My Top 1000 Songs #517: Bouncing Around The Room

 [I've been writing up my Top 1000 songs on a daily basis--you can see them all in descending order by hitting the All My Favorite Songs tag.]

Like most Phish fans, my entry to the band and their weird, arguably insular culture was through their live music. But while their studio albums may not be top-of-mind for most fans, much less those outside the cult, it doesn't mean there isn't some fine music to be found there. And "Bouncing Around The Room," from 1990's Lawn Boy LP, is an undeniably fun little pop song worthy of a listen even if the rest of the Phish aesthetic isn't up your alley. The song highlights the band's composition strengths in unusually concise fashion, some gentle, percolating bass & percussion backing some playful verbal interplay, the band's more virtuosic tendencies mostly laying low aside for some guitar & keyboard gymnastics at he back-end.

While long a staple of Phish' live repertoire, it's the rare song that's always left intact, never breaking loose into the band's trademark extended jams, a brief sing-along pop respite among the more cosmic breakaways. It doesn't do much to explain the band's enduring popularity and cultish adoration, but that's ok; sometimes a nice little tune is all you need.

Live in 2023: