Songs

The only explicitly political song in their original repertoire was "Dear Mrs. Reagan", which hasn't been played since sometime prior to the presidential election in 1988. (Page's "Army of One", a Vida Blue song that PHish has played, e.g. 7/12/03 and 8/3/03, is not explicitly political, but is full of references to the warwongering of the time in which it was written and played.) However, discussions on Phish.Net occassionally address implicit sociopolitically ethicultural ideas. And Trey has written about The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday that, "It turns out that the revolution is funded thru Palmer's extorition of Wilson's money. (Shades of America in the eighties.)"

Shows

Some Phish shows have had explicit political or social beneficiaries:

• A show 4-6-85 at Finbar's (for which admission was one dollar!) served as an Oxfam benefit and raised money for Central American humanitarian aid via the Tools for Peace and Justice in Central America effort.
• --88 was a benefit for NORML (the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws).
• 4/15/89 was a benefit for VPIRG (Vermont Public Interest Research Group)
• 5-16-95 was "a three-band benefit that raised more than $30,000 for for Voters for Choice, a national committee to help elect candidates who support abortion rights." (Paul Robicheau, Boston Globe) The show featured Gloria Steinheim as the opening "act", nine debuts (six originals and three covers), a "Gloria" encore, t'boot!
• Some proceeds from 7-2-95 went to support the King Street after-school program. (More information would be appreciated.)
• 10/17-18/98 and again 10/--99, Bridge School Benefit. (See also Concert Guide.)
• 10/3/98 Farm Aid (webcast) Trey made specific mention of Vermont congressmen Patrick Lahey and __ and of Farm Aid's efforts to stop expansion of the first factory farm in Vermont.
• At a number of shows (examples), Phish has encouraged people to bring canned goods.

In perhaps only one interview, Trey's made specific political statements, printed in Rollingstone 's October 23 issue (Bill Clinton on the cover). RS asked musicians for their opinion about "Lewinskygate" and included a reponse by "Trey Anastasio - Phish guitarist:

Clinton may be guilty of a lapse of judgment, but Kenneth Starr is a politically motivated, narrow-minded dirt bag.
Privacy is a fundamental right in a democracy. If we allow Kenneth Starr to dismantle this presidency over basic issues of privacy, we'll have taken a dangerous step toward censorship and the loss of individual and personal freedom.

And that's not to mention the effects and intentions of their music and performances or of the consequent community of phans.

"I also think that when you go to play music, you're there to play music. You're not there to spread any particular... If you're Bob Marley you're there to spread a message, but very few people can do that effectively without shoving opinions down someone's throat. When I go on stage man I just want people to have fun, I don't want people to think about their problems, I want people to get energy and nutrition and food from that so they can go back into the real world and work on their problems. I don't want them to think about that shit when they're there, and I don't want to think about it." -- Jon Fishman, 1996

"We stand for things." -- George W. Bush, Davenport, Iowa, 8/5/04