Good feedback. I try not to take it 100% literally, but sometimes it just gets to be a bit foolish and I wondered if anyone else noticed all the jockeying that takes place. I wish there was a full listing of all the show ratings so you could see and appreciate those 3.7 - 4.3 shows, as well as which ones people unanimously think are sub-par.

As far as why I do not think they are the best -- it all obviously comes down to opinion and the criteria I personally use for ranking the shows. You can dissect, categorize, look at a show as a whole, look at certain sections of a show, look at placement of songs, Type I and II jamming, segues, etc., etc., etc. to come to the conclusion that one show is “better” than another. With all that being said, I agree that the list of 15 mostly accurately depicts the pinnacle of Phish shows, albeit in a different order than I would rack and stack.

Now to stop my rambling and actually answer the question! I feel that 2015 has been such an awesome experience for all of us, whether you were there in person, sitting on a couch, or listening post-show via Phish on Demand/YouTube/LivePhish. The hype has been building and building and for there to be a festival after a four year gap, plus to be at the end of an amazing tour …it’s bound to get people excited. Magnaball was such a great experience for those that could attend and I think that the playing was amazing, song selection was on point, and it was a real treat. With that being said, I tend to rank shows that happen on a ‘random night’ higher than the ones where the shows are expected to be something special (Halloween, NYE, festivals). Showing-up on a Wednesday night at Drum Logos in Japan or a Monday night at McNichols Arena in Colorado for a show and landing a top fifteen out of 1,693 shows is (sort of) like finding a 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spyder in a barn in France (it sold for $28.5M). The difference in song choice, jamming, and show length (5hr+ Magnaball festival versus 2hr+ Sunday Nutter Center show) are all factors in my opinion, which is neither right, nor wrong.

For the 10/31/2014 show, it was such a great show, with the second set obviously being the highlight. The fact they were able to change course from their ‘usual’ album cover (minus 2013) and create all new music that consistently got crowds genuinely excited this tour, is a huge treat for both us and them. Once again though, it was expected that something special would and should happen since it’s a Halloween show, rightfully so. The other point I want to make, is that I would venture to say that a lot of other shows on that list have and still continue to have a greater playback value for most fans; I would guess that Live Phish downloads/purchases of those other shows ranks above the 10/31/2014 show.

I also put a lot of weight into the phish.net show reviews, since it helps me better learn and appreciate the intricacies of a show; especially what others think makes a show good versus amazing. For the 8/22/2015 show, n00b100 stated, “…you could argue that, pound for pound, this is one of the greatest shows Phish has played in the modern era.” I highlight that because someone who consistently has top rated reviews of shows stated this modern era, not of all time. I know that is one person’s opinion and there are others that feel differently, but I didn’t want to address everyone’s comments since that was the very first sentence in the top rated review.

Me personally, the best show I’ve ever seen was MPP2 last year and it was such an amazing treat for someone who didn’t have the opportunity to experience the 1994 and 1997 tours. I am happy to see it in the top 15 show list, as I feel it should be, but at times I find it hard to rank above some of the others on that list. The Tweezer’fest format had previously been used at the Bomb Factory, which is no longer even in the top 15 listing, so it wasn’t entirely new. The first set was extremely solid, you know about the second set, and the guys were just having a great time overall playing off one another as well as the crowd. It was a ‘random’ Sunday show (never miss a Sunday!) during a solid tour and it had EVERYBODY talking and so excited on Reddit and phish.net that it was hard to ignore. I would rank it top 15 not because I was there, rather because the collective fan base’s reaction felt it should be there.

Once again -- obviously my opinion and everyone has their own, which is a good thing. Just felt like venting for no real good reason! I’ve rambled way too much and if you get this far in my response…you must be pretty bored