You played one of the first Phish shows at Nectar’s in 1984. Besides less people there, how would you describe the audience? I have always heard there was an artsy crowd back then…
It’s funny –I was talking about this the other day. The crowds back then, in my opinion, felt very similar compared to the crowds of today. It has always been a congregation of fun, wacky, intelligent, music loving people who truly understand the meaning of having a good time. It’s just that today the party has expanded…exponentially!!!!
Was music always a passion you hoped to pursue? If not, at what point did you decide to follow that path?
Music has been a passion of mine as far back as I can remember. I feel it’s what I’m meant to do. That’s not to say there have never been occasions when I’ve temporarily thrown in the towel during brief times of disappointment or disillusionment. But when that has happened, I get over whatever I need to get over and then go in and grab the towel out again.
Would you say being a professional musician was always one of Trey’s goals?
Trey has always taken his music very seriously. He was a drummer first before he played guitar. I recall when he first took up the guitar when he was 15 years old in boarding school. He practiced his scales incessantly and 75% of the time his guitar wasn’t even plugged in. It was awe inspiring to see how quickly he learned and progressed and it quickly became apparent that something special was happening.
In late 2009, Phish played “Crimes of the Mind” for the first time without you. When did you find out they were planning to play that song?
I found out when I checked out the set-list on YEMblog that evening. I thought it was fabulous that they played it and with Trey singing lead, it blew me out of the water! Fantastic really!
Portions of the song “Self” from the Dude of Life/Phish album Crimes of the Mind developed into “Chalk Dust Torture.” How did that transformation take place?
Ha! That’s an interesting question. Just for the record, the song “Self” was created before “Chalk Dust” and I believe it was written in 1990 when I was going through my Iggy Pop phase. In retrospect, it’s pretty easy to understand why the lyrics to “Self” really just don’t fit into the Phish repertoire while the fabulous lyrics to “Chalk Dust” fit much better.
How many Phish festivals have you attended and do you have a favorite moment from one of them?
I’ve attended all of them except for The Went. I never went to The Went and I’ve been kicking myself ever since! It’s impossible to mention a single favorite moment because I have so many favorite moments at Phish festivals and, by the way, some of those favorite moments I would not necessarily wish to put down in ink. 😉
Do the other members of Space Antelope still play music?
Well there was a guitarist named Trey in our band and I’m pretty sure that he is still playing music. Other than that guy, the only member of Space Antelope who I’ve kept in touch with is Dudley Taft. He is a fantastic blues/rocker and lives in Seattle these days. He started the Dudley Taft Band in 2007 and it’s getting pretty big.
You wrote the lyrics to “Fluffhead,” one of the most coveted Phish songs of all time, about your brother. Did you write that song for Phish especially?
At the time I wrote it I didn’t even realize that it was about my bro, Dick, who passed away in July of 1983 from an insidious form of cancer called Ewing’s Sarcoma. I was so stricken with grief and it served as a form of therapy for me. He was such an amazing person and I believe that one of the reasons “Fluffhead” is so potent is that I feel his soul is somewhere in that song. I didn’t write it for Phish; I wrote it for him.
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