The Trey Birthday Controversy
I love music and one of my favorite bands is Phish (R.I.P.). Their lead vocalist and guitarist Trey Anastasio possesses a certain kind of magic, and I know I am not the only one who is enamored. So of course I have always been curious about his birthchart. On pretty legit websites such as imdb.com and Wikipedia, his birthday has always been given as September 30, 1964. However, on December 15, 2006 Trey was arrested for DWI in Whitehall, New York. His mugshot, which quickly began to circulate online, has him holding a booking ID which lists his birthday as April 13, 1966. What???
So which is the more credible source? It would be hard to explain why he would have always tried to mislead the public about his birthday by giving them a bogus date (the September one) which would have made him two years older. It can be assumed that the April date on his arrest record came straight off of his Drivers License. However, I gather that police often get the details wrong when booking somebody and since he was booked for a suspended license, amongst other infractions, it is possible he did not have a license on him at all. But it still does not seem to make sense.
Lets take a look at the two birthcharts. Interestingly, they put him alternately in the opposite signs of Libra and Aries. Trey has all of the classic ruddy looks of an Aries, who almost always have a ginger tinge. However, by the Libra birthchart his moon sign would be Leo, very appropriate for the man who has always been comfortable taking center stage, the star of the band. This also could give a fiery countenance, and it is always possible that Leo or Aries could be his rising sign.
Libra Chart: Moon in Leo conjunct Mars, indicating a do-er, somebody who is motivated and creative, and takes action easily and instinctively. Venus is also in attention-loving Leo meaning he would enjoy the spotlight and being a celebrated artist. Saturn in Aquarius opposed to this Venus indicates that fame could be difficult for him as well as a blessing. Powerful Pluto and rebellious Uranus are two degrees apart in Virgo, a conjunction that lasted for about 10 years. It is the signature of a perfectionistic innovator. Lucky Jupiter is in Taurus, the sign that is associated with musical talent. Mercury in its home sign of Virgo, would also indicate skill as a writer and lyricist, something that he has enjoyed throughout his career. Being a Libra would emphasize his part in a group, wanting to support and collaborate with other artists and to balance out their different talents.
Aries Chart: Sun in Aries is conjunct assertive Mars, the ruler of Aries, giving him a double dose of innovating creative instincts. His moon sign would be Aquarius, giving him even more of the genius, rebellious Uranus energy. Saturn is conjunct Mercury in Aries, an indication that he is a spontaneous communicator, but takes his art very seriously. It is of course, spontaneous jamming that Phish is most beloved for. Venus is elevated in sensuous Pisces, tapping him into that collective mood that represents his relationship with his fans and followers. Most potent is the fact that the Pluto/Uranus conjunction was within days of exact conjunction, making it incredibly powerful. Being an Aries would make him more self-interested than group-oriented.
What I find most interesting is how even though one of these charts is totally random and insignificant, these two charts have many similar themes! They include the strong Mars (either conjunct the sun or moon) and the strong Mercury (dignified in Virgo or conjunct Saturn). Also in either case he benefits from the Pluto/Uranus conjunction giving him gifts as a talented rebel. And they both have a very strong Fire sign signature (three planets in Leo/four planets in Aries). Basically either of them could be accurate descriptions of the very talented Mr. Trey… but only one has the answers.
The best evidence is, of course, for the documented September 30th birthday. He graduated from high school at Taft in 1983, which would have made him 18 according to the September 1964 date. This sounds accurate. Though both of his parents were involved in education so it is not totally out of the question that he would have been ahead in school, graduating at 16, but certainly much less likely. Having kept his band together for a rocking 21 years is also a feat best accomplished by a compromising and partnership-oriented Libra. And besides, all the planets in Leo add to his rock star aura. But I am still curious about the strange discrepancy… any phans who have info feel free to share.
THank you for this!!!! Very interesting… So excited to have some phun this summer!!!!
Hi Christine,
Phaithphul Phish Phan, here! Since your writing the above post, Phish has (thankfully!) reunited. At their inaugural reunion show on Friday, March 6, 2009, Trey publicly re-asserted his September birthday in song. Performed that night at Hampton Coliseum in Hampton, VA, the tune “Grind” features a section where the four members of the band announce, in a slightly demented barbershop quartet-style, the number of days they’ve been alive. It goes:
“I can bend in sixty-eight ways
I have lived for twelve thousand days
Twenty-eight teeth inside of my head
Grind three types of things
And I’m sad that they’re dead
“I can bend in sixty-eight ways
And I have lived for…”
At this point, on that date (3/6/09), Trey sang the number 16,228. According to Internet time-duration converter at http://www.timeanddate.com/date/duration.html this number of days puts Trey’s birthdate squarely on Wednesday, September 30, 1964.
I personally think the small-town police department bungled Trey’s birthdate, all the way to the mugshot. I’m currently in the post-application portion of awaiting my new limo driver’s license in New York City. But I was informed that some bureaucratic nonsense is holding up my application. After running my fingerprints, the Taxi & Limousine commission found an association with a woman whose name and birthdate are similar to mine (Karen L. Wade), who has a warrant out for her arrest in Orange County in Upstate NY.
Despite clearly not being the same person (different name, different SSN, slightly similar birthdate a whole year apart), the NYC T&LC and NYS Department of Motor Vehicles have conspired to put me through hoops of fire, in order to correct their lazy errors.
In this light, it’s entirely possible the Whitehall, NY P.D. displayed the birthdate of some other poor schmuck who popped up in the system after they ran Trey’s fingerprints, on the fateful mugshot that would go on to stump the world.
I posit the claim of bureaucratic negligence. A disregard for precision and thoroughness on the part of the Whitehall police department might contribute to a somewhat accurate portrait of hayseed town police establishments. The amount of time it’s taking the Maybrook, NY (read: Mayberry?) police department to merely stick a piece of paper saying I’m not Karen L. Wade into an envelope and mail it to me, further proves that the collective ineptitude of too many bureaucratic cooks working in lopsided lockstep, will probably always spoil the broth.
You’d think for a hefty $75.00 fingerprinting fee, the NYC Taxi & Limousine Commission might bother to ignore the obvious discrepancy in the first place. Pshaw!
The record shall be set straight, though, in good time. The band opened with “Grind” last week Thursday (June 4, 2009) at Nikon Jones Beach Theater in Wantagh, NY, the third night of their first 2009 reunion tour. Trey’s day report was 16,318. Once again, a 9/30/64 birthdate checks out perfectly. Civil Servants 1, Trey Anastasio 2 (and counting).