Soul Planet

• Performances
• History
• Lyrics
• Jam Chart
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  • Phish
  • Fish
  • Mike
  • Page
  • Trey
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History

We are all spinning around on this beautiful planet – despite everything that has been and still is terrifying, mysterious, confusing, and heartbreaking – together here with animals, insects, trees, rivers, oceans, and air: all made from the same ancient stardust. Even though we’re born into a world of unforgivable acts and undeniable truths, the planet also holds love, compassion, and understanding where despite our differences, we remain connected by the shared weight of history and the mysterious forces of collective memory and subconscious thought.

“Soul Planet” sailed into Phish’s orbit on a big boat in the final minutes of 2017, as part of their New Year’s Eve performance and traditional gag at Madison Square Garden. The voyage began that morning, when ticket holders received an email inviting them on a journey to “Soul Planet.” The message gave a nod to “Martian Monster” and hinted that liftoff was imminent.

“You have been selected to ring in the new year as the first travelers to explore the universe by cosmic wristband. You’ll find this wristband when you arrive at your seat … The countdown has begun, and your vessel is about to embark on its voyage of discovery. Because of the incredible power of your wristband, your trip is short.”

After its debut in October with TAB, Phish opened the NYE third set with their debut of “Soul Planet,” immediately starting the “gag” before “Auld Lang Syne.” The stage unfurled to become a pirate ship with a giant sail flapping in the wind, cannons shooting out with confetti, and a Phish ‘Jolly Roger’ flag high up on the mast above the band. With songs reflecting themes about the ocean, the audience became the water when the aforementioned wristbands lit up across the venue and made an illusion of one big ocean along the bowl of the Garden.

Video by Phish

In an April 2019 Rolling Stone article, Trey describes how the band wanted to present a new song after the fan’s commitment to seeing up to 17 nights at Madison Square Garden in 2017. Trey articulates this sentiment:

“The Baker’s Dozen, people honored us with their presence. It’s hard work to go to all those shows. We really cared, and it was so much fun. But then it’s like, ‘Oh, four more nights for New Year’s,’ so we did 17 nights at the Garden that calendar year. I said, “We have to end the year with a new song,” which was “Soul Planet,” with the pirate ship and all that. The reason was because they just came for 13 nights, and we owe everyone in a way. I mean, it’s our friends. It’s our family. It’s become, really, a family feeling, as you know. You’ve probably been there. That particular New Year’s Eve was designed as a specific message of, ‘Thank you.’ We’re on the boat, but we’re not driving it. The wind is blowing, and the wind is the music, and you are the ones who are keeping us afloat. That was the message.“

The preparation for this event can be seen throughout the 2019 documentary Between Me and My Mind, which chronicles a year of Trey’s life between 2017 and 2018, based on the creative process of writing and recording an album for his new band Ghosts of the Forest, alongside intimate moments between Trey and his family and close friends.

The film starts off with Trey in his Manhattan home, drinking coffee, chatting with Fish about the upcoming Bakers shows, and working on new songs. Later, we travel with Trey as he sails off to Maine to preview, rehearse, and record a demo of “Soul Planet” with Fish. His journey continues to Vermont, where he takes their demo to Page’s house, and then finally to Mike’s studio for the final mix. The film culminates with the New Year’s Eve performance of the song and explores the full process from conception to a grand Phish New Year’s Eve gag.

These Trey-penned lyrics mark a significant change in Trey’s songwriting for Phish, with their direct message exploring the lyrical themes of love, light, positivity, and connection. Other songs around this time include “More”, “Rise/Come Together”, and “Miss You”, which are also in line with this more direct style of songwriting. 

“Soul Planet” and its sibling song “Set Your Soul Free” both originally debuted with TAB on 10/27/17 at the Brooklyn Bowl in Las Vegas a few months before Phish’s debut and a few weeks after the abhorrent mass shooting attacks of dozens of live music attendees at the Route 91 Harvest festival on October 1, 2017. Both of these songs are married together by the timing of their debut and also the overall content of the lyrics. They are small glimpses of light and hope after such a devastating and tragic loss. 

These early versions are slightly faster, with a driving rhythm compared to the bouncier versions with Phish and originally featured soulful, stellar vocals of TAB’s James Casey and Jennifer Hartswick. The final “wind is the music (soul planet!)” stanza of the Phish version was not in the original TAB versions. Also, the early TAB version includes lines in the second verse that were removed in the Phish version:

“And there’s only one color.
Said now I’m touching you.
And you're touching me.
Yeah, everyone’s animals and trees.
They’re you and me”

“Soul Planet” was shelved from the full band TAB repertoire once it became a Phish song; however, many versions were played with the TAB trio in the Spring and Summer shows of 2018 and once during the Beacon Jams on 10/09/20. Trey debuted the solo acoustic version of “Soul Planet” on 11/2/17 for a three-song set that was part of the 2017 Spirit Of Life Gala honoring Trey’s manager Coran Capshaw. 

Similarly to “Set Your Soul Free,” “Soul Planet” quickly became a new jam staple in Phish sets starting in the Summer of 2018. It started with a sixteen-minute version on 7/28/18 at the Forum in Inglewood, CA, with a funk-filled peak that segues into “Wingsuit.” A remarkable version on 8/4/18 during the second night of three stellar shows in Alpharetta, GA, was a highlight of 2018. 

This multi-section type II performance is a must-hear and made “Soul Planet’s” mark as a new jam-worthy ship and previewed what was to come three years later. Starting at Dick’s on 9/2/18, “Soul Planet” was a set opener for every performance for the next year until 12/8/19 in North Charleston, SC, segueing out of “Energy” four songs into set two. 

On 08/31/21, on their first summer tour since the global COVID pandemic, Phish went deep into the sea of jam with the third-longest Phish jam of their career up until that point. It was a culmination of the summer of long adventurous jams, a reflection of the spirit of us returning to being together again for live music. It was also special in that the show was never supposed to be at Shoreline, as it moved from Lake Tahoe on short notice after devastating fires in the area. This jam is important because it represents looseness, freedom, and a sense of adventure for Phish in 2021. 

Other highlights include “Soul Planet” > Little Feat rarity “Spanish Moon” on 2/21/19 in Mexico, a short but noteworthy Type I show opener at Blossom on 6/19/19, the rocking Type 1 set two opener on  7/9/19, where it segued into the Phish debut of Ghost of the Forest’s “Wider,” the return of “Quadrophonic Toppling” in a “Soul Planet” jam in Orange Beach on 5/27/22, and 8/4/24 at Deer Creek, where it followed a stellar “Ghost” and flowed seamlessly into “Billy Breathes.”

“Soul Planet -> Quadrophonic Toppling -> Soul Planet” 5/27/22 - Orange Beach, AL. Video by Phish.

The ocean is wide open for more musical explorations, and we are ready to depart, with or without our life vests. 

Last significant update: 7/24/25 

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