Live Phish 02.28.03

Live Phish 02.28.03
Live album by
Released2003
RecordedFebruary 28, 2003
Length2:49:44
LabelPhish Dry Goods
ProducerPhish
Phish chronology
Live Phish Volume 20
(2003)
Live Phish 02.28.03
(2003)
Live Phish 07.15.03
(2003)
LivePhish.com Downloads series chronology
Live Phish Downloads: 02.26.03
(2003)
Live Phish Downloads: 02.28.03
(2003)
Live Phish Downloads: 03.01.03
(2003)
Alternative covers
LivePhish.com Downloads cover

Live Phish 2.28.03 is a live album by American rock band Phish. It was recorded February 28, 2003 at the Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, New York.

This show marks the return of one of the most beloved and requested Phish songs ever – Mike Gordon's "Destiny Unbound" – which had not been played since December 1991. The song's lengthy absence from the rotation fueled its legendary status (much like Grateful Dead's "Unbroken Chain") to the point where fans would go to extreme lengths to encourage the band to perform the song, such as having the entire front row recite the first verse via flyers passed out to concertgoers by eager fans. The performance, having not been performed for the previous 796 shows, was considered the ultimate retirement breakout in the band's history (although at the time, 12 other songs had breakouts with gaps of longer duration. The only original composition among these 12 songs was "The Curtain With", which the band performed on July 12, 2000 after having not performed the song in 1092 consecutive shows).

Aside from the "Destiny Unbound" breakout, exceptional jams in "Bathtub Gin", "Back on the Train", "Tweezer" and "Soul Shakedown Party" helped make this performance one of the most celebrated concert of Phish's post-hiatus "2.0" period (2002–2004). The version of "Tweezer," known to fans as the "Nassau Tweezer," is particularly highlighted as one of the best jams of that era.[1][2]

This show was also among a small batch of the 2003 live shows to be released in CD form, and marked the first time that "Destiny Unbound" had appeared on an official Phish release.

  1. ^ "PHISH: 'Step Into the' Ten-Year Anniversary of 2/28/03 | LIVE music blog". LIVE music blog. 28 February 2013. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  2. ^ Klonsky, Evan (24 July 2015). "The Case for Nassau Tweezer amid the Perils of First Show Overload". Medium. Retrieved 12 November 2018.