Remembering Hershey 2004
By Chris Young
I was 13 years old going on 14 (July 5 to be specific) in the summer 2004.
My family had a membership to a campground outside of Lancaster, PA, and
we owned a trailer so we would go up there fairly often. My dad would
usually bring me to Hershey Park usually 3 times a summer, one usually coinciding with my birthday. The weekend after my birthday happened to be "teh
Hersheyzzz! 2004!!!111!", "07.10.2004", great tape (I'll touch on that
later), or just a great concert. I didn't realize the significance of
that going into the trip to Hershey - this was my first Dave Matthews Band
concert.
As weird as it sounds, I really wasn't looking forward to going to see the
show; I was more looking forward to the day of roller coasters and rides
in the Park. The reason we were going to see the show was because my dad
liked the band a lot, and three of my older brothers and two of their
significant others liked the band. At 14 years old that means you are
going to see the show. Looking back, I am glad for the wisdom of the old,
because they knew what was on the line in that good good time (see what I
did there?).
My brothers and dad started going to DMB concerts in 97, and would see
them at least once a year every year (usually one show per tour only).
They got their first dose of DMB in 1996 when my oldest brother (who
passed away in 2002, another reason why they kept the tradition of going to DMB
shows alive and well) introduced them to the band.
In the car ride to the park we listened to Busted Stuff, and I remember
getting into it and kind of getting excited to see them, although I
wouldn't admit that to my family. I did say that I wanted them to play
Big Eyed Fish, but I wouldn't concede that I'd rather go to the concert than
go on Great Bear for a 6th or 7th time. Of the old songs that I secretly
liked, Jimi Thing was probably my favorite at that point. I really didn't
know that much of the catalog though, just random songs my brothers played
in the car.
I remember listening to the Some Devil album and thinking that the full
band should have been recording those songs because it would be better
with the band. In my eyes today, I already had a seed planted in me to love
the band before I even stepped foot into Hershey Park Stadium on July 10,
2004. Besides the fact that it was my oldest brothers (who was my best
friend until he died in 2002) favorite band, I also was already
complaining about personnel on a recording, and what the setlist should be at the show (see an Ant at heart before the concert!! ).
We walked into the concert and my dad and one brother and significant
other went to our seats in the grandstand. My other 2 brothers, the one's girl
friend, and myself stayed on the lawn because it seemed like the view
would be better, plus my brothers wanted to drink beer, and the lawn was more
convenient for that. I wasn't complaining, I got a few beers out of it.
DMB came on after an hour long wait. I remember getting impatient and
annoyed that we could have been in the park for longer. 22 shows later
and I still don't like the feeling of waiting in the venue for the band to get
on stage, it is in my eyes such a painful wait in anticipation of the
music.
The first noticeable music I remember (tapes show that some noodling
occurred before Warehouse) is Dave's opening riff to Warehouse. I loved
it. I loved the Stop time intro, I loved everything about Warehouse. One
song into the concert and I was already genuinely in love with this band.
I remember thinking One Sweet World was ok, and that I especially liked the
saxophone in it, but I didn't consider it a favorite. I remember loving
every second of The Song That Jane Likes (which I recognized-probably from
my oldest brother) > Sugar Will > The Stone (which I also wanted to hear I
loved the guitar riff). My brothers were confused by new songs already
being played because Busted Stuff just came out two years prior, and Dave
just spend the year before doing a solo record, so it was a nice surprise
for them. Back than I was disappointed when The Space Between was played
(didn't like that song- but is now one of my favorites).
I liked Lie In Our Graves, and claimed that Hello Again was my current
favorite DMB song after the concert. Rhyme and Reason was emotional for
me, because it reminded me of my brother, because that was his favorite
song. Good Good Time is my favorite song from the show now that I listen
to tapes and stuff, but I would be lying to you if I told you that I had
any memory of it at the concert itself. Grey Street and What Would You
Say were two songs I recognized, so I felt like the music wasn't as foreign to
me as I thought it was. I liked the little jam they did, but was
wondering why they were doing it, and my brothers told me it was just common for the band to do that (they were drunk and stoned). Crazy-Easy was the low
point of the show for me, I didn't like it, and my brothers both hoped it
wouldn't be on the next album. Looking back, it was a careful what you
wish for type situation (I will take Crazy-Easy over Steady As We Go for
sure).
I liked When The World Ends, and was especially amused how they abruptly
ended it as if the world ended. I loved Jimi Thing, and was especially
happy with the For What It's Worth interpolation. I heard the Jimi Thing
from Central Park the day before and was hoping they would do that. I was
looking forward to hearing Where Are You Going going into the concert, but
by that time I liked half the songs I heard more than Where Are You Going,
so it didn't bother me or excite me at that point. I remember being
excited when my brothers said Joy Ride must be a new song, because I was
now looking forward to being a fan anticipating a new album for this band
thanks to this concert.
Rapunzel ending the main set was absolutely perfect, and I didn't know
about the encore, so I was confused by what we were all waiting around
for. I don't remember Prelude to Grace honestly, but Ants Marching was a
great ending to a great night. I raved about how much I loved the concert
and how it was way better than the amusement park.
I wished there was some way to listen to this specific concert, because I
liked almost every song that was played. None of them knew about the
tapes, so they just agreed that it would be cool. I actually ended up
stumbling upon Antsmarching.org shortly after that concert, and found out
about downloading shows. I burned all of them a copy of the concerts
(that's a lot of blank CD's) and they were all amazed by it. They
thought it was crazy that I was able to get a CD quality recording of the concert we just went to. They didn't believe that the audio came from somebody
taping in the audience. But from that moment on, I would keep an eye on
setlists and download shows, and keep up with the band.
To this day Hershey 2004 was one of my best experiences in
not only a concert, but in life. It got me hooked on the band that I
still love to this day. This band has so much great music, it could never get
old. My first tattoo ended up being "It's Amazing What A Minute Can Do"
with my brothers name and the day he passed away on my chest. Without
Hershey 2004, I don't know if I would have been hooked on the band the way
I am today. I do think that this legendary show is not just an overrated
message-board show, I really think it lives up to the hype. I can't say I
have really listened to a lot of tapes from 2004, so I can't argue other
versions (although I went through a Good Good Time phase and have heard
damn near all of them - and will argue to the death that this Good Good
Time is THE best one) but I have so many fond memories of the music at the
concert, and Eric Naylor captured those memories perfect on his tape,
which was absolutely fantastic quality. Thank you very much to all the tapers
that do all that work so that we can relive the concerts, it is an awesome
privilege and I don't think anybody can thank you enough.
Looking back, I am so glad that I got to experience Hershey 2004. That show is what made this DMB journey a possibility, and 22 shows deep and I have nothing but great memories and stories, even through the low points (car breakdown in Camden I stare at you - but that's a story
for another chapter).
The views and comments expressed in this article do not necessarily represent those of antsmarching.org.
