Phil Roy's In the Weird, Small Hours delivers delicious, sensually pleasurable sounds to your ears, head and heart.
If you're not familiar with Phil Roy, this is a great intro to his talents-- his brilliant voice, musicality, timing, heart, performing. Harvard researcher Howard Gardner has described a theory where there are different kinds of intelligence besides the verbal and mathematical usually measured-- athletic, visual-spatial and musical, to name a few.
Phil is a musical GENIUS.
I wouldn't necessarily say that he is a genius at any single aspect of music, but put together his singing, playing, timing, arranging and the heart he puts into his music and it's clear, he is nothing less than genius-- a genius not in the technical way, but at exquisitely stroking your listening and your heart. But don't just trust me. His songs have been recorded by Ray Charles, The Neville Brothers, Joe Cocker, Mavis Staples and many more.
Since this is a compilation of him doing other people's songs, inspired by a similar Frank Sinatra album, you DON'T get a taste of his orginal sounds, but still, he puts his trademark sound into these songs.
I'd say that Phil sounds more, to me, like Aaron Neville, than any other singer. It's not that he copies Neville's sound, but he has the incredible vocal versatility that Neville has, bending and doing things with notes that most singers don't even think about because they are so out of their reach. Occasionally, he'll also conjure up echoes of Leonard Cohen.
When I say that Roy's talent includes heart, well, that's a big deal for me. You hear it in his timing, his pauses, his breathing, his shifts in pacing. It adds up to really hearing feelings in the songs.
Now, if you are already a Phil Roy fan, even though Phil does other people's songs, it is amazing how he puts his unique style of singing and arranging into each of the songs. This is a great CD to add to your Phil Roy collection.
If you are new to Phil Roy, save yourself some time and order his other three CDs. they are all superb. You won't regret it.
Check out Phil Roy's Website
