Phil Carmen

Phil Carmen (born Herbert Hofmann, February 14, 1953 in Montreal, Quebec) is a Swiss musician and producer of Canadian heritage. Carmen grew up in Frankfurt am Main, Germany and in Lucerne, Switzerland. In Lucerne, he went to the Conservatory, but later studied bookkeeping. In 1975, he decided to turn to music. With bassist Mike Thompson (born Marcel Galuzzi), he founded the duo Carmen & Thompson, playing especially country music.

Phil Carmen - Borderline Down
EAC+LOG+CUE | FLAC: 77 MB | Full Artwork: 20 MB | 5% Recovery Info
Label/Cat#: Metronome # 867 909-2 | Country/Year: Germany 1991
Genre: Pop, Rock | Style: Pop Rock

Phil Carmen (born 1953 in Montreal, Quebec) is a Swiss musician and producer of Canadian heritage. His last successful album as a solo artist was City Walls (1987), which went to #10 in Switzerland. The corresponding promotional tour led to the Live in Montreux album with the same band line up of Brian Auger on organ, Pick Withers and Larry E. Van on drums, Dick Morrissey on sax, Steve Dawson on trumpet, Steve Evens on bass, and Sabine van Baaren, backing vocals.

Although Carmen McRae is the obvious star of her live record, she gives plenty of solo space to her notable all-star band (Red Holloway on tenor and alto, organist Jack McDuff, guitarist Phil Upchurch, bassist John Clayton, and drummer Paul Humphrey). McRae did not record in this context with an organ group very often. All seven songs (which range in length from four minutes to the nine-and-a-half-minute title track) are swing-era standards except for Eubie Blake's "My Handy Man Ain't Handy No More," which dates back to the early '20s, but McRae updates them a bit and makes them sound relevant and swinging.