Dave F.
Hm, where do I start on explaining/reviewing such an incredible show. I was literally about to explode with excitement on many-many-many (Police Academy) occasions. I'm going to do a song by song account, regardless of whether or not it'll make it onto the tour archive- I'd rather make it comprehensive enough for you to enjoy it. One Sweet World: (with Instrumental Intro) Usual nice 3-4 minute instrumental (basically LeRoi jamming on the horns) intro to this. It's not as great an opener as say Two Step, Warehouse or the like- but darn nice to hear. :) Dave at the end, where on the D&T tour of '96 would sing "Don't ya like to swim naked.. throw your clothes up on the shore- don't ya like to.. etc." now he sang "Dum da dum do de di, de du da" (scat type lyrics) Tripping Billies: One song in and Dave is already switching guitars again- supposedly because of the bronze strings Dave is using- they add a "twang" to the sound- but they were breaking left and right tonight- Dave had_two_backup guitars tonight just because they were popping so much. This song was sweet- two songs in and already a repeat- didn't mind at all- great job by the boys- they were into it- and they never stopped all night. Don't Drink the Water: had some_kind_of intro- have no idea what it was- Carter was doing the bass rolls- and Bela was plucking his banjo at the same time- really interesting. First sign of chair passing- not as bad as Thursday though. Same stuff on telescreens- same thought of having the corresponding images on the screens as the Leave Me praying outro- "from the redwood forests to the gulf stream waters..." ah well. Two Step: (called it.) ha. First sign this concert was going to go the right way. 16 frikin minutes of pure listening satisfaction if you ask me. Dave switched guitars_again_before this song.. Stefan was playing with a glass slide for I think his ring finger... Intro lyrics "...have you by myself I have lost my way again.." Boyd was playing pizacato (sp?) again on this- real cool. In between verses, Dave pulled something "new" (to me at least) "Won't you come please two step with me?" Also, there was the usual "different" jam at the end- 7 min in... But, they weren't done yet. Bela had a solo soon after- and I then realized what the heck makes this band so good: CARTER. No joke, without him- it would just be Boyd playing like a maniac, and then LeRoi soloing, then Dave mumbling, and maybe Stefan.. but Carter brought it all together- without him you'd have no smooth transitions- it'd suck plainly. I could count every tooth in his mouth, he had the biggest grin on his f ace for this song. The cameras ended this jam with the fast shots of all the band members- pretty sweet. All Along the Watchtower: Well, if you know this song- you know what I'm talking about. Okay- profanity- Damn. ;) Dave introduced Carlos for this song- I knew it was coming- his guitar was already on stage. If you've ever heard me play 2.24.95 AATW with Trey Anastasio from Phish for you- you'll know what I'm talking about- well- it was the same- if not better folks. Carlos Santana folks- wow. GET A COPY OF THIS SHOW! Dave broke at least two strings on this song- and when it was over, Boyd, Stefan, and Dave gave him a handshake and a pat on the back- LeRoi was standing there watching Carlos do the solo bit- his mouth was wide open- it was incredible. Granny: (changed guitars) at this point in time, I was expecting Veil- because of the backup singers, and Dave said "we're going to slow things down here", oh no- not this time- Dave hits the opening chords- aw yes. :) Boyd started out over by Roi, and then once his turn to do backup vocals with LeRoi and the women- he gets over to his side of stage. Great addition to an otherwise awesome night. Heck of a way to follow up Watchtower with. Crush: after 2 days of Stefan teasing Crush- they finally went with it- the crowd got to scream again after the still somewhat unknown Granny... Boyd had some real nice solos- first playing opposite Dave, then Stefan.. then Roi- and of course, Carter brings it together on the drums. Long Black Veil: (changed guitars) Floor crowd in A2 sat again tonight- I didn't mind- I really dig this song- nice to have a slow one here and there that isn't the overplayed Satellite or "Jiz Into Me" as Brian G. so aptly named it. (heh- jizheads) ;) LeRoi had another tight solo at the end- Thursday he didn't have it. Stay: Brian called this one- I enjoyed mimicking the backup singers a-gain. There was the opening lyric- "so hot outside... fry your brain" as opposed to the egg bit. Carter was blowing some bubble gum at the end of this one. ;) Linus/Lucy jam- Butch and Carter: I don't know what the_heck_this thing was- but it seemed pretty damn impromptu if you ask me. Butch had the biggest grin on his face when this one was over. :) PNP >> Rapunzel: Great as usual- expected this after Linus/Lucy- b/c of the first night had the same sequence. Warehouse: At this point- I was wondering how long these guys were going to be on stage- had the great Stop Time intro- I really dig that. Lie In Our Graves: ooooohahaha. Now, for all of you that didn't get the pleasure of being within the A sections- wheee... Boyd- damn man. Anyone who has seen this before_knows_Boyd is always on the edge of the stage like a madman- well tonight he went one farther- he went up in front of the screen- it was the best picture I've ever seen- ack- no camera. D'OH!! Jeez,there's Boyd in front of a 30-40 foot screen with him playing- all sorts of cool feedback and such. Lasted 16 mins for this whole song- after Bela jammed when Boyd was done. Roi wasn't on the stage at this point.. Crowd was... more on this later. Drive In, Drive Out: whee doggy- nice jam on this- note- it was almost 11:00 and they still hadn't left for the encore. I think Stefan switched his bass on this- or one of these last songs.. Dave introduced this with some mumbling and "...the fighting city of brotherly love" (something like that- heh) Roi had his glasses off- strange eyes. Dave had the lyric "had a little teaparty of my own" in there also. ENCORE Ants Marching: Dave walks on stage- picks up some roses. The video of the traffic on the screens again- real sweet encore- especially with Bela- like the new banjo. ;) NOTES: All right. If you didn't get the impression that the show was great- I didn't do a great job with this- sorry! It was, trust me. Also, the crowd was... all right tonight- Friday's was by far the best (near me- A2, row 18 center). During LIOG, the "couple" in front of me decide to sit down and hook up- all right, I can deal. Then, things just go from bad to worse- I chant "get a room" and soon after Brian G. and I are doing cheers: "gimme an F...I...S....T" well yeah- it was definitely not pleasant. btw- if you can't figure out what was going on- don't ask. Also, Dave was wearing a black turtleneck and jeans tonight- first for me- usually it's the plaid dittys or some cargo or just regular khaki's. hm. Boyd- ripped as usual- and even had some leather pants on again I think.

Two S.
I attended all three shows at philly and i must say that this one impressed me the most. Starting off with One Sweet World with the intro was a shock. Bringing Bela out on the third or fourth song was a nice and early surprise. Watchtower with Carlos Santana was the most intense song I have ever witnessed Matthews perform. After that song came a very nice jam named Granny. I didnt expect this and I have never seen it live with the whole band; and the three singers was nice too. A nice addition. I enjoyed the Charlie Brown jam, though it came a lot nice out of Seek Up on thurs. Lie in Our Graves was an extra special treat as Bela and Boyd jammed away. Drive in Drive Out was a nice jam and that was the best I've ever heard it performed. Overall, an incredible show and if anyone comes up with a tape, let me know.

Nick Q.
Awesome show to end the venue! It was amazing to see Watchtower with Santana, especially in the middle of the set. It was probably the best version I've ever heard. When Dave said "I'm going to play a more quiet tune for y'all," and Poi Dog was out there, I immediately though LBV, but I was totally shocked. It was Granny !! The rest of the show was great, with nice versions of Warehouse, and especially Bela on LIOG. The show rocked, definitely the best of the three. It could have been 5 times better if they played something other than Ants as an encore, but it was still ok.

Sam
I think that overall this was the best show I have ever heard. Watchtower with Santana was up there with when he played it with Trey and Popper at the Roseland Ballroom in 95. Dave seemed genuinely happy to have drawn such a big crowd on three nights, and let you know it with the amount of energy he put into every song. Before doing Long Black Veil it seemed like Dave was apoligizing for having to play a slow song to take a little break. It was truly incredible

Lenny C.
ONE SWEET WORLD- I called this. The last few shows I have ben going to I know the opener way before the show begins. It was a great opener and the show was off to a great start. TRIPPING BILLIES- This was great. Such a high packed energy song this early in the set was nice to hear. DDTW- Bela Fleck came out from this and I once again called the song. It was very nice. Normal though, but still nice. TWO STEP- Bela stayed out and this song was great. All theses songs so far were played with so much energy and intensity. I was worried that they were going to ware themselves out. WATCHTOWER- Dave introduced Snatana and I went ape-shit. I knew that it was going to be Watchtower and I loved every second of it. This was the 4th song in a row that is just full of evergy. What an amazing night. GRANNY- The backup singers came out, but I never thought it would result in Granny. Dave said that after Watchtower he was going to play a slow song to bring himself down. I was thinking Long Black Veil, not Granny. I'll take Granny though, it is a great song. CRUSH- This was the first time in a while that I heard Crush live and it wasnt that bad. Dave and the boys played very well. I enjoyed it. LBV- Backup singers came back out and now I heard Long Black Veil. I think this song fits in the set nicely. STAY- Backup singers stayed out and stay was the song. The band played it very slow and Dave sang every word was clear as a bell. It was nice because they played it slow. CHARLIE BROWN JAM- This was great. It was funny and it was a good time. PNP-->RAPUNZEL- Again, the band played this song slower then normal and it sounded great. What is up with singing songs slow? WAREHOUSE- Again, slowly played and sung. It was great like this. I noticed some new lyrics too. Different lyrics then what I heard on Thursday. LIOG-->Scarecrow-->LIOG- This song was unreal! Bela came back out and during the jam he played the Scarecrow song the The Wizard of Oz and it was so cool. This was great. DI,DO- Another high energy song. This night has been full of long jams and a lot of energy. This was, by far, the best night of the three. ANTS MARCHING- I was hoping for more from the encore, but this did not at all take away from a great, great night. This was my 7th DMB show and it was also my favorite (along with MSG 12.2.98).

Andrew F.
One Sweet World: with the old intro. Unbelivable Trippin Billies: repeat Two Step: another repeat, but the new jam is awesome. instead of the new dave solo, bela took over. phat DDTW: decent All along the watchtower: with carlos. Un real. seven or eight minute jam with carlos going nukin futs. Granny: never saw it comming. dave said they were going to slow it down and pulled out granny, with the 3 female singers , awesome Crush: a little slow and off, but carter really saved it at the end Long black veil: kicked ass, everyone started sitting down and it pissed me off. great Jhonny Cash song stay: another repeat, oh well Charlie brown: with Jeff beck and Carter. they jammed for about 10 minutes, everyone totally dug it Rapunzel: Carter kept the beat going all through Charlie brown, so i knew next was Panta.. Warehouse Stop time Intro: another repeat, but it was awesome Lie in our graves: Absolutely the best violin solo i have ever heard, boyd went in front of the huge screens and just went crazy Drive in Drive out: All about Carter Encore: Ants: again, it was good but kind of dissapointing to end it the exact same way as the first show.

Sean M.
Probably the best DMB performance that I've ever seen. They were all on fire. Watchtower as the fifth song. Great setlist. Very few radio songs and great guests (Bela Fleck, Carlos Santana) Boyd and Carter were unbelievable. Would love a copy of the show if anyone is able to get it.

Beau D.
This was my 6th dmb show and it was by far the best concert i have ever been to. the minute i heard the first note of the old One Sweet World intro i knew it was going to be a kickin show. Next the boys went to tripping billies, a good choice at the beginning of the show-you could feel the energy level of the crowd begin to rise.Two step rocked with a nice bela solo but then I was totally blown away when i heard the intro to Watchtower. In the middle of a set!!!The crowd went balistic and then Santana came out to play the solo and the place was really rockin. it was truly amazing.i could have gone home right there and been totally happy but then dave decides to play Granny!!!it was awesome!!Crush and long black veil were good choices to get the crowd a little more relaxed before they started really rockin again.then,the only disappointment of the night-stay, for the 3rd night in a row.rapunzel and warehouse both rocked but the band played lie in our graves the best i'd ever he ard. boyd was really doing his thing and everybody loved watching him.they finished up with drive in drive out-not my favorite, but a amazing-everybody was great, dave,steffan,bela, good tune to end the set with.just when i thought things couldnt get better,the boys came out for their encore and broke into ants.it was totally and carter were all communicating and mesisng around during boyd's solo-it was so much fun to see.it was a totally amazing concert- the energy was so high and everybody played really well.

Jake S.
INCREDIBLE SHOW! This was my 3rd DMB show and this was by far the best. The boys were energetic and absolutly loving it. They didn't dissapoint the crowd of 40,000+ people i think that were there. Closing out their first 3 night stand of the year, they put on a helluva show. With Bela Fleck's help on a few, namely a great version of Lie In Our Graves, in which he busted out with the "if i only had a brain' solo during his 3 minute banjo solo. Carlos Santana dropped in on the best watchtower that i've ever heard. Better than the one with Trey, Santana is AMAZING! Boyd was awsome, he was really into getting the crowd riled up. I couldn't have asked for anything better setlist wise..one slow song the whole night..even when dave said they would slow it down, they played granny..that was good, but i don't love the gospel singers, they take away from the core of DMB..if you don't already have tickets for some show this summer..GET EM! DON'T MISS DMB THIS SUMMER!

Jul L.
Dave came on and opened with one sweet world,and the crowd was alive, everyone was dancing and in a great mood. And this lasted through out the whole show. I was in a great mood so i wasn't upset that the set list was not as good as i expected. Why wasn't i there on friday? But the audience was so in to it that Dave could have played the Marcarena and they still would have cheered. Dave jammed a lot more on this one than during the Thursday show, which was cool. On lie in our graves he played for awhile befores getting to the "I can't believe that we would lie in our graves..." part which was great. Linus and Lucy(AKA the Charlie Brown song) was a neat idea and the crowd loved it. Ants Marching was a perfect way to end the show though i wish they would have played another song before it. All in all a perfect ending to a great show. I even got to see Boyd Tinsley afterwards and get pictures.