Shawn Phillips -

Shawn Phillips (born Feb. 3, 1943) is an American singer/songwriter who released the 1965/66 Columbia albums I’m a Loner and Shawn. He linked with Traffic for the 1970 A&M release Contribution, an eclectic reinvention followed by Second Contribution, Collaboration, and seven further Seventies albums. During the early 1980s, he issued two albums with the space-rock trio Cosmic Debris.

Background

Shawn Phillips was born on February 3, 1943, in Fort Worth, Texas. His father, James Atlee Phillips, wrote espionage novels under the name Philip Atlee. Phillips spent portions of his childhood outside the continental United States and began playing guitar before his teenage years. He entered the United States Navy, then settled in California and worked through the early-Sixties folk circuit.

Domestically, he debuted with the June 1964 Ascot single “The New Frankie and Johnnie Song” (b/w “Cloudy Summer Afternoon”). Meanwhile, English producer Denis Preston signed him to Columbia and supervised two albums for the label’s Lansdowne Series.

I’m a Loner

Shawn Phillips released his debut album, I’m a Loner, in April 1964 on Columbia in Britain.

The album combines Phillips compositions with traditional material and songs drawn from contemporary folk and theatre repertory. Denis Preston produced the recording for Columbia’s Lansdowne Series.

“I’m a Loner (I’m a Drifter)” strides through impassioned singing and hard-struck 12-string figures. “I’m Tired” sags between subdued lines and firmer declarations. “Pride of Man” rolls through forceful phrasing and emphatic strumming. “It Was a Very Good Year” settles into wistful restraint. “My Favorite Things” drifts through an imaginative, gently wistful arrangement.

“Hey, Nelly Nelly” bounds on a buoyant rhythm and full-bodied delivery. “The Hills of Shiloh” recedes into soft, controlled singing. “The Bells” tolls through picked patterns that trace successive bell sounds. “Nobody Listens” drops into Phillips’ lower register beneath intricate picking. “You’ve Heard My Voice” climbs across dramatic strumming and wide register leaps.

A1. “I’m a Loner” (3:19)
A2. “I’m Tired” (3:31)
A3. “Little Tin Soldier” (2:44)
A4. “Pride of Man” (2:48)
A5. “It Was a Very Good Year” (3:15)
A6. “My Favourite Things” (2:52)

B1. “Hey Nelly Nelly” (2:47)
B2. “In the Hills of Shiloh” (3:31)
B3. “The Bells” (4:06)
B4. “Solitude” (2:46)
B5. “Nobody Listens” (2:03)
B6. “You’ve Heard My Voice” (3:25)

Producer Denis Preston supervised I’m a Loner for the Lansdowne Series, the British recording operation he established for jazz, blues, and folk projects.

Capitol subsequently retitled the album Favourite Things. A Wounded Bird CD added the Phillips composition “Doesn’t Anybody Know My Name.”

Phillips also worked with Donovan, who recorded the Phillips composition “The Little Tin Soldier” for the 1965 album Fairytale. Phillips played twelve-string guitar on further Donovan recordings and added sitar during sessions associated with Sunshine Superman. He appeared as Paul Taylor in the 1966 film Run with the Wind and contributed songs to the production.

Shawn

Phillips released his second album, Shawn, in November 1965 on Columbia in Britain.

He again divided the program between original songs and established folk material. His compositions include “London Town,” “Theme for the March on Washington,” “Miniver Cheevy,” and “Storm.”

“London Town” bounds through warm, celebratory phrasing. “Old Blue” roams between low and high registers as Phillips sustains notes at both extremes. “Maria” circles through insistent, Bolero-shaped guitar figures. “The Bells of Rhymney” tolls through resonant picking that evokes successive bells.

“Coal Tattoo” bears down with anger and terse declamation. “Black Girl” broods through measured picking and sober phrasing. “Cloudy Summer Afternoon” ripples through rain-like figures. “Storm” breaks forceful strumming with scat-like syllables and abrupt bursts.

A1. “London Town” (3:20)
A2. “Seek and Ye Shall Find” (4:18)
A3. “Theme for the March on Washington” (2:26)
A4. “Old Blue” (3:31)
A5. “Maria” (4:01)
A6. “The Bells of Rhymney” (4:03)

B1. “Coal Tattoo” (2:36)
B2. “Black Girl” (3:41)
B3. “Miniver Cheevy” (2:58)
B4. “Cloudy Summer Afternoon” (2:33)
B5. “Another Country” (3:57)
B6. “Storm” (3:59)

Preston continued the Lansdowne sequence on Shawn and also designed the sleeve. Mike Joseph photographed Phillips for the cover.

Capitol reissued the record under the title First Impressions. A 1999 Wounded Bird CD restored the original title and added “Summer Came.”

British work-permit restrictions sent Phillips to Paris and then Positano, Italy. He returned to London for Jane Arden’s 1969 stage production Vagina Rex and the Gas Oven, where he performed with the Djinn. Publisher Dick James subsequently financed recordings with Steve Winwood, Jim Capaldi, and Chris Wood of Traffic. Phillips conceived the material as an extended album sequence, and A&M drew his first release for the label from those sessions.

Contribution

Shawn Phillips released his third album, Contribution, in 1970 on A&M, which selected the eight titles from the larger project financed by Dick James.

“Man Hole Covered Wagon” starts with acoustic strum and accelerates with through blues-tinged turns before a barroom break with high-register cries. “L Ballade” unfolds through austere guitar figures and classical inflections. “Not Quite Nonsense” skips with light swing and vaudeville bounce. “No Question” circles around a hypnotic acoustic figure before rising into a final progression.

“Withered Roses” drifts through sitar-led raga motion before gritty strumming takes over. “For J.F.K. R.F.K. & M.L.K.” bounds through exuberant phrasing and buoyant accompaniment. “Lovely Lady” quickens through doubled singing and paired acoustic figures, then lifts at each verse ending. “Screamer for Phlyses” drives on steady percussion as background lines thicken beneath high-register singing.

A1. “Man Hole Covered Wagon” (4:34)
A2. “L Ballade” (6:47)
A3. “Not Quite Nonsense” (1:47)
A4. “No Question” (3:44)

B1. “Withered Roses” (8:20)
B2. “For RFK, JFK & MLK” (4:54)
B3. “Lovely Lady” (3:57)
B4. “Screamer for Phlyses” (6:11)

Phillips recorded Contribution at Trident Studios in London with producer Jonathan Weston and engineer Robin Cable. The album began Weston’s six-album production sequence with Phillips and the three-release engineering run by Cable.

A&M art director Tom Wilkes directed the sleeve around photography by Jim McCrary. Wilkes headed the label’s art department during 1967–70, and McCrary served as its chief photographer.

A&M issued “A Christmas Song” in December 1970 (b/w “Lovely Lady”). Wounded Bird reissued Contribution on CD in 1999.

Second Contribution

Shawn Phillips released his fourth album, Second Contribution, in February 1971 on A&M.

The album continued the sequence developed during the Dick James sessions. Arranger Paul Buckmaster contributed the brief instrumental “F Sharp Splendor,” while keyboardist J. Peter Robinson began an association that continued across Phillips’s subsequent albums.

“She Was Waitin’ for Her Mother…” emerges alone and passes directly into three linked songs. “Song for Mr. C” crests with strings and brass in a dense, driving close. “The Ballad of Casey Deiss” unfolds as a sparse narrative with vibraphone, horns, and an austere, archaic cast. “Sleepwalker” glides through light electric-piano runs and controlled dynamic shifts. “Remedial Interruption” pares back to guitar and cello while Phillips vaults across a wide register. “Steel Eyes” settles into solo acoustic picking and ardent singing.

A1. “She Was Waitin’ for Her Mother at the Station in Torino and You Know I Love You Baby but It’s Getting Too Heavy to Laugh” (4:54)
A2. “Keep On” (3:21)
A3. “Sleepwalker” (1:33)
A4. “Song for Mr. C” (3:49)
A5. “The Ballad of Casey Deiss” (6:13)

B1. “Song for Sagittarians” (3:41)
B2. “Lookin’ Up Lookin’ Down” (4:00)
B3. “Remedial Interruption” (1:57)
B4. “Whaz’ Zat” (1:57)
B5. “Schmaltz Waltz” (1:43)
B6. “F Sharp Splendor” (0:41) – Buckmaster
B7. “Steel Eyes” (4:19)

Weston and Cable continued their production partnership on Second Contribution, while Paul Buckmaster directed the orchestral arrangements.

Second Contribution appeared in a sleeve created by Michael Doud and A&M staff designer Chuck Beeson with photography by Sanders Nicholson.

A&M issued “She Was Waitin’ for Her Mother at the Station in Torino and You Know I Love You Baby but It’s Getting Too Heavy to Laugh” in Japan during July 1971 (b/w “The Ballad of Casey Deiss”).

Second Contribution reached No. 208 on the Billboard 200 and No. 68 on the Canadian RPM album chart. A&M issued a compact-disc edition in 1988.

Collaboration

Shawn Phillips released his fifth album, Collaboration, in 1971 on A&M.

He performs twelve originals with pianist/organist Robinson, the bassist on “Moonshine” who arranged “The Only Logical Conclusion.”

“Us We Are” unfurls as strings and horns seep into opening lines by degrees. “Moonshine” coils through morose keyboard figures and agile turns. “What’s Happenin’ Jim?” climbs toward sustained falsetto at Phillips’ upper limit. “Armed” darkens into a brooding fade of timpani, cellos, and one prolonged high note.

A1. “Us We Are” (5:05)
A2. “Burning Fingers” (3:32)
A3. “Moonshine” (4:44)
A4. “For Her” (1:58)
A5. “What’s Happenin’ Jim” (3:36)
A6. “Armed” (6:51)

B1. “Spaceman” (3:28)
B2. “Times of a Madman, Trials of a Thief” (2:45)
B3. “8500 Years” (2:30)
B4. “The Only Logical Conclusion” (4:49)
B5. “Coming Down Soft and Easy” (5:15)
B6. “Springwind” (9:35)

Weston produced Collaboration with returning engineer Cable. Paul Buckmaster and J. Peter Robinson divided the orchestral arrangements, completing the production configuration established across the first three A&M albums.

A&M later issued “8500 Years” as a single.

Faces

Shawn Phillips released his sixth album, Faces, in 1972 on A&M.

The album assembles recordings made during 1969. Phillips wrote all eight titles, including a revised presentation of “L Ballade” and the extended “Parisien Plight II.”

“Landscape” rises from near-hushed reflection into a sustained, high-register cry. “L Ballade” unfurls through stately orchestration and long, rhapsodic turns. “Hey Miss Lonely” breezes through buoyant phrasing and a compact contour. “Chorale” intones a multitracked choral mass above guitar and sitar. “I Took a Walk” charges through a driving ensemble and an angry declamation.

A1. “Landscape” (4:18)
A2. “L Ballade” (7:21)
A3. “Hey Miss Lonely” (3:25)
A4. “Chorale” (7:29)

B1. “Parisien Plight II” (13:15)
B2. “We” (3:30)
B3. “Anello (Where Are You)” (2:27)
B4. “I Took a Walk” (4:48)

Weston produced the 1969 recordings compiled on Faces. Cable engineered “Landscape,” “L Ballade,” “Chorale,” and “Parisien Plight II.” Robert Appère handled “Hey Miss Lonely,” “We,” “Anello (Where Are You),” and “I Took a Walk.”

A&M creative director Roland Young directed the packaging, and George Bartell illustrated the back cover. Young had joined the label from Capitol as its director of advertising art and album design.

A&M issued “We” in December 1972 (b/w “‘L’ Ballade”), which reached No. 89 on the Billboard Hot 100. In April 1973, A&M followed with “Anello (Where Are You)” (b/w “Hey Miss Lonely”).

Faces reached No. 57 on the Billboard 200 and No. 38 on the Canadian RPM album chart. A&M issued a compact-disc edition in 1988, and Talking Elephant reissued the album in 2014 with an additional track.

“Lost Horizon”

Phillips recorded the Burt Bacharach–Hal David title song for the 1973 film Lost Horizon. A&M issued “Lost Horizon” in January 1973 (b/w “Landscape”), which reached No. 63 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 20 on the RPM Adult Contemporary chart.

Bright White

Shawn Phillips released his seventh album, Bright White, in 1973 on A&M.

Robinson continued on keyboards alongside guitarist Tony Walmsley, bassist Chuck Rainey, and drummer Barrington de Souza. Phillips cut the title-track with The Section, an LA jazz-rock quartet comprised of keyboardist Craig Doerge, guitarist Danny Kortchmar, bassist Leland Sklar, and drummer Russ Kunkel.

“Bright White” bounds through brisk brass accents and full orchestration. “Salty Tears” skips across an upbeat, rhythmically lively figure. “Victoria Emmanuele” bounces through springy phrasing and quick turns. “Planned ‘O’” recedes into hushed lines and gentle accompaniment. “Technotronic Lad” wavers through squeaking guitar figures. “It’s a Beautiful Morning” stumbles through a false start and resumes with jaunty phrasing. “Lady of the Blue Rose” lingers in a subdued hush.

A1. “Bright White” (2:54)
A2. “Salty Tears” (3:03)
A3. “All the Kings and Castles” (4:27)
A4. “Victoria Emmanuele” (4:25)
A5. “Planned ‘O’” (6:38)

B1. “Lasting Peace of Mind” (6:17)
B2. “Technotronic Lad” (3:32)
B3. “Dream Queen” (4:27)
B4. “It’s a Beautiful Morning” (3:17)
B5. “Lady of the Blue Rose” (5:41)

Weston produced Bright White with engineer Appère, who moved from his split assignment on Faces to the full album.

John Millerburg designed the sleeve with typography by John Cabalka. Suzanne Ayres photographed Phillips for the package.

A&M issued “Bright White” during 1973 (b/w “Dream Queen”), which reached No. 62 on the RPM Top Singles chart. In March 1974, A&M followed with “All the Kings and Castles” (b/w “Salty Tears”).

Bright White reached No. 72 on the Billboard 200 and No. 50 on the Canadian RPM album chart.

Furthermore

Shawn Phillips released his eighth album, Furthermore, in 1974 on A&M.

Phillips wrote eight titles alone and shared three compositions with Robinson. Buckmaster co-wrote “Planscape.” The sessions retained Robinson and de Souza with keyboardist Ann Odell and bassist John Gustafson.

“January First” barrels through frenetic syncopation and tightly controlled ensemble turns. “Starbright” glows within a reflective acoustic hush as Mellotron choir tones hover above Phillips. “Breakthrough” settles into measured lines and spare accompaniment. “See You” drifts through thoughtful phrases and muted movement.

“Planscape” pivots from acoustic reflection into a sprawling, free-running ensemble passage. “Troof” swells through orchestral passages and broad dramatic turns. “Capé Barras” fractures into distorted, programmatic episodes.

A1. “January First” (3:11) – Phillips, Robinson
A2. “Starbright” (3:50)
A3. “Breakthrough” (5:46)
A4. “Ninety-Two Years” (3:08)
A5. “See You” (4:14)

B1. “Planscape” (4:17) – Phillips, Buckmaster
B2. “Troof” (4:24)
B3. “Capé Barras” (4:02) – Phillips, Robinson
B4. “Song for Northern Ireland” (2:07)
B5. “Mr. President” (3:36)
B6. “Talking in the Garden” (3:13)
B7. “Furthermore” (2:30) – Phillips, Robinson

Weston produced Furthermore with engineer John Punter. The album completed Weston’s six-album run as sole producer of the Phillips A&M sequence.

Michael Putland photographed the supporting ensemble. Ayres, returning from Bright White, photographed Phillips.

The album reached No. 50 on the Billboard 200 and No. 56 on the Canadian RPM album chart.

Do You Wonder

Shawn Phillips released his ninth album, Do You Wonder, in 1975 on A&M.

The sessions introduced a Los Angeles cast around Robinson. Bassist Max Bennett appears with guitarist Robben Ford and drummers John Guerin, Jim Keltner, and Mike Baird. Reedist Jim Horn joined trumpeters Chuck Findley and Bob Findley in the horn group. Phillips wrote the album apart from Robinson’s “Intermezzo” section in “As All Is Played.”

“Looking at the Angel” roams across free, classically inflected harmony and intricate acoustic guitar figures. “Summer Vignette” glides through delicate, unhurried lines.

A1. “Do You Wonder” (2:57)
A2. “Xasper” (5:12)
A3. “City to City” (3:19)
A4. “Blunt and Frank” (2:49)
A5. “Believe in Life” (5:50)

B1. “As All Is Played: Maestoso/Intermezzo/Tristesse” (6:44) – “Intermezzo” by Robinson
B2. “Golden Flower” (4:26)
B3. “Looking at the Angel” (4:51)
B4. “Summer Vignette” (4:53)

Phillips assumed the principal production role on Do You Wonder, with Weston as co-producer. Sessions occurred at A&M Studios with engineer Larry Forkner and engineering supervisor J. Peter Robinson. Malcolm Cecil mixed the album at Kendun Recorders.

Young returned for art direction, while Cabalka and Junie Osaki designed the sleeve. Leonard Koren photographed the cover, and Herbie Worthington handled the inner-sleeve images.

A&M issued “Do You Wonder” in October 1975 (b/w “Summer Vignette”), which reached No. 89 on the RPM Top Singles chart.

Do You Wonder reached No. 101 on the Billboard 200 and No. 42 on the Canadian RPM album chart.

Rumplestiltskin’s Resolve

Shawn Phillips released his tenth album, Rumplestiltskin’s Resolve, in 1976 on A&M.

Phillips wrote the seven compositions and produced the album. The second side joins the extended title piece with “Wailing Wall,” “Hie Away,” and “Serendipity Peace.”

“Spitefull” broods through taut syncopation and wiry ensemble turns. “Today” unspools across an extended, unhurried span. “Wailing Wall” keens through a nearly unaccompanied lament and eastern-scaled phrases. “Hie Away” darts through tricky turnarounds as guitar figures yield to synthesizer solos. “Serendipity Peace” glides through a broad, sentimental sweep. “Rumplestiltskin’s Resolve” roams across episodic passages and abrupt changes of direction.

A1. “Early Morning Hours” (5:21)
A2. “Spitefull” (4:49)
A3. “Today” (10:19)

B1. “Wailing Wall” (5:47)
B2. “Hie Away” (5:34)
B3. “Serendipity Peace” (2:49)
B4. “Rumplestiltskin’s Resolve” (7:11)

Phillips produced Rumplestiltskin’s Resolve with engineer Ellis Sorkin. Robinson mixed the album after arranging the sessions. Beeson returned from Second Contribution to design the sleeve.

Spaced

Shawn Phillips released his eleventh album, Spaced, in 1977 on A&M.

The album compiles recordings left from earlier projects and therefore uses several studio configurations. Phillips recorded “Rant” and “The Light from Between Your Eyes” at Clover Recorders in Hollywood during 1973 with keyboardist Joe Sample, guitarist Sneaky Pete Kleinow, bassist Leland Sklar, and drummer Russ Kunkel. Phillips wrote every composition.

“I Don’t Want to Leave You, I Just Came to Say Good-Bye” gathers through a sustained instrumental ascent as keyboard figures and guitar lines lock into compressed syncopation.

A1. “Rant” (3:25)
A2. “Italian Phases” (2:22)
A3. “The Light from Between Your Eyes” (4:33)
A4. “Stranded” (4:48)
A5. “From All of Us” (3:42)

B1. “Parisien Plight I” (3:42)
B2. “Prelude to a Leaving” (2:37)
B3. “All Our Love” (1:32)
B4. “I Don’t Want to Leave You, I Just Came to Say Good-Bye” (16:08)

Phillips and Weston produced the recordings compiled on Spaced, which draw from several earlier studio configurations. Phillips and bassist Brian Odgers mixed the assembled album.

Beeson developed the visual concept and designed the sleeve. Vince Van Brunt supplied the photography.

Transcendence

Shawn Phillips released his twelfth album, Transcendence, in 1978 on RCA.

Michael Kamen arranged and conducted a 60-piece orchestra for the sessions. Players associated with Herbie Hancock’s Headhunters supplemented Phillips’s guitars and synthesizers. Phillips wrote eight selections, while Kamen composed the concluding “Ease Your Mind.”

“I’m an American Child (On a Nuclear Pile)” charges through a forceful ensemble and emphatic singing. “Implications” unfurls through lush orchestration and classically inflected turns. “Lady in Violet” drifts across delicate pastoral phrases. “Good Evening Madam” saunters through a lightly rustic serenade. “Lament Pour l’Enfant Mort” billows through florid orchestration and theatrical phrasing. “Julia’s Letters” surges through massive orchestral drive and hard-running syncopation.

A1. “Take It Easy” (4:44)
A2. “I’m an American Child (On a Nuclear Pile)” (4:21)
A3. “Implications” (5:15)
A4. “Lady in Violet” (5:04)

B1. “Good Evening Madam” (2:25)
B2. “Lament pour l’enfant mort” (5:45)
B3. “Julia’s Letters” (3:17)
B4. “Motes of Dust” (5:41)
B5. “Ease Your Mind” (2:48) – Kamen

Phillips produced Transcendence at One Step Up Studio in Los Angeles and the Hit Factory in New York with engineer Mark Curry. Bruce Tergesen mixed the recordings, while Michael Kamen arranged and conducted the orchestral sections.

Acy Lehman directed the sleeve. Worthington, returning from Do You Wonder, photographed the inner package.

Beyond Here Be Dragons

Shawn Phillips recorded his thirteenth album Beyond Here Be Dragons, in 1983 with alumni of Hookfoot, Quatermass, and Weather Report.

Synthesist Michael Hoenig directed the sessions with keyboardist J. Peter Robinson, guitarist Caleb Quaye, bassist Alphonso Johnson, and drummer Ralph Humphrey.

“Circles” rolls through a tight ensemble passage and opens into a bass solo at mid-song.

A1. “Of Love” (3:18)
A2. “It Takes No Time” (4:08)
A3. “Share the Wealth” (3:08)
A4. “Wind of the Angels” (3:13)
A5. “Discoveries” (4:19)

B1. “Spaghetti Inquisition” (5:46)
B2. “Sands of Time” (5:16)
B3. “Moments” (3:52)
B4. “Circles” (3:28)

Phillips recorded Beyond Here Be Dragons during 1983 with producer-engineer Hoenig. Engineer Rick Hart completed the mixdown for Chameleon, which released the album five years after the initial sessions.

Later Work

Phillips returned with the 1994 disc The Truth If It Kills, followed in 2002 by No Category. He surfaced again with the 2012–14 discs Reflections, Perspective, and Infinity, the latter drawn from 1989 recordings. In 2017, he released Continuance.

His archival releases include At the BBC and Live in the Seventies. Phillips reunited with Robinson for the 2024 concert album Outrageous.

Discography: