Phish (NYE 2000)

Phish's NYE 2000
Dec. 29 + 30, 1999
Big Cypress Campground, Big Cypress, FL

Event entry took hours due to the security searches of every car. Numerous hidden people, nitrous tanks and other contraband were removed just in the short time I was in line. 

The seven-hour+, midnight-to-sunrise set was indeed epic. (Sunrise was at 7:11am) Tickets were $150. An estimated 80K people showed up. ABC aired part of the event (planned as approx. 5 minutes at around 12:50 a.m. EST, but aired as approx 4 minutes at around 3:30 am).

Thursday, December 30, 1999

Set I
Water in the Sky, Light Up or Leave Me Alone, Suzy Greenberg, Corinne Corrina, Limb By Limb, Che Hun Ta Mao, Big Alligator Song, Possum, Farmhouse, Ghost, Ya Mar, Character Zero

Set II
Wilson, The Curtain > Tweezer -> Taste, Meat, Golgi Apparatus, Wolfman's Brother, Gotta Jibboo, Harry Hood, Good Times Bad Times

Set III
Chalk Dust Torture, The Moma Dance, Run Like an Antelope, The Sloth, When The Circus Comes, Mike's Song > Simple -> I am Hydrogen > Weekapaug Groove

Encore
Boogie On Reggae Woman > Tweezer Reprise

Friday, December 31, 1999 - New Year's Eve - Millenium

Set I
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, Back on the Train, Horn, Guyute, After Midnight

Set II
Meatstick > 12:00 Auld Lang Syne, Down with Disease > Llama, Bathtub Gin, 12:48 Heavy Things, 12:54 Meatstick tease, 12:55Twist Around > Prince Caspian > Rock & Roll, 1:48You Enjoy Myself,2:15 Crosseyed & Painless, 2:35 Minestrone, 2:40Sand > Quadrophonic Topplings, 3:16 Slave to the Traffic Light, Albuquerque, 3:39 Reba (by Request from the Crowd), 3:55 Axilla, 4:00 Uncle Pen, 4:04 David Bowie, 4:24 My Soul, 4:38 Drowned > After Midnight reprise, 5:02 The Horse > Silent in the Morning, 5:11 Bittersweet Motel, 5:17 Piper > Free, Lawn Boy, 5:49 HYHU > Love You > 5:57 Roses are Free, 6:35 Bug, 6:44 Harry Hood tease > Zarathustra > 6:56 Wading in the Velvet Sea, 7:02 Meatstick

The Show began at 11:35. Father Time was on stage, pedaling on an exercise bike that powered a large clock. The sounds of the clock's gears could be heard through the sound system. About ten minutes before midnight, Father Time collapsed from exhaustion and the clock stopped. Then, a large fan boat entered the concert field and approached the stage. Early in its journey, the fan boat exploded away and revealed the hot dog used in the 1994 New Year's stunt. While the band rode the hot dog to the stage, an instrumental version of Meatstick began to play over the PA. The band reached the stage and fed several meatsticks to Father Time, reviving him so that the clock could continue moving toward midnight. The band then took the stage and played Meatstick. 

Heavy Things was recorded live and rebroadcast as part of ABC television's New Year's Eve coverage. In a humorous effort to confuse the home audience, Trey instructed the crowd to chant the word "cheesecake" in lieu of cheering at the end of the song. Trey then introduced the band for the rebroadcast and offered a message of peace and harmony for the world where he reminded people to drive in the right lane unless passing another vehicle. Meatstick was subsequently teased as the New Year approached in the central time zone. After the show closed with yet another version of Meatstick, the Beatles song Here Comes the Sun was piped through at sunrise.