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Article: Without elaborate backup, Sam Phillips' soul breaks through.(Knight Ridder Newspapers)
- Article from:
- Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service
- Article date:
- August 16, 2001
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2001 Knight-Ridder/Tribune News Service. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Sam Phillips used to pile it on. The discs that established her as an important voice _ 1988's "The Indescribable Wow," 1991's "Cruel Inventions," 1994's "Martinis & Bikinis" _ were buffets of Beatlesque riches, ornate arrangements of strings and synths and vocal counterlines that aimed for an impossible, idealized splendor. Her pieces started as thoughtful songwriting, but they became more memorable as feats of additive composition, skeletal melodies loaded up with studio freight.
"Fan Dance" (Nonesuch, 4 stars) suggests that Phillips didn't need that elaborate support.
In 12 haunted little songs that last just 32 minutes, Phillips offers a ...