Whether it’s lyrics by a cleaning woman, a brain floating in a jar of water or Parliament Funkadelic, Phish will be up to their spontaneous shenanigans Friday at Hilton Coliseum.

Despite their absence in pop culture media, such as MTV and Top-40 radio, Phish has managed to develop one of the largest followings of any band. The 16-year-old, Vermont-based touring ensemble continues to experiment on-stage and off, in and out of the studio.

Their 1998 release, “The Story of the Ghost,” shows the band’s true devotion to the unique feeling of live music. Each song combines the quartet’s jams that were never recorded.

Keyboardist Page McConnell said in a press release that the band used the original jam tapes and backing tracks for each of the album’s songs, not just the basic tracks, but 90 percent of the vocal tracks as well.

“I really feel like we’ve continued to experiment, jamming more and stretching it out in groove-oriented jams, textural-oriented jams,” McConnell said.

In their Vermont studio they call “Farmhouse,” Phish implemented what they have recognized as the root of their success during their popular live performances.

“We’ve always liked that people come and dance to our music, and it could be we’re playing more dance music as a result of that,” McConnell said. “We have been listening to a good bit of James Brown on the bus, Parliament Funkadelic, the Meters — we like all that sort of thing.”

Listeners get a taste of the unique origins of their lyrics on songs like “Farmhouse,” which appears on “The Story of the Ghost.”

In a press release, Phish guitarist Trey Anastasio remembered the inspiration for “Farmhouse,” which they performed on “Late Night with Conan O’Brien.”

“It was a note left to us by the cleaning woman the day we arrived at the Farmhouse,” Anastasio said. “That was the first song we wrote. And when that song was written, the northern lights were out, and there was a porch we could stand on. It was incredible, so we just started singing that chorus spontaneously.”

Phish’s most recent project attempts to incorporate the energy of live music into the convenience of a personal record.

“It really is funny, but the bulk of this album was recorded in a scenario in which we did not think we were recording anything that was a keeper,” he remembered. “What you’re hearing is first takes, first creation, first everything on most of it.”

Phish drummer Jon Fishman told the tale of the band’s maturing process in the group’s debut literary work, “The Phish Book.”

“I always picture a brain floating in a container of water, and the music is all the liquid surrounding it,” he wrote. “Your brain has to float in the middle of the pool if you want to hear everything.”

The band is in the middle of their annual fall U.S. tour. Like many touring acts, Phish also will play on New Year’s Eve.

Phishheads can jump in their Vanagons and ride the Y2K bug to Big Cypress Seminole Indian Reservation, in the heart of the Florida Everglades, on Dec. 30 and 31.