Chris Phillips

Chris played original music for a number of years in his band Pretty Cool Chair in and around New England during the late 90's and early 2000's. In that timespan PCC cut two albums, Staring and Steve. John Sebastian of Lovin Spoonful performed on Staring, recorded at Nevessa Studio in Woodstock, New York. Chris continues to perform original music in and around the Boston area and in April 2011 released his NEW ALBUM entitled Giving The Chase. Songs from Giving The Chase can be previewed here on sonicbids as well as at www.chrisphillipsmusic.com.

More on Giving The Chase:
Each song started out like all of us, bare naked, once born out of some stripped down affair between just Phillips and his acoustic guitar probably in his basement or bedroom or from some rocky New England beach. For some songs this is obvious, such as with Hurts Like Hell (Track 7), featuring a beautifully simple yet powerful arrangement of just lead vocal, acoustic guitar and cello. Or with Smoking Alibis (Track 13), a sweet and poignant orchestration of three acoustic guitars and one mandolin recorded live, four guys standing around a center mic. Then there are others on the album that you find hard to believe are regularly peformed as just solo acoustic renditions such as the intelligently produced and heavily orchestrated Pictures (Track 10) or Keep In Touch (Track 4) that starts out as 'guy and guitar' but effortlessly evolves into a massive evocation of four part harmony and rocking instrumentation.

Then there's the big picture; the story the album itself tells. Phillips's deliberate track placement and song chronology reveals an age old story told, or rather sung. It's the story of love found, love lost, self lost, and ultimately the finding and re-emergence of self. And in that order too as can, in part, be seen just in the song titles and order listed starting with the all things innocent and sweet 'For You' (Track 1), to all things good 'Life Is Good' (Track 2), forbidden love of 'Castaway' (Track 3), to the desparation, loss, betrayal and pain evoked in Tracks 4 - 10 with Stay, Keep In Touch, Whatever Happened To You, Hurts Like Hell, Camouflage, Jaded, and Pictures, that ultimately leads to a catharsis by way of acceptance and self realization described in Welcoming Rain, Maya, and Smoking Alibis that finish off the album and story.
In the end, "Giving The Chase" tells a story of a fantastic life cycle that most of us perpetually experience again and again in one form or another. Of the human condition that has us all seeking and searching and the fulfillment we get from the chase alone. Like the dog that gives chase to the car.