Formed in 1983, Phish is comprised of Trey Anastasio on guitar, Page McConnell on keyboards, Mike Gordon on bass guitar, and Jon Fishman on drums. Their first gig was an ROTC formal dance and they performed badly enough that a girl had to run up to her room to get her Michael Jackson tapes to satiate the crowd, but Phish still got paid. Eventually, Phish journeyed out into the music scene of Burlington. Amy Skelton, the legendary 1st Phan, was there to applaud Phish during their debut live show on a winter night at Nectar's. This club was later immortalized by the title of Phish’s 1st album, A Picture Of Nectar, after signing a record deal in 1992 with Elektra. The second week there were two people. From there the alliance kept expanding, as Amy used her pickup truck to haul loads of phans to bar gigs. By word of mouth alone, Phish had begun to develop an out of town following in places like the Wetlands in New York City, where Grateful Dead fans between tours found Phish’s improvisational style and sense of adventure worthy of making Phish their 2nd favorite band. Phish was quickly becoming an American sub-culture and they were on a course to change my life.
Phish’s music is always different and the songs cover a broad range of styles and categories from rocking tunes to slow numbers. With country sounds, folk, the occasional chaotic noises of complete disarray, soft a cappella, and vacuum cleaner solo’s, Phish never fails to delight. No two shows are alike in content or presentation. All the members lend their voices to the music sometimes setting aside their instruments for a ‘mouth jam’.
The dynamics involved in Phish’s Music are boundless. With 842 documented shows under their belt Phish has made a world of music for people to escape to and become lost in. Phish has played 441 different songs, some are covers from other bands, but most are originals that the fans crave and analyze. No two versions of the same song are alike. Phish always re-manipulates the sound and structure to try to draw the vibe to the maximum extent. In a article written by J.D. Considine (Baltimore Sun), Trey Anastasio (lead singer and guitarist) remarks "It keeps you on your toes, you've got to play different songs every night, and you know they're paying attention to every single little thing you do. You don't get lazy then. You've got to keep moving." The members of Phish devote their practice time to what Trey describes as "training ourselves to open up different avenues. So we do listening exercises and stuff. We also practice songs with structure. We used to do a lot of classical things - atonal fugues and a lot of written-out music. You learn so much by doing that, that then you can free yourself to go where you want to go. The channels in your brain have been opened by playing by playing through all the music that so many great people before you have written."
Let me attempt to describe the parking lot scene of a typical show. As a single event, this best represents the family that is Phish. Most Phans have traveled great distances for the night's event. They bring with them coolers of the finest beer one could want. They set up what is basically an open air bazaar of shops and vending. They sell clothes, many made in VW buses while driving from show to show. Veggie burrito’s and fajita’s are prepared on site as well as pizza and cheese sandwiches. Many sit in a circle and start playing drums, tribal like in rhythm, for hours at a time. Trinkets and jewelry, often made of hemp, are bought, sold, and traded. One of the most valued commodities is an extra ticket, which can be sold and often given away (a miracle it is called) to the large number of road hardened phans not fortunate enough to get them in advance. Fireworks explode into the night during the massive traffic jams that follow some shows at lesser prepared venues. Tents go up and peace is secured until the traffic gets moving again.
There are cops and security, event staff and paramedics. There is a group of supporters that help substance abusers see the music in a recovering manner. The town of that particular evenings show caters to the high demand of overnight lodging and it is not uncommon to find hotel rooms with 15 people asleep on the floor. Fast food places are swarmed with those phans who can no longer stomach the veggie burritos. Phans routinely police up the accumulated trash of the shows parking lots and Phish pays them for the efforts. All these people, many tens of thousands at a time, are here to be part of the Phish community and savor that feeling of life that comes with it.
A unifying vibe has manifested itself and draws fans from all over the world. Most are American but Phish’s influence has stretched way beyond the borders of their home country. Phish phans talk about the uplifting vibe of the band's live performances and the inexplicable connection they feel with the musicians. Some cite the spiritual charge they get from a Phish concert, although the band itself champions no religious mission or message. The members of Phish offer awkward explanations for their cult like following "An intangible energy" attempts Trey. "This spiritual aspect," theorizes bassist Mike Gordon, "is that there's something universal that exists and can come through the musicians and the music, if we're not blocking. To put it all in words sounds kind of pretentious. It sounds like a bunch of words, until it's actually an experience."
Phish has made a tremendous difference in the lives of so many people. Phish themselves have prospered to a grand industry of entertainment. But more Importantly, people are suddenly finding themselves under a magic spell with nowhere to turn except to the next live performance. Why?
The happiness is overflowing. The positive energy is limitless and expansive, each new fan adding his or her share to the excitement! Phish creates music that charges our souls. Phish is powerful in their ability to stir up deep emotions. It is not unusual to see people laughing so hard that they cry or smiles that draw tears of joy. Feelings of compassion and love for others can compel one to commit deeds of utter kindness.
While attending a show in Omaha, Nebraska, I witnessed a very moving event.
My brother Justin, his girlfriend Jessica, me, and ten thousand other fans
were waiting outside for the auditoriums' doors to open. The cold was numbing
and all outside quietly and patiently waited to gain entry. All except
this one girl who was frantically trying to acquire a ticket.
She would go from person to person and kindly ask them if they had an extra
to kick down to a needy sister. Finally, she was able to locate a guy who
had an extra but felt he couldn’t let go of the ticket without some sort
of compensation. The girl had no money or possessions but what she was
wearing to attempt to stay warm. She began to sing and dance for the guy
to persuade him that she needed the ticket more so then him, but he wouldn’t
budge. All of us wished we had a ticket to give this girl but it really
didn’t seem like our problem.
Suddenly, Jessica yells out to the guy holding the extra that she will give him her last $10 if he would please give the ticket to the girl. This act of selflessness was contagious and started something that was beautiful. All at once, people started reaching in their pockets to contribute to this kind act. I saw money being passed from person to person to the ticket guy and finally he relinquished the ticket to the girl. The girl was so happy she ran over and hugged Jessica and everyone else she could, there were no dry eyes but multitudes of smiles. It was her miracle and all who witnessed this event were overwhelmed by this powerful kindness.
Here’s another heartwarming tale. The Make-A-Wish Foundation of Orange County, California provided for Barry and Barry's foster parents stretch limos to and from the airport, traveling with first-class seating on American Airlines, accommodations at a famous four-star hotel, the best seats at Deer Creek Music Center for two sold-out concerts, and an opportunity to meet the members of Barry's favorite musical band, Phish.
It was August 14, 1996 and Hershey Park, Pennsylvania was the setting for the festive occasion. We spent the day in the amusement park riding roller coasters and the water ride, while the whole time I wondered what the show was going to be like. At around 3 PM, we wandered towards the parking lot of the stadium. The outside of the theme park was filled with all kinds of crazy dressed and under privileged looking people milling about, sleeping, and walking around selling tee-shirts and hand made hemp jewelry. Some would actually beg for a ticket from each person they encountered and I thought to myself "why would people go to a show and not have a ticket?" I noticed a peculiar building of energy and I also saw something that I really never noticed before at anytime in my life: all these people were smiling and happy!
The show itself was like see-saw of good and not-so good music, mostly Jazz in nature. I wasn’t prepared for the a cappella version of "Rag Time Gal" complete with Phish dressed up in barbershop quartet uniforms. Other songs, however, did wake me up to a kind of new vibe that I never encountered with music. Interestingly enough, some songs they played I believed had actually heard before, I just hadn’t known who they were.
It wasn’t until the 2nd set of the night's concert that I had really been amazed. During a song called "Tweezer" the band went into a change with Trey singing ‘look who’s in the freezer…. Uncle Ebeneezer!’ and Bam! The lights went crazy, the music became all out of time and key, and I actually was kind of frightened! Just as quickly, Phish went into another change of the song and made everything right again. I had never felt my emotions played with musically before, at least not during a live performance! Another Phish anthem, "You Enjoy Myself," was a highlight that evening. The song has been performed 346 times live by Phish and yet it never seemed stale. They had these little trampolines for Trey and Mike and they started to jump and spin in unison while playing this intense song. What really dazzled me was when they stopped playing instruments all together and started to play the music with their voices. It was my first "mouth jam" and what a crazy treat it was! At the time the stars were shinning brightly in the sky, the lights of the roller-coaster were engaged in an infinite race, and it seemed as if this spot on earth was created for just this one special moment! Since this show I have been to see Phish 8 more times.
That show came and went, as did my brother, however, Phish remained. The next step was to acquire the bootleg copy of my first show. Luckily, my brother had been actively tape trading for several months and he was able to set me up with a good starter collection. Bootleg tape trading isn’t something unique to Phish. Many bands encourage fans to tape the shows so, a fairly organized system was already in place to assist me in my efforts to obtain more and more shows. (Selling shows is illegal, but trading isn’t.)
I now have about 75 different Phish shows on tape and it has become what seems like an addiction. One must prioritize the order of desired shows, obviously obtaining shows that you have attended first. Getting a new tape in the mail is always an exciting surprise. The quality may be poor on occasion but still you end up with a new complete Phish musical experience and sometimes the sound quality is as good as any you may hear from the store. Though Phish has 11 commercial recordings available, tape trading bootleg shows is my prefered method of satisfying my Phish craving.
The last several years of the Phish phenomenon have brought to the world some live performance etiquette and traditions. A person who’s unfamiliar with these items may be left confused as to what is happening during the show but, pleasantly amused regardless. True phans have come to expect the unexpected at certain times of the year, specifically Halloween and New Years Eve. These holidays call for a special touch to further heighten the live Phish experience.
For many years. Phish has taken time at some of their concerts to instruct
the crowd with "language lessons." The idea behind this is that eventually
enough phans will know how to behave during a randomly occurring event
known as "the secret language." It works like this: during a song, Trey
may play the selected riff, or piece of music, that the phans recognize
as the cue to the following "secret" event. After the cueing riff, Trey
will play 1 of 5 selected musical commands and the audience responds in
the appropriate manner. For example, one may hear the cueing riff and then
the first few measures of the Simpson’s theme song. The crowd then
replies with the famous Homer Simpson exclamation "Doah!" The effect of
the entire crowd yelling "D’oh!" creates an interactive live musical experience.
Another "secret language" example is after the cueing riff, Trey may play
a series of 4 descending notes and the crowd replies by simultaneously
falling to the floor as if they were all dead. Imagine the reaction of
the folks who are attending their first Phish show and suddenly seeing
17,000 kids all dropping to the ground, dead!
October 31st 1994 at Glens Falls Civic Center in New York brought
another trick and treat. Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd opened
the set. Then suddenly it switches to Ed Sullivan introducing The Beatles.
The screaming from the recording is instantly drowned out by the screaming
of the audience. Phish then plays The White Album in its entirety.
Towards the end of the set, while yelling the last lines to Yoko Ono poem-
"And we become… Naked," Jon Fishman removed his dress and revealed that
he wore nothing at all! Page’s face was a scene of absolute shock. He put
his face in his and gave up. Trey was laughing and turned on a bubble machine,
which added to the strange All Hollows Eve thing going on stage. Mike seemed
angry with that "I want nothing to with this…" look. Fishman then put a
crown on Mike’s head and a banner around him which read "Good Night." It
turned out to be a truly crazy moment in Phish-history. For reasons unknown
by the phans, Phish had no 1997 Halloween show. Perhaps they don’t want
people to always expect them to maintain their crazy antics. Though this
was disappointing. Phish never fails to leave you guessing.
New Years Eve 1995* was in New York, and in Penn Station some excited phans celebrated by paging the likes of "Harry Hood" and "Suzy Greenberg" over the P.A. (both names to Phish songs). The Maddison Square Garden event included a Phish chess game. The audience selects a liaison and then chooses a move. The band members then take turns making moves on a giant chess board located on stage. This sequence is repeated until the game or show is over. By the end of the second set, the audience had won the match. Set 3 included a "Father Time" scenario with the band members dressed as mad scientists. Fishman was Father Time. He was hoisted above the audience as the rest of the band played with a Frankenstein-type machine. They did a countdown to New Years then huge balls fell from the ceiling. As "Auld Lang Syne" was sung, tapers scrambled to save their microphones from sure destruction by the rouge balls!
December 31st 1994* at Boston Garden, with the midnight hour approaching- apparently the band was hungry because they ordered a large hot dog, large soda, and large fries and wanted it delivered. The third set started with the song "My Sweet One," which was cut-off abruptly so that the band could receive their food. A platform about 8x15’ and draped in cloth slowly descended from the ceiling to the stage. When the tarps were removed there stood a giant soda cup, tremendous fries, and in the center, a mammoth hot dog covered with ketchup and other toppings. 4 squares on the hot dog opened up to make 4 seats. Trey and Mike (carrying their instruments) and Page and Fishman (given a smaller keyboard and a drum synthesizer) headed over and got in. As the hot dog left the stage and floated around, Phish segued into the "James Bond" theme and then "Auld Lang Syne" with confetti and balloons falling upon the audience.
Phish would begin the third set with a large screen video of Alice in Wonderland, and as set break ended the video would fade out as the stage lit up. On stage would be large and colorful mushrooms and flowers and a giant caterpillar smoking a hookah pipe with the smoke drifting low over the floor. A giant digital clock in the background would be counting up towards midnight, but as the hour approached, the clock would begin to flash erratically and the stop at 4:20 (phans know this number as a symbol of the Phish community). The background music would the fade as special guest Tom Petty emerged from the hookah pipe to join Phish onstage for his song "Don’t Come Around Here No More" (remember the wonderland theme in this video?). After that song, The clock will then switch to a 20 second midnight countdown. Tom and Phish would then bring in the New Year with a traditional acoustic version of "Auld Syne Lang." On completion, Grace slick would join the band for a lengthy version of "Go Ask Alice" by Jefferson Airplane to include "the secret language!"
To finish the set, I offer up my wish list of next songs: "Good Times, Bad Times" (Led Zeppelin), "Weekapuag Groove", "You Enjoy Myself" and finally a "Run Like An Antelope." As an encore, Phish would play "1999" by the artist formerly known as Prince and then the road crew and special guests would gather on stage to sing "We Are The World" from the 1982 Band Aid project.
So many things have occurred in order for the chain of events to bring
my life to where it is now. Volumes of personal and historical circumstance
could be written by many different people in various similar situations.
I’m surprised to find myself where I’m at but, I wouldn’t want things any
differently. I believe things happen for a reason, and I think the introduction
of Phish in my life was a spiritual event powered by goodness. If something
continuously puts a smile on your face then you know there is something
special. I like to think that Phish gives their phan's purpose and inspiration,
and at the same time, the fans give each other reason to believe in their
fellow man. Obviously, Phish isn’t for everybody, but the happiness and
zest that Phish’s music has brought into my life is something I can share
with everyone I interact with! Of course, the only way to effectively and
adequately portray how amazing Phish truly is would be to attend the next
show.
Perhaps
I will see you there!
Works Cited
Gadiel,
Andrew
Phish
Page
Internet
Resource
http://www.gadiel.com/phish/
.
Leiby,
Richard
"The
Hottest Band the World Has Never Heard"
Washington
Post, October 16, 1994
.
Schar,
Dan
Reidel,
Steve
Review.Net
Internet Concert information
http://stickman.biology.ucla.edu/~review/
.
Silberman,
Steve
"Control
for smilers can’t be bought: A Phish Tale"
San
Diego Reader, December 22, 1994
Steinberg,
David "ZZYZX"
Internet
Resource- statistical web page
http://www.ihoz.com/PhishStats.html
.
The
Pharmers Almanac : The Unophicial Guide to Phish
Volume
4 - 107th contact
Fall
1997/Winter 1997
Copyright
1997 by Melting Media, Inc.