Phish (album)
Encyclopedia
Phish is a self-produced album released by the American rock band Phish
on cassette in 1986
. Often cited as the first Phish "album", The White Tape was originally a collection of original material that the band used as a demo/sample tape for venues, and was sometimes labelled "Phish" or simply "Demo". The album was widely circulated among Phish fans for more than a decade before being officially released in 1998.
The album was created from four-track recordings over a period of three years and includes a number of outside musicians performing on various songs. Only "Alumni Blues", "AC/DC Bag", "Slave To The Traffic Light" and "Dog Gone Dog" (a.k.a. "Dog Log") have the four band members together. The remaining tracks were recorded separately by various members and blended together to create the finished album.
The White Tape includes an early version of the Phish epic "You Enjoy Myself
", performed a cappella
with the band members singing the opening guitar lines. The album also contains avant-garde
experimental
pieces, instrumental passages, electronic noises and studio trickery
. Some songs were further developed and figure heavily in the band's live performances, while a few have rarely been heard since.
All instruments and vocals on "Fuck Your Face", "NO2", "He Ent to the Bog" and "Minkin" are performed solely by bass guitarist Mike Gordon
. All instruments and vocals on "Run Like an Antelope" and "And So to Bed" are recorded solely by Trey Anastasio
.
"The Divided Sky", "Ingest" and "Fluff's Travels" are performed by Anastasio, Phish lyricist Tom Marshall
, and their friend Marc Daubert
on percussion. "Aftermath" has Anastasio and Roger Holloway on guitar. "Slave to the Traffic Light" has Tom Marshall
on keyboards and Pete Cottone on drums.
In addition to being released on CD
, this album was made available on June 7, 2006, as a download in FLAC and MP3
formats at LivePhish.com.
A limited edition white vinyl version was released at Superball IX, Phish's 2011 summer festival.
Phish
Phish is an American rock band noted for its musical improvisation, extended jams, and exploration of music across genres. Formed at the University of Vermont in 1983 , the band's four members – Trey Anastasio , Mike Gordon , Jon Fishman , and Page McConnell Phish is an American rock band...
on cassette in 1986
1986 in music
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1986.-January-June:*January 23 – The first induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame takes place...
. Often cited as the first Phish "album", The White Tape was originally a collection of original material that the band used as a demo/sample tape for venues, and was sometimes labelled "Phish" or simply "Demo". The album was widely circulated among Phish fans for more than a decade before being officially released in 1998.
The album was created from four-track recordings over a period of three years and includes a number of outside musicians performing on various songs. Only "Alumni Blues", "AC/DC Bag", "Slave To The Traffic Light" and "Dog Gone Dog" (a.k.a. "Dog Log") have the four band members together. The remaining tracks were recorded separately by various members and blended together to create the finished album.
The White Tape includes an early version of the Phish epic "You Enjoy Myself
You Enjoy Myself
You Enjoy Myself, commonly abbreviated to "YEM" is a Phish song written by Trey Anastasio. It is the band's most frequently played song, having been featured —as of August 2011— at about 36% of their 1,496 shows. The song is also one of the oldest in Phish's catalog, having been first performed...
", performed a cappella
A cappella
A cappella music is specifically solo or group singing without instrumental sound, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. It is the opposite of cantata, which is accompanied singing. A cappella was originally intended to differentiate between Renaissance polyphony and Baroque concertato...
with the band members singing the opening guitar lines. The album also contains avant-garde
Avant-garde
Avant-garde means "advance guard" or "vanguard". The adjective form is used in English to refer to people or works that are experimental or innovative, particularly with respect to art, culture, and politics....
experimental
Experimental rock
Experimental rock or avant-garde rock is a type of music based on rock which experiments with the basic elements of the genre, or which pushes the boundaries of common composition and performance technique....
pieces, instrumental passages, electronic noises and studio trickery
Audio engineering
An audio engineer, also called audio technician, audio technologist or sound technician, is a specialist in a skilled trade that deals with the use of machinery and equipment for the recording, mixing and reproduction of sounds. The field draws on many artistic and vocational areas, including...
. Some songs were further developed and figure heavily in the band's live performances, while a few have rarely been heard since.
All instruments and vocals on "Fuck Your Face", "NO2", "He Ent to the Bog" and "Minkin" are performed solely by bass guitarist Mike Gordon
Mike Gordon
Mike Gordon is a bass guitar player and vocalist most noted for his work with the rock band Phish. Gordon is also an accomplished banjo player, and is proficient at piano, guitar, harmonica and percussion...
. All instruments and vocals on "Run Like an Antelope" and "And So to Bed" are recorded solely by Trey Anastasio
Trey Anastasio
Trey Anastasio is an American guitarist, composer, and vocalist most noted for his work with the rock band Phish...
.
"The Divided Sky", "Ingest" and "Fluff's Travels" are performed by Anastasio, Phish lyricist Tom Marshall
Tom Marshall (singer)
Tom Marshall is a lyricist, keyboardist and singer/songwriter best known for his association with Trey Anastasio and the rock band Phish...
, and their friend Marc Daubert
Marc Daubert
Marc Daubert was the percussionist for the rock band Phish for a brief time in their early history, joining the band in September 1984 and leaving the band in February 1985....
on percussion. "Aftermath" has Anastasio and Roger Holloway on guitar. "Slave to the Traffic Light" has Tom Marshall
Tom Marshall (singer)
Tom Marshall is a lyricist, keyboardist and singer/songwriter best known for his association with Trey Anastasio and the rock band Phish...
on keyboards and Pete Cottone on drums.
In addition to being released on CD
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
, this album was made available on June 7, 2006, as a download in FLAC and MP3
MP3
MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III, more commonly referred to as MP3, is a patented digital audio encoding format using a form of lossy data compression...
formats at LivePhish.com.
A limited edition white vinyl version was released at Superball IX, Phish's 2011 summer festival.
Track listing
- "Alumni Blues" (AnastasioTrey AnastasioTrey Anastasio is an American guitarist, composer, and vocalist most noted for his work with the rock band Phish...
) - 4:11 - "And So to Bed" (Anastasio) - 4:43
- "You Enjoy MyselfYou Enjoy MyselfYou Enjoy Myself, commonly abbreviated to "YEM" is a Phish song written by Trey Anastasio. It is the band's most frequently played song, having been featured —as of August 2011— at about 36% of their 1,496 shows. The song is also one of the oldest in Phish's catalog, having been first performed...
" (Anastasio) - :55 - "AC/DC Bag" (Anastasio) - 4:09
- "Fuck Your Face" (GordonMike GordonMike Gordon is a bass guitar player and vocalist most noted for his work with the rock band Phish. Gordon is also an accomplished banjo player, and is proficient at piano, guitar, harmonica and percussion...
) - 2:15 - "The Divided Sky" (Anastasio) - 1:16
- "Slave to the Traffic Light" (Abrahams, Anastasio, PollakThe Dude of LifeSteve Pollak, best known by his stage name The Dude of Life, is a musician and lyricist, who has co-written numerous Phish songs, including "Suzy Greenberg", "Fluffhead", "Slave to the Traffic Light", "Run like an Antelope", "Sanity", "Crimes of the Mind", "Dinner and a Movie", and most recently,...
) - 4:35 - "Aftermath" (Anastasio, Holloway) - 2:54
- "Ingest" (Anastasio) - 1:37
- "NO2" (Gordon) - 7:37
- "Fluff's Travels" (Anastasio) - 1:22
- "Dog Gone Dog" (Anastasio) - 4:03
- "He Ent to the Bog" (Gordon, McBride) - 3:56
- "Run Like an Antelope" (Anastasio, MarshallTom Marshall (singer)Tom Marshall is a lyricist, keyboardist and singer/songwriter best known for his association with Trey Anastasio and the rock band Phish...
, Pollak) - 6:41 - "Minkin" (Gordon) - 2:59
- "Letter to Jimmy Page" (Anastasio) - 1:16
Personnel
- Trey AnastasioTrey AnastasioTrey Anastasio is an American guitarist, composer, and vocalist most noted for his work with the rock band Phish...
- guitars, vocals - Page McConnellPage McConnellPage Samuel McConnell is an American multi-instrumentalist most noted for his work as a songwriter and keyboardist with the American rock band Phish....
- keyboards, vocals - Mike GordonMike GordonMike Gordon is a bass guitar player and vocalist most noted for his work with the rock band Phish. Gordon is also an accomplished banjo player, and is proficient at piano, guitar, harmonica and percussion...
- bass guitar, vocals - Jon FishmanJon FishmanJon Fishman is an American drummer best known for his work with the band Phish. He is credited with co-writing 19 Phish originals, 8 of them as a solo credit....
- drums, vocals
External Links
- Phish.com - Official Site
- Phish.com: The White Tape
- Phish.net: The White Tape - Includes details on cassette versions.