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Themes
Introduction
Kurt Vonnegut’s contribution of Hook,
Line & Sinker to The
Greatest Album Covers That Never Were, portions of which are currently
on display
at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, inspired me to take a closer
look at the relationship between Mr. Vonnegut and Phish. By and by
I started to feel snowed under and figured now was as good a time
as any to share some of the interviews and notes I’ve collected in
the name of this project thus far. Now these conversations don’t get at a specific thesis or answer a certain question, but you might
say they foreshadow the sort of formalized, academically tuned investigation
that was my original goal.
Jon Fishman noted in the May
2000 Fish’s Forum, “I missed the boat once when I was young
and stupid, but now I am able to miss the boat repeatedly with great
skill and accuracy.” While the timbre of this statement corresponds
to the brand of self-effacing humor employed at times by Vonnegut,
it also describes my feelings on this project to an extent. I didn’t
exactly accomplish what I set out to achieve a few months back, it’s
still a work in progress; phase one of a bigger project to be completed
at a later date.
At any rate, I am very proud to share the thoughts of Tom Marshall,
Richard Gehr, Max Prior, and Col. Bruce Hampton (Ret.) on the topic
at hand. The degree of humanity and intelligence exhibited herein
is almost overwhelming. Indeed, their respective works, all unique
in their own way, are touchstones to which I aspire.
Interviews
Marshall
(featuring Max Prior)
Bruce Hampton, Ret.
Kurt Vonnegut and
other bands