Phish Summer Tour 2012 – Second Leg: The Tour Dates and a Look at the Venues

Today Phish has announced the second leg of the band’s summer tour, which brings them a handful of venues they’ve never played before and a few old favorites. The second leg kicks off on August 15 at the Long Beach Arena in Long Beach, California and continues at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco for three shows at the indoor arena before concluding a few weeks later with a three-night stand at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park near Denver over Labor Day Weekend.

Here’s the full list of leg two tour dates…

8/15 Long Beach Arena, Long Beach, CA
8/17 Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, San Francisco, CA
8/18 Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, San Francisco, CA
8/19 Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, San Francisco, CA
8/22 Starlight Theatre, Kansas City MO
8/24 Oak Mountain Amphitheatre, Pelham, AL
8/25 Aaron’s Amphitheatre at Lakewood, Atlanta, GA
8/26 Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre, Charlotte, NC
8/28 Chaifetz Arena, St. Louis, MO
8/29 Oklahoma City Zoo Amphitheatre, Oklahoma City, OK
8/31 Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, Commerce City, CO
9/1 Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, Commerce City, CO
9/2 Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, Commerce City, CO

As usual, the band has prepared a video announcing the dates…

Phish – Summer 2012 Leg Two Announcement

A lottery for tickets is currently underway through Music Today. Tickets will go on sale to the general public beginning Friday, April 27. A bit of unfortunate news was included in today’s announcement, as Phish revealed, “No additional Phish dates will be announced for Summer or Fall of 2012.”

Here’s a look at the venues Phish will play during the second leg of the tour…

Long Beach Arena

 [CC-BY-SA-3.0/AlanRayWiki at Wikipedia]

Capacity: 13,5000

Previously at Long Beach Arena:  Phish has never played this venue before

Seating Chart:

Skinny: 2012 marks the second summer in a row that Phish will play a venue they’ve never played before in Southern California following last year’s stop at the Hollywood Bowl. Built in 1962, the Long Beach Arena sports what’s billed as “the world’s largest mural” named Planet Ocean on its exterior which features gray whales and other sea life. There are over a dozen hotels/motels within walking distance of the venue.  Long Beach is located 25 miles south of Los Angeles.

Bill Graham Civic Auditorium

 [CC-BY-SA-3.0/J. Ash Bowie at Wikipedia]

Capacity: 7,000

Previously at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium: Phish has never played this venue before

Seating Chart:

[All Seating Charts via Ticketmaster.com Except Where Mentioned]

Skinny: A rare set of indoor summer shows, this marks Phish’s first-ever gigs at the venue named after famed impresario Bill Graham. This venue was built in 1916 and has been used by West Coast promoters Another Planet Entertainment for concerts such as Phish’s three-night stand. Only two blocks away from a BART station, mass transit is a much wiser option than trying to find parking.

Starlight Theatre

[Public Domain]

Capacity: 7,947

Previously at Starlight:  Phish has never played this venue before

Seating Chart:

[via Venue’s Website]

Skinny: Phish will return to the Kansas City area this summer for the first time since a July 17, 2003 performance at Bonner Springs. The Starlight Theatre is a large outdoor venue that opened in 1951 and alternates between hosting concerts and musicals. A mid ’00s renovation brought the theater into the modern age.

Oklahoma City Zoo Amphitheatre

[Venue Profile Photo]

Capacity: 10,000

Previously at the Zoo Ampitheatre:  Phish has never played this venue before.

Seating Chart:

Skinny: The wait is nearly over for Sooner State Phish fans as the band will finally play a show in Oklahoma for the first time in their 28-year career. The show takes place in the state’s capital and biggest city, Oklahoma City, within the Adventure District. Located just outside the actual Oklahoma City Zoo, one of the city’s top attractions, the ampitheatre was built in 1936 by the civilian conservation corps and survived years of neglect to become the area’s premier outdoor venue.  Check out these 360 degree photos to get a visual on the venue’s layout.

Oak Mountain Amphitheatre

[Pelham Racquet Club Postcard]

Capacity: 9,936

Previously at Oak Mountain:  2 Shows – 10/15/1994 + 9/28/1999

Seating Chart:

Skinny: Following three venue debuts, the fourth show of this leg will find Phish returning to Alabama’s Oak Mountain for the first time in nearly 13 years. The quartet first performed at the scenic ampitheatre on October 15, 1994, a show at which the Dave Matthews Band opened and then joined Phish for a cover of Daniel Lanois’ The Maker. Oak Mountain was one of several ampitheaters with Verizon in its name until a six-year sponsorship deal recently came to a close and wasn’t renewed. Located a few miles south of Birmingham, it features three tiers of seating and no lawn.

Aaron’s Amphitheatre at Lakewood

Capacity: 19,000

Previously at Lakewood:  8 Shows – 06/15/1995, 07/23/1997, 08/06/1998, 07/03/1999, 07/04/1999, 06/23/2000, 06/24/2000, 07/26/2003

Seating Chart:

Skinny: After two years at the new(ish) Verizon Wireless Ampitheatre in Alpharetta, Phish finds their way back to the more urban environs of Lakewood. This venue was a regular stop for the band from 1995 to 2003, with 1996 marking the only summer tour that took place during that time frame in which they didn’t stop at the Atlanta area shed. Seven thousand seats are located under cover, while the lawn holds the remaining 12,000 of the 19,000 total capacity.

Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre

[CC-BY-SA-2.0 / benuski]

Capacity: 18,700

Previously at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre:  4 Shows – 07/07/1999, 07/25/2003, 07/02/2010 and 6/17/2011

Seating Chart:

Skinny: Originally opened as the Blockbuster Pavilion in 1991, Phish first visited this venue during Summer Tour 1999 at a show that featured a Derek Trucks sit-in. Phish returned in 2003 and again the past two summers.

Chaifetz Arena

[Public Domain]

Capacity: 10,600

Previously at the Chaifetz Arena:  Phish has never played this venue before.

Seating Chart:

[via Venue’s Website]

Skinny: Midwesterners will have a chance to catch the band indoors as they make their venue debut at St. Louis’s Chaifetz Arena. Located on the campus of St. Louis University, this arena opened in 2008 and hosts the school’s basketball teams.

Dick’s Sporting Goods Park

Previously at Dick’s:  3 Shows – 09/02/2011, 09/03/2011, 09/04/2011

Seating Chart:

[via Venue Website]

Skinny: Apparently the band felt the same way about last year’s Labor Day Weekend run of shows at Dick’s as the fans did since Phish will return to the soccer stadium for another three-day run. Last year’s three-night stand was among the best of the era and featured one highlight after another. Home to the Colorado Rapids of Major League Soccer, Dick’s Sporting Goods Park opened in 2007.

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15 Responses

    1. Wouldn’t be a Phish fan if he didn’t bitch and moan about seeing them in the smallest venue on the (2nd leg) tour.

  1. As a life long resident of California, these venues have me depressed. Long Beach Arena is a dump that makes The Forum look like a 5 star resort. I have always secretly hoped for a fall/winter run at LBC, but not summer. The worst thing about the venue is the sound. I would put Tool on the same level as Phish as far as killer sounding shows, and not even they could make this venue sound good. Same goes for Bill Graham Civic.

    I guess what I don’t grasp is the fact that California has killer venues and Phish picks two of the worst.I’d rather a show at Irvine Meadows (which is not that great of a venue) in August versus LBC. A real shame that my 25th show will be inside of a giant toilet. Oh well, at least I get a Phish show in 2012.

  2. Starlight in KC is an awesome outdoor venue – small and tight! Last time I was there I saw Stevie Ray Vaughn about a week before he died – will have to make the trek from CO again as this will be the dark horse of the summer shows…

  3. I am thrilled they’re coming to Starlight! As someone who grew up in KC and saw a mindblowing PFunk show there as a teen, I’ve been hoping Phish would play here for almost 20 years now. The venue is in Swope Park, which is spectacular. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swope_Park There’s a zoo about 5 minutes walk away, discgolf course and BBQ spots across the street from the venue. Such a sweet little venue for a summer show. I’m flying in from NYC for this one.

    1. i agree jim. i was also at that PFunk show…and i think i rolled with you??? do you remember me throwing up in Kid’s car? hahahahah!!!

      1. Josh??? S**T! is that you, man?
        Come to the show. Am wishing I hadn’t backed out of SPAC now as I’m listening to XM Radio 2001 playing. Come back for this one, bro. No throwing up, ok?

  4. It is exciting to see that Phish will be at Oak Mt. Ampitheatre this year. That was my third show and the clouds poured down the rain that night. If you go to this show Oak Mt. Park is three miles from the venue and they have great log cabins you can rent.
    With great certainty I agree with everyone else in saying Kansas will be the Dark Horse this year out of all the venues.

  5. Oak Mountain will be the TITS! “On site” camping will bring out the weirdos and the tanks. Love Phish returning to Bakewood. Verizon-Alpharetta was just too far of a haul from the city and WAY too many bored cops. Not sure why Phish is plaing indoor venues in the summer. Just sounds wrong to me.

  6. guessing indoor summer venues due to no fall/winter tour this year?? Looking forward to both nights @ Deer Creek and two months later in St.Louis!!!! THE DARK HORSE FOR SURE!!!!!!!

  7. indoor summer shows bring not only comfortable temps but HELLO the excitement of the house lights going down and Chris in full glory from the get go. cant WAIT for my 4 night air conditioned Cali run…! see ya there pham…

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