As Phish tour is completed until the summer, Jazz Is Phsh is coming together for a late spring tour from May 31 to June 11. Covering the parts of the northeast and Midwest, the band will bring their electrifying interpretations of the Phish song book to Phish phans and Jazz fans to dive into.
What has become a rare treat, Jazz Is Phsh creates an exhilarating experience as they journey through the catalogue of Phish while seamlessly weaving the songs together with compositions of jazz legends like Miles Davis, Jaco Pastorius and Herbie Hancock.
Audio - Jazz Is Phsh - You Enjoy My Bounce (Phish and Nate Smith Mashup)
Figuring out the songs as they are rearranged and reimagined is equally as fun an aspect of Jazz Is Phsh that Phish phans enjoy as much sharing in the groove of the music. For jazz fans and those unfamiliar with the music of Phish, the deep dives into the history books of jazz as well as the references to current artists like Robert Glasper and Nate Smith provide a never ending stream of auditory pleasure.
Just don’t let the name of the band fool you. While the arrangements are steeped in jazz, the funky, rocking fusion interpretations of the music will bring you to your feet. Fortunately, the tour will include a mix of sit down jazz clubs like the Bop Stop in Cleveland on June 1 and famous rocking venues like Nectars in Burlington Vermont on June 8, which happens to be the legendary club where Phish cut their teeth as college students at University of Vermont.
The mix of rooms will give fans an opportunity to catch a few different shows on the tour to have a range of experiences with the band. While their catalogue is not quite as big as Phish’s hundreds of songs spanning over 40 years, Jazz Is Phsh has been touring since 2015 and has created an impressive catalgoue of their own.
Audio - Jazz Is Phsh - Divided Sky Supreme (Phish and John Coltrane Mashup)
With mashups of Phish’s “You Enjoy Myself” with Nate Smith’s “Bounce” and Phish’s “Divided Sky” with the John Coltrane masterpiece “A Love Supreme” along with a plethora of other mashups of Phish songs, the band is able to craft unique setlists each night so that fans that travel with the band can have unique experiences each night.
Head to jazzisphish.com to grab tickets for the upcoming shows.
May
31 - Cincinnati OH - Fretboard Brewing
June
1 - Cleveland OH - Bop Stop
2 - Baltimore MD - 8x10 (w/ The Chase Brothers)
3 - Toronto ON - Adelaide Hall
7 - Buffalo NY - Iron Works
8 - Burlington VT - Nectars
9 - New Market NH - Stone Church
10 - Manchester CT - Main Pub
11 - New York, NY - Nublu
MORE ABOUT THE BAND: Jazz is Phsh formed in Sept 2015, when The Chase Brothers assembled an All Star cast of musicians to work on the album “He Only Spoke A Word” to pay homage to the band Phish. In the words of cofounder Adam Chase “The music of Phish had a huge impact on my brother and I as musicians. While our palette for music has changed, the appreciation for the unique compositions of Trey Anastasio and the fellow members of Phish has been something that we wanted to celebrate.”
The initial formation of the band assembled for they album included The Chase Brothers (Adam Chase and Matthew Chase) with legendary drummer, Dennis Chambers, Dave Matthews Band Saxophonist Jeff Coffin, Chris Bullock of Snarky Puppy, Michael Ray of SunRa Arkestra and Kool and The Gang, Anthony Wellington of Victor Wooten Band, Carl Gerhard of Phish’s Giant Country Horns, Holly Bowling, Jonathan Scales, and Kofi Burbridge.
Since the inception, the band members of consistently cycled through players associated with The Chase Brothers and have included Felix Patorius, DOMi Degalle, Jonathan Huber, Justin Stanton, Cody Wright, Sly5thAve, James Casey, Natalie Cressman, and many others. The setlists are as unpredictable as the lineup of musicians from one show to the next. At a Jazz Is Phsh show, you never know who you might see on the stage.
Beyond the players in the band, The Chase Brothers have put together arrangements that are inventive and fun, keeping fans on their toes as they seamlessly weave together mashups of Phish songs and Jazz compositions. Blending Phish melodies and compositions with grooves and passages from Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock, Sun Ra, Jaco Pastorius, Wayne Shorter, Nate Smith, Robert Glasper, and John Coltane creates a opportunity for fans of both Jazz and Phish to enjoy new spins on classic favorites, from Divided Sky for Phish heads to A Love Supreme by John Coltrane for jazz fans.
“This band was intended to be just an album to pay tribute to the band that was my gateway to Frank Zappa, George Duke, Lowell George, and Sun Ra,” states Adam Chase. “As a teenager, it was the first music I heard that was outside of the box and not radio friendly pop music. The long form compositions that were steeped in jazz and classical music but presented in a rock and roll format was a revelation for me as a musician. I imagine my brother would say the same. Now that we have evolved as musicians, it is nice to come back to the music that was so influential to us and present it in a way that can bring in jazz fans and musicians that normally wouldn’t give Phish a chance. It’s also fun to introduce Phish fans to the aspects we love the most about jazz music.”
