Train Of Thought Tour - Discussion and appreciation thread

[wasteland]

I've recently dug up an old compilation I made more than two years ago and that was gaining dust on my now obsolete iPod Touch. I took the time to update it with some new discoveries and then gave it to a good friend of mine.

You may be yelling at the screen now, what the hell does this have to do with the ToT Tour? Well, it's quite straightforward: the playlist I'm talking about is a comprehensive recollection of all the Dream Theater songs performed during the legendary tour we have come to love.

I opened this thread for you to drool over this playlist and most importantly to establish a long or short discussion over the tour as a whole, possibly with a few witness accounts from those who were around at the time. So, here's the playlist:

Playlist:

1. As I Am /// (7:26) [26.04, Tokyo]
2. The Mirror / The Mirror (Reprise) /// (9:10) [23.04, Osaka]
3. Under A Glass Moon /// (7:12) [11.02, Madrid]
4. JR's Piano Solo (w/ PFM's Impressioni Di Settembre) /// (2:43) [06.02, Bologna]
5. Through My Words /// (1:06) [06.02, Bologna]
6. Fatal Tragedy /// (9:42) [06.02, Bologna]
7. Beyond This Life /// (20:43) [01.04, Boston]
8. Hollow Years /// (10:43) [01.04, Boston]
---
9. Overture (Tape) /// (1:37) [19.09, Los Angeles]
10. About To Crash /// (5:14) [19.09, Los Angeles]
11. War Inside My Head /// (2:24) [26.04, Tokyo]
12. The Test That Stumped Them All /// (5:01) [26.04, Tokyo]
13. Goodnight Kiss /// (6:12) [26.04, Tokyo]
14. Solitary Shell / About To Crash (Reprise) /// (9:50) [19.09, Los Angeles]
15. Losing Time / Grand Finale /// (6:12) [19.09, Los Angeles]                   
---
16. Metropolis Pt.1 /// (9:29) [05.09, Madison]
17. Endless Sacrifice /// (11.40) [05.09, Madison]
18. Improvised Jam /// (13:12) [05.09, Madison]
19. Peruvian Skies /// (6:50) [03.07, Rome]
20. Caught In A Web (w/ Drum Solo) /// (14:14) [03.04, NYC]
21. The Great Debate /// (13:15) [03:04, NYC]
22. Another Day / Spontaneous Improvised Jam /// (7:05) [11.02, Madrid]
23. JP's Guitar Solo /// (3:27) [26.03, Quebec City
24. Through Her Eyes (w/ guitar solo) /// (7:25) [06.02, Bologna]
25. The Spirit Carries On /// (6:56) [19.09, Los Angeles]
---
26. To Live Forever / Oakdale Odissey / To Live Forever (Reprise) /// (12.46) [30.03, Wallingford]
27. A Fortune In Lies /// (5:26) [30.03, Wallingford]
28. Status Seeker /// (4:38) [06.03, LA]
29. Ytse Jam /// (6:11) [06.03, LA]
30. The Killing Hand /// (12:30) [06.03, LA]
31. Light Fuse And Get Away /// (9:13) [01.04, Boston]
32. Afterlife /// (5:46) [06.03, LA]
33. The Ones Who Help To Set The Sun /// (7:51) [06.03, LA]
34. Only A Matter Of Time /// (7:21) [26.04, Tokyo]
---
35. The Glass Prison /// (13:51) [01.04, Boston]
36. This Dying Soul /// (11:47) [01.04, Boston]
37. New Millennium /// (8:02) [26.04, Tokyo)
38. Honor Thy Father /// (10:37) [11.02, Madrid]
39. Vacant  (w/ Eugene Friesen on cello) /// (2:45) [03.04, NYC]
40. Stream Of Consciousness (w/ Eugene Friesen on cello) /// (11:01) [03.04, NYC]
41. Disappear (w/ Eugene Friesen on cello) /// (5:56) [03.04, NYC]
42. Pull Me Under /// (8:16) [03.04, NYC]
---
43. JR's Keyboard Solo (w/ Impressioni Di Settembre, PFM) /// (4:57) [07.02, Rome]
44. JR's Keyboard Solo /// (6:09) [03.04, NYC]
45. Erotomania /// (7:00) [11.02, Madrid]
46. Voices /// (8:24) [11.02, Madrid]
47. The Silent Man /// (5:55) [02.04, Philadelphia]
48. The Silent Man (#2) /// (5:55) [24.04, Osaka]
49. The Spirit Of Saint Louis /// (6:17) [17.03, St. Louis]
50. Trial Of Tears /// (14:04) [03.04, NYC]
51. In The Name Of God /// (16:31) [03.04, NYC]
--
52. Learning To Live /// (12:54) [05.09, Madison]
53. A Change Of Seasons /// (25:19) [24.04, Osaka]

[SystematicThought]

It seemed to be the tour where it was truly an "Evening With" tour. Shows that were over three hours long or close to that and they really pulled out some great tunes for it.

I really wish was a fan at the time, I would have loved to have been a fan at the time to see a show

[Scorpion]

Best tour ever, though it sucks that they chose Budokan to represent it. Still though.

[Sycsa]

sucks that they chose Budokan to represent it.

Why?

[ReaperKK]

Very sad that I didn't get to see them that tour, if I recall they didn't come to Florida.

[Mindflux]

I saw them for their pre-ToT tour with Queensryche in Denver. Great show...

Missed the actual ToT tour though.

[The Letter M]

Whoa - EPIC playlist. I love all the choices presented there, and I'm glad some of that got officially released, like the Oakdale Odyssey, and the small set with Eugene Friesen on cello. I also really like that ALL of TOT and WDADU are in your playlist, as well as 4/6ths of SDOIT (missing BF and M), and nice chunks of SFAM.

-Marc.

[bobs23]

sucks that they chose Budokan to represent it.

Why?

Said it a million times, the NYC show blew this show out of the water. IMO on the of the best shows and performances by any band EVER!! One of the few times I have witnessed such a band/audience connection. Chills all night. Got to see 12 shows on the main NA leg and 3 with Yes.

[Elite]

Am I the only one that's bothered by the missing T in the thread title?

[Bertielee]

Am I the only one that's bothered by the missing T in the thread title?

Nope! I am too. Train of though, Train of if, Train of yet...I'm kidding.
On a related note, I saw them in Paris in January 2004 with ACOS as an encore! It was stellar!

B.Lee

[Scorpion]

Honestly, the "duscussion" bothers me far more.

[Elite]

I missed that

[Podaar]

Am I the only one that's bothered by the missing T in the thread title?

Honestly, the "duscussion" bothers me far more.

Odissey just kind of finishes off the duscussion nicely though.

[Elite]

How about 'Improvisated'?

[Podaar]

Elite,

It goes to show how weird the English language is. If your not a native speaker, conjugating a verb like improvise can be a bit tricky.

[TAC]

Unfortunately missed the show in Boston. This tour was Zeppelinesque. One of the best tours by any band ever. 

[Ħ]

Train of Thought is one of the bookends of what I consider to be DT's greatest era. SFAM, SDOIT, and TOT - a trio of fantastic albums full of innovation and energy. The tour's emphasis on these albums is what makes it so great.

[yorost]

Only tour I've seen for Dream Theater.  The second set was not only all in my Dream Theater top ten but had rarer plays, fantastic (New Millennium, The Ones Who Help to Set the Sun, A Mind Beside Itself, In the Name of God).

[wasteland]

Am I the only one that's bothered by the missing T in the thread title?

Honestly, the "duscussion" bothers me far more.

Odissey just kind of finishes off the duscussion nicely though.

What the hell was I thinking when I wrote the thread title?

How about 'Improvisated'?

That's a common one for me. I know it's improvised, but the word in Italian is "Improvvisato", so it's every easy for my hands to slip on that one 

[TheSoylentMan]

I saw them in Chicago on this tour. It's the only time I've seen them live, so far anyway (I know, I know...). They were fantastic. Highlights for me were hearing To Live Forever for the first time (I bought the Lie single immediately afterwards), headbanging to Endless Sacrifice, and the ACOS encore.

[wasteland]

I saw them in Chicago on this tour. It's the only time I've seen them live, so far anyway (I know, I know...). They were fantastic. Highlights for me were hearing To Live Forever for the first time (I bought the Lie single immediately afterwards), headbanging to Endless Sacrifice, and the ACOS encore.

You attended an unrecorded show, one of those I really regret being lost forever. How was the TLF ending jam? As long as the best one we have (some 8 minutes)?

[Unlegit]

Awesome playlist. If I may ask though why are there two of The Silent Man? I surprisingly have almost all these songs, albeit from different shows, but I am missing Peruvian Skies and The Glass Prison, so I had to replace those with ones performed during the Octavarium tour.

[wasteland]

Awesome playlist. If I may ask though why are there two of The Silent Man? I surprisingly have almost all these songs, albeit from different shows, but I am missing Peruvian Skies and The Glass Prison, so I had to replace those with ones performed during the Octavarium tour.

They are both exceptional (incidentally the last two performances of the song for that tour) and since it's a short song I figured a repetition wouldn't be too much obnoxious to the listener.

Besides, The Silent Man is one of the only three song to be played twice in a single DT show. Did you know that? 

[GasparXR]

Besides, The Silent Man is one of the only three song to be played twice in a single DT show. Did you know that? 

Wow, really? What's the other two? Why were they played twice?

[wasteland]

Besides, The Silent Man is one of the only three song to be played twice in a single DT show. Did you know that? 

Wow, really? What's the other two? Why were they played twice?

Pull Me Under for the video shooting (21/10/92) and Gangland the day they recorded The Number Of The Beast (23/10/02), as they were afraid of having got something wrong on the first run throught it.

[BlobVanDam]

Besides, The Silent Man is one of the only three song to be played twice in a single DT show. Did you know that? 

Wow, really? What's the other two? Why were they played twice?

Pull Me Under for the video shooting (21/10/92) and Gangland the day they recorded The Number Of The Beast (23/10/02), as they were afraid of having got something wrong on the first run throught it.

That's cool. What about The Silent Man?

[Zydar]

He was too silent so they had to play it again at a higher volume.

[GasparXR]

He was too silent so they had to play it again at a higher volume.

I never understood how you can be 'too silent' -- as if you can have MORE of 0 volume.

[darkshade]

Just another instance of John Myung flexing his power-hungry muscles upon the band.

[wasteland]

He was too silent so they had to play it again at a higher volume.

I never understood how you can be 'too silent' -- as if you can have MORE of 0 volume.

Oh, but it is possible! The volume is defined as:


(actually I think that there should be the intensity in place of the Power (P), but nevermind)

P0 is a comparison intensity that is set as the power of the weakest signal that can be heard by the human ear. By the properties of the logarithm, when the ratio P/P0=1, the volume is 0, as log1=0. When the ratio is less than one, that is the sound you are evaluating is weaker than the hearing threshold, the logarithm gives a negative value, resulting in a negative volume (logx < 0 if 0<x<1). So, a negative volume is entirely possible! The absence of sound has a volume that equals minus infinity! Now, make a John Myung joke on this

Besides, The Silent Man is one of the only three song to be played twice in a single DT show. Did you know that? 

Wow, really? What's the other two? Why were they played twice?

Pull Me Under for the video shooting (21/10/92) and Gangland the day they recorded The Number Of The Beast (23/10/02), as they were afraid of having got something wrong on the first run throught it.

That's cool. What about The Silent Man?

They fucked up the first time during the legendary club show in Rotterdam, so they played it again in the encores. 

[ReaperKK]

I saw them for their pre-ToT tour with Queensryche in Denver. Great show...

Missed the actual ToT tour though.

I saw them in Tampa for that, it was my first DT show

[wasteland]

I saw them for their pre-ToT tour with Queensryche in Denver. Great show...

Missed the actual ToT tour though.

I saw them in Tampa for that, it was my first DT show

Ah, I believe there is a recording of that show. Was it 29 or 30 June 2003? Anyway, I've never been a fan of that tour. At all.

[GasparXR]

He was too silent so they had to play it again at a higher volume.

I never understood how you can be 'too silent' -- as if you can have MORE of 0 volume.

Oh, but it is possible! The volume is defined as:


(actually I think that there should be the intensity in place of the Power (P), but nevermind)

P0 is a comparison intensity that is set as the power of the weakest signal that can be heard by the human ear. By the properties of the logarithm, when the ratio P/P0=1, the volume is 0, as log1=0. When the ratio is less than one, that is the sound you are evaluating is weaker than the hearing threshold, the logarithm gives a negative value, resulting in a negative volume (logx < 0 if 0<x<1). So, a negative volume is entirely possible! The absence of sound has a volume that equals minus infinity! Now, make a John Myung joke on this

What if silence = no actual sound, rather than the human hearing threshold?

[wasteland]

The absence of sound has a volume that equals minus infinity! Now, make a John Myung joke on this

What if silence = no actual sound, rather than the human hearing threshold?

[GasparXR]

The absence of sound has a volume that equals minus infinity! Now, make a John Myung joke on this

What if silence = no actual sound, rather than the human hearing threshold?

Shit. XDDD