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Live in Brooklyn was filmed on June 17, 2004 at Keyspan Park at Coney Island in Brooklyn, NY. It marked the start of what would be the final Phish tour and was the first date after the emotional news of their breakup was announced. The show was simultaneously broadcast to movie theaters nationwide-arguably the most successful live theatrical broadcast to date, with legions of loyal Phish fans reportedly dancing in the aisles across the country. Included on this DVD are the two complete sets the band performed that day along with sound check footage and three full peformances from the second Brooklyn date. Phish were a cultural phenomenon-touring and for 21 years with a remarkably dedicated following who cintniue to celebrate everything Phish. Track Listings: A Song I Heard the Ocean Sing Dinner and a Movie Curtain With Sample in a Jar Moma Dance Free Nothing Maze Frankenstein 46 Days [Disc 2] Possum [Disc 2] Oh Kee Pa Ceremony [Disc 2] Suzy Greenburg [Disc 2] Axilla I [Disc 2] 2001 [Disc 2] Birds of a Feather [Disc 2] Kung [Disc 2] Mike's Song [Disc 2] I Am Hydrogen [Disc 2] Weekapaug Groove [Disc 2] Divided Sky [Disc 2] .com ---- Phish phanatics will probably debate the merits of Live in Brooklyn ad infinitum, but while this June 17, 2004 show from what was apparently the quartet's final tour is neither their best nor their worst, it's certainly representative: two long sets (a total of more than three hours, on two discs), some exuberant, uplifting highs, some stretches that are less than spectacular, and lots of jamming. Guitarist Trey Anastasio and his mates are good players with decades of experience together, and when they get into the groove in the course of their many lengthy improvisations, the results can be inspiring (cf. "Moma Dance > Free" and "Maze"). But the band also suffers from the same shortcomings that often afflicted both their jam-minded predecessors (the Grateful Dead being the most obvious) and contemporaries like Widespread Panic and the String Cheese Incident. Simply put, Phish's singing is weak, and their songwriting is frustratingly inconsistent. Their best tunes are either the ones they didn't write (like their arrangement of Strauss' "Also Sprach Zarathustra," here called "2001" and directly copped from the hit version by Deodato) or the ones most closely resembling someone else's; comparisons to the Dead are no doubt tiresome, but the bluesy "Possum" and the country lope and cracked three-part harmonies of "Nothing" make them unavoidable. On the other hand, give these boys credit for actually using words like "ensconced" and "rescind" in their lyrics. Kudos also go to director Eli Tishberg, whose work is interesting but never edit-heavy or reliant on extraneous bells and whistles (the steady downpour that drenched the crowd through much of the Coney Island show is its own special effect), and to the folks responsible for the splendid digital sound. Bonus material includes songs from the band's sound check and June 18th show, as well as a few backstage minutes with Anastasio. --Sam Graham