Phish Share Rolling Stones and Jimi Hendrix Covers in Chicago
Phish, photo by Dave Vann
On Sunday, July 20, Phish stepped onstage at Chicago’s United Center for the final performance in their three-night Windy City series. As the Vermont quartet enters the last lap of its summer tour, a consistent structure has emerged: each new show showcases some unexpected rarities in the first set and ambitious, unhinged improvisation in the second. Friday and Saturday in Chicago epitomized this established rhythm with the return of “On Your Way Down” and “The Line” and expansive treatments of “What’s Going Through Your Mind” and “A Song I Heard the Ocean Sing”–but you can always count on Phish for a beat switch. Night three in Chicago was defined by a theme all its own, with a whopping total of eight 2025 debuts appearing throughout the setlist.
Phish set off their show last night with the Billy Breathes B-side “Cars Trucks Buses,” then moved on to a medley of the reliable rocker “AC/DC Bag” and the electrified jangle of “Funky Bitch.” The evening’s first curveball arrived with the loping country twang of Trey Anastasio Band original “Alaska,” served up for the first time since Riviera Maya 2024. In the middle of a segued race from “Mike’s Song” to “Reba,” the band snuck in their first “Horn” since July 2024. To cap off the first set, they dropped into the Sigma Oasis rarity “Leaves” almost exactly a year after its last staging, built momentum through “Taste” and landed on “Izabella,” their 20th cover of the Jimi Hendrix classic since its 1997 debut and first since August 2024.
Phish tore into their second set with yet another unexpected entry, bounding along to the year’s first “Gotta Jiboo” for 11 minutes before connecting “Fuego” to the Rift fan-favorite “Sparkle,” which had been out of the group’s rotation since Sept. 2023. Sunday’s jam centerpiece began with a baroque, brooding 14-minute exploration of “Scents and Subtle Sounds,” which entered Type 2 territory with a more structured backbeat and blocky riffs that made for a seamless transition into 13 minutes of “Twist” and a wistful 10-minute “The Lizards.” For a final shot of adrenaline, the band broke out The Rolling Stones’ “Shine a Light” for the first time since August 2024, then merged into a towering set-closer of “Kill Devil Falls.”
Sunday evening’s last surprise came when Anastasio returned to the stage with his signature megaphone for “Fee,” concluding an 11-month and 38-show gap for the Junta album opener. The encore progressed with a densely funky “Weekapaug Groove,” which took on a heavier tone as it peeled off into an electrifying finale of “Say It to Me S.A.N.T.O.S.”
Phish will return for two nights at Queens, N.Y.’s beloved Forest Hills Stadium on July 22 and 23, then conclude their Summer Tour with a three-night return to Saratoga Springs’ Broadview Stage at SPAC from July 25-27. After a month away, the band will embark on a seven-stop fall series from Sept. 13-21. Find tickets and more information here.
Read on for Sunday’s full setlist.
Phish
United Center – Chicago
7/21/25
Set I: Cars Trucks Buses, AC/DC Bag > Funky Bitch, Alaska, Mike’s Song > Horn > Reba[1], Leaves, Taste, Izabella
Set II: Gotta Jibboo, Fuego > Sparkle, Scents and Subtle Sounds -> Twist > The Lizards, Shine a Light > Kill Devil Falls
Encore: Fee[2], Weekapaug Groove > Say It To Me S.A.N.T.O.S.
Notes:
[1] No whistling.
[2] Trey sang verses through megaphone.
Reba did not contain the whistling ending. Trey and Mike teased Fire (Ohio Players) in Scents and Subtle Sounds. Page teased the theme from Speed Racer in The Lizards. Trey teased San-Ho-Zay in Kill De
Setlist via phish.net
