Todd Phillips — A Musician’s Musician
Reprinted from Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine
October 1997, Volume 32, Number 4
“What is amazing is that Todd Phillips never ceases to amaze me! — Tom Rozum (Laurie Lewis and Grant Street)
It seems, for the average audience member and for many trade magazines, that all of the attention is focused on the lead singers, or flashy guitar, banjo, fiddle, resonator guitar, and mandolin instrumentalists. You never hear about the bass players who support the music and who are the important “glue” that holds the rhythm together. However, if you talk to the great musicians about their favorite musicians, one name that keeps popping up is Todd Phillips, acclaimed bassist and man of many talents.
When asked about Todd, Mike Marshall noted that “as far as I’m concerned, Todd is THE person. All of the great musicians love playing with him! It’s so easy to play with Todd. It’s a ride that you get on and it just goes; it’s intensely comforting. He has an amazing sense of the music and the musicians that lie’s playing with. Many musicians try all their lives to get there and never quite make it.” According to Frank Wakefield, “Todd is a super musician. Many people don’t know’ that he’s also a good mandolin player.” David Grier, when commenting about what a great musician Todd is, noted that “there’s a connectiveness to Todd’s playing; a sense of knowing where he’s going.” According to Laurie Lewis, “the great thing about Todd is that he’s always listening and responding to what you’re singing and playing. It’s like a wonderful musical conversation; he makes magic happen.” In 1996, the San Francisco Bay Guardian lauded Todd’s “sublie genius” and noted that he’s “…never widely enough acclaimed… for his bluegrass bass playing.”
When you meet Todd, his warmth, good-natured humor, and humble demeanor put you at ease immediately. There’s a refreshing honesty in the way that he talks about his life and the music that is his passion, but he’s very modest about his achievements. When asked what he’d most like people to know about him, Todd replied, “What I’d really like would be for people to understand what my philosophy of music is…the excitement of having a lively musical interaction with the other musicians; the ‘aliveness’ that occurs when everyone is ‘sparking’ each other.”
Todd is also very proud of being known as a bluegrass musician. “What’s so exciting about bluegrass,” noted Todd, “is the emotional and rhythmic intensity that the music has, yet with an illusion of simplicity.” He feels very connected to what he refers to as the “bluegrass lineage;” the great masters, such as Bill Monroe, Vassal– Clements, Bobby Hicks, Frank Wakefield, and others, who he’s passionately studied and admired for over 25 years. “Stylistically, bluegrass has developed into a fine art; the elements that are the foundation of the music cannot be changed or restructured. They can only be studied as a discipline and then varied to suit your own creative style. You have to seriously play it for 10-15 years; in fact, you really don’t appreciate all of the subtleties of the music until you’ve played with the great bluegrass musicians.”
Because of his modesty, learning about Todd’s achievements is a journey of discovery. One only learns about the amazing things that Todd has done by asking questions, and probing into his casual remarks and off-handed comments; frequently learning more from his fellow musicians, many of whom are in awe of everything that lie’s done.
Phillips received a Grammy Award in 1983 for Country Instrumental of the Year with The New South (J.D. Crowe, Ricky Skaggs, Jerry Douglas, Tony Rice, and Todd Phillips). Around that time, Frets Magazine readers voted Phillips five consecutive readers’ poll awards and inducted him into their “Gallery of the Greats.”
He produced, engineered and performed on “True Life Blues” (1996 Sugar Hill SHCD-2209), which received three 1996 Grammy nominations and, in 1997, won the 1996 Grammy Award for “Bluegrass Album of the Year.” Going to the Grammy awards ceremony for the first time this year was an exciting experience for Todd, who bought a tuxedo for the occasion. “That cost me more than the rest of my wardrobe combined!” exclaimed Phillips. Because he felt that there were so many great projects done in 1996, he was truly honored that “True Life Blues” had been nominated for a Grammy. “Although it was a real honor to win the award,” said Phillips, “credit really should go to all of the musicians who worked on the project. I wish they all could have been on stage with me and could each have their own Grammy. I’m amazed and honored that so many great people were so willing to help out with this project.”
One of the highlights for him was his return home to California after the Grammy awards in New York City. He arrived very late at night, knowing that nobody was greeting him at the airport and dealing with the emotional letdown of leaving all of the Grammy excitement behind him. To his surprise, he was greeted at the gate by his mom, aunt and uncle, with champagne in hand and a stretch limousine to “do the town!” After a night of celebrating, he finally rolled home at 3 a.m. to be greeted with an answering machine filled with congratulatory messages from friends (special messages that meant a lot to him). Some of the callers were friends with whom he’d lost touch over the years. He was glad to be able to connect with them again.
The Musician
Phillips has a stellar musical pedigree. A bassist since the age of 11, he has recorded and/or performed with the very best of acoustic music’s creative artists…a veritable “who’s who,” including Vassal– Clements, Stephane Grappelli, Mark O’Connor, Kate Wolf, Tony Rice, J.D. Crowe, Del McCoury, David Grisman, Richard Greene, Peter Rowan, Mike Marshall, Darol Anger, Tony Trischka, Ricky Skaggs, Doyle Lawson, Laurie Lewis, Kathy Kallick, Ronnie McCoury, David Grier, Peter McLaughlin, Jerry Douglas, Stuart Duncan, John Hartford, Pat Enright, Mollie O’Brien, Tim O’Brien, Taj Mahal, John Reischman, Graig Smith, Roland White, Herb Pedersen, Alex deGrassi, Tom Rozum, John Gorka, Sally Van Meter, Tim O’Brien, Hazel Dickens, Jody Stecher, Alice Gerrard, and others.
He was a member of the original David Grisman Quintet, founded in 1975. Initially playing rhythm mandolin, he later switched to the acoustic bass. Although he recounts that David Grisman was his mentor and that he learned a tremendous amount about bluegrass and jazz music from him, others familiar with the Quintet claim that Phillips was a key component in the group’s innovative “sound.”
Tony Rice was a member of the David Grisman Quintet with Phillips. After leaving the Quintet, Tony formed the Tony Rice Unit and was joined by Phillips. “Playing with Tony Rice for five years in the David Grisman Quintet and another five years in the Tony Rice Unit had a strong effect on my sense of rhythm. Tony’s the greatest rhythm player and that’s all there is to it. We loved playing together and listening to other music together; like great jazz drummers, pianists,—all styles. We picked up ideas and approaches to our music by listening to other types of music.”
Phillips has also played with other internationally acclaimed bands, the Bluegrass Album Band, Montreux, the Good Of Persons, Kathy Kallick and the Little Big Band, Psychograss, and Laurie Lewis and Grant Street. In addition to his regular touring with Laurie Lewis and Grant Street, and Psychograss, Phillips is highly sought after to do session work and to perform with other bands. For example, he performed in die recent West Cpast tour of Hazel Dickens and Alice Gerrard, with supporting musicians Jody Stecher and Brantley Kearns.
Artist/Producer of Acclaimed Albums
Phillips produced his highly acclaimed first solo record, “Released” (1984, Varrick Oil). Featuring Tony Rice, Darol Anger, Jerry Douglas, John Reischman, and Todd Phillips, the album contains the compositions Phillips created after five years with the David Grisman Quintet. Reflecting the influence of the music of Miles Davis and John Coltrane, it is, wrote the San Francisco Bay Guardian, “die sure touch of a jazz master.”
In 1995, Phillips arranged, produced and performed on “In The Pines” (Gourd Records 122), a superb traditional old-time/bluegrass instrumental album featuring Scott Nygaard, Laurie Lewis, Mike Marshall, Darol Anger, Tony Trischka, Tim O’Brien, Stuart Duncan, and John Reischman. Dave Higgs of the Bluegrass Breakdown—WPLN, exclaimed that the album is “…destined to be a classic instrumental CD…played with power, pizzazz, and passion. The arrangements are tight, spine-tingling and always musically exciting. Todd has immeasurably enriched the bluegrass/ old-timey cause.”
There’s an “aliveness” and energy in this beautifully crafted project. You feel that you’re part of a magical experience, surrounded by friends having a fun time. And, if you read the liner notes and credits carefully, you’ll see Todd’s personality, humor, and attention to detail shine through!
Also in 1995, Todd released “Timeframe” (Compass Records 4230), a project that he’d been working on since 1988. A work of love, his goal was to craft an album that incorporated as much of what he loves about music as possible; music that the Nashville Scene described as “both accessible and beautiful, while remaining constantly surprising and fresh.” A stunning collection of jazz-inspired tunes, this musical hybrid features an unusual collection of acoustic instruments including soprano sax, cello, flute, mandolin, mandocello, oboe, marimba, percussion, and acoustic bass. Bass Player gave the album an “A+,” commenting that it is “gorgeous acoustic music…”
Grammy-winning “True Life Blues,” released in 1996, is a heartfelt tribute to Bill Monroe that took Phillips two years to produce and engineer. The album is a collection of Bill Monroe’s material performed by 30 outstanding artists who put their hearts and souls into creating a wonderful tribute to the “Father of Bluegrass.” Earning rave reviews and four star ratings, it’s an album that USA Today described as being “…intended as a living tribute, but now is a fitting memorial.”
It’s a tribute to Phillips’ outstanding musicianship and intensely focused approach that he’s able to successfully juggle so many different hats. As David Grisman noted, “Todd is a really talented guy and he’s very good at a lot of things.” Todd’s recent efforts include producing two Kathy Kallick albums, participation in the current Bluegrass Album Band instrumental release, participating on two albums by Psychograss (Mike Marshall, Tony Trischka, David Grier, Darol Anger, and Todd Phillips), and producing a new project by acoustic guitar master, David Grier. He’s also been touring with Laurie Lewis and Grant Street and Psychograss, and teaching a bass class at the week-long Bluegrass at the Beach workshop in Nehalem, Oreg.
Businessman
Phillips’ life changed dramatically with the death of his father in 1988. Suddenly, he was faced with having to handle the family’s hardwood flooring business. He had purposefully avoided being in the business as he was growing up and during his freewheeling musical adventures. Yet, he took over the business, and cut back on his professional music activities. It wasn’t until recently that he started phasing out of the business and getting more involved in music again. “I was really close to my Dad,” explained Phillips, when asked why he had kept the business going for so long. “Keeping the business alive was my way to honor his memory and to take care of my mom.”
Artist, Photographer and Magazine Producer
Few people know that Phillips is a skilled artist who has studied ceramics, drawing, sculpture, and photography. Phillips and Darol Anger created the early David Grisman Quintet publicity posters and were very involved in the production of David Grisman’s Mandolin World News. Phillips also did the cover photograph for Grisman’s first Rounder album. If you closely examine the projects that Phillips has produced and carefully listen to his music, you can see, hear, and feel the strong influence of his artistic side. The magic of his music is that it communicates at several levels, allowing the adventurous listener to discover new subtleties as each layer is peeled back. “You know, music is a combination of art and science,” reflected Phillips. “I really like the art side of it, as well as the human interaction that takes place.”
Luthier
Phillips is a skilled luthier who pays close attention to fine details and has an excellent ear for an instrument’s tonal qualities. He did a lot of work for David Grisman, and restored Frank Wakefield’s famous Lloyd Loar F-5 Gibson mandolin. He has also built a few mandolins. In addition, he has built a prototype for a new bass design and has plans to develop that in the future.
Viticulturist, Auto Buff, and Master of Whatever He Sets Out to Do
In his “spare time,” Phillips is planning to grow grapes to support his passion for fine wine. As with everything that he undertakes, he totally immerses himself in learning as much as he can. In this case, his research even includes a trip to France to learn from the glowers there. Meanwhile, he has a collection of cars sitting in his driveway to refinish. It’s no surprise that his friends comment that Todd is very talented and can do anything that he sets out to do.
Music, Bluegrass, and Moving into the Future
As a bass player, Phillips’ role has been a supportive one in which he rarely takes a lead. Although the audience may not be aware of the important role that he plays in supporting the framework for the rest of the musicians in the band, his band members definitely are. This is why he’s in such demand as a bass player. He’s always listening to what’s going on with the music and responding dynamically to what the different band members are singing and playing. He has the ability to “feel” what’s going on and to create a musical conversation that enhances the song and artist.
When asked how his “philosophy” of music applies to bluegrass, Phillips noted that he has a great appreciation and respect for the music, its roots and the masters who created the style. “I really like traditional bluegrass; I don’t like it to be butchered,” Phillips said, “but it has to evolve.. .real authentic new songs help to keep it alive. If you’re true to your own droughts and ideas, you can make it happen. It’s risky; it’s tricky.”
What plans does Phillips have for the future? “It’s been fun getting back into performing again,” answered Phillips, “and I have some projects that I want to work on. Finding the time to do everything is the biggest challenge!” He’s also had a number of people approach him to produce their projects and several performers have already expressed an interest in working with him on a follow-on project to “True Life Blues.” The possibilities seem endless.
What’s clear is that whatever Phillips decides to do will be interesting, exciting, and well done. As Peter Rowan noted, “It’s great to have a guy back who’s got the drive to create. It’s often very difficult for bass players to understand the “structure;” to get the “feel” of the singer. Todd’s going to revitalize the scene for the rest of the musicians and for the other bass players.”
