The Giant Country Horns were a group of musicians who joined rock band

Phish Phish is an American rock band formed in Burlington, Vermont, in 1983. The band is known for musical improvisation, extended jams, blending of genres, and a dedicated fan base. The band consists of guitarist Trey Anastasio, bassist Mike G ...

for 14 concerts during the band's 1991 summer tour. The horn section, named after "Giant Country" White Bread, added new arrangements to classic Phish songs including "Suzy Greenberg," "Stash," "Split Open and Melt" and many other originals and

cover song In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

s. The original trio included Dave Grippo (a music teacher from

South Burlington, Vermont South Burlington is a city in Chittenden County, Vermont, United States. Along with neighboring Burlington, it is a principal city of the Burlington metropolitan area. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the population was 20,292. It is home to the head ...

) on

alto saxophone The alto saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments. Saxophones were invented by Belgian instrument designer Adolphe Sax in the 1840s and patented in 1846. The alto saxophone is pitched in E, smaller than the B tenor ...

, Russell Remington on

tenor saxophone The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (while th ...

, and Carl Gerhard on

trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...

. Phish guitarist

Trey Anastasio Ernest Joseph "Trey" Anastasio III (born September 30, 1964) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter, best known as the lead guitarist of the rock band Phish, which he co-founded in 1983. He is credited by name as composer of 152 Phish o ...

frequently announced the lineup using their nicknames: Dave "The Truth" Grippo, Russell "Killer" Remington, and Carl "Gears" Gerhard. This lineup can be heard on ''

Live Phish Volume 19 ''Live Phish Vol. 19'' was recorded live at the Colonial Theater in Keene, New Hampshire, on July 12, 1991. This concert was recorded during the middle of the band's 1991 summer tour with the Giant Country Horns - a three-piece horn section that ...

'' (July 12, 1991) and on the July 19, 1991 release from the

Live Phish Series Phish is an American rock band noted for their live concerts and improvisational jamming. Audience recordings of Phish's live shows have been traded among fans since the band's earliest days. In addition to numerous studio albums and projects, ...

. In 1994, a different lineup performed with Phish under the name Cosmic Country Horns for a limited number of shows. In addition to Grippo and Gerhard, this expanded horn section included Joey Somerville Jr. and Michael Ray on trumpet, Chris Peterman on tenor saxophone, Mike Hewitt on

baritone saxophone The baritone saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of instruments, larger (and lower-pitched) than the tenor saxophone, but smaller (and higher-pitched) than the bass. It is the lowest-pitched saxophone in common use - the bass, contra ...

, and Don Glasgo (a professor at

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native A ...

) on

trombone The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the Brass instrument, brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the Standing wave, air column ...

. This lineup can be heard on the song "Gumbo" from the platinum selling ''

A Live One ''A Live One'' is a live album by the American rock music, rock band Phish, released on June 27, 1995, by Elektra Records. The album was the band's first official live release, their first album to be certified Platinum by the Recording Industry ...

'' double album. Members of the Giant Country Horns have appeared as special guests at Phish shows several times since 1991, and Grippo and Gerhard have appeared on a number of other

releases. From 2001–2004, Grippo and Remington recorded and toured with Anastasio as members of his first backing band. In late 2005, Remington joined Anastasio's new backing band a few months after the outfit debuted. Both Remington and Grippo have performed with Anastasio's latest backing band as well.

External links

Giant Country Horns on Phish.net
{{Phish Support staff of Phish Brass instrument organizations