TimmyB Posted July 21, 2005 Report Share Posted July 21, 2005 From www.billboard.comEdited By Jonathan Cohen. July 21, 2005, 11:00 AM ET DVD To Celebrate Phish's 20th Anniversary By Jonathan Cohen, N.Y.It has been almost a year since Phish disbanded after a weekend's worth of shows in Coventry, Vt., but several releases are in the works to satiate the band's rabid fan base. Among them is a DVD of a career-spanning film shown at just one concert: the group's 20th anniversary on Dec. 2, 2003, at Boston's FleetCenter."It's either funny or memorable moments taken from 2,500 videotapes we've collected," bassist Mike Gordon reveals to Billboard.com of the film, which originally ran about 30 minutes. "The band was going back and forth about whether we wanted to release it. But I'm excited, because we've added about 10 minutes of footage. We'll probably have to subtract because of clearances for appearances and cover songs. Some of them will be impossible to get the rights to for any amount of money.""There's a great moment where we are playing [Prince's] '1999' and we're being lowered down onto the stage by contortionists dressed up in costume and on stilts," Gordon continues. "[Guitarist] Trey [Anastasio] and I, our bodies are perfectly straight. I don't know how we did it. We eventually were flat on the stage. The groove is a very legitimate version, for us anyway, of a Prince song. It's such a nice moment. But the licensing coordinating company has said there isn't any chance in hell we'll get permission to use it." The DVD, provisionally named "The 20th Anniversary Video," may arrive in time for Christmas but could be pushed to early next year. And while the film focuses on on-stage moments, there are a handful of behind-the-scenes clips."There's a shot of Trey and I on our first tour in Telluride [Colo.] going for a run with our shirts off and our guitars on," Gordon says with a laugh. "There's some footage of us kayaking on the Verde River. But it is mainly special guests and unique moments. One of our worries was that it was too much of the silly stuff, but there are some powerful musical moments."The band has discussed devoting entire releases to such major festivals as Coventry, but it could be some time before they see the light of day. "Coventry, I think it will happen, but not for years and years," Gordon says. "And [the Millennium New Year festival] Big Cypress, which people are very excited about doing. We want it to be done right, so we're waiting for [Martin] Scorsese or someone to say, I want to put it together [laughs]."Gordon concedes he knows fans are keeping their fingers crossed that Phish will reunite someday, but says the split "has actually been relatively easy for me. I have dreams where I'm backstage in some exotic place with the band, and it makes me miss the whole deal -- not just the music. Or I hear some of the music on tape and I feel like it's amazing how we still clicked together after all those years. But it's a completely dealable emotion for me.So, is the door open to collaborate again some day? "I think it's possible," he says. "We haven't discounted it. But on the other hand, there's a big feeling of avoiding the reunion tour that seems to be cheesy in most cases. Maybe in a different format, like recording the music for a film or something. I wouldn't be surprised if it doesn't happen, but on the other hand, we stay in touch. And we play and record in pairs. [Drummer Jon Fishman] lives in my town and we really like playing together. There's no excuse not to get together." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarcO Posted July 21, 2005 Report Share Posted July 21, 2005 they're going to release Coventry on DVD?!?!?!? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AD Posted July 21, 2005 Report Share Posted July 21, 2005 Milk it, Trey. AD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kaidy Mae Posted July 21, 2005 Report Share Posted July 21, 2005 WHAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Nice one AD! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shainhouse Posted July 21, 2005 Report Share Posted July 21, 2005 I'm happy.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Del Posted July 21, 2005 Report Share Posted July 21, 2005 Coventry = who cares?Big Cypress = awesome...I don't think there are too many fans who would rather have Coventry over BC... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AD Posted July 21, 2005 Report Share Posted July 21, 2005 Coventry = who cares?Big Cypress = awesome...I don't think there are too many fans who would rather have Coventry over BC...Exactly. I'd pay whatever they were asking for Big Cypress, but probably wouldn't even trade a stinky poo nugget for Coventry.AD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
secondtube Posted July 21, 2005 Report Share Posted July 21, 2005 agreed with what has been said here...please, release Big Cypress, let us remember what was once...and i guess will never be again. Coventry, wtf?I dont understand why they even released IT before BC. It was ok, but i've watched it twice, and put it away. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
secondtube Posted July 21, 2005 Report Share Posted July 21, 2005 i dont understand, why as a band, they dont want to release that, or at least wouldn't want to release that first...it basically was the pinnacle of their career, the highest point they achieved....why wouldn't they want to release that?also, if its all about the $$$ like so many suggest, wouldn't that be even more reason? They would sell more copies of BC than any studio album, dvd, or live release. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomFoolery Posted July 21, 2005 Report Share Posted July 21, 2005 I'm guessing here, but I imagine they had a specific project in mind in advance of doing IT. And, it was just falling through with the concept.They probably weren't thinking about releasing a film with the BC footage when putting together the festival.They way I read MG's comments it seems BC would happen before Coventry - people are already very interested in doing it...$0.02 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dancingbear Posted July 21, 2005 Report Share Posted July 21, 2005 i also agree with the above. i would not buy coventry, they should mail it to the phans they sent home for free as well.cypress is a no brainer. i imagine however they will wait a while.i dont think i would buy the promotional 20th anniversary thing either. i mean i like the 'music' not the 'antics'. would be fun to watch once however. i mean to me the best part of the IT DVD is the bonus DVD. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Del Posted July 21, 2005 Report Share Posted July 21, 2005 They way I read MG's comments it seems BC would happen before Coventry - people are already very interested in doing it..."The band has discussed devoting entire releases to such major festivals as Coventry, but it could be some time before they see the light of day. "Coventry, I think it will happen, but not for years and years," Gordon says. "And [the Millennium New Year festival] Big Cypress, which people are very excited about doing. We want it to be done right, so we're waiting for [Martin] Scorsese or someone to say, I want to put it together [laughs]."The way I read it, Coventry and BC are both far off, but the chances of Scorsese or anyone else for that matter stepping up to direct a BC DVD seems a lot less likely than the Phish organization putting together a Coventry DVD to make a few quick bucks off of the fans who are pining for some more Phish... Plus the BC DVD will have a lot more footage than the Coventry one will (I'm assumming) so it would be easier to release the Coventry... Who knows? I'll be happy with any DVDs they release, and the 20th Anniversary one will be a good start... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomFoolery Posted July 21, 2005 Report Share Posted July 21, 2005 I'm with ya there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
secondtube Posted July 21, 2005 Report Share Posted July 21, 2005 i'd rather them use their time, effort, and resources creating the Coventry DVD on just simply making a kickass Big Cypress DVD. In the end, their fans, and their accountants will thank them for it... stop being lazy hippies, and hire someone to do it for you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skelter Posted July 21, 2005 Report Share Posted July 21, 2005 wow, only two replies before someone rails Trey ... for something MIKE said! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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