Adam
Even witht he highest of expectations, what a remarkable show. First of all, the preperation was great, as while there were lines to get in, everything was very smooth. Two words sum up the night- Jimi Thing. Nothing will ever ever match that. What a great night, was lucky to be 30 yards away from a jamming, crazy stage. thanks guys.

Incognito (.
So me and some friends got there at like 545. went under the barracade and skipped the whole line that went to 68th street. that was definitely a highlight. one of the most memorable shows ever and there were so many things that made this night amazing. people jammin in the lawn was fuckin awesome and the whole vibe was amazing-- now to the songs- almost every song was a jammer but highlights of the night were definitely-intro to dancing nancies and the song itself--two step was amazing jesus this song keeps getting better and better--warren haynes on cortez and jimi thing-daves whole vibe during jimi thing and the outro at the end was sooooooooooooo cool buffalo springfield sounded great--watchtower was great as usual-grey streeet was banging and is getting to be my favorite song--- and what a way to end it with "stay" --- i just wanted to stay there all night--- so awesome-be jealous for those that werent there- see you next tour .. rb holla back-

Josh S.
Quick review cuz i'm beat... took the train up to NYC from Philly. Not a bad ride... met a couple of other fans on the ride. That was pretty cool. So onto the show... first let me tell you, the sound sucked. Maybe it was because of where i was standing, but i couldn't hear well at all. In addition, it took a lot to get the crowd into the show. The band had an awesome set list. Real cool to see Warren Haynes on the stage again. Real awesome to hear cortez again. His solo on Jimi got everyone real excited. Def one of the highlights for the evening. The first couple of songs (DDTW, SMTS, Too Much) were cut and dry, not a whole lot of jamming. Then came granny, which the band has been getting into more and more, real cool song. The band really opened up on Crush, boyd had a real good solo. Couple of hits followed... (the night was mostly music that's gotten some airplay) WTWE, nancies,warehouse, ants, R&R. Then a real cool TWO STEP... i never understood all the people that get so excited for this tune, granted it's a real good song and it makes you want to move, but why all of the jumping up and down? Anyways, LEROI lit it up with a huge huge solo, you could tell he was enjoying the night. Help myself was aweseome, i really like that tune. Then dave welcomed out a guest (i kinda figured someone was going to show up) and out comes warren haynes. way cool... and were we in for an awesome couple of tunes. I kinda expected them to play Jimi (cuz that's what he played w/ in Phoenix 7/24) But first they did CORTEZ. Much better then the 7/24 show, but holy shit did warren have a great great solo. Jimi, WWYS, WAYG, standards... then steffan got the spotlight... yes, watchtower was next. Cool of him to throw in the national anthem again. Finally finally, it got the crowd up and dancing. Good set, lots of tunes. Then the encore break, it seemed like 1/2 of the people split because there was this mad rush to the front. Short encore break. Grey street was decent, What You Are followed and i thought that would be the night. No, we got a three song encore. Gotta love STAY, cuz it makes you wanna STAY! Power on to butch and carter who have been doing an awesome job of the 'lovely ladies' vocals. i always get a laugh from that. Anyways this has turned out to be a longer revies then i thought, but way to rock central park, and an awesome way to end the summer! Thank you, Thank you, thank you DMB.

Michael M.
This was hands down the best night of my life..I faked VIP passes on my computer, cut the line, and caught one of two of Carter's sticks..Before you guys get hot and bothered, I'm the one with the Carter Is God sign..I'm merely 19 years old..I've easily invested 5,000 in tickets over the course of my DMB adventures..I decided to take a chance and get ballsy..On the night of the best concert they've ever played, I'm glad it all worked out..Peace, love, and DMB..Email me if you'd like to chat about the show

Rich
This was my 8th show and the best show I have seen, this tops any shows that I said were the best!!! First of all the crowd was amazing!! I was 30ft. from the stage. Ok right to the setlist cause its a long one. DDTW- Powerful opener, dave was all over the stage, it was nuts!!SMTS-ASTB-TM- This get the high pace of the show going, Dave started going nuts during the bridge.GRANNY-1st time I have heard it and it was done great. sweet song.CRUSH- Stefan was ontop of things tonight and boyd was amazing during this, WTWE- standard version,nice to hear it,DN-WAREHOUSE- thought it was gonna be a tease but they kept goin, dave sung lost somewhere in central park, great version, I was thinkin bout them goin right into Warehouse but I wasnt sure, towards the end of nancies the crowd starting yelling do it!!, to go into warehouse and dave pleased us all, best warehouse I have heard, ending jam was great. ANTS-WOW, ants at song 9, short version but blew the crowd away,dave let the crowd sing towards the end, always great to hear.RYHME&REASON- Strong version, dave was really wailing tonight.TWO STEP- The place went nuts when Boyd started, nobody could believe it, awesome version, best version I have heard, Butch had a killer solo.HELP MYSELF- kept the upbeat set going, Im really liking this song alot, its got a great beat to it.Then the special guest came out. Who was it gonna be?Tim, Trey?It was Warren Haynes.CORTEZ THE KILLER- very sweet song to slow it down for a few minutes,Warren was ontop of things with his playing. JIMI THING-1st time I have heard this and tonight it had to be the highlight of the show with dave at the end. Dave just started freestyling at the end and it was nuts, he was dancing and singing all kinds of crazy stuff, he was singing brickhouse and then at the end of jimi thing, he sung, STOP everybody whats that sound? Dave tore it up during this song!!!WWYS- Great version,always nice to hear.WAYG- would have liked bartender, but nice way to slow it down,very sweet song. WATCHTOWER-stefan had a great and long solo and the beginning, he played star spangled banner, it was sweet to hear in NYC, Best watchtower I have heard, The band was all over this, it was nuts. 17 songs in the main set, WOW, everybody thought, what could he have left to play. The crowd wanted LAST STOP but that would have been absolutely nuts.GREY STREET-Awesome song I love this song, but it has been shortened the past couple of times I have heard it. WYA- went the whole show acoustic until now,I didnt want this to end such a great show, this song is awesome but shouldnt end a show, dave killed this song with the ending lyrics. Just when you thought it couldnt get better, he gets his 6-string for a 3rd song encore. WE wanted last stop but instead we got STAY-great way to end an awesome tour, Carter is awesome with his back-up lyrics, butch was really into the singing also, best version I have heard, it was great. Then the band got together for a group shot in front of the crowd and then posed for pictures for the crowd. Best show of the tour and in the past few years. Cant wait for the DVD, November 4th, mark your calendars!! See you next tour Dave!!

Eric
WOW! This was by far the best show I've seen. The guys were on fire, they just seemed to be amazed at the crowd being so big, and loving every note, and every word. What I really loved about this show is that i was in perfect veiwing range of Steffan. Anyway, I was in awe for three hours! DDTW was commendable. SMTS->ASTB->Too Much was back after trading places with Rapunzel, and What? often on this tour.Granny's always nice to hear. Crush was spectacular, I love this song, and the guys just made it so much better than ever. WTWE was relaxing. Then i was shocked by Nancies->Warehouse, I love these guys! Ants kicked ass, losing that snare intro is cool, but i would like to still hear it every once in a while. Rhyme is wild. TWO STEP!! I'm very glad to have Help Myself on a release! Cortez rocked. Warren Haynes is incredible! Jimi Thing rocked, Dave made some songs much bigger and better than usual tonight and this might've been the best! What? is one of my favorites, because of Steffan's bassline, it's always nice and full of energy. Where? was another relaxer for me before the close and encore. Watchtower was awesome! Now, after playing the songs that they had played so far, a lot of people were turning and saying "what are they doing for an encore?" I knew, and I was hoping people wouldn't be too mad since they didn't actually leave after What You Are. I was hoing for Grey Street to open the show, but it's great anywhere, I asked as loud as I could for Dave to do the extra verse, but they jammed it out pretty well instead! What You Are is nice, I really enjoy hearing this live! Stay was so called for tonight! This show was incredible!!!! I would do anything for the chance to personally tell the guys how much I love hearing them play and thank them for all the support, and good times they and they're music have provided me with!!!!!

Xtrm D.
awesome, Awesome, AWESOME!!!!!!!! There is not too much more I can say. I was the equivilent of 10th row or so, and I earned it (I sprinted ll the way from the gate to the front). Engery was off the hook, they played every song to perfection, including but not limited too, the best Two Step I have heard in a while. A perfect night- thanks DMB!

Carl
What can I say, a great show and worth the hours I spent waiting in line and hours spent sitting/standing/crouching in my spot 15 rows back from the stage. The guys played very well and had a lot of energy. The crowd was electric and I have to say this was one of my all time favorite DMB concert experiences. Dave really "went for it" when he sang, hitting the high notes and nailing the swelling choruses and he also freestyled a sex scat several times that was off the hook. Complainers need to shut up since I drove from MA at 8am and made it to the show at 12 and waited forever but it was for a good cause, charity. This was a beautiful show and beautiful night, a little hazy though after dark. Oh yeah. Wish you could have all been there.

Steve B.
This show may just have topped 12/21/02, although that's definitely debateable. What is for certain is that the entire band played to their greatest extent on every single song. DDTW is always a solid opener and to follow that with an incredibly strong SMTS-ASTB-TM got the crowd going. The band never looked back. Warehouse was jammed out. Ants had everyone in the venue dancing and singing. Two Step was absolutely incredible. Cortez the Killer was great to hear, although it was disappointing that many people chose to take a break while it played. Jimi Thing was by far the highlight of the night. It went off perfectly with Warren Haynes as a guest and Dave scating out with so much passion and energy at the end that everyone was simply blown away. Watchtower is definitely one of the strongest closers out there, especially with the passion it had from everyone last night and it was great to see Dave rescue the encore by throwing in Stay after WYA, which, all things considered, was great in itself. The venue was incredible. Everyone was just jamming out on the lawn with lower Manhattan all light up behind and the greatest band on earth playing their hearts out in front. Absolutely incredible show, from the lighting, to the crowd, to the set itself, but most important due to the Dave Matthews Band and their unending energy last night. Thank you DMB.

Aj W.
my 21st show and all i can say is one word....legendary...anyone there knows exactly what i mean....that's all i'm going to say because words can't even describe the magical unbelievable nite that the whole band gave to us...thank you DMB

Josh M.
This was my 33rd Dave show and what a show it was. Perfect weather for a perfect night in New York City. My friend Jeff and I drove into the city from Connecticut. We got lost on the way and ended up almost one hundred streets from 72nd. It took us nearly two hours of driving up and down streets to park. Every parking garage in the city seemed to be full. Finally we just parked on 2nd Ave. and hoped that the vehicle would be O.K. (no ticket and not towed) We took a cab from there to central park. The line into the show looked long but it moved very quickly. Once inside and after passing three check points everything started to fall into place. The stage set-up was enormous. There were towers of T.V. screens and speakers throughout the entire area of the park. Cameras were everywhere. We found our spot on the lawn and waited for the show to begin. As soon as I heard the rumble of the band I knew DDTW was going to be the opener. It was a good version and the ending was fantastic. (Almost as good as the ending in Hartford a few weeks ago) The lights were incredible. I had never seen anything like it at a Dave show. The trees were changing colors around the entire area of the park. Next came SMTS>ASTB>TM. Dave went Psycho with his voice before Stefan took over in ASTB. Granny was pretty standard as was Crush. WTWE was decent but then came Dancing Nancies. YES! The intro to it was unbeleivable and Dave kep referring to lyrics in Bartender. Long intro too and mostly about New York city. (Could I have been lost in Central Park) At this point the band really started to get comfortable. Let the jamming begin. Nancies went right into Warehouse and the two combined for twenty minutes. Next was Ants. (Unfortunately no snare intro) R&R was next. I still love this song live. Dave changed the lyrics a little from the standard version. Then the unexpected happened. An awesome mid-setlist TWO STEP. WOW!!! It was definately a good one. Butch did a really nice jam on keys. A standard Help Myself was next. Then it happened. Dave said I'd like to bring a friend of mine out here. Warren Hayes. I was pumped. I thought for sure Jimi Thing was next but instead we got the best version of Cortez the Killer. Dave and Warren went back and forth on vocals. The song was played so Pink Floydish it wasn't even funny. I was mesmerized. Then the highlight of the show. JIMI THING JIMI THING JIMI THING. The best Jimi Thing I have ever heard live and I have heard a ton. It lasted 20 minutes and every minute was incredible. Warren Hayes jammed with the band. When it came Daves turn to jam he used his voice instead of his guitar. It was awesome. Then...Dave pulls out Buffalo Springfield with...somethings happening here...what it is ain't expactly clear..etc. Did the entire verse instead of the short version he's done with Tim. Then Dave starts talking and thanking everyone. But every four beats no matter where he was in sentence he would go,"Stop hey what's that sound everybody look whats going down" He kept going. This is a must have. After that Warren Hayes went off stage Dave went into WWYS. WAYG was a nice touch and then ended with Watchtower. Stephan did the starspangled banner on the opening jam..very nice. The encore was three songs strong. It was interesting because so many people had started to leave and then when Dave came back they all ran back to where they were earlier. It was crazy. The encore was Grey St. Then What You Are (dissappointed witht the intro). Dave then closed with Stay. Jeff and I took a taxi back to my truck. I was hoping it would still be there and it was. No Ticket!! And even better, I parked in front of a bar. Had a cocktail and drove back to CT. What a night. Thank You Dave and thank you NYC!

Mike T.
one of the greatest experiences of my life: left albany @ 7, took the train from poughkeepsie into grand central, rode the subway to 68th and lexington, walked to 72nd @ 11 expecting thousands of people to be waiting there....oh no, there only like 150....so after 5 hours of standing and waiting we were standing at the entrance from the great lawn ready to be let in....then the race was on...they opened the gates and my 4 buddies and i sprinted as fast as we could...sprinted all the way to front row center...RIDICULOUS....3 more hours of standing then the band came on and delivered an amazingly energetic set...every song was a highlight but my first dancing nancies in 14 shows was unreal..hearing Nancies-->Warehouse then Ants, Rhyme and Reason, and Two Step in a row might never be topped.....bringing out warren hayes for cortez and jimi thing was spectacular....jimi thing was the best i've ever heard anywhere....leroi's solo was sick, warren's was even better, and dave's scat/rap outro was phenomenal..not to mention the buffalo springfield outro.....this entire day was just unbelievable...i'll never forget it....met some awesome people along the way: "thumbs up carter guy"....supposedly the "creator of the dmbta" guy.....mike, tamara, the short,little, dark-haired girl, and the very chill guy standing next to tamara (jiyah??)...you guys were so chill...if any of you read this and that Texan e-mails you the one photo she took of the 5 of us...send me an e-mail.. elevenmt@aol.com ... thanks to everyone for an experience i'll never forget

James
Ok, I think Dave had an amazing setlist for 100,000 people @ central park last night. However, did anyone notice how quiet the crowd was? I believe this is due to the technical problems with the sound. I was smack in the middle of the crowd and the sound kept panning from speaker to speaker, I cant understand why no sound guy noticed or was informed of this. I mean, did you hear the faint yells for warehouse. When I was in Pepsi Arena, the place erupted for it. This truly put a damper on my experience, and I can't wait for the DVD to truly enjoy it. Finally @ the encore I moved to the back of the lawn where the speaker was actually working. Anyways, couldn't you have played #41 dave? This setlist was very similar to SPACC. Also, I have heard what you are in the encore the last three Dave shows I have attended, come on Dave. Good Show.

Stephen
What a great show! The show definately lived up to its hype. I went the day before to the Great Lawn and saw them setting up, which made me appreciate how big the stage was and everything cause I was way back last night. The band didn't put on any surprises, but no upsets. I was amazingly surprised at the amount of people that left early or before the encore. The Lawn, I must say, will always beat an arena because only at the Lawn can they have people trampolining on blankets. I can't wait until this show comes out on CD and DVD, now all I have to do is buy a DVD player. ~Stephen~

Mark
The guys just seemed stoked to be playing in front of this audience. Dave walked out on stage and took a big vertical leap into the air that got the crowd excited for an amazing night. The set was just crazy and the band did not slow down at all. Dancing Nancies started with a funky little bartender verse that got laughs from the crowd. After listening to the songs that were played all the way up to Help Myself, I was wondering how the show could get any better and then Warren Haynes came out. Mr. Haynes shared vocals with Dave for Cortez the Killer and showcased his talent with the electric guitar and stuck around for Jimi Thing. I don't know what to say about Jimi Thing except, "Stop now, what's that sound, everybody look what's going down!" A little Buffalo Springfield mixed in at the end while Dave gave his thanks for the band. Dave sang the "Stop!" part while the 100,000 on hand sang the rest. Dave continued to go off after the For What It's Worth verse with a skit-skat kind of rap. This was definitely the highlight of the night. I could say so much more but I will just end with saying Stefan's intro to Watchtower was phenomonal and the three song encore was a great way to close out the show. Can not wait for this to come out on CD and DVD.

Kristin
I was at the Central Park show, and it was amazing! I flew in from Seattle the night before the show and flew back the morning after, so I'm tired as I write this! But it was worth it. I got a VIP ticket and walked over to the VIP entrance around 1pm. There were around 20 people already in line. I met some cool people in line, including a fellow Nancies message board member! The gates were supposed to open at 3pm, then it got pushed back to 3:30pm, and finally around 4:15pm we were allowed into the park. But we still had to wait in another line before actually going to the VIP area. By that point the line went down several blocks. I heard that the lines for the GA entrances were really bad. (That makes sense because there were 1000 VIP tickets and 70,000 GA tickets!) There was absolutely no security, although they were strict about not allowing backpacks in. But they never looked in my purse. We were finally allowed into the VIP area at about 5pm or so. Our section, it turned out, was on the right by Roi's side of the stage. The people I was talking with in line and I ended up in about the third or fourth row, as close to the divider as we could be. It wasn't too bad although I couldn't see Butch and it felt like we were in no-man's-land because the band didn't interact with our area very much at all. The other problem was the fact that once we were in our spots, we didn't want to leave to get our VIP BBQ. The promoters could have done things better. But enough of that. There were these people behind me who had stickers that said "media" on them. So I asked them who they worked for and they said NBC in a tone like I should know who they were. As it turned out, they were on-air people at the local NBC station! Obviously I am not from NYC so I didn't know that! Before the show they played a lot of Bob Marley, some Amy Mann, and some other music over the house speakers. But the funniest thing was when they played some really weird version of Ants Marching. It was not that Rock-a-pella one. I don't know who did it, but it was strange. In the free NY Post that I managed to get a copy of (only one newsstand near my hotel had it), besides having the AOL disc with some music videos on it, it also had a section with information about the show. It said that a high school choir would be performing before DMB took the stage. The choir- who looked absolutely amazed to be performing in front of such a large audience and in Central Park- sang the Star Spangled Banner. Everyone gave them a warm applause. The reception was luke-warm at best for the mayor, who came out after the choir to say a few words about the show. And when he mentioned AOL, some people booed, which is funny in a way because the people in GA got in free in part because of AOL. By this point the sun had basically set. Since the Great Lawn is obviously flat I couldn't see how many thousands of people were behind us. It was also neat turning around and seeing various buildings in the skyline behind the park. DMB came on stage at 7:20pm. They did the extended intro into DON'T DRINK THE WATER. I like this song as an opener. This is the song that I've heard the most times open a show, but I don't mind. I think it gets the energy level up high for the show. And it was! When Dave first walked on stage, he jumped up high. It was clear that the whole band was excited to be playing in Central Park and in NYC in general. Dave made several comments throughout the night about NYC being the greatest city in the world. He said that NYC always treats the band well. One of his funny comments near the beginning of the show was along the lines of "It was nice to run into you at the park tonight." Later in the show he said "Remember two things: Love New York City and leave only your footprints." Haha- I think the original phrase is "love your mother" but I could be wrong. SO MUCH TO SAY was next, which led into a jammed out ASTB. Dave danced like crazy as usual. Stefan grooved and even came out towards the front of the stage (which he did a couple times during the show, much to the enjoyment of our side section!). Then they segued into TOO MUCH, which was actually a first for this tour. GRANNY came next. Remember after the Hershey show when I said that if I heard this song at every show I ever go to I wouldn't mind? Well I guess Dave really got that message because I've heard it at both shows that I've been to since I said that! Haha. But I really do love the song. The ending when Dave sort of scats, the "bubba bubba love" part (listen to 7.17.99 for example) was almost back to original length (they cut it off a bit at some shows). When Stefan started fiddling around with some notes, it was apparent that CRUSH was coming next. The guy next to me said at the beginning of the song that it sounded mellow, but the band remedied that with an energetic jam at the bridge and at the end. WHEN THE WORLD ENDS followed. I know the song was written before 9/11/01 and all, but I cringe when I hear this song in NYC. This show was no different. When he sings "watch the buildings crumble," it's just a little weird. Maybe it's just me. DANCING NANCIES was next. Dave did a drunk man intro somewhat like the ones last spring on his tour with Tim Reynolds. When he said things like "I didn't plan on getting drunk tonight but I am" (paraphrased) people of course cheered. During the "could I have been" part, he sang "could I have been a millionaire on 5th Avenue" and "could I have been lost in Central Park" if I remember correctly. He might have said Park Ave. Boyd went crazy as usual during the end jam. They segued this song into WAREHOUSE, complete with Stefan leading the woos. The whole show was very energetic. All the jams were tight and Dave's voice sounded good. A mid-set ANTS MARCHING followed, and while not surprising to me anymore, still is great to hear. Dave let the crowd sing the "people in every direction, no words exchanged, no time to exchange" part, and of course we did. RHYME & REASON was next. Like at Hershey, Dave sang "Keep this needle in my vein," rather than "take this needle." The song is a bit creepy anyway, and that just adds to it. (Funny, no one ever cheers about the drug references in that song. Just kidding. I mean, they don't, but I would hope that they wouldn't. Although there was a guy at the Portland show behind me who said about Rhyme & Reason, "It's my song!" Scary. "But," as Dave says, "I digress.") TWO STEP followed. It was hard to understand Dave's intro, but it was no doubt somehow about NYC. Butch had a lengthy solo at the end, and then Carter had a bit of a solo as well. HELP MYSELF was next. Not a lot of people seemed to know it. The girl next to me said she thought it was odd that they would do a song that not many people know for this show. But I remember someone on one of the message boards saying that they hoped DMB would play it for this show so that it would be on an official live release so that more people will get to know the song. After this song, Dave said that they were bringing out a guest (we could also see them setting up an extra microphone). Warren Haynes from Govt. Mule came out. I had never seen him guest before, because Govt. Mule has never opened a show that I went to, so that was cool. He is an amazing guitarist. I thought they would either do Jimi Thing or CORTEZ THE KILLER and of course they did both. I heard this song played by Neil Young when he opened for DMB at the 4.21.01 show in Charlottesville (and of course it's his own song). But I had never heard DMB play it live, and it sounded great. Dave tried to hit the falsetto at the end and almost did. Dave and Warren took turns singing the verses, and Warren had an incredible guitar solo. He stayed on stage and they played JIMI THING. Dave again attempted the falsetto on "Lately I've been feeling low." It actually sounded okay. Before Dave's now infamous scat that he's been doing this tour in this song, he admitted that he was scared to be playing in Central Park in front of so many people (paraphrased). When he sang "sometimes I walk, sometimes I take a taxi," that seemed especially appropriate in NYC. During the scat, while most of it was gibberish as usual, near the end he was screaming something that sounded like he was saying "Grace is gone" a few times. Now, maybe that's not what he said because I was almost right in front of the speakers so sometimes things don't sound the same so close. But it was interesting nonetheless, although it didn't seem as intense as at Hershey. At the end of the song Dave sang "Stop baby what's that sound, everybody look what's going down" from Buffalo Springfield's classic song For What It's Worth. (Dave also sang some of it during the Dave & Tim tour.) We all sang along. Then he did this thing where he thanked people who helped organize the show (and thanked us) in between singing the line, and jumped back in to sing the line when it was time. He repeated that quite a few times, then signaled that he was done by just singing "Stop." We finished the line for him. New York City audiences are always good at singing along, from my personal observations. With his thank-yous I figured that WHAT WOULD YOU SAY might close the show but I was wrong. I counted the songs throughout the show and this was song 15. But no, they went into WHERE ARE YOU GOING so I knew they would play a 17 song main set, since they wouldn't close with this song. I guess you could say that this song was "standard," because really, they play it the same way every time. But this time was different, because smart people wouldn't leave their spots to use the porta-potties, so it wasn't a mass-bathroom-break song at this show. Afterwards, Stefan was in the spotlight so I figured they would close with ALL ALONG THE WATCHTOWER. Stefan did the Star Spangled Banner intro again. (It was more special at Hershey on September 11, in my opinion, but of course they like to play it in NYC too.) The jamming was intense and at the end Dave did the "Fire" yell that he did at the end of the tour. ("The thief said 'Fi-re!' etc) I think Watchtower is a great closer, and it was a great way to end a 17 song, 2 hour 35 minute main set. (They left the stage at 9:55pm.) I speculated that they would do a three song encore because 20 songs is better than 19 songs. The crowd was disappointing during the encore break though. Maybe people didn't realize that the band does an encore and so they were leaving. Maybe people thought that of course the band would do an encore for the live release and web cast so they didn't want to cheer. But it was the quietest crowd I have ever experienced during an encore break. It was really strange. After maybe 5 minutes the band came back out. They started the encore with GREY STREET, which was easy to guess because Monk handed Dave the 12-string. No crazy man verse, which really isn't news, but I thought I'd share that anyway. When Dave got the electric it was another easy guess that it would be WHAT YOU ARE. Again I didn't get the "devil intro" that I swear he did at all the mid-to-late summer shows except for the three times that I heard it (Vancouver, Nissan, and this show). Hmm. Anyway, I thought they might end with a song like Tripping Billies but instead they closed the encore with STAY. They must have wanted to document Carter and Butch's lovely falsetto, but really, they do sound amazingly good doing the "lovely ladies" part of the song. And there is a lot of energy in the song. At the end of the song when Dave is singing along with the "makes you wanna stay" part, I wondered if Dave was going to do the scat, and right after I thought that, he went into the scat. Funny timing. After the song was over, Carter threw a couple of drumsticks into the audience- there was a gap of at least 12 feet between the front row and the stage so that aid golf carts could drive through if necessary, so Carter couldn't exactly hand anyone a stick. But he can throw those a long way. One came our way, but several rows farther back. Of course my first instinct is to duck because I wouldn't want one hitting my head! Then Dave motioned for everyone to come back on stage. He hugged them all and they all hugged. Then one of the photographers (not Rudy) motioned for them to take a picture like the Giants Stadium one where they all have their back to the audience with the audience in the background. And they took another one with the band facing the audience. Then the band waved and walked off the stage. They ended at 10:20, so it was a three hour show and a 20 song set. That's truly amazing. When was the last time they did three full-band songs in an encore, and let alone three up-tempo songs? Wow! They really gave this show their all and it showed, and was appreciated. But it was disgusting seeing all the litter that people left behind on the lawn. I never understand why people can't pick up their own trash. It's bad enough in a normal amphitheatre, but it's really bad to do that in Central Park. That's my rant about that. But the show was really incredible, and I can't wait to hear it again on CD and see it again on DVD when it is released. Until then, I have the great memories from last night. Thanks, DMB, for another great tour!

Coleman D.
Well, all i could do was sit back on the plane today and think about what I and 100,000 of my friends experienced last night. This is my first time doing a review on here but i figured it was aobut time that i did one. Central Park was my 100th show.......and what a show it was......I can honestly say that this show was the best I have ever seen and confident in saying that it was the best show every performed by the band. I feel very lucky because in my own mind I feel that i have seen the boys perform in their top 3 most memorable shows. 1) Central Park 2) Rock in Rio Festival, Brazil and 3) Madison Square Garden with James Brown. I was very pleased with doing the $250 VIP pass..it paid off by getting us close and some free booze. I said all day that DDTW would be the opener and it was very tight and emotional. Jimi Thing was the best version ever and dave's skat was amazing..."STop, hey what's that sound, everybody looks what going down".........Nancies into Warehouse....never heard the woooo's so loud before........stefan's Star Spangle Banner solo before Watchtower was phat!! How about Cortez the Killer???? The show was also the loudest i have ever heard them......my head was pounding half way thru the show and i couldn't figure out way...and then i realized just how loud the 100 speakers were, lol. Ever song was crisp and full of energy and just a very memorable time for me and i am sure many others. They never dissapoint and they are truly amazing and i love them!!!!! Next summer starting on my second 100 shows!!! Peace too all of you, Coleman "VH1FanClub" Dagley

Sturdivant
"People in every direction!" This is going to be a great purchase on November 4. There was an all out sprint for the stage and I definately am glad I can run fast because there were about 100,000 people behind me. This was an extraordinary event to be a part of from waiting all day to seeing people double their selling cases on Poland Spring water.(Not to mention urinating that water right back into those same bottles) For anybody digruntled with the last couple of years of CD's and set lists, the year of 2003 was so right.

Matt C.
what a show. this was my 10th, and definately in the top two, only after 6/11/01. i arrived at around 11am, and had an amazing spot for the show, about 25 feet from dave. I have to say, everyone who worked on this show did a great job. Ive never seen a better technical concert. The sound was perfect from where i was standing, and the lights and atmosphere were awesome as well. The only negative of the evening-after standing for about 10 hours, youre pretty tired. But hey, it was worth it. The band was flawless. They were right on time the entire night, and most of the jams (and there were a lot) were the best ive seen (nancies!!!). Cortez the Killer was great, a very intense jam with Warren Haines. not only was it great quality, there was quantity. 3+ hours and 20 songs is enough to satisfy anyone. When they started WYA i was a little worried, but they broke out a nice Stay to close it out. three full songs in the encore-very very nice. Overall, a stellar night. The band was amazing and very energized (dave jumped about 2 ft into the air when he 1st looked out over the croud) and every aspect of the show was very solid. They definately did not disappoint. Great night.

Adam R.
What an amazing experience! As excited as I was at the onset, just seeing how jacked dave and the band were to be there kicked-up my excitement exponentially. Every song was amazing, great setlist all in all. I was hoping for a few songs that weren't touched, but I can't complain because with the intensity that DMB had last night, "Happy Birthday" would have been amazing. Highlights were definitely all of the davespeak and dave's scat was amazing! cortez and jimi thing - best song i have ever heard them play! - were great. as were help myself, granny, and nancies. Everyone was on their game last night! And how often do you have the chance to sit with 100,000 people in central park and listen to DMB? It was truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience for me, and it was obvious that dave, carter, leroi, fonzi, boyd, and butch felt the same way! AMAZING NIGHT!!

Chris
I only have one thing to say about this show. The greatest show that i have ever seen. One hundred thousand people all on the same wavelength as yourself. God bless the Dave Matthews Band!!!!!! I arrived to the park at 4:30 and I was still about 200 yards from the stage but it didn't matter with the huge jumbo trons the crew had set up so no one could possibly miss this specticle. I, along with 7 other crazed " Dave Heads " enjoyed everything we saw including my close friend Sac whose 100 Dave show was tonight and what a better way to honor it with none other than a shirt he had made " how 'bout paying for 99 shows and getting the 100 for free. Cortez the killer floored me. Warren Haynes has got it goin on. I will leave all of you this last final thought. Hotel room.........$300......Dave shirt.....$25...........cold beer.......$5......Being with 100,000 strangers in the greatest city on earth chillin with the Dave Matthews Band........PRICELESS!!!!!! P.S. Can we get Butch Taylor from special guest status to full fledge member......Peace from the ATL

Joanna
This was my 8th show and it was by far the best i have been to..cut a day of Chemistry and Chem lab but i would do it again..running across the lawn and ending up with 8th "row" spots right in the center i was freaking out we were so close..never would i have imagined ever being that close to dave matthews..it was a drem come ture..amazing setlist..granny i wanted to bad..dancing nancies was a first for me and it left me speachless..ants had amazing energy..i waited 6 shows to heat watchtower again and it was well worth the wait..daves dancing and the dave speak was off the hook....words can not express how amazing this concert was it will forever play over and over in my mind until the day i die...Yeh Dave Yeh

Lori H.
i've never made a submission before...but i do have one thing to add to your central park setlist...they played at portion of 'for what its worth' originally by buffalo springfield...i believe it occurred immediately after Jimi Thing, but definitely after Warren sang with them and before the encore...Dave used the song to thank the NYPD, NYFD, and the fans in between the lyrics...\ also - stefan played the national anthem as an intro to watchtower!

Colin M.
wow, what an amazing show! i had such a great time and i met a TON of awesome people. the atmosphere was electric and everyone was in a good mood. highlights include warehouse(nothing like 100,000 people doing the "woos") and jimi thing. on man...i highly doubt they can EVER top that jimi thing. I LOVE NYC!!

Rudy
It is difficult to imagine seeing a better DMB show than this. Being a concert in Central Park, you have a memorable event before the first note is played. Then add a setlist chock full of classics, perform them as well as they have ever been played, throw in Warren Haynes with a killer Cortez (pun intended). The show extended over three hours, and didn't have many slow songs to allow the band a rest. Classic combos SMTS/ASTB/Too Much and Nancies/Warehouse were a treat, as was the sparkling Jimi Thing. This was an epic concert event, perhaps the greatest I've experienced from any band I've seen since 1978. By the way, I'd like to see the band Abercrombie & Fitch sometime...a lot of people were wearing their shirts, so I assume they're pretty good.

Thomas G.
Alright, basically, all I have to say that I and three of my best friends drove from Michigan State University. We left Tuesday night at 11:30 pm to arrive in New York at 11:30 am Wednesday morning. Hung around the amazing city of NYC until 2:00 pm when we got in line and me a few of the coolest people I've ever met at a DMB show. Went into the show and ended up right below one of the cameras (you know what I mean by below a camera if you were there). Saw the MOST amazing show of my life, and probably the most amazing I'll ever see. Then got back to our car at 12:30 pm to arrive back at Michigan State by 11:00 am Thursday morning, in time to go to all my classes the next day. And if I were told that if this was going on next week, I'd do it again in a heartbeat. If you didn't get the opportunity to see this show then the DVD is more than what you missed.

Steve
WOW! When I first heard about this show a few moths ago, i knew it was definatley worth the 10 hours of traveling to and from boston, and last night, the band proved me right. The atmosphere was electric from the second I walked out onto the great lawn and it only got stronger as the night went on. DDTW was an awesome opener to get the crowd into it and SMTS-->ASTB-->Too Much really set the tone for the whole night. Granny is really an awesome song and i was glad to hear it. The moment Stefan played the intro baseline for Crush the entire crowd went crazy. WTWE with the acoustic was nice and Dancing Nancies("Could I have been lost somewhere in central park?"), along with the intro to the song that Dave did, really blew me away. Warehouse was incredible and then the band slips right into Ants Marching, no intro or anything. Amazing. R&R was great and the jamming on Two Step was awesome. Help Myself was pretty good, and then Dave introduces Warren Haynes to play Cortez and Jimi. Jimi was definatley the greatest song of the night with a great jam, Dave doing some amazing and hysterical freestyling, and an outro from "For What It's Worth"! WAYG was a nice way to slow the pace down a little, but not for long. Stefan's Star Spangled Banner strait into Watchtower was amazing! Greatest version ive ever heard. The encore Grey St-->WYA-->Stay was great as well and Stay was the perfect song to close out the perfect night. The qoute of the night definatley came from Dave when he said "Remember Two Thigs: Love NEW YORK CITY and Leave only footprints." All in all, this is definatley the greatest DMB show i have ever been to, including MSG 12/21/02 with James Brown, and I cant wait for the CD / DVD!

Jason S.
wow great show...My friend and I got there around 7 so we were way in the back...great setlist...I loved ants, two step, dancing into warehouse, grey street, watchtower as well as many others...crowd was good...band played for over 3 hrs and a total of 20 songs...wow...definitely a show to get...see you all next year