Trey Anastasio Continues Solo Acoustic Tour at The F.M. Kirby Center for the Performing Arts with Stack of Bust Outs and Rarities
Photo: Bill Kelly
On Tuesday, May 11, Trey Anastasio continued his solo acoustic tour with a night at The F.M. Kirby Center for the Performing Arts in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. During the mid-week event, the sold out crowd was treated to stripped down renditions of Phish favorites, Anastasio solo cuts, and specialty moments including a slew of firsts, including a debut of “Timeless,” a take on the Oysterhead live rarity, “Ruberneck Lion,” and more noteworthy moments.
The night began with the aforementioned debut of “Timeless,” which Anastasio first released on his official YouTube page on August 4, 2020. The new tune served as the concert’s starting point, ahead of pulls from the Phish archive: “Prince Capian” and “Ghost.” The guitarist nodded to his supergroup roots with the arrival of Oysterhead’s “Ruberneck Lion,” last played by the artist in acoustic solo form in 2019 before referring to mercy with “A Little More Time.”
Like nights prior, Anastasio created a pattern by dipping into his latest solo set and emerging on a select Phish song, flip flopping between mercy, Hoist, mercy, before coming up for breath on Sigma Oasis’ “Steam.” Next, he worked through the instrumental Farmhouse pick, “The Inlaw Josie Wales” and proceeded with other pieces from the Phish catalog, including “Joy” and “Oblivion,” which evoked two modes of being.
The night of rarities and bust outs brought forth Shine inclusion, “Sweet Dreams Melinda,” played for the first time since Anastasio’s Oct. 23, 2020 Beacon Theatre appearance, followed by a dust offs of “Dog Faced Boy” and “Lawn Boy,” both of which were last played in this format back in 2019. “Lawn Boy” was particularly well received and a rare sight for fans of “Page’s song.”
The single-set show provided Anastasio with time to work through “What’s Going Through Your Head” before Phish’s “Bathtub Gin,” “Divided Sky,” and the infrequently performed “Guelah Papyrus.” “Greyhound Rising” and “Ghosts of the Forest” preluded the main frame’s final arrivals, “Split Open and Melt” and a first-time solo acoustic take on “The Squirming Coil.”
The night’s encore featured five pieces, beginning with “Roll Like a River” and closing out after “Slave to the Traffic Light.” In between, Anastasio played “Sleeping Monkey,” “Dirt,” and a crowd-pleasing take on “Bouncing Around the Room.”
Trey Anastasio
F. M. Kirby Center for The Performing Arts – Wilkes-Barre, Pa.
March 11, 2025
Set: Timeless [1], Prince Caspian [2], Ghost[2], Rubberneck Lions[2], A Little More Time[2], Lifeboy[2], Hey Stranger[2], Steam[2], The Inlaw Josie Wales[2], Joy[2], Oblivion[2], Sweet Dreams Melinda[2], Dog Faced Boy[2], Lawn Boy[2], What’s Going Through Your Mind[2], Bathtub Gin[2], Divided Sky [3], Guelah Papyrus[3], Greyhound Rising[3], Ghosts of the Forest[3], Split Open and Melt[3], The Squirming Coil[3]
Enc.: Roll Like a River[2], Sleeping Monkey[2], Dirt[2], Bouncing Around the Room[2], Slave to the Traffic Light[2]
Notes:
[1] Trey solo acoustic; debut.
[2] Trey solo acoustic.
[3] Trey acoustic and Jeff Tanksi on piano.
This entire show featured Trey on acoustic guitar. Timeless through Bathtub Gin and the encore were performed solo acoustic and Jeff Tanski joined on piano for Divided Sky through The Squirming Coil.
Setlist via phish.net.
