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JOHN HUNTER PHILLIPS
Biography
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John Hunter Phillips
Biography |
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The first thing you hear when you listen to John's music is
the Beach Boys influence. He has dissected their harmonies many times, in order
to recreate them using his own voice. Listen to the songs. He did not get any
of that from sheet music, though he could certainly write the sheet music for
these recordings if he had to. He got them by listening, one note at a time.
Try it sometime.
John studied music at the University of Miami. A musician
all his life, from a family of musicians, he had his own band in sixth grade,
then another through high school, and others for several years thereafter. He
may put together another band, who knows?
John sang on stage with the Beach Boys nine time; and if you
search through the gallery on his website (www.johnhunterphillips.net)
for photos of those events, you will see his soul shining from the joy of it.
John is most alive when he's singing. He needs to make music to stay happy.
In 1999, after spending hours putting his unique voice on
the harmonies, John had recorded enough to put out his first CD, "Diamonds
on the Beach". That CD contains 16 songs, all winners. When you listen
to the samples, or to the CD itself, notice the voice range. That's all John.
John released his second CD, "It's About Time",
in 2006. This CD contains 18 recordings. Three of the songs are originals by
John, and they're excellent. Two of the songs are by Beach Boy alumnus Billy
Hinsche (those arrangements are John's, by the way) and one is by Brian Wilson
side man, Jeffrey Foskett. There is one selection by Jim Oliver, and one by
Dion DiMucci. The rest of the recordings are Beach Boys songs.
November 18, 1994, brought for John a dream come true experience.
He had won a contest which allowed him to meet up with The Beach Boys backstage
at the rehearsal for their first 'unplugged' concert, which took place at Ovens
auditorium in Charlotte, North Carolina. Interviewed before the TV camera the
afternoon of the show, he exclaimed that he had "never been so happy in
his whole life", as the actual Beach Boys rehearsed in the background a
new ending to "Surfer Girl" for that night's performance.
John had graduated from University of Miami with a Bachelor
of Science Degree in Mass Communications in 1972. While there, he also studied,
taught and performed music.
At the age of eight, John wrote to the Walt Disney Corporation
to ask permission to start the "Official Donald Duck Club". They responded
with a personal letter and enough encouragement to keep the fire alive in the
third grader. After that, he redesigned his dad's garage into a neighborhood
kid's movie theatre.
The formation of John's musical quartet, "The Customs",
came in sixth grade. The band played together every weekend until the end of
John's high school year. He had been in the high school band and choir during
that time, as well.
Before moving to Miami, John and three music buddies recorded
his original song, "Best Friend", at a Boston recording studio. This
group, named "Collage", had a number one hit in Kentucky for a few
weeks. It was obviously influenced by the style of "The Beach Boys",
whom John had admired since their inception in 1961. Other records followed,
like "Closin' In On Me" and "Looking For an Answer", as
did another record label, called Subtown Records.
During John's senior year at the University of Miami, Great
World of Sound released his original composition and recording, "Long Stretches
of Highway". This was the first to be released under the full name, "John
Hunter Phillips". At this time, John and four other musicians formed a
singing rock group by the name of "Somerset", which performed regularly
and professionally in the South Florida and Florida Keys area for many years.
In the following years, John won several national songwriting
competitions. In particular, in 1983, John won a fourth place award, out of
40,000 entrants that year, for an original composition titled, "You're
Never Alone". That song is recorded on the now-available CD, "It's
About Time".
John continued to write, record demos, play piano and sing,
while enjoying his role of "Dad" to three beautiful daughters. He
pressed on with learning by experience the skills of business management, and
sales and marketing, while under the employ of the software giant, Ashton-Tate
corporation, as well as the largest karaoke music producing manufacturing and
distribution company in the world, "Sound Choice Accompaniment Tracks,
Inc.", in Charlotte, North Carolina. He was also sales manager for "ProTech
Marketing, Inc.", a division of "Secom, Inc.", which was a key
player in the development of cutting-edge software copy-protection technologies.
John, having been in positions of sales, sales management and marketing, garnered
invaluable experience and is now extremely excited by the coupling of this with
his true passion and strongest forte - music!
Later that day, he shared a microphone on stage with Beach
Boy Bruce Johnston on "Barbara Ann" and "Fun, Fun, Fun".
John sang with the Beach Boys eight other times at various venues around the
United States.
In 1999, John released his self-produced 16 track CD titled,
"Diamonds On The Beach", which was received with great applause internationally;
selling not only in the United States, but in Europe, Australia and Japan. This
CD was re-released in 2006 by Diamond Chimes Enterprises LLC. The tracks are
primarily lesser-known songs previously recorded by The Beach Boys, Brian Wilson
and Carl Wilson. Billy Hinsche, a twenty five year veteran of The Beach Boys,
brother-in-law to the late Carl Wilson, as well as one-third of the successful
60's singing group, "Dino, Desi & Billy", sings a duet with John
on a song written by Billy and originally recorded by Carl Wilson on his second
solo album, "Young Blood". Hinsche also wrote the liner notes for
"Diamonds On The Beach".
John's second CD, "It's About Time", is every bit
as energetic a listening experience. Once again pairing up with the talents
of Billy Hinsche, who wrote a great song "Under A Beach Boy Moon",
John finds himself in the excellent company of Billy Hinsche and Jeffrey Foskett
(10 year veteran of the Beach Boys and current member of The Brian Wilson Band)
singing with him on a touching version of a song written by the late Dennis
Wilson, originally released by The Beach Boys on their 1972 classic album "Holland",
"Only With You".
Amidst an impressive array of extremely talented musicians,
chief engineer and co-producer Boo English, as well as the talents of key musicians
and sequencers, David Floyd, Freddy Tripp, Wade Starnes, Tim Gordon and many
others, John offers up a selection of songs written by himself, Brian Wilson,
Mike Love, Carl Wilson, Billy Hinsche, Dennis Wilson and Dion DiMucci.
A third CD release is planned for June, 2007, consisting entirely
of John Hunter Phillips originals, a move his fans have been encouraging for
a long time.
1st album
Diamonds On The Beach |
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2nd album
It's About Time... |
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