This morning, I began wondering to myself: “If asked the best Phish song, what would I respond?” I thought it over, and I have some thoughts.
I’ve pondered over my favorite Phish songs before, and ultimately, I’ve never been able to settle on one. But today, I’ll give you what I think is the “best.”
First, we’ve got to agree on what “best” means. Does it mean most well liked? Most representative? Most iconic? I am choosing to define it as the song that best captures and satiates fans, be they new, old, or even future.
And the runners up are:
You Enjoy Myself
The logical, most obvious select for “best” phish song is the classic You Enjoy Myself. YEM, as we Phishheads call it, was debuted in 1986 and was featurd in more Phish setlists than any other song – ever. YEM includes a structed composed part, a loose jam part, and has led to some incredible experimentation, including the vocal jam. While YEM is an awesome song, a load of fun, and arguably the quinessential Phish song, I don’t think it’s the best, and one of the reasons is that it’s just too chaotic and hard to understand for those new to Phish.
Bouncing Around the Room
I include Bouncin’ only because, unlike YEM, it is quite easy for those unfamiliar with Phish to immediately fall in love with this song. The tempo, the lightweight guitar, and the repeated clear lyrics make it a natural sing along gem. But, most decidedly unlike YEM, it received quite a bit of radio play and became one of the 5 or so songs that college students that didn’t count themselves as Phish heads knew. As a result, many elitist Phish heads began the backlash against Bouncing. It was not unlikely, in the late nineties, to hear the regulars whine when Bouncing reared its head in a setlist. One more legitimate reason to dislike Bouncing was because, like many other songs, it was not a platform for jamming. This made it more of a recital than a participatory exercise. Since the most loyal fans, whether right or wrong, grew impatient with it, Bouncing cannot be the answer.
Chalkdust Torture
Chalkdust Torture was another “famous” Phish song. While the song is pretty much verse-chorus-verse, it served as a jam platform more often than you might expect. Chalkdust featured a catchy chorus and was a setlist regular from its debut right through Coventry. That said, Chalkdust remained popular for its entire run, and was often recognized by non-hardcores, and even featured on several albums. However, Chalkdust is rarely mentioned as one of the more cherished songs.
The Divided Sky
Ah, the final three. It’s easy to make a case for the Divided Sky. First of all, it’s got several sections, many tightly composed. It’s a musician’s wet dream, it’s got emotion, and it’s a fun song. It features all four members at some point. It’s Gamehendge-related. There are so many things that make this a fantastic song. But, like others above, there is rarely much exploration when this is performed live. Don’t let this take away from the song, it’s one of my faves, but any song that doesn’t encompass everything Phish is about can’t be called “best” in my book.
Harry Hood
Hood is the next step from Divided Sky, and also lands in all of the above categories, sans the Gamehendge connection. Harry Hood is one of the most well-liked songs in Phish-story, and when they open a show with it – as they did twice in 1999 – it signaled an incredible evening. I can’t fault Hood on anything worthwhile. It’s a virtual tie, but there had to be a winner, and that winner is:
Slave to the Traffic Light
In my humble opinion, no Phish song is better than Slave to the Traffic Light. Slave, as we call it, has elements of reggae, rock, jazz, ambient, harmony, and more. Slave includes long jams at times, some really long. It’s well liked, it’s been played with frequency, but not too frequent. It didn’t spark the amazing, but eventually annoying glowstick wars, and the end of the song is really something special nearly every time. Slave is not too complex, so even the relative newbie to Phishdom can understand and appreciate it, and certainly will be swinging and swaying by the end of the song. Also, Slave is the perfect set-ender, the perfect song to draw out your energy, calm you down, and lay you down to sleep nicely.
You can throw around several song like Guyute, Fee, The Lizards, The Squirming Coil, or Cavern, but I have to make the case for Slave to the Traffic Light.
I’d like to suggest one more criteria for this campaign and that would be what I call “significant irreverence.” That element of a song that contained so much nonsense that it made sense.
Epitomized by David Bowie, Dinner and a Movie and of course, Fluffhead.
But done no where better than in Carini.
I have been going through this process over the past few years, coming up with criteria, rating factors, and a formula to score the whole thing. Finalists included: Slave, YEM, Divided Sky, Punch You in the Eye, Colonel Forbin/Famous Mockingbird (disqualified because it is two songs really).
And the winner is: Run Like an Antelope
Does it get any better than when Trey hits the first hard chord on Run Like an Antelope?
I have to agree with Fluffhead… it’s got everything that I love about Phish: tightly arranged parts, loose free-form jam, lyrics that don’t take themselves too seriously, a bit of humor, tempo changes, and that big explosive “Fluffy Fluffy Fluffy Fluffy Fluffy Fluffy Head” at the end. Rocks.
Not one mention of the fine old lady…. Reba is by far the best Phish song EVER. Not my opinion, FACT…
John, I'll subscribe to your blog when you start one. I agree with Reba.
does any one love the song heavy things by Phish i cant believe its not listed as a favorite yet
Heavy Things is a relatively new song, it's rarely explored as a jamming vehicle, and it was a single. Also, it debuted not as a Phish song, but as a Trey solo song in 1999. I think you would be hard-pressed to find any Phish fans who would call that one of their favorites.
wtf??? no one has even mentioned down with disease.
Considering when this was written, some of those songs (Chalkdust, especially) have become bigger jam vehicles. Even YEM has more jamming now.
Honestly, though, I don't think there's such a thing as the “best” Phish song because their music covers so much different territory from straight up rock, to intricate composed pieces, to bluegrass, barbershop, ballads, etc. It's difficult. YEM is the quintessential Phish song, hands down. It's composed, it's got a little jam, it's got the vocal jam, it's got stage antics, it's as “Phish-y” as it gets. But when it comes down to the best, that just doesn't exist with Phish.
Considering when this was written, some of those songs (Chalkdust, especially) have become bigger jam vehicles. Even YEM has more jamming now.
Honestly, though, I don't think there's such a thing as the “best” Phish song because their music covers so much different territory from straight up rock, to intricate composed pieces, to bluegrass, barbershop, ballads, etc. It's difficult. YEM is the quintessential Phish song, hands down. It's composed, it's got a little jam, it's got the vocal jam, it's got stage antics, it's as “Phish-y” as it gets. But when it comes down to the best, that just doesn't exist with Phish.
Agreed!
reba. hands down.
Are you guys serious? Time Turns Elastic is clearly the greatest Phish song ever composed. What are you all taking acid and huffing nitrous or something? Joy is definitely a close 2nd
GOOD ABOUT HOOD
Time and Joy?!?!?!? Im VERY surprised at those choices!!! Please listen to some older shows!! I could never nail down a favorite, instead I have about 10 favorites that head up different catergories hahaha that boogie on to antelope mash-up from Miami 09 was soo serious it is SUCH a worthy download if you haven’t heard it! but I agree with YEM, Hood, Bouncing was the first song I heard of Phish, it is a good Phish intro song. I love Free, First Tube, Fluffhead and WILSON of course. I guess I could just keep going….Cant wait for Chicago 2010 to start!!
Prince Caspian
The best coming together of form and content. they play the ocean and play caspian across it.
i request a new catagory of best phish cover songs! “bold as love”!
1. antelope
2. fluffhead
3. hood
4. ghost
5. slave
6. bowie
7. disease
8. reba
9. forbin>mockingbird
10. yem
First Tube
Fluffhead
Sand
Run Like An Antelope
YEM
I like the covers question. For me, it would either be “Bold as Love” or “Good Times Bad Times.” One of my favorites to have seen in person was the first-set-ending GTBT>Tweezer Reprise from the 10-21-95 show. Just incredible.
Also, “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” at the ’94 Halloween show was amazing. Okay, enough of this old guy reminiscing.
For my 2 cents, the list of “best” Phish songs pretty much matches my personal favorites, with Slave #1 and Hood a close second. Luckily, I got to see them both in the same set last year at the Gorge (Hood ending the set, with Slave as the Encore).