It was bittersweet to say the least as Kenny Rogers took to the stage at The Turning Stone Casino December 20, 2016 for his final holiday show here in Central New York. Welcomed by a sold out crowd, Kenny Rogers made his entrance to his tried and true hit “Ruby” where he encourages the audience to participate at the chorus, however they always seem to miss their cues. You would think after all the these years, the audience would get the words right and sing on cue, however it was not meant to be this final show as well.
For this final performance he was once again joined by the lovely Linda Davis. Linda has joined Kenny for his Christmas shows for a few years now, and they are the perfect pairing on stage as they sing both carols, their hits, and covers of some of the greats.
Kenny’s wit and sincerity comes through as he talks with his audience. Joking around about his recent knee surgery, he wonders how his doctor can claim this is “age appropriate” when he runs into Mick Jagger at Glastonbury who is jumping all around on stage. Maybe he states, “it’s age appropriate for Americans.” Well that thought quickly went to the wayside when he returned home and immediately ran into Willie Nelson. His ability to laugh at himself, and put his audience at ease is one thing we will miss most about Kenny Rogers.
Then there’s the music. Kenny Rogers was one of the first to cross over and make his mark on both the country charts and pop charts with songs such as “The Gambler,” “Islands in the Stream,” and “Lady” to name a few. Then there were the well known collaborations. His best known friend and collaborator is the legendary Dolly Parton, their chemistry and love and admiration is one fans will never forget. He also has sung with Dottie West and Ronnie Milsap, and who can forget his part in “We Are The World.” This multi talented performer has sung doo-wap, pop, country, and even dabbled on screen for years. He has entertained us for years and loved by all.
A little known fact about Kenny Rogers, and one I was able to talk to him about recently, is his love and passion for photography. He is an amazing photographer capturing remarkable stills of several artists such as Elizabeth Taylor, Michael Jackson, and so many others, and his landscapes will take your breath away. Something he took up while on the road, he wanted to do something worthwhile in his down time so he took up capturing the amazing places he was visiting and performing. In the works we will soon be able to see his newest book of landscapes, some of which he’s taken while on tour and others while on vacations with his wife and twin sons.
This show was a definite celebration of music, of fans, and a thank you to all those who have supported Rogers over the years in his career both on stage and screen. We will certainly miss him, and thank him for all he’s given to us over the years. It is now time for this cowboy to ride off into the sunset and spend some quality time with his wife and children. It’s now time to ‘fold em.’
Setlist: Ruby, Don’t Take Your Love to Town (Johnny Darrell cover), Video Walkin’ My Baby Back Home, (Broadway Syncopators cover), PlaIt’s Only a Paper Moon, (Harold Arlen cover), Through the Years / You Decorated My Life / She Believes in Me, Something’s Burning, Just Dropped In (To See What Condition My Condition Was In) (Mickey Newbury cover), Love Lifted Me, But You Know I Love You (Kenny Rogers & The First Edition), It’s The Most Andy Williams song), Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow! (Vaughn Monroe cover), Baby It’s Cold Outside (Frank Loesser cover), I’ll Be Home for Christmas (Bing Crosby cover), O Holy Night (Adolphe Adam cover), Go Tell It on the Mountain (John Wesley Work cover), Joy of The Lord, Mary Did you Know, The Light, Lucille, Coward of the County, Love Will Turn You Around, We’ve Got Tonight (Bob Seger cover), The Gambler (Don Schlitz cover), Lady, Islands in the Stream (Bee Gees cover), You Can’t Make Old Friends, and Blaze of Glory
Carlile stated that he will continue to write music as he heals and rests in Costa Rica, where he now resides, and that the band would not seek a replacement, and continue as a quartet.
The third night was most certainly a charm, as the foursome wholeheartedly delivered with their highly anticipated NYE gigs, bringing a juggernaut of material both new and old to the forefront of their explosive jams. The penultimate gig kept up with tradition of openers from both the 28th and 29th, kicking off with an acapella rendition of 
Phish
“Things People Do” served as the first “Big Boat” performance of the run, before launching into “My Friend, My Friend.” The first in a triad of Joy tracks sprinkled throughout the night, came fully equipped with face-melting jams and moody red and black lighting. The next track found every phan in the house shouting “Wilson” across a sea of wide eyes and color spectrum donut lights. A light-hearted “Sugar Shack” delighted the audience as the night’s second track hailing from Joy, before a fully-welcomed “You Enjoy Myself.” Complete with trampoline bounces and all, YEM closed out a magnificent first set for a thankful MSG crowd.
The second set magic quickly rolled out with a funky take on “Tweezer” which led into The Who’s 1969 Tommy track, “Sparks.” A crowd sing-a-long was incited on “Ghost,” until the Joy trifecta came to an end with “Light,” as things dove into a lengthy, swampy “Party Time” jam. Ease washed over the crowd with a soft take on “Wading in the Velvet Sea” just ahead of closing out the second set with another cover, The Osborne Brother’s “Rocky Top.”
Between page’s keyboard kinetics, phishman’s double down drumming, gordon bumpin’ bass slaps and trey’s fireworks across the fretboard, phish left little to the imagination. The beloved jam band has so far proven that they can cap off a year filled with an abysmal onslaught of celebrity deaths, political turmoil and environmental concern, making you forget all of the madness if only for a few hours. 
Both bands were formed by the Chase brothers, Adam and Matthew, and feature musicians from everywhere. The beautiful thing about both projects is that a constant variety of musicians can take the show in a completely different direction than previous performances. For the James Brown project, they try to do big and fun special performances, with some smaller runs of shows here and there. This year, the thought came up to reunite with the Giant Country Horns. It had been thirty years since they played together with 
With a raucous Garden crowd now energized, “Stealing Time From the Faulty Plan” followed, allowing guitarist Trey Anastasio to shine early with some fierce guitar licks. The first of three first set covers (not including our national anthem) then appeared in the form of “Lonesome Cowboy Bill,” a song prominently featured on the band’s cover of the The Velvet Underground album Loaded done in 1998 for their musical costume. This fun, semi-bustout of a cover then gave way to “Free” which picked up the energy level in the building significantly and seemed to have everyone dancing in unison for the first time all night.
However, the pace settled back down again afterwards as “Train Song” and “Prince Caspian” followed, two songs featured on the now 20-year-old album Billy Breathes. “Roggae” kept the mellow first set vibe in full gear, allowing lighting director Chris Kuroda to show off some new lighting techniques in addition to some old favorites. A cover of the blues classic “Funky Bitch” then followed, highlighted by tremendous vocal and bass work from Mike Gordon. “Halfway to the Moon,” a song penned by keyboardist Page McConnell, gave him a chance to take center stage before another bust out of a cover in the form of a beautifully melodic “Corrina.” The first set wouldn’t be complete without one last jam and chance to stretch out a little and “Stash” fit the bill perfectly for that before a standard first set “Cavern” closer ended an enjoyable yet fairly laid back first set.
The second set that followed was anything but laid back as a three-headed monster of musical mayhem kicked things off. A top notch rendition of “Wolfman’s Brother” started the proceedings and saw the four musicians in perfect harmony with one another. Then, although it may not have been up to the epic level of the previous version played in Vegas a few a months ago, the “Golden Age” that followed was not that far off and featured some of the most inspired interplay of the evening which eventually led into a seamless segue into the classic arena rocker “Simple.” This three-song section of the evening was, by far, the highlight of the night, prompting one show goer to call it “her new best friend.”;
After a typically splendid “Simple” outro jam, the band picked things back up with an uptempo number in “Chalkdust Torture” that, once again, seemed to have the entire arena moving as one. The “Martian Monster” that followed was anything but typical as sound effects delivered by McConnell and steadfast drumming by Jon Fishman soon gave way to a full on “Tweezer” outro jam that took everyone by surprise and even had Anastasio integrating “your trip is short” lyrics sung to the tune of “Tweezer.” Phish playing around both musically and lyrically is when they’re at their best and this was no exception. “Wingsuit” then followed as the requisite breather song to slow things down a little before a fairly standard run through of “Possum” closed a ferociously enjoyable set of music. One last cover in “Good Times, Bad Times” served as the encore, undoubtedly sending everyone on their way ecstatic from a great night of music with, presumably, three even better ones to follow.
SET 1: The Star Spangled Banner, Stealing Time From the Faulty Plan, Lonesome Cowboy Bill > Free, Train Song, Prince Caspian, Roggae, Funky Bitch, Halfway to the Moon, Corinna, Stash, Cavern
The 29th featured an intense “Peaches en Regalia” post-“Adeline” that dropped into a strong “Mike’s Song,” and while many were itching for the elusive second jam in “Mike’s,” the vibe was interrupted by “Secret Smile,” the first since 2013. “Smile” cast a lull before “Weekapaug Groove” and “Roses are Free” provided a needed jolt of energy, “Theme from the Bottom” > “Split Open and Melt” was a fantastic pairing to cap a well rounded set.
Opening the second set with “Down with Disease,” Phish launched into an expansive jam with an awkward shift into a blissful “What’s the Use?,” followed by “Fuego” which grew into a “Meatstick” that was well jammed. “20 Years Later” gave up its jam for “Kung” which slowly drifted into “Makisupa Policeman” with a “vaping” keyword from Fishman. A perfectly placed “Harry Hood” ended the set with incredible bliss and joy throughout the audience, 
The likely reason for this is that the 7-track EP contains tracks that didn’t make the cut for “Crush,” (Crush…Mt. Crushmore…you get it). Although it’s not to say these tracks are sub-par by any means. They still demonstrate the band’s ability to lay down groovable tracks, but with perhaps a more hip-hop feel. Many of the tracks would add powerful, yet sophisticated instrumentals for a progressive lyricist.