In the introduction for “The Strangest of Places,” where I recounted some of my favorites in the alignment between chapters and their associated song titles, I made a promise:
I’m also particularly enamored with the lyrical references to “Them other boys? I don’t give a damn,” and the nod to David Bowie’s “Fame” in “The Man” by the Killers. You’ll most likely only understand why both of those are fun if you’re immersed in the Phish and Grateful Dead communities, as I expect the majority of my readers will most likely be. If you’re not, and you’re curious, keep an eye on my web site. I intend to start a blog there, and I will include this explanation within the first few posts.
And here we are.
It's far more likely that Phish Phans will get these references, more so than GD-exclusive Deadheads, but given the crossover between the two, any in the latter camp who may be confused by it are almost guaranteed to know someone in the former who could explain it, without needing a blog post like this. I'm mostly writing this post for those of you to whom the Phish/Grateful Dead references are terra incognita, but are curious to learn more.
Let's jump right in, shall we?
Reference #1: “Them other boys? I don’t give a damn.”
The reason why these lyrics from "The Man" by The Killers are fun has to do with the longstanding rivalry between Deadheads and Phans. I don’t get into too much detail about that rivalry in the book, but you can read a brief summary of it in “A Touch of Trey,” a feature article I wrote for Jambands.com in advance of Fare Thee Well, the Grateful Dead’s 50th anniversary celebration that took place in 2015.
Suffice it to say that rivalry reached a fever pitch in the wake of Jerry Garcia’s death, in late 1995, and it was pretty acrimonious. To some (arrested development dinosaurs), it still is.
Even now, decades later, referring to any
band as “the boys” while in the presence of a particular type of Deadhead (most likely aged 50+) will immediately trigger a litany of protestations about how only ONE band can ever be referred to as “the boys,” and it’s definitely not YOUR band.
Phans, of course, have been referring to Phish as “the boys” anyway, regardless of – or, perhaps because of – the rage it often induced among the Deadheads. It’s worth mentioning that history is repeating itself; that same dynamic is playing out present day, which you can plainly see in any online community dedicated to jamband discussions. Younger fans of newer bands (*cough*GOOSE*cough*) will send certain types of Phans into apoplectic fits, should those kids have the temerity to refer to THEIR band as “the boys.”
Personally, being a music fan, I don't choose sides and make fruitless comparisons between apples and oranges (see what I did there?). That said, this established vs. newcomer rivalry kicking back up again does make for some entertaining memes, so at least we're all getting some laughs out of it.
I intend to write a series of posts discussing the choices for each song to represent its associated chapter, so I’ll avoid spoilers on why this song fits for chapter 27. You may not understand the connection to the story yet, but now you understand why “the boys” is a hot button phrase, making those lyrics appearing in that song (within the to-be-revealed context) amusing.
Reference 2: “Fame” by David Bowie
Also within chapter 27’s song, there’s a lyrical/vocal tease that references David Bowie’s song, “Fame,” right around the 3:15 mark -- this video is queued up to start there:
The pregnant pause between “hall of” and “… FAME” in The Killers's song calls attention to the melodic echo of how “Fame” is sung in David Bowie's song (fun fact: that's John Lennon on backing vocals) -- this video is also queued up to start just before an example, for reference:
That being the case, this reference is entertaining for Phans because one of Phish’s oldest and most well-loved jam vehicles is a song called “David Bowie,” which the band debuted on Halloween in 1986.
Search YouTube for “Phish David Bowie” and you will find plenty of examples, most notably being the version from the Providence Civic Center on 12/29/94. Should you ever meet my husband, ask him about this particular version of the song – it’s one of his favorite show stories.
So, there you have it.
While I assume the majority of my readers will be Phish, Grateful Dead, Goose, BMFS and other stripes of jamband fans, I suspect that there may be some who are not, or are just starting to discover these bands. For those this applies to, most of the history and context that I take for granted in my audience will need explanations like this, so you may see similar posts, as those topics are brought to my attention.
If you are one of these readers and you have questions that you’d like to see answered in future blog posts, just let me know. There are few topics I’m more passionate about, so I’d love to hear your ideas!
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