Chris F.
My first show ever in Tampa, its my sophomore year at the University of Tampa, was a great night. Once I saw the 12-string I was pretty sure Grey Street was going to kick off the tour. Then came WTWE and Fool to Think...both of which I could have gone without. Then night really gets going with Grace is Gone...one of the best versions I've ever heard. Nancies into Warehouse just like the old days was amazing. The rest of the show was filled with really good songs. Didn't really want What You Are for the encore, but the regular set was good enough for me. Thought Christmas Song was coming when Dave came out solo, nice surprise with Gravedigger, first time seeing that live, it was awesome to say the least. Overall a really fun night, show number 10 for me, number 11 is in one week in Albany, NY. Maybe we can get a Last Stop in Albany...if you're going to the show at the Pepsi I'll seeya there. Peace

James
Missed Jason Mraz...not real worried about it. Grey Street - Solid, but typical. When The World Ends - Let it go already. Forgot a few words, fine by me. Fool To Think - Mmmm, not so much. Grace Is Gone - Great song, nothing special...little jam. Nancies - Thank freakin' God. Only new song for me this evening. Warehouse - Always phenomenal, nothing truly special though. Crush - Pretty predictable after switching to the exact same guitar so obviously different tuning, solid though. Nice ending. Bartender - Jammed out as always, nothing really stood out but it was solid. Rhyme & Reason - Nice to see UTTAD represting itself. Similar to all other times I've seen it. One Sweet World - Some guy tried telling me that the instrumental intro was from another song, I summarily dismissed his statement and put him in his place. Loving Wings + WAYG - Yuck. Too Much - Seen it at all but one show I've ever been to, but it was pretty solid. Everyday - For the love of God Tampa...you make me want to move out of this town. I was one of the 5 people singing Hani Hani at the beginning...picked up at the end when Dave sang it, but no one really knew what it was. Ants - Ants. High energy, but that's about it. Gravedigger - Love this song, people looked at me like I was on crack when I sang Cyrus Jones. What You Are - West Palm much? Exact same encore, and my least favorite. Don't mean to blast the show...there were definitely some highlights, but I was certainly disappointed. No Billies, no Xmas song, no Watchtower, no Two Step, no Halloween (pretty much a given anyway). Second worst show I've seen yet.

Casey M.
Good show. Jason Mraz was pretty cool, but nothing too special. Anyways I saw several Mic stands, two of which I imagine will come out well. anyways off to the show. Grey Street, nice solid opener. Knew we'd hear it since it's the new single and all. Jammed out well at the end, great way to start a show. When the World Ends, well we got it outof the way early. Pretty standard. Fool to Think, again out of the way early. A little more Roi than usual and carter had a little extra. Stefan did a bass solo, and led Dave into Grace is Gone, very nice. The end was jammed out well, and reall got the crowd back into the show. Heard the first chords for Dancing Nancies!!!!!! Finally after 11 shows I get to hear. Great version, Boyd defintiely shined and he was in tune. Very solid and made my whole night. After Nancies there was a little playing around. Stefan messed around and carter drummed a little. Then Warehouse. The woos were in full effect, with Stefan and Carter both fist pumping. love the stop time intro. Stefan plays around on the bass more and Dave changed guitars and we go into Crush. Another very solid song, good jam at the end, with everybody getting a chance to shine. Bartender, extreme emotion and powerful does not justify this song. Carter nearly came out of his seat over his drum kit. Daves wailing was at an alltime high. Very good version, just soo much emotion. Dreaming Tree tease, Dave teased it a little, looked back and they talked teased again I believe and the Rhyme and Reason. Very good, very emotional. Dave was really into it and the band was all over this song. Also the lights were great for this song. One Sweet World and intro included. Good version, I don't believe I heard a Swim naked, but still very nice to hear. Surprised me a little this late in the set. Loving Wings, first time for me. I don't think it has really developed a whole lot since this summer. It was still Dave plays and sings, then Roi solos and then Carter, then Where are You Going. WAYG was standard. Too Much, pure energy in this one. Once again the lights were very good. I thought it might be the last song of the set. Everyday, i didn't here a segue, but the road page says they did. Anyways Boyd was all over the wah wah partly because I believe Stefan was having trouble with the bass so Boyd had an extended intro. Started right away with everday even though the crowd sang #36 to start. They finished it off as #36 and I thought we might segue into ants or that it would close the set. Ants, the band stopped after Everyday and I thought that was it. Then you start hering that familiar snare hit. Very long intro, absolute energy, once again i thought carter was going to come flying out of his kit. Boyds solo was great and then we went to encore. Dreaming Tree tease #2 Dave comes out alone teases Dreaming Tree again then says something about Christmas and all so I figured Christmas Song, but instead we get Gravedigger. Dave solo, very good again. Absolutely love this song especially the Mr. Vertigo on the trapeze line. Very good stuff. Band comes out and they tooled around a bit, platying around, I saw the Baritone come out and I Immeadiately knew What You Are. But the band played around a bit, and I thought I might be wrong. Then Dave went into the familiar intro. Once again energy packed and cool lights. (orange ones, I thought Halloween for a second) Dave said Motherfuckers in the outro, that was the only word I could make out. Show over. On a side note I think Stefan had some major problems tonight. I saw him change his bass twice during songs. But other than that fabulous show, a pretty mellow crowd, but got into it pretty well. I think it was a very solid start to the tour.

Brian B.
Of the four shows I've been to, this was by far the best. The setlist was tremendous--a great mix of old classics (Nancies, Warehouse, Ants) and the best of the new tunes (Grey Street, Grace, Bartender)... While there have been lulls in the other DMB shows I've attended thus far, the energy level of the crowd was fairly consistent from start to finish at this one. The band sounded clear too, which is difficult given the accoustics at this venue. Slightly disappointed in the encore, but overall this was a solid show!!!

Jen C.
SOLID is the word. I had seats right behind the stage, second row. Carter is the man... I always knew it, but he just blew me away tonight. Anyway... GREY STREET, pretty typical, crowd favorite, nice. WTWE, I like it, its fun. FOOL TO THINK isn't a bad tune either, Carter rocks out on this one. Poor placement though... at this point I was aching for something old-school. GIG, at first I was like, "Man, another new one," but they did a really great job, I was very impressed. NANCIES, the first song I hadn't heard before, excellent, the crowd loved it. WAREHOUSE is an awesome followup to Nancies, my second "first" of the night. CRUSH, you know I love this song and I love the jam in the middle, but it follows me everwhere, I've heard in all the shows I've seen. BARTENDER was awesome as hell, long jam at the end too, and I love seeing Leroi on the piccolo. RHYME & REASON I can do without, but lots of energy. OSW I love, always will, such a beautiful song. LOVING WINGS and WHERE ARE YOU GOING are two songs I really don't care for. Loving Wings killed the crowd but WAYG picked them back up (its Florida, what can I say...) TOO MUCH was awesome... it wasn't a real segue (to my recollection at least), it just kind of melted into EVERYDAY, which sounded decent with a few bits of #36 here and there, but I the version at West Palm in summer was much better. ANTS MARCHING, crowd favorite and a nice closer, love to see Boyd go nuts. GRAVEDIGGER, pretty song and all but I was really hoping for Christmas Song. WHAT YOU ARE, another typical encore closer but such a great song, the crowd left energized and excited. Best part of the night: Dancing Nancies, catching a stick from Carter, the incredible view of everything. Downsides: poor audio (get quite an echo behind the stage.. I could hear the crowd singing just as clear as I heard Dave). Can't wait for Atlanta!

Chris
Wow, an amazing show by dave and the boys. Jason Mraz was awesome and DMB gave it an upbeat start w. Grey St. This, WTWE, and FTT were pretty normal... Grace is Gone started out with a bass solo which made me think watchtower at first.. Nancies>Warehouse was awesome to see. Great to see that Nancies is part of their regular rotation... Loving Wings has gotten better since last I heard it. Too Much>Everyday- After the last hit of Too Much Dave immediately started strumming ED, the crowd didn't seem to be singing 36 until dave started helping. Other than that the crowd was really into it ANTS was the best of the night for me. My first time hearing it, the boys seemed to be really into it and it had a whole lot of energy. ENCORE- No Christmas Song? That was one I was really hoping on. Other than that a solid show and a great time. Dave left pretty quick but Jason Mraz hung out at a bar across the street, he was pretty cool... See you guys this summer....

Robbie
Made the trip up from Fort Myers to see this one. Supposed to be an early Christmas present for my fiancee and I.... This was my 10th show, and, without question, one of the most disappointing shows I've been to. :( I think the thing that saved the show was the emphasis of UTTAD, which was pretty prominent in the show. Nancies, Warehouse, Rhyme, and, of course, Ants, all rocked! Wasn't too happy with WTWE and One Sweet World (although I love that song!). Although, I must add that Grace, Bartender, and Crush were awesome! Carter seemed to have a ton of energy. His ability still amazes me! Overall, I still don't think that any Dave show is a waste of time. However, this one was certainly disappointing, especially the encore. I mean, honestly, how many times a year are the odds good enough to hear "Christmas Song" and then it's not played??? For cryin out loud, it's December! Maybe Dave and the Boys can hook us up with it in the Summer..... or, maybe not!

Aaron W.
The best dave show ive been to. This was my third one. I was very impressed with the setlist. I had a wonderful time. There was only one problem. There were too many NARCS that sat arround us. But other then that I had a Great time and I will see you all this summer.

Justin
Same as usual...killer. Standard show, no real surprises. The best part of the show for me was the stretch of Grace Is Gone > Nancies > Warehouse > Crush > Bartender > Rhyme and Reason. A few observations: It must be because of the live CD just released or just that many people more show savvy but I have never heard the Warehouse WOO's so loud, intense and in sync. Because the crowd really did not know what to do singing wise at the beginning or at the end of Everyday with the #36 Hani-Hani mix I saw Dave look at Carter, nod his head and they shortened the end of the song. I love what they did in August and Sept with the end of Loving Wings with the Carter jam out and they are gonna make it even more tighter as the shows progress.n I'll say it again regarding What You Are as a closer. I have grown to really dig the song but there are 25 better set closers at least. Show 9 of my 2002 and unless I bust a spontaneous move with the MSG, MCI weekend that's it until '03. This one was nice to hold me over.

Grayson N.
Being only my 3rd Dave show, i didn't know what to expect, but it was absolutely UNBELIEVABLE. I went to West Palm last summer and was slightly disapointed in Dave and the boys, but this made up for it in a major way. We started the night off with some newer stuff, GREY STREET, WHEN THE WORLD ENDS, and FOOL TO THINK. The first two were enjoyable, nothing special, and Fool to think was just the low point of the concert, but then it got good. Dave brought out GRACE IS GONE, one of my personal favorites, followed by DANCING NANCIES, which was absolutely amazing, followed by WAREHOUSE, which has tons of energy, felt just like Folsom Field version except better. Next came CRUSH, great song live, the crowd got into it, singing together, making it even better. Next came BARTENDER, which jammed as they usually do, but there was extra energy that i hadn't heard in other versions of Bartender, Dave went insane and made it one of the best versions of the song I have ever heard. Next he brought out one of the unsung classics in RHYME AND REASON, good seeing the old UTTD songs coming back in concerts since i missed them in West Palm. Then it got more relaxed with a solid version of ONE SWEET WORLD, followed by LOVING WINGS, which was one of the slower parts of the concert, i can't say im a big fan. Dave ends the set with WHERE ARE YOU GOING, followed by the hands down best TOO MUCH i have ever heard, and then Everyday, which was weak until the #36 outro, and then the night was made...ANTS MARCHING. Dave's greatest classic ever and i finally see it live. One of the best renditions I have ever seen of Ants, the place blew up, and so did the band, they got really into it and this song alone made the night unbelievable. Dave followed it with a weak encore of Gravedigger(which was performed better than in West Palm) and What you are, an odd choice to finish, Watchtower of Two step wouldve been more approrpriate but shit, we got a ridiculous show anyways. Thanks

Derek N.
Talk about a highlight's show of the three summer shows that I saw, they brought out the best of those shows and tightly packed them into a nicely played overall great show. To the setlist: Grey St - Saw the 12 string set up on stage and knew that they would open with Grey St. I can listen to this song forever and not get tired of it, great way to start the show. WTWE - typical version, nothing special. Fool To Think - I really am just not a fan of this song, got it out of the way early. Grace - Interesting bass opening by Stefan, thought it would be Watchtower but Dave started with those familiar opening chords, they really jammed this one out longer, such a great song. Nancies - only new song for me tonight and it was amazing. I had been jealous all summer because they started playing it after the 3 shows I went to at the beginning of the tour. So glad to finally hear it live, a really jammed out great version righ into...Warehouse - Stefan started with a little bass teasing then the WHOO's started and the place went nuts. Crush - third time this year and probably the best version I have heard...my favorite song and I have already heard it three times, not alot of people get to have that. Bartender - powerful version. Dave screamed all out at the end. Saw the twelve string come out and was hoping for Big Eyed Fish to begin but oh well maybe one day I will hear it. Rhyme and Reason - the band was so into this song and Dave went all out. This song gets the award for best lighting of the night. One Sweet World - brought it down a little bit after R&R, nice long intro and jam at the end. Loving Wings - it has been amazing to see this song evolve, Carter had this very loud and banging solo at the end and it was very different from this summer, they will eventually find what they like. WAYG - well they had to put it in somewhere. Standard of course, I think Loving Wings was longer than this song. Too Much - my sister was with me and was getting disappointed that they hadn't played this song yet but right after WAYG the place went nuts and my sister was very happy with it being one of her favorite songs which went right into...Everyday - my sister's other favorite song. Such a weird segue from Too Much but it worked out well with Boyd continuing on the violin. Such an awesome song and the crowd was in to it singing along with #36. Ants - My sister was in heaven they played her 3 favorite songs in a row, its like they knew she was there. Great way to end the set and the place went totally nuts singing along. Gravedigger - was hoping for x-mas song but got gravedigger for the fourth time. Could hear alot of people singing along so I guess people are liking it more and more. Pretty standard though from this summer. What You Are - saw the electric come out and knew it would be What You Are again. Very intense and he finally said "pray down on your knees mother fucker" which he did not say in Charlotte. Overall a great show. Kind of strange that the last 3 songs were the same last 3 songs from the Charlotte show I went to this summer. But no worries, it was great show with insane energy from the band, it was like they had not taken a break at all. Well it was a Merry X-mas present for me and I will see everyone next year.

Gary T.
this was my first live show,and this review is not so much how great the band was(which i thought they were)but rather how disrespecful the crowd was.singing along with dave is great,but talking and carrying on when daves not singing is to me unforgivable,this was going on all around me.im not talking about in between songs,this was happening during quieter intros,and songs they did not sing to.but the worst was when dave came out for his solo of gravedigger,the talking and carrying on was beyond rude and disrespecful it was just plain ignorant.does this behavior happen because these so-called fans have been to so many shows they are bored with certain songs? if so take a break,dont go for awhile and then appreciate what amazing artists your seeing.dmb still attracts new fans,ive just gotten into them this past year,this experiance has really soured me to go to future shows.

Amanda
My sixth show - and one of the best! Even though the Forum (Ice Palace) is known for its horrible acoustics, DMB still always sound great. It was, however, my first show that started a tour...so even though the guys always give it their all, maybe there was a little more energy. Had floor seats..absolutely amazing! Nancies was definitely the best! Hadn't heard that one live yet, and they just went crazy in the end. Also my first time hearing One Sweet World live which was just as good. The two Dreaming Tree teasers were enough to make one insane...was definitely holding out to possibly hear that or Last Stop, but no such luck. As well as #41, my personal favorite, and I know their fav to play live...but ah well...This show was better than my last as they played a lot more older songs this time. You just can't beat the live version of Bartender...soo much feeling and emotion, enough to give one the chills. Well, this has definitely made my holdiday season that much better, and am looking forward to the show in the fall.

Mark S.
First thing first: Buy the Jason Mraz CD and make sure you get there early to see him. Fun, but an amazing voice if you're actually into music and not just going to events....I only go to DMB shows throughout the Southeast due to actually having a life, and I must say that once again, for some reason, the boys kicked it up a notch in Tampa. When he had the 12 string to start I was hoping for JTR, but very pleased with Grey Street (as an aside: luv thu "Lovely Ladies" and all, but nice touch to not have them). I think Dave has plucked a few good ones from Everday, nice to see UTTAD represented, and Bartender's pace was up, which made it not as dark and more 'jammy' (yeah, new word). Sat (stood, really) front floor again and am getting pretty exhausted with whiny warehouse members. "He didn't play Two Step" etc. complaints are getting old and tired, so for those of you going to the remaining shows, lemme give you a piece of advice. You probably have about 10-15 DMB CD's in your car with what, 12 songs on each? So that's over 120 songs...well, I have a feeling that he's not gonna actually play ALL of them (that would be pretty good idea for a fundraiser though, eh? "Dave Marathon for BAMA RAGS"...I'll donate) so here's what you do: Get to the show early. See Dave introduce Jason, sit back and enjoy. After that, go to the bathroom and refrain from buying any beverages (you don't want to have to go during the 2 hour set, do you?). Then let go of ALL expectations and just enjoy the Band. With no expectations there can be no disappointment. And last of all, PLEASE, please refrain from turning this into social hour while the band plays...it distracts from real music fans. Late.

Bailey
this show really proved why i think dave matthews band is the best band in the world. missed jason mraz, but wasnt too upset about it. now to the setlist: GREYSTREET was an awesome opener, and the crowd was really into it. WHEN THE WORLD ENDS is a personal favorite on the everyday cd so i was excited to hear it. when dave let us sing "we'll be burning one" was a nice touch to the song. FOOL TO THINK, i dont personally love this song so i was glad to get it out of the way. GIG was typical. then i hear the beginning tunes to DANCING NANCIES and i have never had such an adrenalin rush. boyd was freakin amazing. i was pretty dissapointed with the people sitting around me. most of them sat during the show, and you could tell they were the kind of people that came in the hopes of hearing Crash. i personally believe outdoor shows are much better. WAREHOUSE was next and the WOOs with the crowd showed incredible intensity. CRUSH was typical. BARTENDER comes next; Carter deserves two thumbs up for his performance, since my seats were behind the stage i really got into watching him play. the dreaming tree teases drove me nuts. R&R, not a favorite of mine. i was suprised to hear ONE SWEET WORLD and dave did a good job with this one. LOVING WINGS, blah. WHERE ARE YOU GOING, well at least the crowd around me stood up for song #1 that they knew. im kinda over the song though. TOO MUCH was amazing. EVERYDAY was decent, not exceptional. ANTS MARCHING is a great closer, but i think dave should have switched it with What you Are. I was very dissapointed with the encore considering it was the same for my summer show in Charlotte. Dave mumbles about Christmas so i got really exciting thinking he was going to play the Christmas Song. all in all, a great show. the first one of the fall tour, and you could tell the band was pumped.

Angie
WOW... what a show!!! I was very excited to hear Nancies, Warehouse, Crush and ONE SWEET WORLD!!! I was expecting the newer songs, so to hear the older ones was definately a good surprise to me! Then when dave came out solo, and said something about it being Christmas and all, I was really hoping for the Christmas song, but Graveigger was a nice surprise. Also a first for Loving Wings for me - great song! Would've hoped for more of a closer than What You Are, and was really hoping to hear PIG. But what are the chances of that??? Overall, I was very pleased with the set list. Great Show. Thanks Guys!

Joey
My 3rd show in last two years(all in Florida) EXCELLENT show. Jason Mraz was a great opener. Ice Pal. doesn't fit as much people as West Palm and I have heard that the Ice Palace has bad sound, but it sounded great to me. it was loud and clear. I guess it depends where you got your seats. The setlist was amazing. and to be honest you can never really complain about a Dave show. he has too many perfect songs that he is gonna at least play a bunch of. Dancing,Bartender,grey street. were my favorites played. However everything was great. I wish we got to hear Christmas Song, but I love Gravedigger's so it's all good. Only true complain I have, are stupid drunk girl's(mostly) and guy's using slower songs as social time.