Today we have added Phil’s composition ‘Nowadays a Silhouette to our YouTube collection.
Aymeric Leroy writes: One of the most vivid memories I have from my stay in London while the “A Life In Music” Tribute Concert for Phil Miller was being rehearsed and performed, was John Etheridge’s solo on the final day of rehearsals. John had never played with Phil or performed his music before. They obviously knew each other and there was much mutual respect and quite a few shared bandmates, but it was new territory for John and his contributions to the concert were all highlights. The Beautiful Nowadays A Silhouette ( originally known as just Ballad when first performed by National Health in 1979) was included on the 1981-recorded Before A Word Is Said album for which Phil had teamed up with Alan Gowen, Richard Sinclair and Trevor Tomkins. It was performed again by In Cahoots and Short Wave in later years. Here Simon Picard plays the lovely theme on soprano sax and Pete Lemer plays the second solo on electric piano. Fred Baker is on bass and Paul Dufour on drums but the high point for me is clearly John’s passionate solo.