Ok, they formed at university of Vermont (Burlington VT, right next to Lake Champlain) in probably 1982 or 1983. Trey Anastasio (guitar, most vocals) and Page McConnell (keyboards/piano, better-but-not-utilized-enough vocals) are both from New Jersey (me too hehe). Jon Fishman (drums) and Mike Gordon (bass) I think are both from Massachussetts.
So the band formed in the early 80s. Page McConnell was not an original member of the band. Instead they had another guitarist, Jeff Holdsworth. Jeff was an excellent guitarist but he wanted to stick with 70s classic rock covers and songs like that. He hated You Enjoy Myself. So something had to give, as Trey and Mike wanted to go in a more creative direction. Trey transferred to Goddard College in northern VT where he met Page. Trey had been kicked out of UVM for stealing a human hand from the science lab and sending it to a friend in Colorado, part of an ongoing game of "postal one-upmanship." LOL. Page played a few times with the band, and he seemed like a good fit. However, Trey emphatically stated that "Phish is a 2 guitar band," something he now laughs about. Well, eventually Jeff quit the band and went across country, where he found the Lord. He came and saw the band a few times but from 1985 to 2003 his whereabouts was unknown. Until Dec, 1, 2003, at Phish's 20th anniversary show, when Jeff came out for a bunch of songs in the secnd set! And I was there!!!
Ok I have to get back to work but that is installment one in this edition of "Phish History"
So the band formed in the early 80s. Page McConnell was not an original member of the band. Instead they had another guitarist, Jeff Holdsworth. Jeff was an excellent guitarist but he wanted to stick with 70s classic rock covers and songs like that. He hated You Enjoy Myself. So something had to give, as Trey and Mike wanted to go in a more creative direction. Trey transferred to Goddard College in northern VT where he met Page. Trey had been kicked out of UVM for stealing a human hand from the science lab and sending it to a friend in Colorado, part of an ongoing game of "postal one-upmanship." LOL. Page played a few times with the band, and he seemed like a good fit. However, Trey emphatically stated that "Phish is a 2 guitar band," something he now laughs about. Well, eventually Jeff quit the band and went across country, where he found the Lord. He came and saw the band a few times but from 1985 to 2003 his whereabouts was unknown. Until Dec, 1, 2003, at Phish's 20th anniversary show, when Jeff came out for a bunch of songs in the secnd set! And I was there!!!
Ok I have to get back to work but that is installment one in this edition of "Phish History"
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