This remnant will be replaced soon. The FAQ is back, with a new design! What is a "golgi apparatus"? What's a golgi? "The golgi apparatus is a part (organelle) of non-bacterial (eukaryotic) cells that is the site of several cell functions, including synthesis of carbohydrates, secretion of proteins to the outside of the cell, and transport of cell wastes to the digestive mechanism of the cell. It looks a little bit like a stack of pancakes viewed from the side." (Dan Mielcarz 7/28/97) Lyrical meaning: The golgi apparatus (which is not a power structure in the mitochondrion, as errantly reported here earlier) sorts, processes, and ships proteins. (Some of these proteins are enzymes, but the golgi does not make them, as previously reported here.) These proteins are shipped either for storage in an operational membrane (usually the plasma membrane, the one which encloses the cell proper) or for digestion. Those destined for digestion in lysosomes (literally "digesting body", from "lyso" meaning digest and "soma" meaning body) are modified. Part of this modification includes the processing of a molecular marker which tags the enzymes for shipment to the lysosomes. The Golgi thus gives these enzymes a "ticket to ride" to their lysosomal destinations. The lyrics "call you lysosome cause you run so fast" and "i saw you with a ticket stub in your hand" may thus mean that the singer has observed proteins which have been so "tagged" by the golgi apparatus, given a ticket and thus made mobile. (Note that lysosome themselves are nonmotile. They don't move.) (with significant input from Bob Aderhold 10/13&14/97, who identified this interpretation and then closed lysosomically with "Gotta go. Lots to do.") Origin: The liner notes to Junta credit the lyrics as being "written in 8th grade by the immortal songwriting team of [Bob] Szuter, [Aaron] Woolfe, [Tom] Marshal [sic] and [Trey] Anastasio," but Bob emailed (11/98) to say he "didn't get to join the gang -- nor did I even know them -- until ninth grade." Bob still has the biology textbook page (including both illustration and correct pronunciation) that inspired the song; the given pronunciation, BTW, is "GOL-jee" not "Gol-ghee" (like Old Jesus, not Old Geezer). Bob added (12/28/98) that he had "saved the biology textbook page for years, until recently, when the Phish business folks tracked me down regarding the writing credits for Golgi. ... I sent the biology textbook page and the original handwritten notes of the lyrics in to Phish Central headquarters. The irony was I that I had saved that stuff from ninth grade until now, long before the song was ever an actual published song, long before Phish even existed." Bob also mentioned that, "before I ever knew Phish recorded the song (because -- forgive me -- I was long out of the loop by 1987) I actually recorded a rendtion from memory with a basement band (myself and two cousins). This alternate universe version is more like a bad folk song parody, which is what the original Golgi section was supposed to be (me and Aaron)." Thanks also to Chris Charapata and Roy Keyes. "To stop the flow of music would be like the stopping of time itself, incredible and inconceivable."" -- Aaron Copland" This page last updated February 03, 2007. All contents © 1992-2007 Ellis Godard. All rights reserved.