Go Phish

by Dave Thompson

On Halloween night 983, at an ROTC dance on a college campus deep in the heart of Vermont, the band subsequently known as Phish played their very first gig.

It was a total disaster.

But it was the beginning of an era. Here's the whole story.

Genres: Music, Biography, Nonfiction

192 pages, Paperback

First published August 15, 1997

About the author

English author Dave Thompson has spent his entire working life writing biographies of other people, but is notoriously reluctant to write one for himself. Unlike the subjects of some of his best known books, he was neither raised by ferrets nor stolen from gypsies. He has never appeared on reality TV (although he did reach the semi finals of a UK pop quiz when he was sixteen), plays no musical instruments and he can’t dance, either.

However, he has written well over one hundred books in a career that is almost as old as U2’s… whom he saw in a club when they first moved to London, and memorably described as “okay, but they’ll never get any place.” Similar pronouncements published on the future prospects of Simply Red, Pearl Jam and Wang Chung (oh, and Curiosity Killed The Cat as well) probably explain why he has never been anointed a Pop Culture Nostradamus. Although the fact that he was around to pronounce gloomily on them in the first place might determine why he was recently described as “a veteran music journalist.”

Raised on rock, powered by punk, and still convinced that “American Pie” was written by Fanny Farmer and is best played with Meatloaf, Thompson lists his five favorite artists as old and obscure; his favorite album is whispered quietly and he would like to see Richard and Linda Thompson’s “I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight” installed as the go-to song for the sad, sappy ending for every medical drama on TV.

Kurt Cobain, Phil Collins, Alice Cooper, Joan Jett, David Bowie, John Travolta, Eric Clapton, Jackson Browne, Bob Marley, Roger Waters and the guy who sang that song in the jelly commercial are numbered among the myriad artists about whom Thompson has written books; he has contributed to the magazines Rolling Stone, Alternative Press, Mojo and Melody Maker; and he makes regular guest appearances on WXPN’s Highs in the Seventies show.

Reviews

[Jon]

Decent enough overview of Phish and, even as a big fan, I learned a few new things about the band. I especially appreciated the focus on the early years.

[Thany]

**read in response to PS reading challenge prompt “a book that makes you feel FOMO”**

[Michael Lawrence]

A decent book I suppose but not a very accurate take on my favorite band. I could personally, ego aside, write a better Phish book than this.

I made through it pretty quick but then again I am a Phish Phanatic so that's not saying much. I just felt there was much left unsaid and that this book was written from the outside in point of view and that keeps it feeling distant.

Skip this

[Trent Brooks]

Certain shows and certain events in the history of the band were recounted well, such as the processes involved in recording the albums of the early/mid 90s, the pace of the book flies by, leaving the reader with what feels like only a general knowledge of the band's history.

[Nick McCormack]

A quick read for anyone interested in the band.

[Alex]

Just a reread of an old favorite to re-familiarizer myself with the history of Phish.

[Jessica (JT) Thelen]

Overall, this book was pretty good. There wasn't much information on the inner relationships of the band, which I was looking forward to reading about. However, I learned a lot that I didn't know!

[Clairefrieling]

i know I'm pretty sad for reading this.. it is an old book of Darin's and pretty interesting to a newbie Phish fan like myself :)

[ev leanne]

An easy read about The Phish from Vermont :)

[Jlewis]

entertaining...learned a couple things about the band that I wasn't aware of...good, quick read.