Phish’s Bakers Dozen Is The Epitome Of The Collision of Food And Rock

The genre-bending, Vermont-based jamband Phish has long been a source of conflict among music fans, the foursome’s meandering space-sections beloved by some and derided by many. But any music fans interested in fan loyalty, unique performances, and the convergence of food and rock should be paying attention to the band’s ongoing run of 13 (!) shows at Madison Square Garden in NY, where a partnership between the band and a tiny donut shop in Pennsylvania has become a legendary, ongoing chapter in the band’s 3-decade career.

That donut shop, Federal Donuts, is giving out free donuts to the first couple-thousand fans through the door each night of the run, with the donut flavor announced ahead of time by the band – and then riffed on over the course of the night, creating a sort of guessing-game among the band’s fans before each night’s show (not by accident, the first promo for the show also found donuts running amok in NY, and limited-edition tickets also are in the shape of the tubular sweets). The opening night offered up gratis Coconut Donuts; the band proceeded to play the obscure Junior Senior disco-rock song “Shake Your Coconuts” to open the show, ostensibly introducing the gag to its fans, while Harry Nillson’s “Coconut” made an appearance later in the show.

(photo: https://twitter.com/112atMSG)

At this point, eight shows into the run, the band’s veered off that script only slightly: following Strawberry night (”Strawberry Fields Forever,” natch) and Red Velvet (a duo of Velvet Underground songs), the band played a “Jam Filled” night that found them expanding songs that usually are more concise; last night’s show, which featured donuts covered in “Jimmies” – known to anyone outside of Philly as “Sprinkles,” found the band playing two rarities, “Col. Forbin’s Ascent” and “Harpua,” both of which reference a fictional character named – you guessed it – Jimmy. During “Harpua,” bassist Mike Gordon and Trey Anastasio sat on chairs, front-stage, and discussed a NY Times article about how the universe is donut shaped; the show ended with the first-ever run-through of “The Wind Cries Mary” (get it??)

Basically, Phish has now accomplished what every music festival has been trying to do for years: by making this Bakers Dozen run about both the donuts and the tunes, fans are discussing food and music in equal measure. They’re off tonight, but Tuesday finds the band serving up Maple donuts – and, presumably, a song or two that reference the flavor, though fans thus far have been hard-pressed to find any choices that seem to make sense. For the Bakers Dozen, unpredictability and absurdity, though, are clearly king – well, that and sugary deliciousness. 

– Jeff Miller