Hi everybody and welcome to this week’s episode of Attendance Bias. I am your host, Brian Weinstein. We have a very special guest for today’s episode. For the most part, Attendance Bias is focused on fans of the band, and each fan tells his or her story. But once in a long while, a person directly associated with the band will come on the podcast to talk about their history with Phish and to break down a special show or jam. Tom Marshall has been on the pod, Sue Drew who was the band’s A&R rep at Elektra Records told her story, and today’s guest ranks right up there in his ability to tell about his Phish experience from the inside out. And today’s guest is member of the Giant Country Horns and current trumpet player for Roomful of Blues, Carl “Gears” Gerhard. Carl chose to tell about his gig with Phish at Arrowhead Ranch, NY, on July 21, 1991.
If you got into Phish at a time when tape collecting was still part of the experience, there is no doubt that this gig came across your radar at some point. The second of two shows, this fan favorite was the midway point of the July 1991 horn tour, and you could tell that the band–the full band–was feeling it, full throttle.
Aside from the music, though, a main goal of this podcast is to help the listener feel as though he or she is right there with the guest, feeling and experiencing the show that’s being discussed. What makes today’s episode special is that Carl is able to get us backstage and onstage with Phish as he tells us about the conversations and decisions that led to the horn tour, and what it felt like to collaborate with Phish and the other members of the Giant Country Horns. More important than anything, though, is that Carl was extremely generous with his time and his words, welcoming us into the world that was Phish tour in the early 90s.
So let’s join Carl to talk about Tony Bennett, life in the Navy, and 48 hour marathon rehearsals, as we discuss Phish's show from 7/21/91 at Arrowhead Ranch.