Dr. Frankie Chubb's Thoughts

Source: SoundCloud / Frankie Chubb

Source: SoundCloud / Frankie Chubb

My new sounds:

2012

Take away the psychedelic improv, monstrous dance grooves, countless effect pedals, digital delay loops, multiple keyboards, envelope filters, and all of the accoutrements of a full-on Phish show, and the songs remain. Lyrics, melodies, and rhythms, stripped down to their naked core; vulnerable souls of their electric kin. Phish has never been known for their pure songwriting prowess, and they have rarely tapped into this energy in their career. Hence, the band surprised everyone when they announced the inclusion of a full-length acoustic set at Festival 8. It would be a first at a Phish festival, and showed a willingness explore a new side of their music.

As we walked to sun-drenched concert field at the crack of noon, few knew what to expect from the band who had played exactly two full acoustic sets in their career. Would they play songs we had never heard before? Would they eliminate favorites from the night time festivities by playing acoustic versions? Would they play Gamehendge like it was story time? It was anyone’s guess. With an iced coffee in one hand and a spliff in the other, I sat down on a blanket to enjoy the show. Having never sat for a moment of Phish in memory – less one “Scent of a Mule” (when I was wholly overwhelmed by the speedy bluegrass and had to sit right there on the arena floor amidst knee-slapping dancers) – I actually looked forward to kicking back and listening to what the band had in store. Certainly the peak of the Festival 8′s mellow vibe, many would return to camp unexpectedly touched by their afternoon experience.

For the first time in my life, I didn’t stand up when the band hit the stage. Others did, but I decided to fully embrace the experience. The show started with a whisper, opening Sunday morning with a gentle rendition of “Water In the Sky.” As the band meticulously played through many of their mellower songs, it became abundantly clear that the band – and particularly Trey – had practiced unplugged. Not known for his acoustic playing, Trey sounded crisper than any other time in his career; a far cry from his sing-alongs on his solo tours. The band’s vocals, which sounded so strong all weekend long, was another key facet to this set’s success. An obvious reflection of their healthier lifestyle, Trey and Page, especially, sounded more dynamic – and controlled – than ever before.

Between the heartfelt playing and poignant vocals, the power of Phish’s songs emerged. There was no jamming, there were no antics or trickery, just the aural fabric of Phish music. The patience and soul that Phish showcased on this afternoon (and in The Exile Set) illustrated a musical maturity that many never imagined from Phish; an ability to access our deepest emotions not by blowing our minds, but by warming our hearts. Over the course of two hours, the band melted their audience with ballads – “Strange Design,” Mountains In the Mist,” “Let Me Lie,” and “Talk;” Phish favorites – “Bouncin’,” “Curtain (With), “Wilson,” and “McGrupp;” and a couple debuts – “Invisible” and “Sleep Again.”

If asked to name the quintessential Phish songs, most fans will immediately reach for those that combine compositional excellence, whimsical humor, and improvisational pregnancy – “YEM,” “Harry Hood,” “The Divided Sky,” or “Bathtub Gin,” for example. No such list of essential and representative Phish songs would be complete, however, without an offering of straightforward and muted elegance, lilting and beautiful melodies, and accessible lyrics. This latter style is often associated with the growing maturity of the band through more recent offerings such as “Waste,” “Farmhouse,” or “Joy.” But it all began with “Bouncing Around the Room.”

“Bouncing” presents many consistent themes from Anastasio/Marshall compositions: communication gone awry, a woman, nautical imagery, dreams, and a light at the end of the tunnel. Whatever the ultimate meaning (or lack thereof) envisioned by Tom and Trey, “Bouncing” provides equal opportunity hooks to lure in a diversity of fans: the young lovers can find themselves holding hands and gazing into each others eyes; those inclined to psychedelic flights of fancy can find prisms and echoes and a crystal haze through which to view their surroundings; the crowd as a whole can rejoice in being in a familiar space, back seeing their favorite band, as once again we all bounce around the room. Or one can investigate the venue’s rest facilities, as some do whenever the song is performed.

“Bouncing” is one of the most frequently played songs in Phish history: it has been performed in over one quarter of all Phish shows. The only Phish originals played more often are “YEM,” “Mike’s Song,” “Golgi” and “Possum.” The song is also consistent: the longest gap between performances was 21 shows in 1998. “Bouncing” has never been used as a vehicle for improvisation, though given the “anything goes” nature of Phish performances this statement could certainly be proven false by the time the next show rolls around.

Given the frequency of performances it is almost impossible to miss; be sure to visit the Lawn Boyand A Live Oneversions, as well as any number of otherwise amazing shows when “Bouncing” was performed: 11/2/90, 10/13/91, 4/16/92, 3/22/93, 12/31/94, 7/1/95, 8/17/97, 8/9/98, 7/4/00, 2/28/03, 8/2/09, or the acoustic version from Festival 8 on 11/1/09.

For a change of pace, visit Trey’s solo acoustic sets where “Bouncing” was played on 5/3/99 and 5/7/99, or his solo acoustic rendition on 8/2/08 at the Newport Folk Festival. For a complete curve ball, visit the version by Arlo Guthrie & Xavier on Mockingbird’s Sharin’ in the GrooveCD. Perhaps the most lovely rendition of “Bouncing” ever offered was in the collaboration between Trey, Dave Matthews, and Orchestra Baobab in Dakar, Senegal that was featured in the 2004 VH1 InsideOut “Trey and Dave Go to Africa” special. During that program Trey noted that the song’s musical structure was originally conceived in the style of a West African folk song.

The up and down history of “Bouncing” fan popularity proves an old fashioned adage: if you stick around long enough, you are eventually going to come back into style. After the song’s debut it was received enthusiastically with large segments of the crowd taking the admonition of the song’s chorus to heart, and literally bouncing up and down around the room during the song’s performances. As the Phish fan base exploded in the middle 90s, “Bouncing” acquired a vocal group of detractors. Some fans (often quite new to Phish themselves) derided new and young Phish fans as “Bouncing fans” if they seemed to enjoy this song any more than a “suer-fatty-dank [insert jamming song here], brah.” “Bouncing” doesn’t jam, and to some fans this is the kiss of death.

This tide has seemingly turned, however, and many now place “Bouncing” back in the ‘classic’ category where some felt it deserved to be all along. While still attracting many new young fans who love the tune, look around a Phish show in the Phish 3.0 era you’ll witness clear signs of a “maturing” crowd. Far from the typical media stereotype, the fan base (and, of course, the band) brings an appreciation for truth, beauty, and simplicity. “Bouncing” fits that bill to a tee, and is clearly here to stay.

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Sunday, 11/01/2009
Empire Polo Club, Indio, CA

Set 1: Water in the Sky^[1], BOTTBack on the Train^[1], Brian and Robert^[1], Invisible^[2], Strange Design^[1], MistMountains in the Mist^[1], Curtain WithThe Curtain With^[1], Army of One^[1], Sleep Again^[2], MSOMy Sweet One^[3], Let Me Lie^[1], Bouncin’Bouncing Around the Room^[1], Train Song^[1], Wilson^[1] > McGruppMcGrupp and the Watchful Hosemasters^[1]

Encore: Driver^[1], Talk^[1], Secret Smile^[1]

Set 2: BagAC/DC Bag > Rift, JibbooGotta Jibboo, Heavy Things, Reba^[4], WedgeThe Wedge, GuelahGuelah Papyrus, Undermind, Sparkle, SOAMeltSplit Open and Melt

Set 3: Tweezer -> Maze, Free, Sugar Shack, LxLLimb By Limb, ThemeTheme From the Bottom > Mike’sMike’s Song > 2001Also Sprach Zarathustra > Light > SlaveSlave to the Traffic Light

Encore: Grind, Esther, TweepriseTweezer Reprise

[1] Acoustic.
[2] Acoustic; Phish debut.
[3] Acoustic. Fish whistled his solo.
[4] No whistling.

Notes: This show was part of the three-show Festival 8. The first set, which started at noon, was billed as Phish’s “first full-length acoustic set” (complete with complimentary coffee and Festival 8 themed donuts). The first set featured Trey and Mike on acoustics, Page solely on piano, and a unique stage setup that had Fishman stage right with Page on the far left. Before Brian and Robert, Trey encouraged the crowd to sit down due to the “mellow” nature of the set; he added that they had never before played to a crowd that was sitting. Whether the crowd should stand up or sit down became a running joke throughout the set, until Trey confessed during Wilson that he only asked the crowd to sit down at the request of the crew and, in fact, he hates telling people what to do (and also hates sitting down). This show marked the Phish debuts of Invisible and Sleep Again. Fishman performed a whistle solo on My Sweet One. The band briefly left the stage after McGrupp, returning to encore with Driver, Talk, and Secret Smile. Reba lacked the whistling ending. Trey took a moment before Tweeprise to thank those who helped put on the festival.

This is a fantastic 2010 “Golgi Apparatus” from Chicago, IL at Toyota Park on (06-11-10)

Some great rock-and-roll songs are written at four in the morning on a battered Fender Stratocaster, the author splayed on a cigarette-singed mattress on the floor of a filthy tenement, having speedily gulped a fifth of Jack Daniel’s to better forget the woman who done him wrong. And some great rock and roll songs are composed on a jewel-encrusted Steinway in a remote an techamber of a seventy-room Hertfordshire mansion while a dissolute multi-millionaire waits for his loyal manservant to bring a flotilla of smoked salmon and a tumbler of the finest single-malt whisky.

But some great rock and roll songs are written by the dorks in your junior high audio/visual club, sitting around bored during fifth-hour biology lab. “Golgi Apparatus,” not surprisingly, falls into this third category. Trey, Tom, Dave Abrahams and Aaron Woolfe originally wrote “Golgi” in eighth grade. Given that Trey didn’t even play guitar when the song was originally written, one would guess that he inserted the lyrical middle section, with its graceful, winding guitar line, a few years later.

Strictly speaking, a Golgi apparatus, named after the Italian biologist Camillo Golgi (1843-1926), is a membranous sub-cellular particle that produces secretions within human (and animal) cells. And it’s really pronounced “Gol-jee,” not “Gol-gee,” if anyone cares. But no one really thinks the song is about sub-cellular biology, anyway. To the contrary, the tune’s anthemic chorus, sporting one of Phish’s most satisfying hooks, is a shout-out to the audience. Although the practice has ebbed in this era of sheds and hockey arenas, in the early 90s, the crowd would traditionally respond to Trey’s shouts of “I saw you/With a ticket stub in your hand!” by waving their ticket stubs in the air.

First performed back in the formative stages of Phish’s career, “Golgi” gradually found a niche as a set opener or, more commonly, set closer. Which is unsurprising, given the potent arena-rock drive of its chorus. “Golgi” has only fallen out of heavy rotation for two extended periods: it was played only four times in eighty-some shows between June 1995 and July 1996, and played only four times during 1997. Since then “Golgi” has been on the playlist a little more frequently. As one of the band’s more tightly structured songs, it doesn’t jam, but most fans forgive it anyway. After all, you know, it rocks.

For a unique twist on “Golgi,” check out the version offered by the Stanford Marching Band on Mockingbird’s Sharin’ in the Groove CD.

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Friday, 06/11/2010
Toyota Park, Bridgeview, IL

Soundcheck: Show of Life, Burn That Bridge   [list and order unconfirmed]

Set 1: DwDDown with Disease, Wolfman’sWolfman’s Brother, Possum, Boogie OnBoogie On Reggae Woman, Reba^[1], JJLCJesus Just Left Chicago, DividedDivided Sky, GolgiGolgi Apparatus > BowieDavid Bowie

Set 2: Light -> Maze, Ghost -> LxLLimb By Limb^[2] > CaspianPrince Caspian^[3] > HorseThe Horse > SilentSilent in the Morning, AntelopeRun Like an Antelope^[4], Show of Life^[5]

Encore: Cavern > Julius

[1] No whistling.
[2] Ending vocal jam.
[3] Unfinished.
[4] DEG tease by Trey in intro. Fishman drum solo. “Jon Fishman” substituted for “Marco Esquandolas.” Lyrics changed to “Been you to have any stick.”
[5] Phish debut.

Notes: After Possum, Trey congratulated the hometown Chicago Blackhawks’ victory over his beloved Philadelphia Flyers in the Stanley Cup Finals that ended two days before this show. Reba was performed without the whistling ending. Limb by Limb included an ending vocal jam. Caspian was unfinished. Antelope contained a Dave’s Energy Guide tease by Trey in the intro section. Antelope subsequently contained a Fishman drum solo. “Jon Fishman” was substituted for “Marco Esquandolas” and Antelope’s lyrics were further changed with “Been you to have any stick.” This show featured the Phish debut of Show of Life.

• Question: WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE INANIMATE OBJECT? - tumblrbot
• Answer:

  love

This track is without a doubt one of my favorite openers of all time! “Dogs Stole Things” was smack dab in the middle of the first set on 11-21-98 and was a part of the live Phish Album, Hampton Comes Alive.

Debuted along with the “97 batch” of more than a dozen new songs, “Dogs Stole Things” was twice walked around the block at the summer tour warm-up on 6/6/97, and then made its public debut on 6/13/97 in Dublin, Ireland.

A likeable, shuffling tune, “Dogs” doesn’t represent anything pivotal in Phish’s songwriting or performance history, so many fans have unfairly labeled it as a “throwaway” tune. While it doesn’t exactly break new ground musically or lyrically, “Dogs Stole Things” is a nice breather tune for the band, showcasing some nice tickling from Page and restrained but loose backup from Trey, Mike, and Fish. The song ostensibly chronicles the habits of pets that steal the dreams of their human owners; what it is really about is anyone’s guess; your interpretation works as well as any other.

“Dogs Stole Things” was in heavy rotation in 1997, having been performed a solid twenty times that year, and it remained in semi-regular rotation until the hiatus. Only appearing twice in 2003, “Dogs Stole Things” has yet to make a post-breakup appearance. Performances do not vary substantially among versions and the song is never likely to be employed as vehicle for improvisation. Representative versions can be found on several official releases including the Island Tourset (4/3/98), Hampton Comes Alive (11/21/98), and Live Phish 06 (11/27/98), as well as in otherwise solid shows including 9/11/99, and 7/12/03. Acoustic versions can be found by Trey from his solo performances on 2/15/99, 5/4/99, and 5/7/99, and by Trey and Tom Marshall on Trampled by Lambs and Pecked by the Dove.

Hampton Comes Alive is a six-disc live album by the American rock band Phish, released on November 23, 1999, by Elektra Records. It is the band’s third live album and the first time complete live Phish concerts were released in their entirety (though fan recordings of most Phish shows are widely circulated). Hampton Comes Alive consists of two full concerts recorded on November 20 and 21, 1998, at the Hampton Coliseum in Hampton, Virginia. The album title is a play on Peter Frampton’s classic live album Frampton Comes Alive!.

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Saturday, 11/21/1998
Hampton Coliseum, Hampton, VA

Set 1: Wilson > BBFCFMBig Black Furry Creature from Mars^[1], Lawn Boy, DividedDivided Sky, Cry Baby Cry > Boogie OnBoogie On Reggae Woman > NICU, Dogs Stole Things, Nellie Kane, Foam, Velvet SeaWading in the Velvet Sea, Guyute, Bold As Love

Set 2: Sabotage > Mike’sMike’s Song > Simple > WedgeThe Wedge > MangoThe Mango Song > Free -> Ha Ha Ha -> Free, WeekapaugWeekapaug Groove

Encore: Tubthumping^[2]

[1] “Gettin’ Jiggy Wit’ It” quote from Fish.
[2] Phish debut; Tom Marshall on vocals and Carl Gerhard on trumpet; “Gettin’ Jiggy Wit’ It” quotes from Fish and Trey.

Notes: Fishman chimed in with quotes of “Gettin’ Jiggy Wit’ It” during BBFCFM and Tubthumping. This show featured the breakouts of Cry Baby Cry (first since June 16, 1995, or 277 shows) and Nellie Kane (first since December 8, 1994, or 292 shows). Tubthumping, a Phish debut, featured Tom Marshall on lead vocals and Carl Gerhard on trumpet and had the official recording’s intro playing over the P.A. before Phish started to play. Trey called Fish “Sammy… Sammy Hagar The Horrible” toward the end of the song before also quoting “Gettin’ Jiggy Wit’ It.” This show was released as part of the Hampton Comes Alive boxed set.

This show was part of the “1998 Fall Tour.”