Contrary to rumors that Sam Phillips was unhappy with her representation and contract with Nonesuch, it now appears as though a new record is to come February 2008 (according to samphillips.com). I want to open this up to a broader discussion, though. Someone on another list (or maybe it was this one, I don't remember) had suggested that former husband and producer T-bone Burnett was guilty of smothering her career. I think this is a fair question, and wanted to open this up for discussion. Why isn't she more well known? It seems as though Burnett and Phillips spurned the spotlight of fame for as long as they were a couple. Ironically, Burnett seems to have embraced it as of late with the success "O Brother, Where art Thou?" Except for "Martinis and Bikinis" and her last effort, "A Boot and a Shoe", much of her work has been couched in the artsy avant-garde music of Marc Ribot, hiding her real gift for crafting infectious melodies. I think "Boot" showed a true talent, and her website showcases two wonderful new songs from the upcoming album. She deserves more attention, and I hope she gets it. Anyway, discuss.

Although she appears to be widely respected among music critics, industry people, and hipper radio stations, it's hard to know why Sam Phillips isn't better known. I'll occasionally hear one of her songs on a movie or tv soundtrack (e.g., "Raised on Promises" in the film, "Ruby in Paradise"), and I've never watched the show, but someone told me that Sam contributed musical snippets to "The Gilmore Girls." Maybe her voice is a little too "off the beaten track"; maybe her lyrics require deeper thinking or more figuring out than what's usually aired on commerical radio. I've listened to her for years. I like very much "Fan Dance" and the two albums you mentioned, but my favorites remain "The Turning" (her last recorded as "Leslie") and "The Indescribable Wow" (her first recorded as "Sam"), both produced by T-Bone. "The Turning" is remarkable for its searching and yearning songs and disparate musical textures, while I love the infectious pop and Beatles influences on "Wow." Do you know who's producing the new album? I thought T-Bone's productions fleshed out Sam's music beautifully. I'm really looking forward to some new music from her. Thanks for the heads-up.

Unless things have changed, the album will be self-produced.

The album will be called Don't Do Anything and is scheduled for release on January 29th. More details will be in this thread on our New Releases board as they become available:

http://www.imwan.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=21336

In my opinion, her songwriting went downhill after Martinis.

I think her songwriting on her last couple of albums was as good as anything she's ever done. The productions were much more minimal than her earlier releases, but no less rewarding. Perhaps the fact that one of her new songs is covered by Robert Plant & Alison Krauss on their new CD will raise her profile. That would be ironic for anyone who thinks T-Bone Burnett tried to stifle her career, since he produced the Plant/Krauss album.

Rich K

I also like the songs on the last two albums, though I do sometimes miss the pop sensibilities and production on the Indescribable Wow and Cruel Inventions. I'm looking forward to the new album.