Phish: The Biography - Hardcover

Puterbaugh, Parke

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0306814846 ISBN 13: 9780306814846

Publisher: Da Capo Press, 2009

Synopsis

Phish rank among the greatest live bands in rock history, and a sizable subculture of Phishheads would argue there’s been none better. Formed in Burlington, Vermont, this determined foursome of high-IQ misfits developed their uniquely telepathic chemistry playing that college town’s club scene. Vermont’s best-kept secret rose to national prominence in the nineties, when they became the most obvious heirs to the Grateful Dead’s legacy as onstage improvisers and touring Pied Pipers. With a raft of self-imposed challenges, Phish mapped out much new territory, as well. Wildly eclectic, endlessly resourceful, and ever unpredictable, Phish were at the forefront of the jam-band movement, an organic alternative to the mainstream status quo that caught the ears and imagination of millions.

Drawing upon nearly 15 years of exclusive interviews with the members of Phish and those in their employ, veteran music journalist Parke Puterbaugh delivers an insightful and authoritative biography of this beloved band and their quixotic career. Phish: The Biography thoroughly traces the quartet’s history from their formative years to their spectacular success as a prolific touring phenomenon. Puterbaugh examines the colorful chemistry – the unique mix of personalities, backgrounds and talents – that inspired the members of Phish to push their four-way experiment to the limit. He documents their rigorous work ethic, boundless creativity, and all of the resulting innovations, including a series of one-band festivals that served as the blueprint for Bonnaroo and a slew of latter-day rock festivals. Moreover, he details how Phish distilled classical discipline, jazz improvisation, and rock instrumentation and attitude into an intoxicating brew that kept hordes of fans coming back show after show, encouraging them to digest and debate every note and nuance.

The book also candidly addresses the bumps in the road that followed Phish’s ascent to popularity, as rock’s hardest-working band also became one of its hardest-partying entities. Mounting excesses and internal dissent led to a two-year hiatus, a dramatic breakup, and a well-documented drug bust and courageous recovery from addiction for guitarist Trey Anastasio. The tale concludes with Phish’s triumphant reunion in 2009, marking one of the greatest comebacks in music history. An intimate and fascinating portrait, Phish: The Biography is the definitive story of these Vermont jamband legends.

 

About this title

About the Author

Parke Puterbaugh has written or cowritten numerous books and magazine articles on music, travel, the environment and other subjects. A former senior editor for Rolling Stone magazine, he lives in Greensboro, North Carolina.

From Publishers Weekly

In the wake of Phish's wildly successful summer reunion tour, journalist and Rolling Stone contributor Puterbaugh delivers a consistently lucid and revelatory look at the 26-year-long career of the legendary jam band. Puterbaugh's solid and intelligent take on how Phish blends both seriousness and whimsy into rock, jazz, funk, country and experimental music (sometimes in the same song) will satisfy newcomers as well as the band's obsessively knowledgeable fans. In the process, Puterbaugh definitely demolishes the media's reflexively drawn comparisons of Phish to the Grateful Dead just because both played long improvisational concerts for hardcore fans. Much of the book's success stems from Puterbaugh's experience as in-house PR writer for the band from 1995 until its 2004 breakup. His insider access allows him to get never-before-published comments and insights from the band, its management, archivists, crew and close friends. His solid reporting produces the best account so far of Phish's college-era birth and growth in Burlington, Vt. And his exclusive interview with Trey Anastasio provides a frank look at how the guitarist's drug addiction brought down the band, how his recovery led to their reunion and why there's no reason that Phish couldn't go on for quite some time. (Nov.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

About this edition

• Publisher: Da Capo Press
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 0306814846
• ISBN 13: 9780306814846
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 352