paul secor Posted August 29, 2003 Report Posted August 29, 2003 Earl Phillips is my favorite blues drummer. This morning I was listening to some Roy Eldridge sides from the 40's, and while perusing the personnel, I found that an Earl Phillips is credited as the drummer on the 1946 "Hi Ho, Trailus Boot Whip" session. Does anyone know if this is the same Earl Phillips who recorded with Jimmy Reed, Howlin' Wolf, and other blues artists? Quote
Noj Posted August 29, 2003 Report Posted August 29, 2003 (edited) Paul, he has a page at AMG but it seems I can't post a link to it. Edited August 29, 2003 by Noj Quote
paul secor Posted August 30, 2003 Author Report Posted August 30, 2003 Thanks guys. The AMG was helpful. I even found that I have a recording of one side of his only 45 - "Oop De Oop" with some fine Jodie Williams guitar - on a VeeJay compilation CD. I'd forgotten I had it. AMG lists him as the same Earl Phillips as the drummer on the Roy Eldridge sides. However, they also list Earl Phillips as playing guitar with Benny Carter on a Classics CD - Benny Carter 1948-52 - and I don't know if he played guitar. I did a preliminary Google search (didn't have time for a thorough one) and found that Living Blues magazine published an obituary in 1991. I couldn't find the obit online in the time I had, so I'll have to search further. The obituary will probably give me the information I'm looking for. Thanks again. Quote
Peter A Posted August 30, 2003 Report Posted August 30, 2003 Paul, I have just found the number of Living Blues which contains the obituary of Earl Philips (no. 97) but unfortunately there is not much info of his "jazz adventures". Philips came to Chicago in 1940 at the age of 20 and until he started recording for Chess "he played jazz, swing and eventually blues". As expected, the article is focussed on his playing with Howlin' Wolf and Jimmy Reed (and other Vee Jay artists such as Eddie Taylor and Billy Boy Arnold). No mentioning that he ever played guitar! Peter Quote
paul secor Posted August 31, 2003 Author Report Posted August 31, 2003 Thanks for the info, Peter. The mystery continues - I'll have to keep searching. Quote
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