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A Review of Trey’s Musical, “Hands on a Hardbody”
I had never before seen a Broadway musical prior to my trip to New York City’s Brooks Atkinson Theatre to see the new musical “Hands on a Hardbody”. The main draw was simple – Trey wrote the music for the musical, which is based on a 1997 documentary about a contest in Texas to see who could keep their hands on a pickup truck the longest. Since this is Trey’s music, I knew what to expect, mainly because the transfer of talent from amphitheater (with Phish and TAB), to music halls (with Philharmonic orchestras across the country) showed his versatility and ability to branch out into other realms of the musical arts. With the combination of Trey and Amanda Green and a stellar cast, the experience was a top notch hit and I couldn’t recommend it any stronger to Phish fans to see. 
Staged at the nearly 90 year old Brooks Atkinson Theatre in Manhattan, the intimate setting (~1000 seats) brought the stage close up to the audience, guaranteeing a good seat no matter where you were. From the start, the premise of the musical came out clear, particularly the rules, the 15 minutes breaks after 6 hours and the manually rotated truck all set the stage nicely, peppered with a strong Texas vibe best described by John Steinbeck in Travels with Charley. Trey’s influences in the songs are apparent, with the upbeat tempos, quick yet sharp transitions and, rubbing off on Amanda Green, some funny/Phishy lyrics. There is of course, “My Problem Right There”, one of the two songs Phish has performed live. This tune, sung by Jacob Ming-Trent (Ronald McCowan) has a serious soul injection while he raves about his problems of brains, women and sleep. A sexy “Burn That Bridge” is performed by Kathleen Elizabeth Monteleone (Heather Stovall) and Jim Newman (Mike Ferris), giving a twist to the story and burning up the stage in the process.
The Phish songs were played well, which, in my case, were an incentive to seeing the show – I knew a couple songs going in to this otherwise new musical; in a way it felt like my early days of going into Phish show and being excited to know a couple songs. Still, there were 17 songs in the musical that haven’t (yet?) been performed by Phish, including some reprises, but no Tweeprises. “Joy of the Lord” gave out a gospel stomp courtesy of Keala Settle (Norma Valverde) that engaged the whole cast and elicited some of the largest applause of the night. The sweet and airy “I’m Gone”, a duet between Allison Case (Kelli Mangrum) and Jay Armstrong Johnson (Greg Wilhote) that captures Trey’s guitar tone (think a mix of “Sleep Again” and “Horn”), was a highlight for the emotional outpour of the song – the first point where I saw the true incentives for taking part in this contest – as well as the terrific pairing of Case and Johnson. Act One ended strong, with many hopeful contestants still in play.
The vibe changed in Act Two: exhaustion sets in on the characters, the sleepless nights and the searing Texas sun during the day. This was compounded with spats of racial profiling, deception and even accusations, culminating with “It’s a Fix”. This was an emotion-packed Act 2, most notably “God Answered My Prayers”, one of the most heartfelt tunes of the show thanks to Hunter Foster’s role as Benny Perkins; through him the audience could most strongly make an emotional investment in a contestant, so drawn into his case for winning the truck. The finale, a rousing and uplifting “Keep Your Hands on It” sang the moral of the story with the full cast: If you want something, keep your hands on it. I walked out on a buzz from the entire performance, less because it was my first musical but more because of the strong musical numbers and incredible acting and choreography. I would highly recommend this for Phish fans to check out, perhaps on a day off on Summer Tour this July?
“Hands on a Hardbody” is written by Doug Wright with lyrics by Amanda Green and music by Trey Anastasio, directed by Neil Pepe and musical staging by Sergio Trujillo.
Best Songs: “My Problem Right There”, “Burn that Bridge”, “I’m Gone”, “Joy of the Lord”, “Stronger”, “God Answered My Prayers”, “Used to Be”, “Keep Your Hands on It”
There is a special fan discount that is valid until April 6th. Go through Ticketmaster to purchase tickets here and enter the discount code FAN1HH in the offer code box, then choose your seats from the interactive seat map. One bit of advice – the seats are a bit cramped, so if you are tall like me, get an aisle seat and thank me later.
Update: An interview with AJ Masthay, releasing ‘Mockingbird’, a Limited Edition poster
Update 3/13: Final details from Phish.net, including images of limited edition variances. The prints will go on sale this Friday, March 15 at 12 noon EDT (9am PDT) on AJ’s website. This limited edition of 150 prints on navy blue paper is a six-color linoleum block print, and costs $40. There is a limit of one print per customer.
Update 3/11: Check out this beauty of print!
Update 3/9: Read on Phish.net an update on further sales of AJ’s poster.
AJ Masthay was recently commissioned to make a limited edition print (150) to celebrate the quickly approaching release of The Phish Companion, 3rd Edition. This limited edition art print celebrates the book’s forthcoming release. The print will be on navy blue paper with six-colors from this linoleum block print. You can expect to see the Famous Mockingbird clutching the just-liberated book of knowledge, while evil King Wilson’s troops rally on the horizon. Some process pictures from AJ are seen below, the final image due Monday.
You can pick this poster up in the Phish.net store for $40 starting Friday 3/8 at 3pm EST/Noon PST.
AJ talked with Pete Mason today about the print and a little insight into his recent artistic endeavors.
Pete Mason: How did this poster for Mockingbird come about? What led to making the print?
AJ Masthay: The good people at The Mockingbird Foundation contacted me quite some time ago about the book cover for the next (Phish) Companion. I gave a couple quick concept sketches to them to present to the publisher, who went in a different direction. When the cover didn’t pan out, they asked if I’d do a special print to help commemorate the new book. Honestly, I couldn’t have been happier.
Pete: Have you wanted to do a poster tying together elements of Gamehendge? Was it a natural choice to make a print with a Mockingbird, given that The Mockingbird Foundation is connected with Phish net?
AJ: I can’t recall if the Mockingbird was requested or was just a “given” but we knew it was going to be a Gamehendge theme from the get go. The imagery of Gamehendge is ripe for artistic interpretation. I’ve pretty much avoided it in the past, but this project opened the floodgates and gave a green light to dive into all that Gamehendge goodness. Who knows, perhaps a series in the future? (ed. note – YES!)
Pete: With six colors, how labor intensive was the print, compared to other prints?
AJ: As of writing this I’m only 3 colors into it so I’ll tell ya when it’s done lol. Seriously though, I really feel like I pushed myself on this one, both conceptually and artistically. I’ve really hit a groove blending both traditional carving tools and super fine detail with the Dremel. It allows me to basically draw on the linoleum, creating a draftsman-like quality that you just can’t get with gouges alone.
Pete: You’ve been doing a great deal of official prints lately: Furthur, Umphrey’s McGee, Yonder Mountain, among others. How has the transition been, from making fan prints to official prints? Its been quite a rapid ascent for you.
AJ: I’m honored whenever a band asks me to create a piece for them, the fact that these are the same bands that I love is icing on the cake. The transition itself was pretty painless as my process is the same whether its a gig poster, pop culture piece or an art print.
Pete: What artists have had the greatest influence upon your art, both traditional and non-traditional?
AJ: It’s hard not to be influenced by fellow artists in the field like David Welker and Jeff Wood, but I’ve never been shy about my love of both their styles. I started out collecting posters before I was making them so you’ll see Pollocks, Emeks, and tons of other gig posters on my walls, all influencing my work. When it comes down to it though, I’ve come to realize that nature is my biggest influence. Whenever I find myself in that nasty “creative block” mindset where nothing is working, I’ll grab the dogs and head out to the woods. Nine times out of 10 it’ll get the creative juices flowing and things start to jive.
Shay Campbell Art show in Denver on March 1st
Colorado artist Shay Campbell will hold her first solo art show on March 1st from 5-9pm at Highland Pacific Restaurant, with a reception that night and an exhibit on display for the entire month of March. Check out the event here and some of Shay’s work below.
An Interview with Steve Siegel, creator of the Viral ‘Simpsons Characters/Jamband Fans’ Chart
Last week, a quite viral chart of characters from The Simpsons were used to describe the fans of 9 Jambands. It took off like wildfire via social media and while making fans laugh at the incredibly spot on connections between characters and bands, it also sparked discussion about other bands not represented. Steve Siegel from The Barn Presents created this incredible chart and talked to PhanArt Pete about what went into creating it.
PhanArt Pete: When did you come up with this idea? How quickly did they always come together?
Steve Siegel: It was actually several years ago when I put the whole thing together so the process of creation isn’t really at the front of my mind. I’ve always had a very warm affection for lot shirts and designs that are inspired by popular culture. I always get a ton of ideas for these but my design skills are pretty limited.
A Simpsons design is kind of a shortcut. It’s hard not to get a warm-and-fuzzy when I see Phish shirts like the (Chief) Wiggum/Makisupa Policeman, Willie/Lawn Boy or Barney/The Sloth, but at the same time they are kind of lazy: just slap a song title together with an image of the character. I have always been more impressed with some of the more clever Simpsons related designs: “Lawyers Guns & Money” (Lionel Hutz, Herman the Gunshop owner & Itchy), “Born On The Wrong Planet” (the alien Kang playing a mandolin), even the South Park “Boy Man God Shit”. I love that they used more obscure characters and tried to reach for something that required a beat or two to process and appreciate. I guess these were my main sources of inspiration.
PP: What were your thoughts when going through each band and considering a character for each? Any second guesses or close calls before the finished product?
SS: I seem to remember them coming together pretty quickly; one of the very few practical uses for that weird place in my brain that holds Simpsons trivia. Umphrey’s was tough but I kept coming back to that photo taken from the stage at one of their shows as few years back.
Finally, that squeaky voiced teenager who holds every menial job in the Simpsons-verse (does he even have a name?) just popped into my head. I lucked out on a couple too. Could there be a better image of Moe Syzlak than the one I used for moe.? Just looking at it is funny. I think I cycled through a couple of ideas/characters that didn’t really fit the jamband theme as well. After I published, I’ve gotten some good suggestions through comments, too, (such as) Bumblebee Man for Los Lobos.
PP: Are you surprised at how fast it went viral? It took only a few hours to get over 1000 shares on Facebook and the overwhelming response has been incredibly positive.
SS: Yes and no. I never posted it to Facebook on Friday and wasn’t really looking at my Facebook Newsfeed, so when I finally saw what was going on it was a bit of a shock. My friends were telling me it was being shared by people who didn’t know me or The Barn, popping up in their timelines multiple times. I’ve written some very popular posts before, but never quite like this. I guess I learned a couple lessons, too: 1. It’s a lot easier for people to share an image on Facebook than to click through a link to my site and 2. I should really put a logo or watermark on these things!
At the same time, I guess if anything were to take off, this had all the right elements. I expected this to resonate with people in their thirties or forties. The early-to-mid-90s was an awesome time for both Jamband fans and The Simpsons. Jerry was still around for much of it, Phish was at the absolute peak of their powers and there seemed to be this great overlap of young people that were both open to that sort of thing and could also appreciate how deep, layered and subversive The Simpsons were. Both really reward you for paying attention and at a time where there was far less of every variety of entertainment to distract us, they were the things that really earned our loyalty.
PP: Tell readers about The Barn Presents – what’s your website and what do you cover?
SS: It’s a music blog that tends to have a Jamband focus but really runs the gamut of the broad array of music that I love. I also have a handful of great contributors and am always looking to add more. I try to set it apart in a couple of ways: First is by covering our local scene pretty heavily. I’m from Chicago and there’s always so much great music originating from or coming through here, there’s definitely no shortage of shows to write about or music to share.
I’m also way into data visualization and that has become a secondary focus of the site. I love to not only feature music related charts, graphs and visuals from around the web, but also create some of my own, hence the Simpsons feature. I’ve also done some cool visual presentation stuff with setlists and other band/song data that’s pretty popular. I have plenty of ideas to add more, my only constraint is time!
Every Phish Review Ever Done by a non-Phish fan (Satire)
Originally published May 17, 2010
The ‘jamband’ Phish from Vermont is known for playing long noodling jams that go on upwards of 45 minutes. But did you know their fans are all hippies? Every. Single. One. Here’s an interview with one hippie: “Yeah, I saw 30 Phish shows last year”, said Marco Esquandolas from King of Prussia, PA. Based on this one individual, we can presume that all Phish fans are like him – dreadlocked, stoned and Birkenstock-wearing hippies. All of them are just like this.
The crowd likes to hang out in the parking lots and smoke pot and buy glass pipes to smoke their pot in and then burn some patchouli because that’s what these kids do. You remember that guy I quoted last paragraph? Let me back him up with a quote from one of his friends. “The scene is so much fun, we love traveling all over to see this band, it’s a great time!”, said Molly B. Untzington from Montclair, NJ. Based upon this, I’ll presume that all Phish fans are out of work, looking for a free ride, and probably selling pot to get from show to show. I saw some cops around so that means these kids are up to no good.
Oh right, the music, that’s what I came to write about. It’s a lot like the Grateful Dead, and since I listened to ”Touch of Grey’ twice in early 1990s, I’m going to use that as my basis for all the music this band may play. But first, let me tell you all about Trey Anastasio – the frontman for this ‘jamband’ (I have to put it in quotes or you wont realize that it’s a ‘new’ word that you likely aren’t familiar with) was arrested in December of 2005 for a DWI and possessing prescription drugs that weren’t his. See, not only are the FANS doing drugs, the band is too. But he got clean, which is why Phish broke up (according to every Phish message board I perused before writing this). Although, Phish fans seem to enjoy drugs in his place. So Trey is the lead singer and the other 3 guys are also in the band. I won’t mention them because Trey is an interesting story. If I wrote this story before his arrest in 2005, I would have mentioned how Mike Gordon took ‘art photos’ of the child of a Hells Angel at Jones Beach and had no charges pressed against him. I’m not saying anything by writing that. I’m simply saying that you should post an Amber Alert when Phish comes to town.
Oh, the drummer wears a dress. Isn’t that funny? I should get his name…..
The concert was great, if you like pot smoke and hippies dancing and getting sweaty and glowsticks and bright lights and music I don’t understand. But I’m only reviewing the music, so I shouldn’t be held accountable for my view on the show. Based on what the kids next to me said, they opened up with a mind-blowing version of “Hairy Hoodie”, and then broke into “Planes Trains and Automobiles”. This was all capped off by a rendition of the drummer singing some weird song called “Love You”’ and I won’t be looking up the original artist. Instead, I’ll let you know that he played a FUCKING VACUUM CLEANER! Holy shit! What a hippie!
Overall, the show was a great success if you were stoned and like this kind of thing. I do not so I’m going to write this review like I would before I took any journalism classes in college and pass it off as professional. Maybe you like this kind of music, in which case, ok. Otherwise, go see other music and leave these hippies be with their pot.
Surrender to the Flow is planning a Phish Fan Business & Service Directory
Surrender to the Flow, the Phish fan magazine that is available free on lot at every show on every tour, is setting up a ‘Phish Fan Business & Service Directory’ and is seeking participants to be included in this one of a kind publication. This new directory aims to encourage fans to patronize fan-owned/staffed businesses, both locally and nationally, thereby further strengthening the Phish community. The directory will be available free to the public, online, in electronic form in a few months, and will be updated yearly. The business listings are also free to businesses and individuals.
Because Phish fans can be found in every walk of life and in every corner of this country, fans from all fields and areas are encouraged to participate. The directory will be organized both by state and by category.
Categories will likely be quite diverse: financial services, event planning, legal services, health and fitness services, crafts, and entertainers are just a few of the anticipated groupings.
Fans who would like to participate should visit this form to submit their information via short online form.
Surrender to the Flow hopes that this directory will encourage fans to do business with other fans and perhaps inspire new connections and build professional networks. Additionally, it will help fans to shop locally while helping others in the Phish community succeed in their chosen fields, wherever they may reside.
If you have any questions, contact Christy at sttflow (at) gmail.com
Visit Surrender to the Flow on Facebook
Mile High Art Show in Denver February 23-24 in Denver
The Mile High Rock Poster And Art Expo will take place at Aloft Hotel in Broomfield, Colorado on February 23rd and 24th, 2013, from 1-7:30pm each day. Admission is FREE!
Become a Facebook fan to receive updates of who will be attending. The Mile High Rock Poster and Art Expo will host an incredible assortment of local and national poster artists, designers, painters, photographers and others involved in creating rock ‘n’ roll inspired artwork. With everything from original psychedelic sixties posters to modern screenprints, rock poster collectors, art lovers, and music fans will be sure to find something special and unique at this event.
The exhibitor list is growing fast and the following artists are confirmed to attend:
Richard Biffle, Mike Dubois, Mark Serlo, Larry Hulst, Tripp, J Rizzi, John Warner, Jack Shure, Lauri Keener, Zenster, Not Fade Away, Lot Life, Terra-Pins, T-Bone Productions, MomaDawnsRainbowRags, Brandon A. Miera, Sweet Melis, Dog Daze Photography, Josh Elioseff, Conscious Alliance, PosterScene, Rock Candy Posters and more to be added soon.
Visit RockArtExpo.com for more information.
PhanArt’s Best of 2012
Well, 2012 was an incredible year for PhanArt, with more art than ever before, plus the addition of five staff members to the site – Taylor, Kelley, Chris, Jim and Chris. Fans have been submitting more and more art to PhanArt for sharing on the site, which led to a record number of posts as well as a record amount of money raised for The Mockingbird Foundation – over $3700!
What was popular this year? Well, shirts and posters as usual, but anything that had that Cheerio/Henrietta design took top honors for the most common piece of phanart. It seemed that every bit of clothing and all sorts of art were seeing this design, any why not? It’s iconic, only Phish fans know what it is, making it a silent calling card for other fans whether at a show or in real life. There was at least one wedding party with Fishman ties for the groomsmen!
Then of course, there are pins, which has basically become a flooded market. Everyone is making them, few are buying and many are trading for them. Some of them are truly amazing and we are likely only a few days away from the first ‘Golf Ball’ themed pin of 2013. There are a reported 1700-1800 pins total made already, according to Fred Hosman, who would know, because he collected pretty much every single one up to date. That number of pins is more than the number of individual pieces of art in PhanArt: The Art of the Fans of Phish!
So, here we are with more art being made, Phish being at the top of their game and the 30th anniversary likely to shed a great deal of art, especially if there are more shows than the last two years. Without further rambling, I present the Best of PhanArt, 2012 edition. This list of 12 was compiled with input from fans on the website, Facebook, Twitter, as well as reported sales from artists and feedback on lot. Some of these pieces of art are still available for sale, while some sold out a long time ago. Click the links to see what you can still get and support the Phish Art Community! Remember, the Phanart made in 2012 was amazing and the following is just some of the best. If you think something was overlooked, share what was missed below in the comments section below.
Honorable Mentions
Michael Ortiz San Francisco/Colorado/NYC series
And now for the Best PhanArt of 2012…
12. My Other Vehicle is a Second Set Tweezer
A simple Tweet led to an incredibly popular sticker, so much so that it was sold in bulk to a few fans during Summer Tour. Andy Cary’s wit led to a sticker that was begged for at shows, Jiggs’ design made it the perfect bumper sticker for a car, and led to some nice donations for The Mockingbird Foundation, as Andy deferred any profit to them. In keeping with that, all sales of this sticker through the month of January will go to The Mockingbird Foundation, after shipping and handling.
You couldn’t make a more literal pin, but Jeff from My Phavorite Things did, and succeeded. It doesn’t look like there are any pins left for sale, but if you can get one, this is a well through out and produced pin.
The return of the Happy Fish in one incredible print! Ryan Kerrigan continues to create incredible Phish posters for each show and tour, and this one stood out as one of the best of the Summer!
Life is Good < Life is Hood. Brian Kushner of PhanBadge made a great shirt with a familiar guitar sticking out, and the response was incredible. Many shirts were out of stock by the time SPAC rolled around. Brian graciously donated a few shirts to benefit The Mockingbird Foundation, all of which were snapped up quickly. The crossover aspect is huge with this shirt, since you can wear it to a show or just in daily life, getting more than a few heads to turn when they notice the slight difference in this now classic shirt.
8. Party Time/Playboy shirts
Seen on the lots of Bader Field in June, this is a great shirt, hands down. The Playboy brand has an aura of epic parties in the grotto, and ‘Party Time’ is the perfect way to to tie the two together. This shirt was only seen briefly on tour, so we have no purchasing info, so if you know who made this shirt, contact PhanArt (at) gmail and we will do our best to have it up on the site. Again, great shirt to the creators!
Branden Otto has been making posters since 2010 and in 2012, he found his groove, creating incredible work from start to finish. Fans sold out one edition, leading to a second variant being produced. Stacking the vehicles, adding in tour dates and some subtle Phish references, as well as great creativity and color schemes showed that Otto is moving on up among his fellow artists.
6. Jam Jars
The “Jam Jar” series by Tweezburger creator Jon Weber and Cactus Bomb Designs doesn’t just look great on bread, all 6 jump out as genius spins on different jams Phish has done over the years. Funny, small and a set = classic Phish pins.
5. Summer Tour Pac-Man shirts
These were seen through much of Summer Tour, although the creators never got in touch with us to get on the site. Based on the number of fans wearing them, it’s likely they sold well on tour, if not sold out. Using the one and two-stops on tour as general pellets to eat, and the four 3-day runs the Power pellets is just smart designing. This was well thought out and a great design. It would even be higher on the list, but black isn’t a great color shirt for the summer. But being in the top half of the Best of 2012 isn’t too shabby. Big ups to the four levels at the bottom, one for each tour to date in the 3.0 era.
4. TRiPP Atlantic City triptych
Try saying THAT five times fast. This set has been sought after by fans and sold quickly, making for yet another classic TRiPP trio of prints that connect to form gorgeous imagery.
Jiggs has branched out from his earlier designs and t-shirts and delved into some great posters in the past year, starting with NYE 2011 and going through 2012 with Bader Field, OKC Zoo and Dick’s prints. This one stands out among them all, capturing the song that would cap off the band’s first show in Oklahoma, in a most unique fashion.
2. Ties from stuPINdous Creations
Never in a million years did I think that Phish-themed ties would be a thing, let alone a well produced thing. Well, Adrian from stuPINdous Creations proved that one wrong, a few times over. First there was the Henrietta tie, then the Cactus and Big Red ties (seen below) and most recently, a Henrietta Bow Tie. Many of these ties sold out quickly, especially the Henrietta tie. These ties are stylish, they are great for work or play and speaking from experience, get compliments nearly every time. That’s a great tie – when they don’t realize there’s a Phish theme to it, but you do. Adrian, nice work on these. Can’t wait to see the Page tie! Here’s to hoping it involves sandwiches!
And the best of PhanArt 2012 is…….
The intricate detail of this limited edition print from Ben Whitesell and the overwhelming response from Phish fans made this a runaway #1 choice for 2012. Ben has made great prints in the past and this one is the culmination of his growing skills in making great posters. Examine the way in which Ben detailed Trey’s guitar, going deeper with a mechanical angle and creating one of the best posters of 2012. Ben, here’s to hoping you can keep making art of this caliber in 2013!
So, did we miss something? Was there some art that should have made the list? If so, tell us what you think we missed in the comments below. Art is all around us on Phish tour and this is just a small slice of the great art out there this past year. With greater input from fans taken into greater account this year, we feel this is a great representation of the Best PhanArt of 2012. If this past year is any hint, 2013 will be even better.
– PhanArt Pete and the PhanArt Crew
Postcards: A Book on Widespread Panic, by the Fans, for the Fans
Having created PhanArt: The Art of the Fans of Phish during the span of 2004 to 2009, I know how important it is to get the input and feedback from fans to create such a book. Heather Nigro, a Widespread Panic fan I met during the April 2009 run of Panic shows at House of Blues in Orlando, has created a project similar to PhanArt, aimed at Widespread Panic fans. The book, Postcards: By the Fans, for the Fans has developed from a visually enhanced narrative of two like-minded souls exploring their Widespread Panic experience, into a community based journey. The book includes fan submissions, stories, photos and artwork from almost 500 people. The book is slated to be finished by Spring of 2013, and they can meet their goal with a Kickstarter created to fund the publication of the book.
You can support Postcards by donating through their Kickstarter, and support one of the great fanbases in the live music scene. This is a great project and needs the help of fans to turn the dream into a reality. Lend a hand fans!
