From tjwade@tconl.com Sat Sep 12 23:35:43 1998
Date: Sat, 05 Sep 1998 23:41:00 -0700
From: Tim Wade 
To: dan@netspace.org
Subject: RebaReview 29: 7-3-94 Old Orchard Beach

There's No Place Like Gamehendge (RebaReview #29)
7-3-94 The Ballpark
Old Orchard Beach, ME, set I
Time: 13:08/ 14:40

This one is courtesy of Jake Morrill, a man who has my eternal thanks!

THE DIRECTIONS (0:00): Standard, nary a flaw to be found.  This is a
pretty crisp copy, too, so that's nice.

THE SIP (2:23): Not laser-sharp, but typically fantastic nonetheless.

THE SWALLOW (4:42): Nearly flawless...

THE CHILL (6:01): Fish is feelin' frisky, tapping and rolling as we kick
back for the chill.  Trey almost hits a bad note, then flutters in,
quickly switching to some muted plucking as the groove thumps along. 
Fish goes all high-hat, and suddenly we're in underwater/dreamy jamming
mode.  Trey taps and noodles, very gorgeous quiet jamming to start
things off.  They all continue to fade, held together only by Fish's
high-hat...Trey gives a little chirp at 7:15, and Page makes a subtle
variation...Trey hears what Page is doing and comes in more audibly with
a two note phrase, then Fish alters the beat...ah, it sounds very
familiar, but they're not quite hooking up yet...about 7:38 Trey goes
right at it, playing the melody to "Somewhere Over the Rainbow".  I'd be
willing to bet this one was out of the blue, as it doesn't sound very
polished...little mistakes here and there.  Don't get me wrong, though,
it's pretty damn cool.  Fish sticks mostly to cymbal work as Trey plays
the chorus, a verse, then the chorus again, eventually shifting out of
"Somewhere Over the Rainbow" around 8:59.  They came out of it better
than they went into it.

Mike and Fish smoothly return to the Chill while Trey continues to float
along in a dream-like state.  Trey drifts in and out, not yet wanting to
attach himself to any form...Page is playing both sides of the fence,
complimenting Trey as well as the groove...Trey hits a lick that
attracts Fish, who picks up the pace suddenly...Trey moves his lick up a
notch and now Mike and Page are in on it, too.  It doesn't last long,
though, and Trey ends up chopping at some chords, sounding a bit out of
place.  He hangs with it, though, and everyone joins him quickly,
building to a shift at 9:50.  Trey quickly backs off, heading back to
dreamland a little, but grooving instead of drifting...nice stutters
from Fish and nice piano by Leo...Trey heads up, then works back down,
but he gets caught repeating a couple of notes... things get syncopated,
then Trey hits a high note and drifts all the way back down to a little
shift...the jam pulls together again...Trey is being kinda quiet yet
he's all over the place...crazy...the intensity of the jam starts to
catch up to what Trey is doing, and Trey sustains a little for a shift
at 11:15.  Yeah, that's much better...Trey starts to get stronger and
throws in some more nice sustain here and there...this builds to another
good shift where Trey drifts by a standard Reba lick and Fish begins to
crash.  Trey heads down and digs deep...Fish is doing crazy fills and
-OH MY!  Mike hooks up with Trey down low...everyone locks up again,
damn!  Again, though, it doesn't last, and the release is only so-so. 
Trey works around down low for a few, then ascends awkwardly and plays
around up high.  The band is in full swing now, and Trey pushes higher
and higher, trying to punch through.  Four flams from Fishman mark a
shift at 12:30.  Trey is way up there, flailing like a madman...Page is
starting to freak out now...wow!  At 12:49 Trey actually manages a
decent release at that height, no easy trick I'm sure.  A few more
moments of wailing from the deranged Dr. Anastasio and the toms,
unsurprisingly, close things up at 13:08.

THE WET WHISTLE (13:16): A few mistakes here and there, but I think ya
gotta whistle for the Wizard.  Final blap at 14:40.

* * *

First thing's first - the Somewhere Over the Rainbow is different, and
works very well.  They didn't quite nail it, but it will put a smile on
your face.  Makes me want to hear the Somewhere Over the Rainbow from
that show the other night.

Apart from that, there are a couple of nice moments, but they are short
lived and outnumbered by some downright odd sounding stuff.  They never
do really gel in this version, but at least Trey didn't bail out on this
one...I'm still trying to get over the headache that the Red Rocks ^Ñ96
version gave me.

I don't mean to sound too harsh, though...this is definitely worth it
for the Rainbow, which turns what is probably otherwise a slightly below
average Reba into something to chill on while you're driving to
Limestone, ME.

Finest in the Nation?

B-