Marathon XXVII

 After the uneasy feeling I got from running the Hartford Marathon event last year, it felt more reasonable (or at least more comfortable) to go back to running a marathon by myself.  But I still wanted to try a new course in a new state.

Having run the Hatfield-McCoy Marathon, which took place in both Kentucky and West Virginia, I decided to consider that my Kentucky race and pick a new West Virginia marathon.  I wanted something easily driveable, where Gloria and I could leave home on Saturday morning and stay overnight, then run the course on Sunday morning and still get home at a reasonable hour that night.

I settled on the Morgantown Marathon.  A six-hour drive from home, Morgantown is the home of West Virginia University.  On the plus side, the race course runs through parts of the campus, the downtown, surrounding residential areas, and a portion of a recreational trail.  On the negative side, there are two main four-to-six lane roads on the course, with some major intersections where I might get caught up at traffic lights; and there are dozens of turns, increasing the possibility of inadvertently going off-course.

Training had gone pretty well through the winter.  I have lowered my expectations in recent years, going from trying to get a personal record at every race to trying to get a Boston qualifying time at every race to simply coming in under four hours.  As I get older, not only has the need for speed diminshed, but also my ability for speed.  At 47 now, 18-minute 5Ks and 3:15 marathons are things of the past, and I have finally come to terms with that.

So, my long runs have been in the 8:15 to 8:30 range and I have been enjoying them, for the most part.  I quit speed training for this cycle, opting to use a modified version of Hal Higdon Intermediate 2 training program - no tempo runs, no intervals on the track, no mile repeats.  The only thing resembling speed work is a weekly pace run on Saturdays, ranging from 4 to 11 miles, and a half-marathon race in the middle of the 18-week program.

During the taper of the last two weeks, I used my downtime to study the course and make notes to take with me.  When we arrived in Morgantown, Gloria and I drove the course to check the notes against the real world and make note of landmarks that might be helpful.  While that diminished the element of surprise for the course itself, it helped ensure that I would not suffer the agony of blowing any turns. 

After a wonderful pasta dinner prepared by Gloria in our hotel room (we got one of those extended-stay rooms with a kitchen), I enjoyed a good night's sleep, woke up at 6 a.m., did some stretching, and got to the starting line at the WVU coliseum at around 8:30...

"A Picture of Nectar", thirty years later

To honor the 30th anniversary of "A Picture of Nectar", I gave it an attentive listen, something I do not think Phish fans do often enough.  As far back as I can remember, a new studio album from Phish was often met by fans as a flight of fancy - an interesting diversion (or even a <gasp> sellout!), but not the real meat of what Phish was about.  Sure, the album is OK, but have you heard [insert awesome show date]?

This is a shame, because Phish albums are quite good.  They can be multi-layered, nuanced recordings that add new flavor and instrumentation to the songs we know or snapshot representations of the band's craft with minimal yet supple production.  Sometimes, both. The first three albums, however, are neither of those things.  While one might expect the major-label debut of "Nectar" to utilize the full force of Elektra to beef up its sound, it instead sounds like the end of a trilogy of Phish emerging from the studio with an album of Phish songs, performed in the exact arrangements as Phish plays them at its many, many gigs.  The upshot is that these are expertly executed, well-recorded, high quality versions of these soon-to-be-classic tunes, in a time when - get ready for this, kids - the internet was not a big thing; when fans relied on taped shows copied endlessly on cassettes of varying quality.

Thus, my first thought today, the moment "Llama" began: This sounds great!  The recording is "produced by Phish" according to the liner notes, but it does not so much sound "produced" as it does well-engineered (courtesy of Kevin Halpin).  It is a bright, sparkling, trebly record - a hallmark of 1990s CD-era production.  Aside from some vocal processing (heavy reverb, some flange, and the down-pitching of Trey Anastasio's lead vocal in "Chalk Dust Torture" that makes him sound almost like his future Oysterhead bandmate, Stewart Copeland), a few instances where rhythm guitar can be heard alongside a lead guitar part, and a guest appearance by Gordon Stone on pedal steel and banjo ("Poor Heart"), there really is not much production going on.

While the bass guitar is not as high in the mix as I am sure the People for a Louder Mike folks would have liked, Gordon's bass is distinct, clearly audible and, wow, truly amazing.  Little melodies fly in and out in "Stash" and "The Mango Song", slapping and plucking abound on "Cavern" and "Tweezer", and a rolling bottom-end anchors "Poor Heart" and "The Landlady".  It is all on wonderfully crisp display.

The drums, too, offered some surprising moments to which my ear never really tuned before.  I had never even remembered there being drums at all on "Eliza", but Jon Fishman offers elegant tom and cymbal accents.  The clarity of the open-and-close of the hi-hat in "Glide", the light jazz touch of "Magilla" and tight-snare sixteenth notes on "Chalk Dust" are a delight to hear without the room noise of the audience recordings of the shows.  Even the soundboard recordings of those early shows do not capture this much detail because those mixes are meant for the room, not for the tape.

The two places where everything comes together beautifully are (no surprise) the two jam features - "Stash" and "Tweezer".  On both of these, the band members lock into a groove and then proceed to branch out in different directions, while still remaining completely in step.  Pay attention to any one of the instruments and it is like you are listening to a whole new take on the song as each comes unglued and builds to a frenzy of controlled chaos.  Page McConnell's playing is stellar as he tickles the ivories of the real piano (as opposed to the keyboard he used during that era's shows).  And of course, there is the frenetic yet focused drive from Trey's guitar solos which bring the jams to their peaks.  There is not a bad or wasted note. 

Taken as a whole, though, this is a strange album.  While it may have been the most accessible Phish album at the time, this is not the one you want to play now for someone that has never heard the band.  The running order alone challenges a newbie to hang on for dear life.  

Things start off with rockers "Llama" and "Cavern", which sandwich the pretty interlude of "Eliza". The quick bluegrass detour of "Poor Heart" hints that, yes, this is an eccentric band (or, as a flyer from a then-recent gig put it, an "eclectic, wacko quartet from Vermont"). "Stash" has a rhythmic structure that was not like anything you heard on the radio, but the quality of the performance is enough for even the biggest skeptic to get what the fuss was about, and the brief "Manteca" tag lets the listener know that there is somehow a Dizzy Gillespie influence here - not your typical rock n' roll move. All sense of anything typical goes out the window during "Guelah Papyrus", where the verse-chorus structure gets interrupted midway by a fugue.

Then comes the middle third.  Lyrics fall by the wayside as the band shows off its instrumental chops.  "Magilla" is a Duke Ellington-esque jazz number, followed by the Santana-like Latin clave rhythm of "The Landlady".  Both are completely wordless and any other band would probably stagger these two curios as interludes between their actual songs.  But these are not mere diversions for Phish.  They are placed together in the middle of the album as a centerpiece.  During the next 13 minutes, lyrics appear in "Glide" and "Tweezer" but are unimportant.  These are not songs, per se, so much as exhibitions for the full power of Phish's musical interplay.

The final third of the album starts with what is closer to an actual song ("The Mango Song") but even that is turned sideways when, for the final verse, instead of repeating one of the previous verses, as a rock or pop song would tend to do, they repeat all three verses at the same time.  The album's most accessible rocker ("Chalk Dust") - the one that any other band would likely put toward the top - finally, satisfyingly, hits before the full left turn into Weirdsville ("Faht" and "Catapult") makes any uninitiated listener think that maybe that flyer was right.  After "Tweezer Reprise" offers a hefty climax as a variation on (but definitely not a mere rehash of) its namesake predecessor, one can only stop and reflect on everything that had happened in the previous hour. 

I cannot imagine another band on Earth sequencing an album this way.  That said, I also cannot imagine another band on Earth throwing so many different styles into one pot that even they referred to it as  "soup" when they promoted their next, more focused and fully-produced album, "Rift".  But Phish was never a band that made any concessions in order to find people.  "A Picture of Nectar" shows a band that put it all out there to reward the people that find them.  Three decades later, those rewards keep coming with every listen.

Hartford Marathon - Oct. 9, 2021

Here's my video from the Hartford Marathon!

Marathon XXVI

Despite the Pequannock 5K giving me an icky feeling about being in crowded places, it seemed like things were getting better.  I was vaccinated, I started spending time with friends and family who were also vaccinated and it felt like some sort of semblance of the old normal was going to return.  

That was July.  So I signed up for the Hartford Marathon.  I needed to run that race again - this time at the official in-person event - and try to right the wrongs of last year. 

And then the delta variant of COVID suddenly became a threat.  People were dying again, vaccinated friends were getting breakthrough cases and I stopped feeling safe around others.  So I retreated back to my own personal lockdown.

But I kept training for the race, partially because I kept looking for a glimmer of hope and partially because I was already way too committed.  I was going to run this thing no matter what.  Connecticut was one of two states on the Eastern seaboard (the other being Georgia) in which I still had not run a sub-four-hour marathon.  

On Oct. 9, having completed the 18-week Hal Higdon Advanced Training program, I woke up at 4 a.m. and, feeling no excitement at all, got in the car and started driving to Hartford...

Phish at Atlantic City beach - Aug. 15, 2021

While walking along the uncomfortably crowded boardwalk, we heard the opening strains of "The Landlady".  Nice.  As we made our way to the entrance to the beach venue, Phish started playing the intro to "Scents and Subtle Sounds", which they had skipped the previous night when launching into the meat of the song.  Wow, that was weird and interesting.  Never miss a Sunday show, they say.

And though the rest of the show did not follow through on that promise for the crazy and unexpected, it was a solid show that continued the trajectory of the tour, with the band getting tighter at every stop.  The first couple of shows had be cringing.  What a difference a few weeks makes. 

The first set's selections touched on four decades of Phish - with a classic Mike's Groove ("Mike's Song" > "I Am Hydrogen" > "Weekapaug Groove"), "The Sloth" and a set-closing "You Enjoy Myself" covering the 1980s; that "Landlady" plus "Roggae" and "Back on the Train" (both of which are better than ever) and a "The Moma Dance" that was so good that Phish deemed it the only track from the entire A.C. weekend worth posting on its You Tube page, covering the '90s; the "Scents" intro touching on the brief '00s period (ah, 2.0, weird times); and the face-plant-into-rock of the Kasvot Vaxt tune, "The Final Hurrah" repping the '10s.  When I see Phish, I want variety and boy, did I get it!

You know what else I want?  Flow.  And the second set had it.  A "Carini" set opener always sets the stage for some hot jamming, and this one was no different.  Speaking of hot jamming, the set also contained a mid-set "Piper" and a "First Tube" closer.  That is what you call placement.  Somehow, "Waves" and "Simple" - two songs that have been known to launch giant improvisational explorations - managed to be the shortest songs of the set, which may have been disappointing in some ways, but this set was about the flow.  And while complaints could be made about Phish's versions of "Set Your Soul Free" and "Beneath the Sea of Stars Part 1" compared to the versions by the Trey Anastasio Band and Ghosts of the Forest (respectively), the performances on this night were just right for the mood.  The former was big and uplifting, while the latter was soothingly perfect for a beautiful night on the beach.

Another GOTF tune, "About to Run," has become common in Phish's sets, as well as TAB's, so I guess Trey really likes it, but I am not totally sold.  Even from the original GOTF shows, I thought it was one of the weaker songs.  At this show, it was the only thing that broke the awesome flow.  

Trey, if you are going to play some more GOTF, give me some more of that "Ruby Waves" action.  How about "The Green Truth"?  Better yet, really surprise me with the rock-out of "Beneath the Sea of Stars Part 3 (Blue)".

Speaking of surprises, I certainly did not expect "Fluffhead" in the encore.  Heck, with "Tweezer Reprise" played the previous night and "YEM" out of the way in the first set, I wondered what would happen at all.  And if the triumphant ending of "Fluffhead" wrapped things up nicely for the weekend, "Backwards Down the Number Line" was the bow on top.  

I do not think I will be attending any more Phish shows in person - not with COVID still being a problem (and everyone there acting like it is not a problem).  I have attended 156 shows in 14 states over 28 years.  It was an amazing experience.  Fifteen years after the Coventry debacle that we all thought ended our Phish travels on a sour note, I am happy to now end my journey on a high note.  This is a band that is still worth listening to, and I intend to keep doing so as "couch tour" phan.  

In case you are wondering, I did my stats on Zzyzx's website (ihoz.com) and my most seen song is "Chalk Dust Torture".

Phish at Atlantic City beach, Aug. 14, 2021

First order of business - get up before the crack of dawn and start running. 

I planned out a 19-mile run from Galloway, east through Absecon, then south through Pleasantville and Northfield, then back again. I love these long runs on Phish tour because I get to really see the neighborhoods, not just the areas surrounding the venues and hotels.

It was early, I was tired and groggy, but it was imperative I got out there before the heat really kicked in.  It was already in the 70s and the sun was coming up.  The goal was to keep it slow and steady and get it done so I could join my wife and friend for some lunch and head over to the second night of Phish on the beach in Atlantic City.  As the run went on I slowed from low 8s to low 9s, and then took a wrong turn to end up doing more than 20 miles.  My overall pace was 8:46, and that was fine, especially after a night of dancing and five hours of sleep on a crappy bed.

The first set of the second show had some neat surprises, like my first "Slow Llama" and "Soul Shakedown Party" in years, and the always welcome back-from-the-dust-bin "Destiny Unbound" (a song I have been hearing a lot as I have been listening to all of the 1991 shows).  But for the most part the first set was very first-set-y.  "Tube" had us dancing, "46 Days" had us rocking, "Reba" was pretty standard and, well, "Melt" is going to "Melt" these days (the light show is fun to watch on the latter, but that is all I can really say).  For a brief moment, I think I had an idea of what those Mexico Phish shows must be like, as Phish played the breezy island sounds of "Ya Mar" while I splashed around in the ocean.  But before I knew it, the set was closing with "The Squirming Coil".

Trey Anastasio's solo album from last year yielded a few songs that have worked their way into Phish's set lists, so it was not much of a surprise to hear "I Never Needed You Like This Before" to open the set, but the doors blew wide open for a big "Drowned" jam, which eventually gave way to "Ghost" - always reliable for a groovy jam - and then, to my delight, the criminally underplayed "Scents and Subtle Sounds".  Unfortunately, they skipped the intro to the latter, as they tended to do back in 2004, and then cut the jam jarringly short.  Of course, it is hard to complain when the ripcord is pulled only to fire up "Chalk Dust Torture".  

When "Chalk Dust" fizzled out and led into "No Quarter", I could not help but think they were playing the wrong Led Zeppelin song.  I mean, they played "The Ocean" in Mexico, why not do one for the folks on the beach in the U.S.?  

A beautiful "Slave to the Traffic Light" and a rollicking "Suzy Greenberg" ended the set and my poor legs were tired from all the dancing after all that running, so when the ballad "A Life Beyond the Dream" was played for the encore, I was happy to hear it, even if it ended up not being a great performance of it. 

I figured they would save "Tweezer Reprise" for the end of Sunday's show, but...nope....here it was, and I had no choice but to dance and leap as I have been doing since my 20s when that song is played, sore legs be damned.  Another satisfying end to another good show, though I think I enjoyed Friday's show better (or at least Friday's second set).

Gloria, Ali and I wanted to find somewhere to hang out post-show within A.C. but the boardwalk, the casinos and the restaurants were overflowing with people.  The crowds were too big, and it was all too much for me to handle.  There was nowhere I felt comfortable at all, let alone somewhere I would have felt comfortable enough to remove my mask.  So after a lot of walking around (and with a grand total of 56,405 steps for the day), we retired back to the hotel room.

Phish at Atlantic City beach, Aug. 13, 2021

When tickets went on sale for Phish's autumn and New Year's Eve shows in 2019, I made a decision - skip the tours, save some money, then really do it up for summer tour 2020. 

Of course, had I known the world would go kablooey, I would have gone to as many shows as possible in the second half of 2019.  

Before the pandemic hit, the idea of doing it up A.C.-style was exciting.  By the time the shows, came around in 2021, I had no desire to go anywhere in public, let alone a crowded Phish show.  But I was vaccinated, it was outside on the beach, and the possibility of being away from the crowd made the prospect a little better.  Even still, I kept my mask on any time I got remotely close to another person.  

The venue was a blocks-long stretch of beach, and we stayed in the back, away from the crowd, even hanging out in the water for a while because it was such a pleasant night.  The sound was good enough that we could hear everything pretty clearly, if not loudly or crisply. 

It was nice to hear "Cars Trucks Buses", especially as an opener, and "AC/DC Bag" and "Funky Bitch" were standard first-set fare, but "Blaze On" and "Wolfman's Brother" kicked things up with jams that stretched out a bit and had us, as Trey Anastasio sang in altered lyrics to the former, "dancing on the beach."

I have been listening to a lot of 1991 shows lately and there is no doubt that, in comparison, vacuum solos by Jon Fishman are a lot harder to come by these days, so to get one in the first set of my first show in two years (in "I Didn't Know") was a treat.  Having also listened to the whole 2021 tour up to that point, I shuddered a bit when "Rift" started up because, well, Trey had not yet had a precise performance of it.  He almost got through it with no flubs, but at least it was better than the previous two, and the "Sand" set-closer, with its trademark perfect mix of rock and funk, made up for anything that was previously lacking.

The second set came out swinging hard with back-to-back fun-time jams in "Tweezer" and "Bathtub Gin" and the party kept rolling with "Everything's Right".  I hate to say it, but I do not have much interest in "Possum" anymore.  However, I actually get a kick out of watching how everyone else still loves it - especially because several people in the audience were not even alive when Phish first played that song with its songwriter and founding band member Jeff Holdsworth. 

Things got interesting for me again in the back half of the second set with classics like "2001" and "Harry Hood" and two of my newer favorites, "Rise/Come Together" and "More".  Even with "Possum" in the mix, that second set was as solid and fun as a Phish show can get.  Add a "Loving Cup" encore to that, and it is hard not to be happy coming away from that.

Egress from the venue was pretty easy, and we managed to get back to the Red Roof Inn in Galloway at a reasonable hour.  Unfortunately, the hotel was terrible and the beds were ridiculously uncomfortable, which was bad news because I was planning on a 19-mile run the next day.