Medeski, Martin, and Wood with Phriend

It had already been a couple months since the gears of the well-oiled machine Phish had come to a grinding halt. To the unassuming fans at the Palace Theatre in Albany, NY on December 1st 2000, it seemed like a standard performance by the acid jazz pioneers Medeski, Martin, and Wood. They were winding close to the end of the second set when Chris Wood announced something of a surprise to the full house. Before transitioning into Parido Alto, a familiar red-shaggy haired individual took the stage. He was sporting glasses, a full beard, and a sleek guitar that could often send phans to the stratosphere with a few effortless strums.

John Medeski began to set the keyboard equivalent of a drum role, while the crowd began reacting in exuberance to the immense treat they were being given. “We got a special guest, another special guest……..family man Trey Anastasio on guitar.” Then with sure handed mastery Trey tapped into the collective groove with a few distinctive chords that Medeski and Oren Borelow (on the turntables) were laying out. They jammed in stellar fashion for a few minutes and then into a ridiculously experimental unknown sound. It frequently saw Trey trading leads with the DJ as Medeski laid out a cryptic trance tone from his keyboard array. For these songs Bassist Billy Martin, and drummer Chris Wood wove a tight rhythm that allowed their mates to go out on far stretched limbs. For Chubb Sub Billy Martin set the tempo with a remarkable baseline that served as an overwhelming presence within the song. The song eventually shifted to feature some more cryptic organ work by Medeski in a fashion similar to the Phantom of the Opera. Meanwhile Trey gently glided his guitar in and out of the sounds in the beehive. The song segued into We are rolling. It opened with a frantic medley of drums, keys, and bass, while Trey patiently joined in and then stealthily exited with his guitar. The song maintained a frantic pitch and at time hit chords that were wholly random and seemingly unrelated. At the same time it was still held within a tight musical fabric that revealed itself later in the song. For an encore, they launched into the crowd favorite Dracula from their album Shackman. After a steady opening organ melody by Medeski, the song built to a steady crescendo that was highlighted by the steady play of Trey. Throughout the set he seemed to be a natural fit in the densely layered fabric of Medeski Martin, and Wood.

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