Philip Rambow (born August 1949) is a Canadian singer, songwriter, and guitarist, who fronted

The Winkies The Winkies were an English pub rock group. The group primarily consisted of Philip Rambow, Michael Desmarais, Guy Humphreys, and Brian Turrington. Biography The Winkies were formed by Canadian-born Philip Rambow with former Holy Rollers gui ...

, had a solo career, and worked with

Brian Eno Brian Peter George St John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno (; born Brian Peter George Eno, 15 May 1948) is a British musician, composer, record producer and visual artist best known for his contributions to ambient music and work in rock, pop an ...

Mick Ronson Michael Ronson (26 May 1946 – 29 April 1993) was an English musician, songwriter, arranger, and producer. He achieved critical and commercial success working with David Bowie as the guitarist of the Spiders from Mars. He was a session music ...

, and

Kirsty MacColl Kirsty Anna MacColl (10 October 1959 – 18 December 2000) was a British singer and songwriter, daughter of folk singer Ewan MacColl. She recorded several pop hits in the 1980s and 1990s, including "There's a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop Swears He ...

among others.

Biography

Born in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

, he studied at

McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter granted by King George IV,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill Universit ...

and started playing in clubs and at student functions, taking his stage name from the poet

Arthur Rimbaud Jean Nicolas Arthur Rimbaud (, ; 20 October 1854 – 10 November 1891) was a French poet known for his transgressive and surreal themes and for his influence on modern literature and arts, prefiguring surrealism. Born in Charleville, he starte ...

. He formed a band, Missing Links, before moving to New York in 1970, but failed in several attempts to win a recording contract. He moved to London in 1973 after hearing that A&R man

Muff Winwood Mervyn "Muff" Winwood (born 15 June 1943, Erdington, Birmingham, England) is a British songwriter and record producer, and the older brother of Steve Winwood. Both were members of the Spencer Davis Group in the 1960s, in which Muff Winwood play ...

liked one of his tapes. In London, he jammed with

pub rock Pub rock is a rock music Rock music is a broad genre of popular music that originated as " rock and roll" in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s, developing into a range of different styles in the mid-1960s and later, particu ...

band

Ducks Deluxe Ducks Deluxe are an English pub rock band of the 1970s, who continue to tour and record new material. Usually called "The Ducks" by their fans, they were known for up-tempo, energetic performances, and the successful careers of their members, ...

and met Paul Kennerley, a manager who was putting together a new band,

. Jason Barnard, "Philip Rambow – The Rebel Kind", ''The Strange Brew'', 2020
Retrieved 9 November 2020."Philip Rambow – From Pub Rock to New Wave", ''Kreol Magazine'', May 29, 2019
Retrieved 9 November 2020. Rambow became the band's lead singer, guitarist, and one of their main songwriters, and the band became well known for their "basic, Stonesy pub rock" performed in "outlandish glam rock stage costumes." The Winkies came to the attention of

, who needed a band with whom to tour after leaving

Roxy Music Roxy Music are an English rock music, rock band formed in 1970 by Bryan Ferry—who became the band's lead vocalist and principal songwriter—and bassist Graham Simpson (musician), Graham Simpson. The other longtime members are Phil Manzanera ...

. The tour ended abruptly when Eno suffered a

collapsed lung A pneumothorax is an abnormal collection of air in the pleural space between the lung and the chest wall. Symptoms typically include sudden onset of sharp, one-sided chest pain and shortness of breath. In a minority of cases, a one-way valve is ...

, but resulted in the Winkies winning a contract with

Chrysalis Records Chrysalis Records () is a British record label that was founded in 1968. The name is both a reference to the pupal stage of a butterfly and a combination of its founders' names, Chris Wright and Terry Ellis. It started as the Ellis-Wright Ag ...

, who released their self-titled album in 1975. On the day the album was issued, the band split up, and Rambow then returned to New York. He associated with the punk music scene at CBGBs, and formed the Philip Rambow Band. He contributed a track, "Night Out", on the 1977 album ''Max's Kansas City Vol.2'', and a version of " Why Do Lovers Break Each Other's Hearts" on a

Phil Spector Harvey Phillip Spector (born Harvey Philip Spector; December 26, 1939January 16, 2021) was an American record producer and songwriter, best known for his innovative recording practices and entrepreneurship in the 1960s, followed decades later by ...

tribute album, ''Bionic Gold''. Steve Huey, Biography, ''Allmusic.com''
Retrieved 9 November 2020.Nick Dalton, "Under the Radar: Philip Rambow", ''Record Collector'' No.511, November 2020, p.142 After returning to London at the start of 1977, he formed a band with bassist Dave Cochran and drummer Laurie Jellyman, soon adding singer Maggi Ronson who introduced the band to her brother,

. They recorded some demos with Ronson, which went unreleased, but Rambow won a solo contract with

EMI EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At the time of its break-up in 201 ...

, releasing the album ''Shooting Gallery'' in 1979. Through Mick Ronson, Rambow submitted songs to

Ellen Foley Ellen Foley (born 1951) is an American singer and actress who has appeared on Broadway and television, where she co-starred in the sitcom ''Night Court'' for one season. In music, she has released five solo albums but is best known for her collab ...

, who recorded two of them, including the title track, for her 1979 album '' Night Out''. He also co-wrote

's 1981 hit "

There's a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop Swears He's Elvis "There's a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop Swears He's Elvis" is a song by British singer-songwriter Kirsty MacColl, which was released as the lead single from her debut studio album '' Desperate Character''. The song was written by MacColl and Philip ...

", and played on MacColl's album ''

Desperate Character ''Desperate Character'' is the first solo album of British singer-songwriter Kirsty MacColl, released in 1981. The album was re-released in March 1985 as ''Kirsty MacColl'', with three tracks replaced with other songs. The album has been remaste ...

''. The same year, Rambow released his second solo album, ''Jungle Law''. In the 1980s, Rambow worked briefly as a

private detective A private investigator (often abbreviated to PI and informally called a private eye), a private detective, or inquiry agent is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. Private investigators of ...

, and then in A&R for

Bronze Records Bronze Records was an independent English record label founded in 1971 by record producer Gerry Bron on Oxford Street in London, eventually relocating to Chalk Farm. History Bron had been producing Uriah Heep for Vertigo Records, and he set up ...

. By the early 1990s, he was living in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

, with wife and children, working in publishing and promotion, before returning to Britain to play at a Kirsty MacColl tribute concert following her accidental death. In 2013, he appeared at the RonsonFest tribute event to Mick Ronson in London, and joined an online songwriting group, which in turn to led to him recording the album ''Whatever Happened To Phil Rambow?'', released in 2014. He has subsequently performed with

Tony Visconti Anthony Edward Visconti (born April 24, 1944) is an American record producer, musician and singer. Since the late 1960s, he has worked with an array of performers. His first hit single was T. Rex's " Ride a White Swan" in 1970, the first of man ...

in the

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

tribute band Holy Holy, and played in a trio with former Ducks Deluxe guitarist

Martin Belmont Martin Belmont (born 21 December 1948) is an English rock and country-blues guitarist, best known for being a founding member of Graham Parker & The Rumour. Life and career Belmont was born in Bromley, Kent, England. After working as a roadie ...

. In 2020, Rambow released a new album, ''Canadiana'', and a compilation, ''The Rebel Kind: Anthology 1972–2020''.

Discography

Albums

* ''Shooting Gallery'' (1979) * ''Jungle Law'' (1981) * ''Whatever Happened To Phil Rambow?'' (2014) * ''Canadiana'' (2020)

Compilations

Hope & Anchor Front Row Festival ''Hope & Anchor Front Row Festival'' is a hit double-LP of live recordings taken from various bands – mainly power pop, pub rock, punk rock and new wave groups - that played the Front Row Festival at the Hope and Anchor, Islington between Tues ...

(1978) * ''The Rebel Kind: Anthology 1972–2020'' (2020)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rambow, Philip 1949 births Living people Canadian male guitarists Canadian male singer-songwriters Canadian singer-songwriters Musicians from Montreal