Gumbo

About Gumbo

"Gumbo" is a song by the American band Phish. It is a funk/jazz song written around 1990 by Phish guitarist and lead vocalist Trey Anastasio and drummer Jon Fishman. It is the third track from their 1995 live album A Live One and was released as their ninth promotional single by Elektra Records in 1995. Like "Split Open and Melt," "Gumbo" started out as a strong tune but one that had a destiny that didn't lie solely in its composition. A mix of acid jazz and loose funk attended with three-part harmonies and silly lyrics, it had all the ingredients for greatness. The first several versions clearly lacked something, which seemed to be fulfilled with the addition of horns – five times on the Giant Country Horn tour in 1991 and twice with the West Coast return of the horns (in 1994). The (12/2/94) version appears on A Live One (from which it was the second single released) as well as the European compilation, Stash. more »