Released: 1995
Tracks: Bouncing Around the Room; Stash; Gumbo; Montana; You Enjoy Myself; Chalkdust Torture; Slave to the Traffic Light; Wilson; Tweezer; Simple; Harry Hood; The Squirming Coil
Best track: You Enjoy Myself
Track to skip: absolutely none
After 5 studio albums it makes sense that Phish would release ‘a live one’. Especially since Phish is known more as a live band than a studio one. I think the rumor that gets spread around is that the studio albums are awful, but the live experience is where it’s at. Well, that’s half right. I love the studio albums, but it’s true: Phish is better in a live setting. Of course, seeing the band live is preferable, but cranking up this is the next best thing. A Live One is not from a single concert, but recorded at various venues in 1994/95. I guess it’d be considered an ‘ultimate’ live Phish show. Minus the encore, however, which is a bit odd since they definitely had room on disc 2. Maybe we weren’t cheering loud enough? Who knows.
This was the first Phish album I ended up buying and while I was familiar with Stash, Chalkdust & Tweezer from Picture of Nectar, the other 9 were all new to me. 3 of the 5 studio albums get touched on (nothing from Rift or Hoist, the previous two), but the coolest thing is that 6 of these songs (half of ‘em) were previously unreleased. OK, so you could make the case that Montana is just a part of a Tweezer jam, but still. Also, the live versions of these songs are very different from the studio versions. The only thing close is Bouncing Around the Room, a song that hasn’t ever changed too much. However, this version is light years better than the studio version. Actually, all of these are. Stash, You Enjoy Myself, Tweezer & Squirming Coil all go into serious jams that show the potential of each of them. YEM in particular is staggering how much of an improvement the live version is over the studio. Don’t forget that I think the studio version is one of the best things they’ve done anyway. But man, the live YEM goes into so many different places and has intense energy. I am still in awe of the audacity of these guys to do a Vocal Jam at the end of You Enjoy Myself. Yes, just A Capella, no instruments. It’s that type of stuff that makes me love Phish. Well, part of it. This whole album is a BIG example of why I love this band. It’s true that Tweezer goes on for a bit (30 minutes!), but it never gets too boring. Really, that’s the only thing on here that’s excessive. The funk of YEM, the gorgeous piano solo at the end of Squirming Coil, the tension/release of Stash…all of these song extensions are excellent. As is the entire album; this is overall the best release Phish has put out so far.
Rating: 98
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