to go back and listen to some of the previous versions I've seen (seen 27 times as per phish.net - by the way thank goodness for this site to keep track of my phishistory - keep up the great work!). Yet, I loved every second of it! Ghost was another expansive, exploration, and innovative music by Phish. This band is so good these days, it's no wonder why I keep going to shows!

Night 2 highlights was the 2nd set. The 1st set was good and fun, but no real exploratory, kick your face type of jams. Also, there were some sloppiness on the lyrics as Trey's brain went haywire during Cavern and turned the microphone toward the fans as he was tongue tied. Probably the weakest set of the run. 2nd set was a 180 turn. Down with Disease> What The Use?, Carini> Light> Fuego> Slave To the Traffic Light, Meatstick> Bold as Love. With the exception of Fuego (very standard), the rest of the set had a great flow! I'm not going to provide not the minute details, yet I would strongly suggest listening to the set I got to hear it again hanging out at a friend's room in Embassy Suites - and it was better than I expected. Have a listen....

Night 3 - Thoroughly enjoyed The Curtain With as an opener. 1st time opening slot since 1987?? Something need to be said about that. Wombat got the crowd moving with the FUNK! I love how they play this song. A little hip-hoppish vocals with the funky music. The show "FISH" with Abe Vigoda! Very fun version. This is a song I can see going out into a nice exploration trip. The next favorite was Lawn Boy. I understand this is Page's time to shine. However, Page gave Mike Gordon a well deserved salute and the crowd applauded after he finished his solo. Wolfman's brother is another great song in Phish's repertoire that every fans can't wait to hear the jam out of the song. This version did not disappoint! The rest of the set was well played.

Set 2 was probably my favorite of the weekend, yet all 3 nights was so close to each other in terms of playing, that you can pick out of a hat and be happy with any of them. CDT has been very consistent staying at a high level. This version was very upbeat for the entire 14:26 of the song. It was great! Twist Around and The Wedge was a nice version. Tweezer> Sand> and whatever anyone wants to call it - I heard Sand the entire time with other songs being dropped during the jams. Tweezer> Sand was the highlight for me that was borderline filthy and creepiness followed by a nasty throw down of Mike's Song> Sneakin Sally> Weekapaug that was 25 minutes of bliss! The Mike's version was disgustingly dirty and dark that kept up for a solid 9 minutes into a surprisingly Sneakin Sally. Come to think of it, this should not have comes as a surprise as Mike's Song> Sneakin' Sally ended the 2nd set at Mann Center (7/9/14). Sneakin was really good as it segue into Weekapaug cleanly. This was a great version. Loving Cup was a pleasant surprise and it was fantastic - OOOOHHH, WHAT A BEAUTIFUL BUZZZZZZZZZ as being in Colorado was a Surrealistic Heaven! Tweezer reprise is one of the greatest rock 'n' roll songs closer in history (as said by a friend). The song ripped into shredding monster that always have Trey bouncing and shaking his head up and down again and again. This was truly a great weekend of music. The band is as good as ever and I'm not joking. Remember 2009 was the "New Beginning", 2014 is as good as ever.

One last note, being in Colorado was absolute HEAVEN. Went to my first legal "dispensary" and was blown away by the operation (Green Solutions - 4440 Grape Street off of Rt. 70 on the south side between exit 277 and 278. Must get off at exit 277 from either directions). I've been to Amsterdam 13 times and never get tired. However, this being in United States of America where I never thought I would see a legal shop, it was magical. We had to wait 20 minutes before a person escorted us through the buying process to cashing out. Nice selections and a very clean, safe facility. Highly recommend!

Combined with the legalization and Phish playing at Dick's, this was a match made in Heaven. I hope for many more years at Dick's. Thank you Phish for being a big part of my life these days...