(part 1 of 2)

Most mid-period Phish fans who've heard this show love it. If you're not a fan of Phish's spacey late-90's improv, you might find it a bit samey; e.g. the last 20(!!) minutes of Roses Are Free head back to ground that'd already been adequately covered (you might say) by the last 10 minutes of Rock'n'Roll and the 15-minute 'Quadrophonic Topplings' jam and even the last six minutes of the *show-opening* Disease jam. That's a lot of twinkling ambient-textured psychedelia to sit through in one listen. If you're in the right mood, on the other hand, or happen to enjoy that sort of thing, you might call NYE '99 the canonical Phish show. Trey memorably thought so - he came offstage with Fishman thinking the band was done for good, and a little more than nine months after this night it was. It took them a decade to fully recover and regroup after this spiritual/musical peak.

Both camps have it, I think. The ferocious concentration and intensity of '97 were gone by this point in the band's arc, as was the larking bounce of 1998, but there's a miniaturist's precision to the sound-assembly and quiet interplay nonetheless. By late '99 the ambient excursions of fall '98 has started to integrate fully into the band's sound; even the driving rhythmic songs here start with Trey piling sonic sediment atop the rhythm bed, and the great guitar declamations are more rare than ever.

(part 2 of 2)

It worked, and works. Fans weren't prepared for how deep the band dug at this show: not just a jammed-out Roses but a great distended 35-minute dance trance (perhaps); not just a swampsick Drowned > After Midnight > Jam but a slow sludgy all-the-time-in-the-world chillout; not just the maybe-best-ever 22-minute Sand but a supernaturally patient 'Topplings' coda that bled into a rare effects-laden solo for Gordon on the bass; not just a wee-hours Bowie but a wailing mid-90's throwback with ostentatious virile noisemaking from Trey. The Twist previews the canonical 6/14/00 Fukuoka version, R'n'R billows and bellows and explodes before dissolving into heady narcoticism, and the whole thing feels like a hypnagogic descent into another world.

It may indeed try your patience and it's less varied than you'd expect from a seven-hour Phish performance, but the after-midnight show remains the dream-logical endpoint of a certain style of Phish, the experience they spent the last decade chasing (before their 2009 renaissance). There are late-90's shows to hear before this one, but Big Cypress remains an essential passage for Phish fans.

Anything that could be said about 12/31/1999 has pretty much been said, so instead of beating a dead horse, I'm just going to point out the most memorable experiences I had on this epic day/night/day.

We were hanging out at the campsite next to our bus, FLAPJACK 2000, getting geared up for the night that was to be. We made it to the concert field a little late, so Runaway Jim started up as we were getting through the fence. I spent the entire early set all the way in the back of the field, Trey side. It was fantastic. There was a ton of room to dance and move, I was hanging out with most of my crew and some pretty girl dressed up like an angel. The sound was still very good in the back. At one point during SOAM>Catapult, a giant cloud moved in front of the sun and giant rays of sunbeams were cascading down on all of us in the field, it was very spectacular. After Midnight, as mentioned in other reviews, was off the hook, everyone was pumped.

As the set ended and the mass exodus began clearing out of the concert field, my crew and I were like salmon swimming up the river. We made it to about fifty yards from the stage, Trey side, right next to the railings that were put in place. Little did we know that the spot we picked was perfect for what would be coming. We sat in that spot for five hours and waited, taking shifts holding down the fort. Finally, Old Man Time did his thing, collapsed on the bike, we were all wondering if it would ever be midnight, and then the Meatstick started playing...Anyway, when Phish rode the Hotdog through the crowd, they drove right past our spot. We ended up with leis and I think some Jolly Ranchers from Page. They drove to the stage, fed the meatstick links to Old Man Time, and got ready for the countdown.

As I mentioned in my 12/30/1999 review, I was with seven other friends from Rutgers and we drove down in our bus together. Although it was hard to be with everyone at the same time during the festival, we all made it together for the midnight celebration. When the clock struck midnight, we had an enormous group hug and huddled together as a team in joyous jubilation. It felt like we won the Stanley Cup. I will never forget that ever.

Suddenly, I was completely soaking wet.

A group of kids behind us from Chicago let about five bottles of Champagne spray through the air. I was pissed off for about .5 seconds and let it go with everything else. There was nothing that was going to stop this utter feeling of amazing triumph and being "there" in that exact moment in time.

Down With Disease = Greatest Fireworks EVER

All of the giant beach balls made it over my head during Bathtub Gin. One of my favorite jams of the whole festival is the last four or five minutes of Gin. It mellows out completely after the vocal jam in the middle and there is a sense of overwhelming calm. It was almost like the eye of the hurricane so to speak. It felt like the band and audience alike were able to take a breath in this pristine moment, soak it all in, realize that there was no where else in the world that was having more fun than we were, and gave us a minute to get ready for the marathon that lay before us.

I get chills thinking about it.

CHEESECAKE!!! will never be the same.

Slave to the Traffic Light stands out to me because I was with my friend Felipe at that moment and it was his favorite song.

Bowie, Reba, YEM, Sand>Quadraphonic Toppling...words won't describe them.

By the early hours of dawn, the concert field looked more like a civil war battlefield. People were just collapsed and laying around everywhere. I am proud to say that I made it on my feet the entire time. Sunrise was euphoric. Hood tease>2001 was unforgettable. Trey's beautiful solo out of Wading in the Velvet Sea giving way to the Meatstick let us all know that the end had come. I will never forget the absolute silence of 80,000 people slowly walking away during Here Comes the Sun on the PA.

We got in FLAPJACK 2000 within the hour and made it out of Big Cypress by noon. It was a much more quiet drive back to New Jersey than it was driving down. Everyone was spent. We made it back to Rutgers before midnight on 1/2/2000 and carried on with our lives once again. But we were not the same.

Since then, I only see my friend Achal on a consistent basis. Our friend Aland, fearless driver/owner of FLAPJACK 2000, passed away long before his time in 2012. I spoke at his funeral about this trip and how he provided me with one of the best weeks I will ever have. I still think about the group hug at midnight, and although I will never see some of those guys again, we will always walk together forever.

i'm not going to try and review big cypress, i don't have the bandwidth for such a major undertaking, but i thought i would share my thoughts on some highlights, as others have done.

day set: great set. it was a laid back vibe, with everyone enjoying themselves and not taking things too hard. we stood near the back of the field, near a relay tower and had great sound and plenty of space. the melt>catapult was SICK, but the highlight of the day, if not the entire weekend, was the after midnight. you can hear it on the tapes, but to be there and feel the shockwave of energy that swept through the crowd once everyone realized what song they were playing, was one of the most magical experiences i have had with this band. you have to remember, we knew they were playing one long set all night, but we really didn't understand how it would work in practice. after midnight was the statement that we needed from the band that it was going to be ON.

we had all planned to nap after the first set, but we were all WAY too hyped up from the after midnight to sleep.

the midnight set was just amazing. so surreal in moments (the sunrise during roses, the band just walking off the stage at the end of the set) and so intense at others (after midnight tease in drowned, all of rock and roll, a 4am bowie). but my favorite moment was the hood tease before 2001. needless to say at this point we were all, uh, dazed, you might call it. but even in that state, once fishman hit the drums the entire crowd seemed to stop for a second and say "wait, didn't they already play hood this weekend? did they forget? are we misremembering? do we even care?". it was another great moment to experience in the middle of all that madness. it was phish being phish.

the walk back to our campsite was another thing. no one was talking. it was silence from 80,000 people. no one could quite understand what had just gone on for the previous 7 hours. people passed out everywhere, some sitting in chairs some under blankets. and the wordless crowd filed out calmly, everyone blissed out in their own special way. we got back to the campsite and decided the only sensible thing to do was make screwdrivers. we sat there, drank our drinks, and laughed for what seemed like hours trying to put into words what had just happened. one of those magical times.

If you were there.... you know!

Simply life changing.

The anticipation was palpable on NYE - everything was colored by the fact that we had an epic show promised later. So let's skip to the show, after a fun ride on the skywheel.

Afternoon Set (1:46): Runaway Jim, Funky Bitch, Tube, I Didn't Know*, Punch You in the Eye, Bouncing Around the Room, Poor Heart, Roggae, Split Open and Melt -> Catapult, Get Back on the Train, Horn, Guyute, After Midnight

This set had a GREAT SOAMelt. The jam quickly veered away from the SOAM beat/bassline into Type II territory, and then Catapult appeared out of the blue. I almost think this was planned, though, because the band was chatting with each other before starting up SOAM, and laughing while they did it (I don't think they take Catapul very seriously).

After Midnight was the other highlight: I have never seen a group of people (the fans AND the band) so excited in my life. The vibe during this song was just an exciting thing to feel, and the cheering was louder than any of the cheering later in the night.

THE SET

Midnight->Sunrise Set (7:45): Meatstick -> Auld Lang Syne, Down with Disease -> Llama, Bathtub Gin, Heavy Things, Meatstick tease, Twist Around > Prince Caspian > Rock and Roll, You Enjoy Myself, Crosseyed and Painless, Minestrone, Sand -> Quadrophonic Topplings, Slave to the Traffic Light, Albuquerque, Reba, Axilla, Uncle Pen, David Bowie, My Soul, Drowned -> After Midnight reprise, The Horse > Silent in the Morning, Bittersweet Motel, Piper -> Free, Lawn Boy, HYHU > Love You > HYHU, Roses are Free, Bug, Harry Hood intro tease > Also Sprach Zarathustra > Wading in the Velvet Sea, Meatstick

The stage was lit up to reveal a father-time like figure with a cubist head (think Picasso) riding a stationary bike next to a giant clock, making the clock run with his riding. Then, at about 10 of midnight, he stopped pedaling and slumped over the handlebars . Then, a couple minutes later the band showed up on an airboat (which I couldn't see at all) and then the sides fell off to reveal the band on the 1994 NYE Hot Dog (Meatstick) while a pre-recorded Meatstick played over the PA system. They rode through the crowd throwing out Lei's and beef jerky. The got to the stage, got off the hot dog, and fed father time a LONG string of sausages. This revived father time who started furiously pedaling and advancing the clock quickly to 1 minute beofre midnight. The countdown then appeared on the jumbotron and the boys started actually playing Meatstick on their instruments (I think...they could have been faking it to the recording but it got much louder when the picked up their instruments). All the while there were girls on the stage dancing the meatstick.

As the countdown reached 10, everyone started to scream the numbers, and when we all yelled happy new year it was pure magic. I don't use words like magic often - but I felt my heart burst within my chest, full of love, full of happiness, joy, every synonym in the damn book. How can I get across how special I felt as I listened to the most amazing band in the world auld lang syne, heard fireworks bursting in the sky while kissing the love of my life in the first moments of the year 2000? I can't explain it - but my one sincere wish is that everyone can feel that good at least once in their life. I just felt like I was reborn - really sensing the world for the first time - like I was coming out of Plato's cave. Amazing, amazing, amazing. IT a thousand times over.

DWD, which seems to be the traditional NYE song now, was overshadowed by a great fireworks display - much better than those at the summer festivals. But they should be right? This is the big year of the three zeros! DWD was LONG, but hard to get a good grip on with the way I was feeling. The Cheesecake Heavy Things was hilarious, and I'm disappointed that the didn't show it on ABC. The rest of the set blurs for me...the big jams were Rock and Roll, YEM, and Sand - the biggest jam of them all. I had a hard time maintaining after splitting a bottle of Korbel with Ann, and we headed back to our tent during Bowie (about 4AM). Luckily, we were camped close enough to still hear the concert clearly while wrapped up in our warm sleeping bags. I listened to much of the rest of the show in a half-asleep haze, unfortunately missing the Piper and Roses, but that's what tapes are for, right? My experience had already reached perfection at midnight, and I have absolutely no regrets about not being able to stay up.

Ann and I had initially planned on leaving on the second, but the fact that the traffic had completely blocked the water and port-o-potty trucks from getting through told us that we should probably get in line too. We packed up our stuff and got in line to get on 2nd Ave....and then didn't move for 6 hours. But once we did start moving, it took us only about 2 hours to get back to Ft. Lauderdale. We grabbed a room at the HoJo (mainly because it was right next to Denny's), took a much needed shower, and ordered a pizza. Mmmmmmm...a perfect end to a perfect weekend. Thank you Phish!

Cheesecake!

So glad that this show holds up on playback as well as it does because honestly that is about the only way that I have memories of this show. I am not proud of that but I am also not the only one that was in that state. I was always a "its about the music first and foremost guy" but this night seemed a bit different, due to the hype around Y2K, the fact that we were secluded in the Everglades, and we had to have a plan to be able to rage for 7 hours after already doing the festival thing the night before and getting too little sleep. Combine that and you kinda get the perfect storm.

Case in point- I had been hunting a deep crosseyed and painless for quite some time by that point, and when we all gathered in the morning to compare setlists all of my buddies started clowning on me because that was missing from my setlist and recollection and they all knew I was chasing it for a while. Kind of a snapshot of what the night was like.

The thing that impresses me the most is the collective stamina. The jams that they were playing at 4AM were just as sick as the stuff around 1AM. The crowd was still dancing and wanting more as the sun came up. It was truly a moment of band>crowd energy that created something that I do not think could ever be recreated. They painted a masterpiece where all of the pieces came together and equalled perfection.

I think that one of the most enduring legacies of this show is its wide acceptance in the Phish community. The 99 sound was polarizing to say the least. For me, its my favorite sound ever. I saw every Phish show that year so Cypress was the metaphorical icing on the cake. But even those that found the 99 sound to be too repetitive or too groove based still found a way to celebrate what they were hearing and seeing that night.

In terms of the music itself, Cypress Sand is my favorite version of my favorite phish song (since 2001 is not a phish song). The Crosseyed is long, creative and weird. The Roses is kind of the bizarro world cousin to the Nassau Roses- it is a BIG version, but instead of finding the pocket like Nassau its a full on psychedelic shred fest.

Another beauty of this show is how different jams have been my favorite over the years. Right now I am loving the DWD since the release of the videos. I honestly forgot how amazing it was, even have hearing it several times since, but seeing it blew me away.

If you have not watched the videos, devote an hour and a half a night for a week and do it. Whether there or not, it is an amazing experience to share it.

Cheers
Eric

This Rock and Roll starts off like many others, but with a little something on it. You can feel the energy even throughout the song portion, that can sometimes feel stale and mundane. They slam into the jam segment, Trey going off. They slide, rather quickly, into a nice steady groove. As with most jams this era ('99/'00) Mike shines. He builds a groove for them to jam on for a few minutes. There are little tension/release peaks throughout this part of the jam. The energy is at a 12. Straight raging. This jam continues over three minutes then the boys slide organically into a different theme/groove. Mike teases After Midnight and the boys find their way into a staccato like groove. The jam eventually mellows out into a much less aggressive theme. Trey takes it down a notch and allows Page to come in a bit on piano and organ. Fish switches the beat up with a main focus on cowbell (we NEED more cowbell!). Some fun interplay within a fun, bouncy groove. This jam has an almost song structure to it. With what seems to be a basic groove and "chorus" like middle parts that build in intensity each time leading to a little Trey breakdown. Sounds like he really wants to solo. He rips a cool little bluesy riffs but backs off as that doesn't really go anywhere. Then the real magic begins...

The jam takes a serious turn into much darker ambient space that was so common this era. There is definitely that relaxed undertone you can hear during festivals that really manifests itself in jams like these. On my AUD you can hear a group of people chanting "L...O...V...E" over and over again. They fade quickly when the music gets there. Really mellow ambient full band jamming builds slowly in intensity for almost seven minutes before Fish acts on Mikes cue to take the beat up a notch. He just comes in, leading with the snare and BOOM! we're in a deep, dark, dirty, space groove. Mike creates this wall of sound with his bass. Alien invasion music. Spaceships landing on my face. Fish speeds up his beat with Mike dropping bombs. Trey, holding back this entire time, comes in (albeit not smoothly), but finds his place and shreds. There is that classic Trey swagger in his playing. Snapping notes that go right through your brain. Dark space rock and roll now. They jam on this theme for a few minutes and they let the jam fall slowly back to earth. Resting this baby's head on a pillow so gently, this jam winds way down.

One of my all time favorite jams.

Every time I have to fly the red-eye from Cali->FLA I listen to this show...timing out the set appropriately, of course. Watching the sunrise out the window during that Roses jam is just indescribable. Brings me back to that moment in the middle of the Everglades every single time.

Is it just me or is Fishman playing the shit out of the Cowbell this show.

One of the deepest and most organic experiences I've ever had with music and this band...Collective consciousness indeed...

I don't care what period of Phish you enjoy the most. Whether its 93-94, 95-96, 97, or whatever, 12/31/99 is THE best show Phish has(and probably will) play. You can fit all of set II on 6 CD's. SOME of the highlights of this absolutely mind-blowing, jaw-dropping concert are: you can really tell how special this concert is after the Heavy Things for ABC. Twist>Caspian>35minute Rock and Roll is absolutely outstanding, particularly the R&R. Several different major themes are visited in the song, and it's when you really start hearing HOW UNBELIEVABLY IN SYNC Fish/Mike were on this night. All 4 of the guys play great throughout the show, but Fish especially is on another planet, and Mike is dialed in completely. The Sand>Quad. Toppling is one of the best jams I've ever heard Phish play, clocking in at around 40 minutes. The Bowie is WILD, and segues into My Soul. Drowned>After Midnight Reprise is another 25 minutes of pure bliss - you can hear the crowd going absolutely apeshit when Fishman switches the beat from Drowned to After Midnight. PERFECT placement of Horse>Silent, and THOU SHALT NOT OVERLOOK Piper>Free. I've never heard Trey get so wild so quick in a Piper jam - he uses his digitech whammy pedal masterfully for the first 10 minutes, and then uses delay loops the last 10 minutes of Piper while Page leads the jam. They come around for a 2nd verse of Piper lyrics, and at that point Fish's drumming is so ridiculous that Trey is laughing his ass off while trying to sing the lyrics. Free is also long and an excellent version. The Roses is 35 minutes, and absolutely wonderful. SO MUCH to say about this concert, including the excellence of the 1st set as well. I disagree with the previous reviewer who says the show is full of sounds from 99. It has sounds from 99, but the collective tightness, transitions, and funk remind me more of a show from 95 or 97. You MUST listen to this show, it will change your perspective on Phish - they left absolutely everything on the stage this night.

I used to think this set was, to quote Bug, "overrated". I listened to specific parts and thought,"wow, that's good jamming, but..." and think of better versions. I actually listened to the whole show this morning (from 12-7:20) and ...wow. My review's below, but I must give a word or two. The reason this show is amazing (best ever is still a word I would like to fend off because I think it's all perception, some don't like spacey and ambient) is the fact that there is not one low-point (that I could find) for 7 and a half hours. Phish went up there and kept up greatness for 7 and a half hours. These songs are all GREAT versions and have incredible communication with all 4 seeming possessed by something. Anyways, here it is (from the thread I made):

"Okay, so I'm ready for my review (I'm going to listen to Roses later today):

First off, WOW, what a first set! I loved the Tube, Funky Bitch (which I don't usually enjoy), Roggae (it seemed even more beautiful than usual on this wondrous night), Back on the Train (a little funky, this one), and that dark effect Page added during Guyute (which was certainly no slouch). And that Split! Holy crap, it was shredding, then it settled into one of the most beautiful grooves ever! And I loved how you could tell they were excited during "After Midnight", they were enjoying and you knew what was coming.

Now, The Show (I know why it's billed as such). Disease shreds balls for half the time, then it settles into the jam style of the night: thoughtful, mellow, and patient jamming (with fun for all of the guys). Then the way Llama jumps out is like when the bad guy bursts through the walls during a romance scene in a comic book or something, it was awesome; Trey and Page once again DESTROYED! Then that Gin...that freaking Gin, the vocal/instrumental harmony jam is incredible (with Cactus doing some major awesome here, don't miss him, his voice is killer on this one) and then it settles into perfection in space (it's beautiful). Then...hilarity ensues with the ABC coverage, all that needs to be said is "Cheesecake".

Actually, I keep looking over the setlist and I can't go on, everything was a highlight. The Reba, the YEM, the Sand -> Quadrophonic; all of them are astounding versions of each song with beautiful jamming. It's spacey, ambient, and majestic. It's seriously like someone made a 7-hour "Best of 1999" and this was it. While they felt they were done, I feel that this was just the next big step (from all of '95 to the funk/jam evolution in 96 to the straight destruction of America in 97 to the beautiful ambience in 98 to here); I'm so glad they're back and can't wait to see where they go next.

My personal favorites from The Show: Gin, Twist -> Caspian > Rock and Roll, YEM, Crosseyed, Inlaw, Sand -> Quadrophonic, Slave, Reba, Piper, and 2001. But once again, everything was top-notch."

What a classic. Wish I could remember more of it than I do, but I do remember it being a fantastic time. Dancing straight from 12 to six was a test of stamina (among other things). I remember laughing out loud several times, nodding several times, being enthralled by the lights for 2001. Probably the best show I've ever been too. Been relistinening to the entire weekend again and again. I can only say one thing: Cheesecake.

Split Open and Melt>Catapult

Timing's are from the AUD's attained from phishows.com Let's hope for a SBD release at some point!

6:40 Page plays a riff that sets the theme for the next few minutes, dark theme, jam moves out of structure.
8:25 Classic phish, enter in major key for a few measures then back to dissonant sound. Mike really pushing the sound here.
9:30 Has some great interplay with Page and Trey, lots of tension.
9:50 Everyone is in on the groove. Everyone is playing a lot of notes....10:10 is probably when I'd throw up my arms and yell "Hell yes!"
11:00 Gordo takes over and changes the groove. This is when the jam separates itself from typical to epic phish jam.
12:00 Full minute of just settling into the groove. Page comes in after Trey with a very fitting keyboard. Fishman has a pretty awesome drumbeat going on here..very spacey, almost gets a little "third stone from the sun" feeling...but funkier.
13:10 Trey stops playing fast licks and just vamps on one note adding a lot of rhythm.
14:25 I just love the lick Trey starts to play. Great melody that he dances around for a few minutes. Page’s grand piano works perfectly with Gordo and Fishman completely locked in.
15:25 Fishman switches over to the snare and works the bass drum. Near 16:00 Fishman has a very nice line of fills.
16:20 Trey and Page have some great interplay, doing some classic phish jam two chord vamp. Page is particularly quick on the Grand Piano.
17:45 Is just funk. Page on clav, Trey doing rhythm section, Fishman keeping the ride cymbal steady as Mike just crushes his basslines.
18:50 Trey takes the effects off, Fishman drops into a

->CATAPULT

:20, love the work Mike is doing on the bass, bending notes, shit is so spacey

Overall, the jam is just one of those jams that puts a smile on your face. Like i said, it’s spacey yet has an upbeat feel, very melodic, very rhythmic, everyone does their part.

This will forever go down as the best Phish show in history. I just don't ever see Phish matching or exceeding the magnitude of this event. For those of you who weren't there, I'm truly sorry. The highlights go on and on..just to name a few from the "The Show": Disease, Bathtub, Twist>Caspian>Rock and Roll, Yem, Crosseyed, Sand>Quadrophonic Toppling, Drowned>After Midnight Reprise, Piper>Free, and perhaps the greatest jam of all time (no exaggeration) Roses Are Free. 25 to 35 minute jams were a constant force, guiding us to the beautiful sunrise in the Everglades. The musical and emotional journey that we, as phans, shared with Phish was unprecedented. I can only hope that at some point in the future, Phish will release this on an epic DVD so all of you who couldn't attend can somewhat relive this unbelievable adventure. It was Phish at their greatest.

what can I say, 15 years after I attended this show, I am now still moved to make a comment, as it stands out as one of the most important and influential experiences of my life. i flew out from portland, or. the flight was 1/3 the length of the traffic jam. after NYE 95, i vowed to go to the Y2K new years no matter what. In 98 i had a trip where I had a vision of Y2k apocalypse and total nuclear meltdown and icecaps melting and the oceans rising. so when they announced they were going to play on a dried up swamp bed in the florida everglades....it became a pilgramage... opening up the whole weekend with water in the sky, holy moly premonition. well, the tidal wave of ecstacy hit during prince caspian, where all 80000 of us got swept up in the gigantic wave of ecstacy and it was pretty much like, "oh, duh, of course our collective 'drowning' is going to feel good.
I saw soooo much crazy shit....some poor kid freaking out and getting dragged away in some random van while he was trying to get into the gate...that sucked....upon entering the venue, the people said, stay off the streets, people got bit by snakes and died the night before. death was the theme of the weekend for me. there wasn't enough water, people were so dehydrated and thirsty, someone stole my gallon of water before the big show. so intense. In the end, we all died and were reborn stronger, better, faster (insert 6 million dollar man sound effects here). thanks trey, mike, page, fishman...and the rest of the 80000+ of us.

There isn't much I can say here that hasn't already been said, so I'll share one anecdote from the day and let you all be:

This was my second show ever, with the night before being my first. I was on such a high from the previous night that I decided I wanted to be on the rail for the entire New Years show. Me and my friends went over to the concert field and I can't remember exactly how it went down, all I remember is that next thing I know there was about 75 of us running towards the rail as fast and hard as we could. My buddy tripped and fell, but I couldn't wait for him. I kept running hard, sweating my ass off. I WAS NOT going to miss my chance to be up front for what could be the most important night of live music in my life.

Long story short, after we all got to the rail and secured our spots, the mounties rode in (yes, like Canadian mounties) and gathered us all up and made us leave. Turns out we had rushed the field early-- it wasn't opening for another hour. So we all got ushered out, tails between our legs.

I wound up standing about 15 rows back that night, still close enough to see the band's pupils dilate, but far enough away that I could take in the sunset, the crowd, and the stage show/flying hot dog.

It is still regarded as one of the best nights of my life.

It looks like there's been a release of some sort of this show on video (the midnight-sunrise part at least).

If you want to relive a bit of it, it's worth a watch:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TXAe7q3qcvw#t=19734 />
It cuts off at the tail end of Piper, so, unfortunately the amazing Roses and the fun Lawn Boy and Love You aren't shown. Neither is the sunrise, which really was a sight to see. But, after looking for years and years for video of this show, this is a gigantic and epic release, sure to satisfy you for a while until the band decides to release it all.

For one moment - all was right in the world and the epic center of this rightness was Big Cypress.

Simply amazing.

I still get chills when I think back to this show, even though it's been so long. YEM -> crosseyed. THE REBA. Free. Quadrophonic Toppling - where were we all (spinning, spinning, spinning, spun)? Roggae still breaks my heart, and the split open into catapult, oh god, that was great. Wow. To everyone who was there, don't forget the feeling.

Big Cypress! Wow, what can I say? It's probably futile to try to capture the essence of even just the music upon relisten, not having been in attendance, but I do that, so I'll try. Split Open and Melt -> Catapult in the first set evolves into a groove that would reappear in permutations throughout The Set... it's almost as if Big Cypress had its own unprecedented and never-again-repeated jamming style, akin to the cowfunk of Fall '97. The highlights are too many to address individually, and you'll want to hear it all, anyway, but Rock and Roll develops a really unique jam with a quasi start-stop thing going on with plenty of cowbell from Fishman. The Cheesecake vocal jam is probably legendary, as it should be. An older review on here mentioned how noteworthy it was that Phish pulled off a "note-perfect" Reba and Bowie in the wee hours of the morning on New Year's Day, and that's true. The huge Roses Are Free (I think the longest one ever) is another one of the many, many reasons to listen to this entire festival. I'll conclude with this: I don't just have Phishtory memorized, but I think I may viddy around and see if this "millennial jamming" was entirely unique to Big Cypress or not... my hunch is that it is, and that makes this all the more of an outstanding achievement in the field of excellence.

One of the single greatest accomplishments in the history of rock and pop and whatever the heck else people want to call it. The fact that this isn't one of the most notoriously amazing and lavished with praise musical events, ever, is simply testament to the fact that most people are jealous that they don't get it!

Stupidly, I chose to stay in PDX for the Millennium, thinking I was being the "good boyfriend." I was in a phase of practicing "modesty" or something. (Yeah, right.) A buddy had tickets for me and everything. In 2003, I downloaded the entire thing from a then nascent nugs.net (gdlive.com, if I remember correctly), and then lay on my Maine floor while it snowed outside, listening to the midnight set all the way through, disc after disc. Oddly, I will always associate the sounds of Quadrophonic Toppling with the look and feel of cold, blustery, February snows hissing at my windows.

We have a few that get away from us. (I have a few boxcar loads, but that's another story.) This is one show for which there is no such thing as hyperbole. Truly an amazing accomplishment!

Most of what could be said about this show has already been expanded upon in the comments. But the two most memorable moments, for me, were the fusion of sound and firmament.
1) As Phish began 2001, the sky was turning a soft pink, with scores of gray clouds hovering harmlessly above the festival grounds. The sun was sitting patiently on the horizon, ready to greet us all.
2) During Meatstick (reprise) and into "Here Comes the Sun" on the PA, the Florida sunrise was in full force and I remember feeling like I'd just woken up from hypnopompic dream. Everything was bright and beautiful, yet serene and foggy.
Fans will forever be arguing the merits of this show over another one. But apart from its length, the defining and unique element of this life-altering set was being able to experience dawn with Phish, their music, and 80,000 other people.

Just putting this here for posterity's sake.

http://forum.phish.net/permalink.php?commentid=1357345314 />
Here's a TL;DR version - Cypress is probably in the top 1% of Phish shows ever played, but competition gets pretty stiff in that upper level, and between the long jams that tend to lean towards homogeneity, the unavoidable, but still mentionable lack of setlist flow (seriously, you guys that scream about Joy popping up mid-set would do well to think about how this set is structured), and just my own personal bias that December 1999 was not particularly a peak for the group, I don't think this show is any sort of contender for best ever. On tape, of course. I'm not going to argue with anyone that was there and says it's the best show ever.

I wasn't there and it took me the past 3 days to finish the whole show but it was so badass! I was imagining what time in the morning it was during what songs and I felt like I was there! too make it even better after 8 hours of holyshitness they played here comes the sun over the PA after meatstick. good stuff wish I could have been there. my dad was there and he said it was the peak of badass

The Bathtub Gin is super crazy. Nobody has mentioned the Gin. This Bathtub is way way out there with
a huge vocal jam. I think that it gets lost being right after the DWD>Llama. I remember standing in the swamp just in awe over this gin. The band totally freaks out. The energy was so intense that it took about 2 weeks after this show to realize how big this event was and how once in a lifetime concert this was. I don't know if there will ever be that much energy as when the clock stuck 12:00 and the band ripped into DWD.
Like the other person said in their review. You can use every word there is and they still cannot describe
the feeling.

Amazing...

Man! This show is such a gem. Why has it not been released officially yet? Next year will be the 25th anniversary. Maybe a big box set with the whole festival is in the works. That would be the best. This show cannot be praised enough. The 4.7 rating would indicate that at least some people didn’t rate this as a 5. I can only assume these were mistakes. It does have the highest rating of any phish show for good reason. One of the greatest concerts by any band. Ever. Luckily there are many great AUD recordings available to choose from and some SBDs have been released sporadically. This truly was the finest way to end such an impressive decade for the greatest band in the galaxy.

So many great moments. I can’t imagine writing a song by song review on this show. “Cheesecake!” for anyone brave enough to write one

Can't give this anything but five stars, of course. It looms large in my memories of 1.0 Phish. But relistening to it for the first time in at least ten years, I am surprised how much less energy is there than I remember it, but only in the first half or so of the midnight set. This was my first time watching the show's video feed, and also the fan-shot video on YouTube. What a gift to have that video. I was way back at the only tree in the venue, standing on a block of ice so I could just see over people's heads. There was a line of blocks of ice to demarcate a walkway, and me and my buddy Stu, along with other heads, stood on the ice like that. I danced that block of ice into water over about 7 hours, minus my one pee break during Albuquerque. The acid/molly combo provided the stamina needed for such a thing. But being way back there, we could barely see the video feed. It's remarkable how stoned out Trey looks. I think seeing that affected the way I listened to it now.

I should say, the first set is simply smoking and just perfect, exactly as I remember it. After Midnight seems obvious now, but in real time, man, that was the best breakout there ever was. Or most appropriate song choice for a particular moment by any band ever. I very much remember the deep smiles on everyone's faces when that dropped. The boogie was intense. Such excitement for what might be coming!

So the midnight show comes out with a blast for ten or fifteen minutes after midnight, and then surprisingly it really mellows out for a bliss jam. Which is nice, but a lot of the jams for the next few hours end this way, and it makes me suspect Trey was floating on molly, like I was. Wonderful, but quite mellow. Things start off with a bang, and then peter out a bit.

I do remember thinking when they shred through Axilla, how are they this fresh at 3:30am? I think that's when you really started to feel how late at night it was.

I feel like Mike starts pushing Trey to rock harder with My Soul, which looks on the video like Mike's call. Trey delivers, and then I'm pretty sure he goes and takes the onstage bathroom break with Fishman that he's talked about in interviews. There's a long pause, and then Page and Mike vamp for awhile until Trey and Fishman come back and they bust into Drowned. From there on, I'd say, for listening purposes, it just gets better and better. It settles a bit with Horse-> Silent and Bittersweet Motel, but that's because it's 5am. Looks like on the video that Trey takes a sniff of something, and then he rages through Piper and comes up with amazing melodic stuff for the rest of the show.

I'm sorry I'm focusing on the drug aspect so much. It maybe doesn't matter so much, but to me it's worth noting. Ignore it if you like.

Roses was and still is just everything, man. Watching the way the sun comes in and it slowly becomes day, even on the crappy VHS recording we have, that really comes through as something amazing. You've just never seen it before. The Harry Hood fake out is cute, and then that 2001. You forgot you were waiting for it the whole time, and there it is, magnificent. It does bring back the weird feeling of that morning. We didn't know what we'd come back to when we reentered the world through Orlando airport. Did the Y2K bug take down the whole internet? Can planes still fly? We didn't really know. No cell phones around with internet, none of that. Might the world have changed somehow?

First thing I saw when we turned onto the Florida highway and back into civilization was a big buzzard. Very ominous, very Florida.

Had to be there and experience it! I pray everyday something like this happens again. Phish walks off after putting it all out there to the Beatles "Here Comes The Sun" over the pa as the sun rises! Next time just give us more time to recover! Camping closed at noon that day. The 20 hour drive in our '78 VW bus was rough!

and "After Midnight" gets my vote for most appropriate cover tune.

such an amazing experience, thank you Phish!

What can you say about THE SHOW? I get chills just thinking about it.

Best Show EVER!!! There's no show even close to NYE 1999. To be in the middle of nowhere in the Florida everglades with Phish, 100,000 fans and not knowing if Y2K could happen. I didn't want to be anywhere else cause I knew if shit hit the fan we'd all take care of each other. A big thank you to Phish, and to all those who attended. You gave me the time of my life and memories to cheer me up til the day I die!!

The 2001 jam is fantastic. One of my favorite versions. They started the beginning of Hood, which they had already played, and after a few notes, funked right into a SICK 2001.

Cheesecake!

Okay, I'm listening/watching the video from this show and all the memories are flooding back...I've only listened to snippets of The Show over the past 10-12 years and it is indeed standing up to the test of time. What a way to ring in the New Millennium! Download and enjoy while the video is still up on YouTube. In the meantime, I'll put in a plug for LivePhish.com to release an official DVD: Come on, guys, you know we want to buy it!

Truly the GREATEST MUSICAL EXPERIENCE OF MY LIFE! For those of you who were not there...it's very difficult to explain.

Where do you ever see a band playing for 9 hours (1 hour 45 minutes 1st set, the 7 hours and 15 minutes "THE SHOW SET")?? Again, you have read all of the reviews above, this is no different. I don't have any words to say....

Phish at Big Cypress on New Years Eve was simply a historically legendary night. There was nowhere on the planet I would have rather been as we counted down into the new millennium.
I've attended over a thousand of concerts & I've seen over a thousand acts & Phish on December 31, 1999 is one of top 10 gigs I have ever witnessed.
When friends ask what's the longest concert I've ever seen & I tell them about "the set" that started at 11:35 pm & ended at dawn they are dumbfounded. My friends are also are blown away with the fact that it took 18 hours to get out of the concert site after Big Cypress ended.
Both nights of Big Cypress should be released on LivePhish, CD & on BluRay & DVD.

This show was the greatest musical experience I have ever had. It's also the reason I still travel to see Phish. Too many great moments to write about. I hope this is released from the vaults some day.....

For all that were there, you know...for all that were not, sorry you missed it Remarkable show indeed, even made it with a fever and 18 hours of traffic, truly memorable. I don't think Phish will ever be able to play a show like this again, but that is why we are all still engaged to this day, no show is ever the same!

I'm gonna come clean and let it all out....

I slept through most of this show. I partied waaaayyyy to hard all through the day/night before and just wanted to catch a nap. Woke up twice during David Bowie and thought I was cool. My friends tried to get me up, but no go. I woke up several times during the night and listened to the music.... from my tent.

Still amazing! I was physically there and had some sweet dreams.

6 stars