Phish 2012 Summer Tour Highlights — “Reba” at Bader Field

If there’s one thing that irritates a jaded Phish fan it’s a flub within one of their epic songs. Something Phish did really well when they first were writing music was crafting composed rock themes that are structured more like classical songs then rock songs. A style of song writing that Trey, lead guitarist, is primarily accredited for bringing to the table during their early recording years in the late 80’s. He was taught classical composition by Ernie Stires (1925–2008), a local Burlington Vermont jazz piano player.

Songs such as “You Enjoy Myself”, “David Bowie”, “Fluffhead” and of course, “Reba”, are held closely to the hearts of both old and new Phish fans. So when they dig into these gems during a live show there’s both a gasp of excitement and nervousness on the part of the fan. The nerves stemming from the ever so often major flub. We all make mistakes. Any musician who tells you they’ve never missed a note, forgot a lyric or just plan out forgot how to play a song is either lying or really full of themselves. But Phish fans are particular strong critics and we hold a rather high expectation, sometimes unrealistic in my opinion, that the band play perfectly every night.

But when perfection is reached, it’s hard to beat the feeling. That’s why this “Reba” makes the highlights for summer 2012. From the composed section hitting just about every note to the jam that proceeds, this is one for the books.

Phish — 6/17/12 “Reba” from Phish on Vimeo.