Every Phish fan has their favorite year of the band's long and storied career, and will argue to the death why they feel that specific year stands as the group's greatest.  For some it's the feisty year of 1993, or the energetic and explosive 1994 tour, and some will even argue that the tight yet loosely woven shows of 2011 rank as their all time high.  But for many, it was without a doubt the body of work heard during 1997.

Trey Anastasio will launch his first-ever orchestral tour on February 9, 2012, performing with the Atlanta Symphony at the Atlanta Symphony Hall. The Trey Anastasio Winter Symphony Tour will also include performances with the Pittsburgh Symphony (2/14), the Colorado Symphony (2/28) and the Los Angeles Philharmonic (3/10).

The Bear Creek music festival at the Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park was a fun filled sensual delight from the tingling chill of a Friday night freeze, the warmth of the campfire, fuzzy bear costumes all around, campfire smoke whimsically dancing through the air, laser light spectacles such as green naked lady outlines surfing through the trees, and did I mention the music? Destination Funkytown. Houston, we have landed. Bear Creek kept us movn and  groonvn all night long.

These days, it’s hard to define them, isn’t it?  In a musical world full of niche genres and file sharing — everyone’s product may have a better chance of being heard, and that’s great.. But it — as a result of a larger pie of musical choice, gets diluted in value.  I think that’s why the live music experience provides for so many, what the recorded medium cannot.

Bear Creek Music & Arts Festival held this November 10 - 13, 2011 at Suwannee Music Park in Live Oak, FL has just released the daily performance schedule as well as additional details about pre-parties, costume theme nights, ticket prices and more. The festival lineup includes Trey Anastasio Band (only Florida performance), Medeski, Martin, Scofield and Wood, Galactic, The Funky Meters, Big Gigantic, Soulive, Karl Denson's Tiny Universe and many more.

I have to admit, I am not an avid Phish follower. I don’t travel to see them, I haven’t bought an album since Farmhouse, and I hadn’t really enjoyed a live show since Greensboro ’03, but this show reminded me of all the things I had forgotten.  I love running into all kinds of people I haven’t seen in years in the parking lot. I love the range of music blasting from the cars parked early for tailgating, and the folks selling all kinds of stuff from food and beverages to art and jewelry.

Though Phish has released a large, strong collection of concert DVDs over the years, the bulk of them were filmed during their peak years of the 1990s where the norm was the old format of standard definition.  Muddied colors, blurry camera movements, and sub-par audio couldn't quite do the show the justice it deserved.  Not any more.

Big IV Productions’ Bear Creek Music & Art Festival is pleased to announce the addition of headliner Trey Anastasio Band to the upcoming 2011 fest set for November 10-13. Additional performers announced today are George Porter Jr.