| Media |

Collecting Live Tapes

General Background

Tapers at Deer Creek, Noblesville, IN (Hamilton Co. Daily Ledger, August 13, 1996)
Photograph by Jason I. Koenig/Daily Ledger

Phish permits audience recording of their performances for non-commercial purposes. Taping is done from a designated location at each performance (the tapers' section, or "the section") which is located near the soundboard. Tapers supply microphones, recording decks, other necessary equipment, and their own source of electrical power. Because Phish recordings were widely traded, the band won a national following and toured coast-to-coast before signing a recording contract with Elektra or receiving significant media attention.

Tape Distribution

Getting Started

Many Phish tapes are distributed through systems known as tape-trees. Tape-trees are hierarchial distribution networks typically composed of applicants assigned positions in the structure by a single administrator. Tape trees are often advertised in the USENET newsgroup rec.music.phish. Operation EveryShow attempts to tree every Phish performance. Many people post "newbie offers" (offers to copy performances to your blank tapes) to rec.music.phish. The only cost associated with obtaining these Phish performances is the cost of blank cassettes and postage each way. Anyone who charges a copying fee or asks for additional (not-returned) blank cassettes is violating Phish's rights and endangering future taping privileges. Stores which sell pre-recorded Phish cassettes or live CDs (other than the Live One release) are also in violation of federal copyright laws and pose a significant threat to continued audience taping.