The band Phish has been jamming out since 1983. They formed together at the University of Vermont in Burlington. The band is comprised of guitarist/singer Trey Anastasio, bassist/singer Mike Gordon, pianist/singer Page McConnell, and drummer Jon Fishman. Together over the years they have played over 1120 concerts and performed over 620 songs for Phishheads, the devoted fans of the band, all over the world. (Gehr 20-21)
After the band formed in Vermont in 1983 they didn't just get a cakewalk onto the main stage. Hours and days and months and years of time, practice, and love of music got them to where they are today. In the mid to late 80's, Phish struggled to make its mark on the music scene in the Northeast. (Thompson 76) They started getting a fan base in the local Burlington bars in 1986 and worked their way up from there. After a couple years of playing the bars in Burlington their fan base was spreading and the next step, like every other to come, was going to be big.
English: Phish on December 30, 2009 at the America...
English: Phish at Red Rocks Amphitheater in Morris...
This is one of my favorite pictures I've taken. Ph...(Thompson 87)
The next step for the band was to get out of Vermont and take their show to a new crowd. In 1987 the band decided to promote a couple of shows in Boston. This was important because it was the first time they ever really played to a new crowd. Well, they had a successful couple of shows and returned to the Boston area for many more shows that year and the years to follow. Boston was like a breakthrough though because they started playing more and more shows away from their native Burlington, Vermont bar scene. And with all the good revues and support they knew that this band was going to be a big success. (Thompson 111)
In 1988...