Phish, Billy Joel, and Harry Styles don’t have much in common, but they all now share a rare distinction at New York’s Madison Square Garden. After 15 shows at the famed arena over the past month and change, Styles was honored on Wednesday with the raising of a new banner to the rafters of MSG, his name joining Phish and Joel as the third musician honored among the building’s heroes and champions.
Billy Joel has long held a unique place in the pantheon of MSG superstars. Two different Piano Man banners hang over the proceedings on any given night at the Garden, one crowning him as the artist with the most consecutive performances at the arena (currently 83, thanks to his monthly residency which has run since early 2014) and one denoting his place atop the lifetime MSG show standings (129 and counting).
Phish has also racked up a notable lifetime MSG show total. The influential jam band’s 68 total Madison Square Garden shows—including numerous New Year’s Eve spectacles—rank third behind Joel and Elton John (78). Phish’s banner-worthy (“13 Consecutive Nights”) achievement came back in 2017 by way of the Baker’s Dozen, a run of 13 shows in 17 nights during which the band repeated no songs and no other events of any kind took place at MSG.
Harry Styles joined the rare club when CBS personality Gayle King presented his “15 Consecutive Nights” honor following the last show of his NYC Love On Tour residency. The British pop icon was overcome with emotion as the banner rose skyward. “Any time that you come to Madison Square Garden and you see that, you’ll remember it’s because of you,” he told his 15th sold-out crowd. “That is ours. Thank you so, so much. All of you.”
“Selling out 15 consecutive nights at Madison Square Garden is a massive accomplishment and reinforces Harry Styles as one of the most impactful artists of his generation,” said Jim Dolan, executive chairman and CEO of MSG Entertainment. “It is a testament to Harry and his fans that a banner celebrating this remarkable achievement will hang from the rafters alongside some of the most legendary artists and athletes in history. Harry has already headlined The World’s Most Famous Arena several times in his skyrocketing career, and we’re honored that MSG was Harry’s House for these 15 incredible nights.”
Congratulations @Harry_Styles on 15 consecutive nights at The Garden. 😭 pic.twitter.com/gxF4EMPQqr
— MSG (@TheGarden) September 22, 2022
Unsurprisingly, the unveiling of the Harry Styles MSG banner—much like the Garden’s transformation into “Harry’s House” this summer—has been met with some heated objection from the notoriously litigious Phish fanbase. Many disagree with the banner’s wording, noting that the shows were not technically “consecutive” but rather spread over several weeks with various events taking place at the arena in between. Some decry the weight of Harry’s number, noting that each night’s show featured an identical setlist. Others are simply having fun playing along with the gripe of the day.
If you’re reading this, Phish fans, take a deep breath. It’s not all that serious. For what it’s worth, these shows technically were consecutive for Harry, who didn’t play anywhere else during the span of his Garden run. Let’s not forget that they took some liberties with the word “consecutive” on Phish’s Baker’s Dozen banner, too (and thank Icculus for those off days).
All of the banners in the MSG rafters are there to commemorate historic achievements, but you can make history in many ways. Selling out 15 shows at the World’s Most Famous Arena in such a short window is undeniably noteworthy. Judging by the ravenous demand for those seats, which consistently sold for hundreds of dollars above face on the secondary market, he probably could have sold out a few more. Plus—and this is coming from a longtime patron of Phish at the Garden—Harry’s show was really fun.
The number on the Harry Styles MSG banner may be higher than the one on its Phish counterpart, but they signify different things. Phish is still the only band to fully take over the Garden for two weeks, no subletters allowed. Phish is still the only band to play 13 shows there without repeating a song, a feat unlikely to be bested by any existing act.
Madison Square Garden has confirmed to Live For Live Music that despite the introduction of the “15 Consecutive Shows” Harry Styles banner, you can rest easy: the Phish “13 Consecutive Shows” banner isn’t going anywhere.
That said, with a new mark now set, we’re hoping Phish’s gears are turning. It’s not that we’re feeling competitive or anything (okay, maybe a little), but we surely wouldn’t mind another big run of “consecutive” nights at the Garden. What do you say, Phish? Shall we try for 16?
History Made pic.twitter.com/5BTWV7q6bb
— MSG (@TheGarden) September 22, 2022