Phish and their musical costumes

American rock band Phish is one of the most successful live acts in popular music history, forging a popularity in concert far greater than their album sales, radio airplay, or music video presence would otherwise indicate.

Phish tours, at the peak of their popularity in the mid- to late 1990s, consistently ranked as one of the highest-grossing concert tours in the world.

One of the major factors of Phish's live success was the fact that every show in the band's history contained a completely different song setlist. Throughout 30 years and over 1,600 shows, the band never played the same concert setlist twice. Additionally, many Phish songs were rarely played the same way twice. This approach to live performance influenced Phish fans to attend multiple nights on a particular tour, much like sports fans buying season tickets, since they were guaranteed a completely different concert on a nightly basis. Phish fans have recorded the band's concerts (with permission) and circulated the music throughout the country. Therefore, fans collect large numbers of live recordings free of charge, a practice encouraged by the taper-friendly band. Guitarist Trey Anastasio considered it "free advertising" since it enabled the band's music to be distributed and traded all over the United States and, eventually, the rest of the world.

Another notable practice is the band's Halloween tradition of "Musical Costumes", when Phish performs an entire album by a different band or artist.

Phish formed in the fall of 1983 at the University of Vermont with co-founders Trey Anastasio and Jeff Holdsworth on guitars, Jon Fishman on drums, and Mike Gordon on bass.

In 1983, the band played at least two shows under the name Blackwood Convention. At this point, the band only played other artists' material, ranging from tunes by Creedence Clearwater Revival, Wilson Pickett, The Who, the Grateful Dead, and others.

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