Phil Graham

Bio:

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Phil bought his first guitar way back in 1967 at the grand old age of just fourteen. Playing only the chord of D major for the first six weeks or so, he bought Bert Weedon's "Play In A Day" along with "500 Chord Shapes" before teaming up with school mate Rob Gittins, who was also new to the guitar. Phil and Rob were later joined by Alan and Graham Rowley and "Victoria" , a successful Rock & Pop band touring the clubs and Odeons of the North East UK, was born.

Victoria played consistently until, regreting it to this day, Phil left in the autumn of 1974 to take up employment as a postman. Victoria folded soon after and the band members each went their own ways. Rob was last heard of as Bob Roberts and working for a major UK holiday company, Graham moved to the South East UK and is still playing and in contact with Phil (see friends) and Alan, sadly, is no longer with us.

During the nineteen seventies and into the eighties, Phil appeared in various musical guises; sometimes with his former Victoria band members, before settling down in 1984 to raise a family with his wife and soulmate, Janet. Together they have two sons, Daniel and Padraic, who are both grown and doing well.

So.... where are we now? Well, Phil has moved away from his manic rock and roll roots and now performs his own songs plus contemporary folk influenced by the likes of Christy Moore, Richard Thompson, Neil Young, The Saw Doctors etc. Running alongside Phil's solo act he also plays and sings in a band - Dead Cat Bounce - performing an 'unusual mix' of contemporary folk, rock and blues.

Phil makes regular visits to Croxdale Folk Club about four miles south of Durham city (www.myspace.com/croxdalefolk). His second album, Strange Kind Of Way, although merely a personal project with some imperfections, has been featured on Radio Newcastle's Breakfast Show as well as Tyne Tees Television and BBC TV's Look North. He was also the resident guest on Terry Ferdinand's Folk Show at Bishop FM Radio - www.bishopfm.com

Aside from his music, Phil manages FILMAR Photography (www.filmar.co.uk).

A bit of Graham History: Although Phil's paternal ties hail from Northern Ireland through his father's upbringing in Ballynure and Ballyclare, he is acutely conscious of the Scottish heritage within his family ancestry. Indeed, arising from the Norman conquest in 1066, Graham's who had sailed from Normandy with William The Conqueror followed him northwards to eventually settle in Scotland. The clan Graham have an illustrious, if controversial, history and Phil is a member of the Clan Graham Association of Scotland (www.clan-graham-association.org.uk).




View my page on Lionheartradio.com

Member Since:

May 24, 2007

Members:

Just lil ole me with occasional friends. I also play guitar and bouzouki and sing in a Folk/Rock/Blues band - Dead Cat Bounce.

Available as a solo performer for concerts, festivals, corporate events and fundraisers. For some events Phil offers a more rock(ish) based programme with Dead Cat Bounce.

Here's an extract from a review of a gig in The Crown Hotel in Crook:- "....Phil Graham was up next. I loved the Bono song "North and South" . It made the hairs stand up on me neck. It was a great way to start things off...."

And from Acoustic Scarborough....."Phil has the honour of being the first performer to get the whole place singing which was a real uplifting experience for us all."

"last night, both Catherine and I thought you were on fire, your songs were great, one of your best performances." Terry Ferdinand, presenter, Bishop FM Radio.

"I've been a fan of Christy Moore and his singing for years. Tonight you came a very close second to him." Graham Brotton, guitarist, Teesside.

"I enclose payment for the CD. I thoroughly enjoyed your performance on Sunday at Nature's World and, like I said, it was a pleasure listening to you. May you continue for a long time." Mel, your newest fan, Middlesbrough

From The Sporstman Bar, Eaglescliffe - "We were happy chappies listening to you last night. We were blown away with your voice and the emotion when you played the Christy stuff - it really hit the spot". Nikkie

"I have downloaded that song which you sang last. Its definitely my song of the week. It was great how you got all the crowd singing with it. You command a lot of respect from the audience when you perform." James Kruman - fellow performer, Help For Heroes gig, Lazenby 18 October 2008

Hi Phil, I'm listening to the tracks on your MySpace page right now. I'd like to play one of your tracks on my Unsigned and Indie Artists Radio show on Wednesday night (repeated throughout the week). I like all of the tracks on your MySpace page. Please let me play a track of yours on my show. Les Hewitt - http://radio.manymore.net

Its great to have Phil as he is someone Loftus really looks up to, a father figure for sure, and we bet that we are not alone in thinking that, this is another fine Phil Graham composition.Ian Swinburne - The Station Hotel, Loftus.

Phil supports BISHOP FM Radio at www.bishopfm.com

And don't forget to subscribe to Phil's blog posts in order to keep up with his weekly 'doings'..... musical, photographic and domestic. Blogs are usually posted over each weekend

ADVERT - Any band or artist wanting promo or other photos just give a call to FILMAR Photography - www.filmar.co.uk

Phil Graham. Butterfly.
The Station Hotel. May 11th 2008. To listen, first use the volume slider (above right) to silence any song which might be auto playing.
.. Phil Graham.
Phil Graham. Share The Darkness.
Phil Graham. Maelstrom.

Influences:

Not necessarily in this order.... Gram Parsons, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Monkees; Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Cream, Eric Clapton, Jim Reeves, Judas Priest, Rory Gallagher, Yes, Bruce Springsteen, Little Feat, Patti Smith, Status Quo, Sensational Alex Harvey Band, Heavy Metal Kids, Victoria, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Harvey Andrews, Ravi Shankar, Arab Strap, Third Ear Band, Neil Young, The Dubliners, Louden Wainwright III, The Sex Pistols, Bob Dylan, David Bowie, Donovan, Arlo Guthrie (and Woody), John Lennon, Christy Moore, Richard Thompson, Linda Thompson, The Saw Doctors, Wally Page, Bonnie Raitt, Jez Lowe, Bert Draycott, Chris Milner, Nick Drake, Bill Oxbrough, Brother Crow, Luka Bloom, Wreckless Eric, She Wants Revenge...... and many, many, many more.

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Record Label:

Wartzenorl