"When they open with a Divided Sky like this one, you know you're in for a great night. This is my favorite Sky in the series. Tube is next - tight and awesome - my favorite Tube. Tela - beautiful. Maze - trey takes you up and down and up and down. Totally Rocks. Things calm down with very nice Fast Enough. Old Home Place is fun, PYITE is cool, Llama is shredding, Trey's voice is on. A glide - Nice! A Slave to close the set?? AWESOME Disc.Second set. AC/DC Bag builds and builds and flys out of the park and flows right into Lizards. Terrific. Mike's Song. Here's where things get nuts. This Mike's Song is intense and relentless. Trey's soloing is unreal and this song takes you down deep. The Page solo and Fishman jungle-groove towards the end heads into Lifeboy. This is a super-happy Weekapaug, and then Page gets his Theramin going for a wacky Somewhere Over the Rainbow. I'd buy this volume just for Disc 2 - Mike's Song = WOW.Nothing really Mindblowing on Disc 3, but the Bowie and the Ya Mar > SOAM is very very cool, but look to Volume 7 for an awesome SOAM."
Greatest Hits on one release
Michael Indgin | Westchester, CA United States | 07/10/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"All my favorites are here, played flawlessly: Divided Sky, Tela!!! Glide, AC/DC BAG, Maze, Slave, Mike's, Weeks, And and a stupifyingly raging Bowie. Fast becoming my favorite of the series. A must have for the serious phan and a great introduction for the poor curious soul who is just now stumbling across the greatest band that jams in the land."
Live Phish Vol. 12: 8/13/96
Mr. Beeblebrox | USA | 07/25/2002
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Really a great recording of a great show. Divided sky is fantastic, and I haven't heard a better version of Tube, and any show that includes Rocky Top, Old Home Place, and Strange Design is something worth giving a listen to. So far, this is my second favorite of the Live Phish releases, surpassed only by the Fukuoka show."
Tremendous Show
Mr. Beeblebrox | 06/28/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This CD has everything.
If you want to hear paige at his best, buy this CD. The piano and keyboards make this CD phenominal. I've listened to it almost everyday since my purchase. It has all the best elements of Phish on it from the tremendous jam song "Divided Sky," to the funky "Tube" to the ballad written after the mysterious but ill-fated "Tela." That is just the first three songs. It has some 'grass on it in the form of "Old Home Place" and the crazy "Rocky Top." It also contains an initial performance of "Train Song" where the band seems a bit shaky but it adds to the quality and origionality of the disc. Phish knows just when to rock and calm it down during this show. Anyone at this show was lucky to see such an amazing setlist and performance. Unfortunatley it has one of the worst versions of "Punch You In the Eye" I have heard. Very loose and unorganized, but I guess that tends to happen when a band just lets things happen on stage the way Phish does. Buy this disc whether you're a new or old fan. No dissapointments here."
The ol' 96er
Wonton Silver | Warrenton, VA United States | 05/31/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Trey starts the show by saying, "i've said it before and i'll say it again," and from there Divided Sky takes flight. The boys had to know that this was going to be one of those nights. Trey plays the first few seconds, then page joins in, and you can just feel it. This is the perfect Sky, alone it is worth the price. It bends and curves with every lick of Trey's guitar, every strum of Mike's bass, all the beats of Fish's drum, and of course Page's fingers dancing on the ivory. The Tube that follows is amazing and Page plays the monkey out of those keys. The PYITE gets you groovin after the old place, and the Llama is ferocius. The second disc picks up exactly where they left off. AC/DC is super tight, and the lizards that follows is full of fun and performed perfectly. Mikes>Lifeboy>Groove is just another reason why this band is followed by so many year after year. The third disc is also great. It seems not many reviewers perferred it, and i can understand why not, but who can turn their backs on strange design (what up doobs). There's also a sweet adeline that your grandmothr would love! The filler of Ya mar is funky and the Slave closes it out nicely.But again, the Sky is phenomenal. Get the CD, crank it up and closes your eyes and boogie on."