photo by Rene Huemer (via Mike Gordon on Facebook)


Phish wrapped up the main portion of their summer tour schedule (minus their annual Labor Day weekend run in Colorado) this past Sunday with an impressive performance at Wisconsin’s Alpine Valley Music Theatre, and bassist Mike Gordon has shared a heartfelt note to fans about his experience with the summer shows.

“Why was that tour so fun?” Gordon begins. “For me it’s not about what songs are busted out or how long a jam goes (though that can be fun, too!). For me each passing note or word becomes a microcosm of the whole experience of the jam, the night, the tour – just like a hologram has the entire image within each pixel (if you will)!”

The bassist goes on to reflect on how Phish’s many years together have given them the ability to “relax and let go” while on stage: “People might not realize the degree of practice it takes to avoid being self conscious a bunch of the time.”

Gordon explains how he tries to let his surroundings choose the notes he plays, rather than directly choosing them himself, adding that he felt that he “could sing to the resonance of the room” during this summer tour. He concludes, “Maybe this is my way of saying, ‘Thanks everyone for choosing some great bass notes this tour by being present with us, being you, and bringing your energy.’

Read the full note below. Gordon will play three nights at Dick’s Sporting Good Park in Colorado starting Aug. 30.

Why was that tour so fun? For me it’s not about what songs are busted out or how long a jam goes (though that can be fun, too!). For me each passing note or word becomes a microcosm of the whole experience of the jam, the night, the tour – just like a hologram has the entire image within each pixel (if you will)! As bass player, I hope to feel that which is universal in a note that is passing. So I would say that this tour was fun because somehow those notes had extra time to breathe. A band with all those years of learning to relax and let go is a good first ingredient! People might not realize the degree of practice it takes to avoid being self conscious a bunch of the time.

By relaxing as a bass player, I can let there be more space between the notes, gliding into the next note with a little scrape of the pick on a string, setting that note up. The note chooses itself; the scrape chooses itself. It’s amazing how much it takes to let go of each note! Like: “If I do this pattern it will fit over that shuffle groove” – NO; that’s thinking about the next moment; that’s making a decision. The better way is: “that which is universal” chooses.

I felt at some of these shows that I could sing to the resonance of the room, play to the resonance of the room. Phish is so great at doing nothing that would get in the way – often not even a solo or an embellishment, just hovering in the groove or pattern and letting the room energy play the music. Thusly, YOU all choose. Maybe this is my way of saying, “Thanks everyone for choosing some great bass notes this tour by being present with us, being you, and bringing your energy.”