This was my first Phish show. I went to LSD having never even heard of the band. The people I was meeting up with were arriving later in the day, so I caught this set alone. Well, not really alone. An instant community of super welcoming and super happy phriends manifested around me. And Phish, as far as this new-to-it guy was concerned, absolutely killed it.

Obviously, I can't review this show as a Phish connoisseur, because at the time I was ignorant. But, what I can say is that I was instantly hooked (to use a tired, but absolutely accurate cliché). I had a blast, danced my butt off, and was just so pleased and impressed with what these fours guys were putting out there, both musically (the chops were undeniable) and extra-musically (just a great vibe, so fun, so silly and playful, so life-affirming). It's still one of the best times I've ever had at a concert.

From there, I headed back to Phoenix, where I was living at the time, and went straight to a used record store. Snagged used copies of Rift and Lawn Boy in short order. And it was on from there. The process from newbie to true-blue phan was underway.

I'm writing this on my 22nd Phishiversary (thanks for the reminder, Mockingbird!). 48 shows in, across the country. Dick's is on deck (my first Dick's/CO experience, which I cannot wait for).

No band has given me so much, elicited such feelings of joy and awe and wonder and appreciation and delight. I owe my career, in a very real way, to Phish. I ended up getting a Ph.D. and actually wrote my doctoral dissertation on the Phish phenomenon. I'm the first to have published academically on Phish, theorizing what it is they do onstage, advocating for a fuller understanding of the power of music, live music, and especially live improvised music; and what it is that intense, deep fandom is and does and means...

Thanks, Phish. Here's to 22 more years...