Phil received the bulk of his advanced
formal music education as a euphonium soloist and concert conductor at Pikeville College, and Marshall University. "I got the
performance bug from my high school band director, Charlie Oshel. He is a bandsman who saw the strong musical areas in young musicians and pushed
us hard to excel. Instead of the normal, run-of-the mill stage band, we had a
dixieland band. I was the tenor banjo player and doubled on trumpet and
trombone, all through high school. "
During the late 60s and early 70s
Phil toured the east coast with THE NEW GENERATION as lead guitarist. In the last 25 years, Phil has been featured
at jazz festivals with Bill Rank, Spiegel Wilcox, Ernie Carson, Mike Walbridge,
and other hot jazz big wigs throughout Ohio, West Virginia, Kentucky, Indiana,
and North and South Carolina. He has also recorded in the RCA Studios in Nashville
and in his spare time served on the Board of Directors of the Coon Sanders
Nighthawks Jazz Festival.
