Reviewing the Possibilities Part I

Without much ado let's get to breaking up the selections:


Traveled Territory:

Rolling Stones - Exile on Main St
Jimi Hendrix - Band of Gypsys
Jimi Hendrix - Are You Experienced
Velvet Underground - VU and Nico
Led Zeppelin - I
Led Zeppelin - IV
Who - Who's Next
Pink Floyd - Meddle
Talking Heads - Fear of Music
Pink Floyd - The Wall
Ween - White Pepper

Phish fans are familiar with these acts not just because they help make up the holy canon of rock n roll but because of previous attention paid by the band. Velvet Underground, Talking Heads, Pink Floyd and the Who have already received the full album cover treatment, which would seem to disqualify them. I'd also argue that Phish has dipped into the catalog of Led Zeppelin and Hendrix enough (GTBT, Ramble On, Axis:Bold as Love, Machine Gun, Fire) that a selection of one of their full albums would be seen as anticlimactic in the eyes of many fans. Not to say the band won't knock any selection out of the park, but there's definitely a feeling of been there, done that with those bands. Ween's White Pepper, despite Roses are Free finding its way into Phish setlists often, is the dark horse/wild card of the group. This particular album is in tune with the band's quirky sense of humor, both light-hearted and dark at times, with enough musical skill demonstrated for the band to stretch its legs.


The New Jacks:

Radiohead - Kid A
Roots - Phrenology
Arcade Fire - Funeral
Pavement - Crooked Rain
Wilco - Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
MGMT - Oracular Spectacular
MMW - Bubblehouse
Beastie Boys - Hello Nasty
Manu Chao - Clandestino
White Stripes - Elephant
Rage Against the Machine - Evil Empire
Pearl Jam - Ten
Nirvana - Nevermind

Some of the best albums of the past two decades make their way into this list. Personally, I find this category loads of fun. Rarely do we get to see artists cover the work of their contemporaries, especially when both artists are in or near their primes. A selection of one of these albums by Phish would also certainly break from tradition. Of all Phish's previous Halloween covers, the Talking Heads' album had the latest release date: October 1980. A Generation X-sized 11-year chasm separates the bearded geezers of this group, Pearl Jam's Ten and Nirvana's Nevermind, from Remain in Light. Kid A, Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, Phrenology and Oracular Spectacular also seem to have traveled an equal sonic distance from their predecessors.

Many have commented on the noticeable influence the absorption of Remain in Light had on Phish's music after Halloween 1998. I could see The Arcade Fire's Funeral being a fan favorite heading into Halloween and having a similar impact on the musical direction of the band. (ZOMFG - and what if Arcade Fire came out for the Encore!!1!1!!!)


Trey-a-palooza:

AC/DC - Back in Black
ZZ Top - Tres Hombres
Metallica - Master of Puppets
Van Halen - Van Halen
Kiss - Alive II
Black Sabbath - Paranoid
Eric Clapton - 46 Ocean Blvd.
The Ramones - The Ramones

IMO, these albums turn Halloween into a one-man show. Smoke will emanate from the Languedoc and faces will melt but the band will have to take some liberties with the materials to create room for 2009 Tour MVP Page McConnell.


Group Fun:

Tom Petty - Damn the Torpedoes
Guns n Roses - Appetite for Destruction
Fleetwood Mac - Rumours
Steely Dan - Pretzel Logic
Television - Marquee Moon
T.Rex - T. Rex


Easily confused with Trey-a-paloozas but these combine incendiary guitar sounds with plenty of musical opportunites and jam exploration for Page, Mike and Fish. Sad that Damn the Torpedoes was one of the first to get jetted - I was pulling for that one.