The Clifford Ball was an absolutely phenomenal, unequivocally religious, amazing event at the former Air Force Base in Plattsburgh, New York, in August 1996. Phish performed three sets and an encore on each of the two show days of a Friday-to-Sunday event, where some 70-80,000 fans camped on site for three days.
SET 1: Everything's Right, Back on the Train, Wolfman's Brother, Maze, Leaves, Life Saving Gun, Dirt, Carini SET 2: Sand > Tweezer -> My Friend, My Friend > Mike's Song > Lifeboy, Weekapaug Groove, Blaze On > Fluffhead ENCORE: Farmhouse[1], Run Like an Antelope [1] Began and ended with Trey on acoustic guitar.
SET 1: Free, The Moma Dance, Axilla (Part II), mercy, Bathtub Gin, Theme From the Bottom > Split Open and Melt SET 2: A Wave of Hope, What's the Use? > Ruby Waves, Lonely Trip, A Song I Heard the Ocean Sing -> Prince Caspian, You Enjoy Myself ENCORE: Wading in the Velvet Sea, Harry Hood
Set 1: Buried Alive > Down with Disease > Theme From the Bottom, Poor Heart, Wolfman's Brother[1] > Chalk Dust Torture, Colonel Forbin's Ascent > Fly Famous Mockingbird[2], Stash, Cavern Set 2: Halley's Comet > Mike's Song -> Weekapaug Groove, The Mango Song > Wilson > Suspicious Minds > Hold Your Head Up, David Bowie -> Catapult[3] -> David Bowie[4] Encore: Suzy Greenberg [1] Trey flubbed lyrics and remarked that, since he likes them so much, he would sing them again. [2] Narration referenced chocolate and the rhombus. [3] Started over David Bowie hi-hat intro. [4] Homer Simpson quotes ("mmmm... chocolate") and Simpsons signal. Notes: Catapult started over the Bowie hi-hat intro, which also featured quotes of Homer Simpson (“mmmm...chocolate”) and a Simpsons signal. This was the first time ever that Mike’s and Weekapaug were played without anything in between them.
SET 1: Plasma, Evolve, Ghost, Divided Sky, Shade, hey stranger, Character Zero SET 2: Oblivion > Down with Disease, Beneath a Sea of Stars Part 1 -> Also Sprach Zarathustra > Light > Ether Edge > Piper, First Tube ENCORE: More > Slave to the Traffic Light
SET 1: Set Your Soul Free, Tube, Stash, Pillow Jets, Steam, Mountains in the Mist, Taste, 46 Days SET 2: Sigma Oasis > Fuego > Golden Age -> Twist, I Am Hydrogen > Chalk Dust Torture > Say It To Me S.A.N.T.O.S. ENCORE: A Life Beyond The Dream, Tweezer Reprise
Set 1: Tweezer Reprise, Chalk Dust Torture, Guelah Papyrus, Reba[1], Wilson > Cars Trucks Buses, Kung > The Lizards, Strange Design, Acoustic Army, Good Times Bad Times -> Tweezer Reprise Set 2: Also Sprach Zarathustra > David Bowie, Lifeboy, Sparkle > You Enjoy Myself > Purple Rain > Hold Your Head Up, Harry Hood, Suzy Greenberg Encore: Highway to Hell [1] No whistling. Teases: · Beat It tease in Harry Hood · Beat It, Stairway to Heaven, and Tweezer Reprise teases in Suzy Greenberg · Black or White tease Notes: Reba did not have the whistling ending. Perhaps responding to fan predictions of a Michael Jackson cover album on Halloween, the band teased Black or White before GTBT as well as Beat It before and in Hood and in Suzy Greenberg. Suzy also included Stairway to Heaven and Tweezer Reprise teases. The soundcheck's Dog Log contained YEM lyrics (Wash Uffizi and drive me to Firenze). This show is available as an archival release on LivePhish.com.
