In a new, extended Q&A with the New York Times, Phish guitarist Trey Anastasio explores a variety of topics, from the ongoing nostalgia trend in music to his own sonic roots to his evolving relationship with Phish and their fans.
“Phish is like food for me. It’s like breathing,” he says at the beginning of the conversation, which dates back to this spring.
As he did in his recent documentary Between Me and My Mind, Anastasio touches on his own struggles on and off stage, especially his era of being self-critical. “All through the ’90s, we used to walk offstage with a great sense of pride that we had kicked ass,” he recalls. “We put on a show: It was pow, wham — energy. Then somewhere for a while I lost that feeling. I remember walking off stage in 2003 or 2000, something like that, and turning to Jon Fishman and our manager backstage, and I was like: ‘Was that good? What was that?’ That’s when it got a little strange… Fish has a nickname for it: the invisible whip. The invisible whip is when I walk off stage saying: ‘Why did that suck? I need to analyze this and make it better.'”
Thankfully, Anastasio explained that he’s learned to “let go” and have fun during performances, choosing to enjoy rather than over-analyze Phish’s work. Furthermore, he concocted Phish’s dream concert: “You’d walk in and there’d be 10,000 massage tables and people walking around with herbal tea and bowls of fruit salad. The sound would be perfect. Everyone would have their own private bathroom. There’d be enough room to dance and no one squishing into your space. Endless supplies of really good coffee.”
In hindsight, the guitarist explains how he foolishly used drugs to amplify his musical output, which led to Phish’s inevitable hiatus: “Mistakenly, I thought it was making me work harder: Now I can stay up three more hours and do more work! I can have five bands instead of three! These are the lies you tell yourself. So was it useful? Nah. I hate all that stuff.”
Anastasio also told a heart-wrenching story about his time in jail. Following his 2006 arrest, he spent two days in jail and found solace in the music of Stevie Wonder. “There was a guy who came to my cell and gave me a little transistor radio and some headphones,” he remembers. “I put it on, and I was searching for a signal, and ‘Higher Ground’ by Stevie Wonder came on. I’ve never really talked about this before. I was literally sobbing in this jail cell, thinking, How did this happen? We were playing in front of 80,000 people, and then all of the sudden I was sitting in jail. And that was the music that came through the headphones when I was in that jail cell? It was too perfect.”
When asked if our culture is “primed for a Phish reappraisal,” Anastasio says, self-deprecatingly, “That’s a road that I can’t go down. I kind of think we’ll be forgotten.”
Yet, as he has in other interviews, Anastasio is conscious of the emotional exchange between him and his fans. “The more times people come to see me, the more I owe them,” he explains. “They’ve given me my whole life. Not just on a financial level, but on a soul level. I owe them. But I don’t know what they see in me.”
Read the full New York Times interview here.
15 Comments comments associated with this post
mb
June 27, 2019 at 8:49 amThe cream always rises to the top. There will always be a new generation of musicians and enthusiasts who find inspiration and meaning in the work of earlier artists. That being said, it’s a niche market. He may never be a household name but he has made his mark. His art will echo through the ages.
Andrew Victoria
June 25, 2019 at 8:05 am“Be forgotten?” Hardly.
Let me predicate by saying I have a different appreciation than many – 35 year guitarist, here.As a musician and as a guitarist, Anastasio has made his mark indelibly into the annals of rock music. It’s telling that so many of my former thrash and metal cohorts have taken to Phish with an almost messianic zeal.
Had you only the studio records to judge the band? Then perhaps you could call them a “blip” on the grand musical radar. (Although I contend “Rift” is about as perfect a sonic experience as many would argue “Dark Side of the Moon” is.) But the band recorded all their live shows. THAT’S where you can grasp the sheer genius of the four. The excitement. The thrill. The musicality. I mean – show me any other band out there performing anything as complex as “You Enjoy Myself,” “Reba” or “Guyute” nightly. No, they EARNED their place in the vast human musical memory.
And – as one player to another – I thank Trey for decades of inspiration and the joy of listening to a master musician.
Walter
June 25, 2019 at 9:17 amRight on and very well said
Mike
June 25, 2019 at 12:41 pmYep couldn’t agree more, 40 year old guitarist here. Stunned at his ability and wholly original sound. There are levels upon levels of music theory the he employs that most professional/working/touring guitarists never touch. He is light years beyond just about everyone else. Phish will not ever be forgotten. I suspect they will grow in popularity over the years, not diminish. The entire current Jam band scene would be naught without Phish. I consider them part of the “Big 3” along with the Dead and the ABB.
Charles Brown
June 25, 2019 at 6:56 amI agree with his comment about everyone looking to 1970 as their only inspiration. Looking back is ok. Of course he and I have a different taste in current music….but I agree.
John Mason
June 25, 2019 at 12:14 pmWho was it said it’s ok to look back, just don’t STARE…?
Joby Slurdge
June 25, 2019 at 12:15 amPhish is powered by truck stop sushi & mentos
SLC-MSY-KRK
June 24, 2019 at 5:01 pmSince Phish hasn’t even written one single original song that anyone but a diehard Phan has ever heard of, I say yeah, they will indeed be forgotten 10 minutes after their final show,
me
June 24, 2019 at 5:56 pmGood, then it will be a great memory those of us who care will always have… those who judge by remembering a song will always have the macarena and achy breaky heart… there have been MANY great forgotten musicians and way more milli vanillis who have stained music forever…
Jim
June 24, 2019 at 6:54 pmThat’s the point. They make music for the fans, not for the masses. By the way, they sold out MSG for 13 consecutive shows and never repeated a song. Can your favorite musicians do that? I think not.
Dave
June 24, 2019 at 7:14 pmAnd no set lists. YouTube metallica commenting on bakers dozen. “Imagine if we had to do 13 shows without a repeat….nightmare”. 🙂
John
June 24, 2019 at 7:37 pmMy 17 year old girl cousin has Bouncin’ Around The Room, Fee & The Lizards, on her playlist, but you go…
Stephen Csiszar
June 24, 2019 at 7:42 pmTell that to their millions of loyal, devoted fans, including us. We have been seeing them for 26 years, and just saw them last Friday in Charlotte, NC. Kids, babies, Moms, hippies, senior citizens all together for a most magical evening of fun and superb musicianship. They will live in our hearts forever.
Let’s Go Caps
June 24, 2019 at 4:57 pmIt’s a shame Trey always has to answer questions about drug use. It appears the the interviewer is a fan. There are some good questions in there but unfortunately, the interviewer decided to with old Grateful Dead comparisons and Drug questions too.
roger moore
June 24, 2019 at 10:12 pmI sort of agree, I feel like one good long story about how he got to that place would do it, as a cautionary tale…
Ironically I think the current music is more “grateful dead” than ever before, and that’s a nice thing…