TRENDING NRT NEWS: Staff Voices: A Journey Through Sound | Sarah Reeves Essentials | Narnia Coming To Life
Sam (Leslie) Phillips Artist Profile | Biography And Discography | NewReleaseToday

View Photos (0) | Add Photos/Galleries NEW


Discography



ADVERTISEMENT

Artist Links
[edit]

  • Official Website
  • MySpace Website
  • fan site
  • IMDB profile



    Music Videos



    Latest News
    There is no news
    ARTIST PROFILE
    Sam (Leslie) Phillips
    Views 11071 Views | CommentsComments [edit]
     
    #687 Become A Fan Leave A Comment
    Artist Ranking
    Top 20 | All Artists
    Become
    A Fan
    Leave
    A Comment
     

    Leslie Ann Phillips, aka Sam Phillips, (born January 28, 1962) is an American singer and a songwriter.

    Phillips, who was born in Glendale, California, began her musical career as a vocalist in the early 1980s, singing background parts for Christian artists Mark Heard, Randy Stonehill, and others. After a short time, Phillips was signed to a solo contract with Myrrh Records - under her given name - where she went on to record four Christian pop albums: Beyond Saturday Night, Dancing with Danger, Black and White in a Grey World and, finally, The Turning, which teamed her with producer and future husband, T-Bone Burnett. Throughout the Myrrh period, Phillips wrote more and more of her own songs and several were Top 10 singles on Christian radio.

    Since Cyndi Lauper was popular at the time and also had an high-pitched, idiosyncratic vocal style, Myrrh insisted on promoting her as "the Christian Cyndi Lauper." Phillips was never comfortable with this image, and it was a bone of contention between her and the label. She began using the name "Sam" professionally in 1988 when she left Myrrh Records and signed with Virgin Records, partially in order to distance herself from her somewhat embarrassing Myrrh-imposed persona.

    Like many Christian artists before her, she expanded into more secular content at the new label. She released The Indescribable Wow, which featured the orchestrations of Brian Wilson lyricist Van Dyke Parks. Cruel Inventions, which was released in 1991, included a guest appearance from close friend Elvis Costello, and she (with her husband) supported Costello on his 1991 tour. 1994's Martinis and Bikinis, was widely praised by music critics and was even nominated for a Grammy Award; this was Phillips' first nomination. That year also gave Phillips a chance to write a song with Brian Wilson which would appear on Rob Wasserman's Trios album, performed by Carnie Wilson.

    In 1995, Phillips made her silver screen debut in the Bruce Willis blockbuster Die Hard With a Vengeance, in which she played a mute terrorist. She was originally supposed to have a speaking part in the film but it was decided that her character would be silent, since it made her appear much more imposing and lethal, although it also placed her in a more stereotypically femme fatale role at the same time. In 1996, Phillips released Omnipop (It's Only A Flesh Wound Lambchop), which featured a song cowritten by Phillips and R.E.M.. Omnipop, which was more experimental musically, ended up being her worst-selling album to date. After releasing a contractual obligation "best-of" album for Virgin in 1999, the label dropped Phillips from their roster.

    In 2001, Phillips signed with Nonesuch Records and released a stripped-down acoustic album called Fan Dance, which featured some of the most critically acclaimed songwriting of Phillips's career. Van Dyke Parks contributed string arrangements for a track or two. Phillips also began writing music for and scoring the television series Gilmore Girls, and even appeared on screen during the final episode of season six, performing "Taking Pictures" from the Fan Dance album. In 2004, she released A Boot and a Shoe, another collection of acoustic cabaret songs in the same vein as Fan Dance.

    Entry last edited by clearspoken on 02.13.08
    Return To Artist Database

    Latest NRTeam Fans
    Sam (Leslie) Phillips Has 3 Fans | View All | Become A Fan




    NRTeam Artist Comments (0)
    Add Your Review    Join The NRTeam
     
      Showing comments 1 through 10 of 0  

    Christian Music, Facebook Christian Music, Twitter Christian Music, YouTube Christian Music, Instagram

    ADVERTISEMENTS

    TRENDING NRT NEWS: Staff Voices: A Journey Through Sound | Sarah Reeves Essentials | Narnia Coming To Life

    Christian Music

    ©2024 NewReleaseToday
    A Division Of NRT Media Inc.

     

    Secure
    CHRISTIAN MUSIC
    Discover New Artists
    New This Week
    Coming Soon
    Playlists
    Free Music
    Album Reviews

    NEWS
    New Music
    Movies / Media
    Events
    Tours
    General

    PODCASTS
    NRT Now Podcast
    NRT Podcast Network

    VIDEOS
    Music Videos
    Exclusives

    EXCLUSIVES
    Articles
    Devotionals
    Interviews
    Concert Reviews
    We Love Awards

    MORE INFO
    RSS
    Privacy Policy
    Terms of Use
    Advertising
    Staff
    New Music Email
    Contact

    RESOURCES
    Music Studies
    Artist Training

    CONNECT
    Facebook
    Twitter
    Instagram
    YouTube