Anthony Phillips – The Golden Hour – Private Parts & Pieces XII (Esoteric, 2024)
Anthony Phillips, composer and founding member of Genesis, presents the latest installment in his ‘Private Parts and Pieces’ series with The Golden Hour – Private Parts & Pieces XII.
Imagine yourself enveloped in a collection of acoustic guitar pieces that swing from delightfully peaceful and dreamy to pastoral melodies, and then crank it up with some upbeat strumming. Anthony Phillips isn’t just your average guitarist, though. This guy’s a multi-instrumental wizard who effortlessly transitions to the piano, delivering lush compositions deeply rooted in western classical vibes.
Phillips doesn’t stop at just guitar and piano. He crafts these captivating soundscapes with synthesizers and layers of overdubbed instruments, conjuring up lovely creations. It’s the kind of intricate, mesmerizing instrumentals you’d expect from the best progressive rock bands, whether they’re nestled between epic suites or woven into the suites themselves. It’s pure musical magic.
This volume is the first new release in the series since City of Dreams in 2012. The collection includes notable pieces such as the four-part “Wynchmore Hill Suite” and a vocal version of “Roads in Between.”
Another highlight is the memorable and lovely guitar duo between Phillips and Madrid-based Argentine-Spanish guitarist Quique Berro García on classical guitar.
Phillips describes The Golden Hour as “a traditional Private Parts & Pieces album of old, a collection of pieces of disparate background hopefully constituting a cohesive whole.” Indeed, this album offers a remarkable collection of evocative compositions.
Musicians: Anthony Phillips on guitars, piano, synthesizers, vocals; Quique Berro García on classical guitar on “Sarabande Noir” and “Soliloquy for Sylvie”; James Collins on additional synthesizers on “High Flight” and “New World.”
Track listing:
1 Wychmore Hill Suite I : Country Mile
2 Wychmore Hill Suite II : Ring of Steel
3 Wychmore Hill Suite III : Peaceful Land
4 Wychmore Hill Suite IV : Jack The Lad
5 Twilight of a Diva
6 High Flight
7 Sarabande Noir
8 Kathryn Downes Trad.
9 The Golden Hour
10 Hour Glass
11 Roads In Between (vocal version)
12 Benediction
13 Soliloquy for Sylvie
14 Rushlight
15 New World
16 Cirrus
17 Under The Southern Stars
18 Sea Drift
19 Night Spectre
20 Mean Streets
21 Sky Diving
22 Summer’s Lease
23 His Final Bow