Cross Pond Premieres: Phish’s Double Debuts On TV In A Single Year

Even in the age of cable cutting and the prevalence of streaming platforms, appearing on traditional television remains a significant achievement for many musicians. Phish first appeared on national TV when they were featured on a 1992 episode of MTV’s Hangin’ with MTV program.

Phish was more than 10 years into their career when they made their U.S. national television debut on December 30, 1994, performing “Chalk Dust Torture” on Late Night With David Letterman.

When Phish embarked on their first headlining tour of Europe in February 1997, one of the concerts was recorded for the long-running German concert series Rockpalast. The band’s February 16, 1997 show at Alter Wartesaal in Cologne was shown to German TV viewers and others in nearby countries.

According to Phish.net:

“Phish’s February 16, 1997 concert at Wartesaal in Cologne [was] televised in Germany on the program Rockpalast on the station WDR (Westdeutscher Rundfunk) [receivable also in Hungary, Belgium, and the Netherlands]. The first transmission [was] on February 18th at 11:30 p.m. and [lasted] 80 minutes; the second airing [was] on March 2nd at 1:30 a.m. and [included] the full performance.”

Rockpalast, which translates to “Rock Palace,” taped its first episode for WDR in 1974 and continues to be among the premier concert series in the world. The venerable program’s long list of previous performers includes many legendary musicians, including the Grateful Dead, The Who, David Bowie, Bob Marley, Tom Petty, Iggy Pop, The Police, ZZ Top, U2 and scores of others.

Phish’s February 1997 appearance on Rockpalast was the first of two the band would make on the TV series that year. When they returned for a second European tour in June 1997, their single set performance on June 22 at the WDR Festival Loreley in St. Goarshausen, Germany appeared on another episode of Rockplast.

Between those two Rockpalast performances, Phish made another TV appearance when they played “Character Zero” on the March 5, 1997 episode of Late Night With David Letterman. Later in the year, on the cusp of their landmark Fall Tour 1997, Phish made yet another television appearance, when they were musical guests on the November 7, 1997 episode of Late Night With Conan O’Brien.

When musicians are invited to perform on television, a typical choice is to play a song the group knows well and has played live several times before. Familiarity can help ease nerves that might arise from performing in front of what could be millions of viewers.

As for Phish, what might be considered a typical move for a band has often been met with the group eschewing the common approach of others. For their first Rockpalast appearance and their subsequent first appearance on Late Night With Conan O’Brien, Phish took the opportunity to play a pair of songs live in public for the first time.

On February 16, 1997, Phish began the concert recorded for Rockpalast with their debut cover of Del McCoury’s “Beauty Of My Dreams.” The bluegrass number became a setlist staple for Phish through 2000, but in the years following it became more rarely played by the band.

The song was played by Phish with the Del McCoury Band at the festival held in Oswego, New York in July 1999. “Beauty Of My Dreams” was last performed by Phish on October 7, 2023. Watch Phish’s premiere performance of Del McCoury’s “Beauty Of My Dreams,” and the rest of the episode that was recorded for Rockpalast 27 years ago today below:

Perhaps emboldened by the successful cover debut while appearing on German national television, the foursome attempted the feat again while appearing as the musical guest on the aforementioned November 1997 episode of Late Night. Instead of debuting a cover, this time Phish opted to premiere a new original song which to that point had not been performed live in public.

“Farmhouse” was the unexpected second song premiered by Phish while performing for television in 1997. After completing the new song that would serve as the title track to Phish’s 2000 studio album, “Farmhouse” led into “Mike’s Song,” which could briefly be heard by the viewing audience.

“Farmhouse” was written by guitarist Trey Anastasio and his writing partner, lyricist Tom Marshall. Inspired in part by a note found at a barn the pair rented for a writing retreat, “Farmhouse” has remained in somewhat regular rotation within Phish’s live repertoire since its unexpected debut on Late Night.

Check out Phish’s second live debut on national television in 1997: