Photo by Bill Kelly

Last night, Trey Anastasio descended upon the Iroquois Amphitheater to deliver a single solo and fully acoustic set. The performance saw Anastasio deliver 18 songs before his encore including the acoustic debut of “Mercy.”

The Phish guitarist opened the show with “Sample in a Jar,” and continued to move through his seated performance with “Water in the Sky” and “Theme From the Bottom.” Next came the call and response of “Limb by Limb” and the soft whispered “Snowflakes in the Sand.”

Anastasio continued with “Brian and Robert” which was followed by Phish staple “Blaze On.” Anastasio continued with “The Inlaw Josie Wales” which has become a fixture in his solo projects. “Shade,” “Ghost,” “Mountains in the Mist” and “Summer of ’89” all showcased Anastasio’s virtuosic style.

One of the greatest highlights of the evening came next; Anastasio debuted the title track of his most recent project, his debut solo-acoustic album, Mercy. Following the new material Anastasio seamlessly explored some fan-favorite Phish songs, moving from “Chalk Dust Torture” to “Bathtub Gin” to “The Lizards” to “Twist” and finally to set closer “Everything’s Right.”

Anastasio returned for a five-song encore starting with “Back on the Train.” He continued with “A Life Beyond The Dream,” “Backwards Down the Number Line,” “Carini” and finally the ironically titled “More.”

Anastasio discusses writing the material on Mercy and his general approach to songwriting in this recent Relix piece.

Trey Anastasio
Iroquois Amphitheater – Louisville, Ky.
June 17, 2022

Set: Sample in a Jar [1], Water in the Sky[1], Theme From the Bottom[1], Limb By Limb[1], Snowflakes in the Sand[1], Brian and Robert[1], Blaze On[1], The Inlaw Josie Wales[1], Shade[1], Ghost[1], Mountains in the Mist[1], Summer of ’89[1], Mercy [2], Chalk Dust Torture[1], Bathtub Gin[1], The Lizards[1], Twist[1], Everything’s Right[1]

Enc.: Back on the Train[1], A Life Beyond The Dream[1], Backwards Down the Number Line[1], Carini[1], More[1]

[1] Trey solo acoustic.
[2] Trey solo acoustic; first acoustic performance.