Phil Beer
Encyclopedia
Phil Beer is an English
multi-instrumentalist
, composer
, producer
, and one half of English acoustic roots duo Show of Hands
.
, guitar
, and mandolin
whilst still at school in Teignmouth
, Devon. This passion for acoustic music was especially stirred by the Davey Graham
album Folk Blues and Beyond. He played his first gig when he was fourteen in a band called Retrospect with Richard Entwistle, John Allman and Martin Pike and other musicians, and by the time he was sixteen he was performing regularly. Beer worked with Paul Downes
as a duo from 1974 and also in the Arizona Smoke Revue 1980. He was a key member of Johnny Coppin
's band (ex-Decameron
), and together they collaborated with Nigel Mazlyn Jones
on his 1979 Sentinel album. He toured with Mike Oldfield
in 1979 and also recorded some tracks at Oldfield's Througham studio. Beer joined the Albion Band in 1984 and stayed with them until 1991, touring extensively at home and abroad, and recording many albums. Show of Hands became a full-time partnership from 1991. Beer continues to do session work, most notably on the Rolling Stones Steel Wheels
album, Steve Harley
's Poetic Justice
and countless other mainstream and less high profile projects. He operates the Show of Hands
' recording studio, Riverside, in Exeter and records and produces several albums each year. Recent projects include two albums for folk fiddle player Jackie Oates
, two albums for former Spinners
singer Mick Groves, An album for folk music
ian Jez Lowe
, An album for singer-songwriter
Tom Palmer and an album for north Devon singer Jenna.
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
multi-instrumentalist
Multi-instrumentalist
A multi-instrumentalist is a musician who plays a number of different instruments.The Bachelor of Music degree usually requires a second instrument to be learned , but people who double on another instrument are not usually seen as multi-instrumentalists.-Classical music:Music written for Symphony...
, composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
, producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
, and one half of English acoustic roots duo Show of Hands
Show of Hands
Show of Hands is an English acoustic roots and folk duo comprising singer-songwriter Steve Knightley and multi-instrumentalist Phil Beer. In recent years they have been accompanied on tour and in the studio by jazz double-bassist Miranda Sykes.-Origins:...
.
Biography
Beer first began to play fiddleFiddle
The term fiddle may refer to any bowed string musical instrument, most often the violin. It is also a colloquial term for the instrument used by players in all genres, including classical music...
, guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, and mandolin
Mandolin
A mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...
whilst still at school in Teignmouth
Teignmouth
Teignmouth is a town and civil parish in Teignbridge in the English county of Devon, situated on the north bank of the estuary mouth of the River Teign about 14 miles south of Exeter. It has a population of 14,413. In 1690, it was the last place in England to be invaded by a foreign power...
, Devon. This passion for acoustic music was especially stirred by the Davey Graham
Davey Graham
David Michael Gordon "Davey" Graham, originally spelled Davy Graham, , was a British guitarist and one of the most influential figures in the 1960s British folk revival...
album Folk Blues and Beyond. He played his first gig when he was fourteen in a band called Retrospect with Richard Entwistle, John Allman and Martin Pike and other musicians, and by the time he was sixteen he was performing regularly. Beer worked with Paul Downes
Paul Downes
Paul Downes is an English folk guitarist, singer and composer. He has appeared on eight albums with bands, three highly acclaimed solo albums and has over 150 session credits...
as a duo from 1974 and also in the Arizona Smoke Revue 1980. He was a key member of Johnny Coppin
Johnny Coppin
Johnny Coppin is an English singer/songwriter, composer, poetry anthologist and broadcaster. He plays guitar and piano and has written and recorded many albums as a solo artist. He has a weekly one-hour show on BBC Radio Gloucestershire entitled Folk Roots which he has produced and presented every...
's band (ex-Decameron
Decameron (band)
Decameron were a British folk-rock band.Initially formed in 1968 in Cheltenham by Johnny Coppin and Dave Bell, the band were augmented in 1971 by the addition of Al Fenn and Geoff March...
), and together they collaborated with Nigel Mazlyn Jones
Nigel Mazlyn Jones
Nigel Mazlyn Jones is an English guitarist, singer and songwriter.Jones was born in Dudley, England, where he did part time work at Dudley Zoo from the age of 12...
on his 1979 Sentinel album. He toured with Mike Oldfield
Mike Oldfield
Michael Gordon Oldfield is an English multi-instrumentalist musician and composer, working a style that blends progressive rock, folk, ethnic or world music, classical music, electronic music, New Age, and more recently, dance. His music is often elaborate and complex in nature...
in 1979 and also recorded some tracks at Oldfield's Througham studio. Beer joined the Albion Band in 1984 and stayed with them until 1991, touring extensively at home and abroad, and recording many albums. Show of Hands became a full-time partnership from 1991. Beer continues to do session work, most notably on the Rolling Stones Steel Wheels
Steel Wheels
Steel Wheels is the 19th British and 21st American studio album by The Rolling Stones and was released in 1989. Heralded as a major comeback upon its release, the project is notable for the patching up of Mick Jagger and Keith Richards' relationship, a reversion to a more classic style of music and...
album, Steve Harley
Steve Harley
Steve Harley is an English singer and songwriter, best known for his work with the 1970s rock group Cockney Rebel, with whom he still occasionally tours .-Biography:As a child, Harley suffered from polio, spending four years in hospital up to the...
's Poetic Justice
Poetic Justice
Poetic Justice is a 1993 drama/romance film starring Janet Jackson, Tupac Shakur, Regina King and Joe Torry. It was written and directed by John Singleton....
and countless other mainstream and less high profile projects. He operates the Show of Hands
Show of Hands
Show of Hands is an English acoustic roots and folk duo comprising singer-songwriter Steve Knightley and multi-instrumentalist Phil Beer. In recent years they have been accompanied on tour and in the studio by jazz double-bassist Miranda Sykes.-Origins:...
' recording studio, Riverside, in Exeter and records and produces several albums each year. Recent projects include two albums for folk fiddle player Jackie Oates
Jackie Oates
Jackie Oates is an English folk singer and fiddle player. In addition to her solo work, she currently performs as part of the folk trio Wistman's Wood and sings with Morris Offspring.She was born in Congleton in Cheshire in 1983, but grew up in Staffordshire...
, two albums for former Spinners
The Spinners (UK band)
The Spinners were a 1960s folk group from Liverpool, England formed in September 1958. They consisted of:* Hughie Jones...
singer Mick Groves, An album for folk music
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
ian Jez Lowe
Jez Lowe
Jez Lowe is an English folk singer-songwriter. Lowe was born and raised in County Durham, in a coal mining family with Irish roots. He is known primarily for his compositions dealing with daily life in North-East England, particularly in his hometown of Easington Colliery. He performs both as a...
, An album for singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
Tom Palmer and an album for north Devon singer Jenna.
Discography
- Mandoline (1978)
- Hard Hats (1994)
- The Works (1996)
- Ridgeriders (with Ashley HutchingsAshley HutchingsAshley Stephen Hutchings is an English bassist, vocalist, songwriter, arranger, band leader, writer and record producer. He was a founder member of three of the most noteworthy English folk-rock bands in the history of the genre; Fairport Convention, Steeleye Span and The Albion Band...
and Chris WhileChris WhileChris While is an award-winning songwriter, singer and musician, known particularly for her powerful and moving vocals and the quality of her compositions and live performances. She has enjoyed success both as a solo artist, a songwriter and as a member of a number of notable and influential...
) (1999) - Mandorock (with the Phil Beer Band) (2000)
- Live Mandorock (with the Phil Beer Band) (2000)
- Once in a Blue Moon (2001)
- Phil Beer & Deb Sandland Live 2003 (2004)
- Rhythm Methodist (2004)
- Rhythm Methodist (re-release 2008) Talking Elephant Label.
- Hard Works (compilation of Hard Hats and The Works); 2008. Talking Elephant label.
- Box Set One (a five disc compilation of archive, live and new music and video); 2010
With Albion Band
- Under the Rose
- Stella Maris
- Wild Side of Town
- Got new Shoes (Albion Dance Band)
- Give me a saddle Albion Band 1989
- Albion Band (1990)
With Downes and Beer
- Life Ain't Worth Living (1973)
- Dance Without Music (1976)
- Live in Concept (1980)
- Live at Nettlebed (2008, Talking Elephant label)
With Johnny Coppin
- Roll On DreamerRoll On DreamerRoll On Dreamer is a folk/rock album by Johnny Coppin released in 1978, his debut solo album following his time with Decameron. Like the subsequent Coppin solo albums, it includes cover versions as well as Coppin originals and settings of Gloucestershire poetry.The album was produced and engineered...
(1978) - No Going BackNo Going Back (album)No Going Back is a folk/rock album by Johnny Coppin released in 1979, his second solo album.The album was produced by Johnny Coppin and engineered by John Acock and Mick Dolan. It was recorded at Millstream Studios, Cheltenham during the summer of 1979...
(1979) - Get LuckyGet Lucky (Johnny Coppin album)Get Lucky is a folk/rock album by Johnny Coppin released in 1982, his third solo album.The album was produced by Mark Tibenham and Johnny Coppin and engineered by Mark Tibenham...
(1982) - English Morning (1987)
- Edge of Day (1989)
- Force of the River (1993)
With Show of Hands
- Show of Hands Live (1992)
- Beat about the BushBeat about the BushBeat about the Bush is a 1994 studio album by English acoustic roots duo Show of Hands.It is their debut studio album to be released on CD, following the discontinued cassette albums that are Show of Hands from 1987, Tall Ships from 1990 and Out of the Count from 1991.Following Mike Trim's...
(1994) - Lie of the LandLie of the LandLie Of The Land is a 1995 studio album by English acoustic roots duo Show of Hands. It is their second studio album.-Background and Release:...
(1995) - Dark FieldsDark FieldsDark Fields is the third studio album by English acoustic roots duo Show of Hands, released in 1997. It was their first album to come in a gatefold/digipack...
(1997) - Folk MusicFolk Music (album)Folk Music was the fourth studio album by English acoustic roots duo Show of Hands.The album includes traditional songs.-Background:The duo have said the album is an album which connects them to their roots, which they felt worked well.-Release:...
(1998) - Backlog (1999)
- Show of Hands (2000)
- Covers (2000)
- Cold FrontierCold FrontierCold Frontier is a 2001 studio album by English acoustic roots duo Show of Hands."Are We Alright" was re-recorded for their best of album, Roots: The Best of Show of Hands. The song itself has become a live staple of the duo...
(2001) - The Path (2003)
- Country LifeCountry Life (Show of Hands album)Country Life is a 2003 studio album by English acoustic roots duo Show of Hands.-Notes:Helped to be promoted by a tour in 2003 , the album was released to a positive reception...
(2003) - WitnessWitness (Show of Hands album)Witness is the ninth studio album by Show of Hands. The album was recorded in January 2006 at Presshouse Studio, Colyton, Devon, and was produced by Simon Emmerson and Simon ‘Mass’ Massey from the Afro Celts, who helped to incorporate elements of traditional African, ambient and electronic dance...
(2006) - Roots - The Best of Show of Hands (2007)
- Arrogance Ignorance and GreedArrogance Ignorance and GreedArrogance Ignorance and Greed is the tenth studio album by Show of Hands.The Album was Produced by Stu Hanna of the English folk duo Megson-Notes:...
(2009)
Awards
- 2010 BBC Radio 2 Folk AwardsBBC Radio 2 Folk AwardsThe BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards celebrate outstanding achievement during the previous year within the field of folk music. The awards have been given annually since 2000 by British radio station BBC Radio 2....
- Best Duo (with Steve Knightley) - 2010 BBC Radio 2 Fold Awards - Best Song Arrogance, Ignorance and Greed