Phish

Phish
Phish performing live at American Airlines Arena in Miami in 2009; left to right: Page McConnell, Trey Anastasio, and Mike Gordon
Background information
Origin	Burlington, Vermont, U.S.
Genres	Rock jam band
Years active	1983–2000, 2002–2004, 2009–present
Labels	Elektra Rhino/WMG JEMP MapleMusic (Canada)
Associated acts	Phil Lesh and Friends Oysterhead 70 Volt Parade Amfibian Benevento/Russo Duo Jazz Mandolin Project Pork Tornado Touchpants Les Claypool Ramble Dove Rhythm Devils Trey Anastasio Band Mike Gordon Band Dave Matthews Carmine Torella Band Grateful Dead
Website	www.phish.com
Members	Trey Anastasio Jon Fishman Mike Gordon Page McConnell
Past members	Jeff Holdsworth Marc Daubert

Phish is a band known for musical improvisation, extended jams, blending of genres, and a dedicated fan base. Originating at the University of Vermont in 1983 (with the current line-up solidifying in 1985), the band's four members—Trey Anastasio (guitars, lead vocals), Mike Gordon (bass, vocals), Jon Fishman (drums, percussion, vacuum, vocals), and Page McConnell (keyboards, vocals)—performed together for nearly 20 years before going on hiatus from October 7, 2000 to December 31, 2002. They resumed touring from December 31, 2002 until August 15, 2004 when they announced that the Coventry Festival would be their last show. They reunited in March 2009 for a series of three consecutive concerts played in the Hampton Coliseum in Hampton, Virginia, and have since resumed performing regularly.

Phish's music blends elements of a wide variety of genres, including funk, progressive rock, psychedelic rock, folk, country, jazz, blues, bluegrass, and pop. Although the band has received little radio play or mainstream exposure, Phish has developed a large and dedicated following by word of mouth, the exchange of live recordings, and selling over 8 million albums and DVDs in the United States.Rolling Stone stated that the band helped to "...spawn a new wave of bands oriented around group improvisation and extended instrumental grooves".

Phish was formed at the University of Vermont in 1983 by guitarists Trey Anastasio and Jeff Holdsworth, bassist Mike Gordon, and drummer Jon Fishman. For their first gig, at Harris-Millis Cafeteria at the University of Vermont on December 2, 1983, the band was billed as "Blackwood Convention". ("Blackwood convention" is a term from the card game contract bridge.) The band was joined by percussionist Marc Daubert in the fall of 1984, a time during which they promoted themselves as playing Grateful Dead songs. Daubert left the band early in 1985, and Page McConnell then joined the group on keyboards and made his debut on May 3, 1985, at a show at Wilks/Davis/Wing Dormitory on Redstone Campus at the University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont. Holdsworth left the group after graduating in 1986, solidifying the band's lineup of "Trey, Page, Mike, and Fish"—the lineup to this day.