Philip Sayce is a Welsh-born American and Canadian guitarist, singer, songwriter, performer, and producer.

Early life

Sayce was born in

Aberystwyth Aberystwyth (; ) is a University town, university and seaside town and a community (Wales), community in Ceredigion, Wales. It is the largest town in Ceredigion and from Aberaeron, the county's other administrative centre. In 2021, the popula ...

on June 3, 1976, his family moved to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

when he was two years old, and he grew up in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

. His parents, Kenneth and Sheila, listened to music by

Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English Rock music, rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s l ...

, Ry Cooder and Dire Straits, amongst others. His parents' love of music inspired his love for the guitar, and he also played the piano and trombone for over 10 years. He was fifteen years old when he played in his first band. Sayce and his best friend, drummer Cassius Pereira, played in bands together throughout high school, holding band practice in their basements. Sayce's style is influenced by

Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential guitarists of all time. Inducted ...

, and

Stevie Ray Vaughan Stephen Ray Vaughan (also known as SRV; October 3, 1954 – August 27, 1990) was an American musician, best known as the guitarist and frontman of the blues rock trio Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble (band), Double Trouble. Although his ma ...

, whose death in August 1990 affected the young guitarist. Sayce began playing in Toronto clubs at the age of 16. He quickly became a regular fixture on Toronto's bar-scene. Some of the clubs Sayce frequented were Grossman's Tavern, The Silver Dollar, Blues on Bellair, The Horseshoe Tavern, and Albert's Hall in Toronto, known for their jam sessions with artists such as Robbie Robertson,

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan; born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Described as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture over his nearly 70-year ...

and Jeff Healey. His other musical influences include B.B. King, Albert King, Albert Collins, Buddy Guy, and Robert Cray. Sayce joined Jeff Healey's band in 1997 and toured the world for three and a half years, playing across

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

, UK,

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

and

Scandinavia Scandinavia is a subregion#Europe, subregion of northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It can sometimes also ...

. A commercially released performance at the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland is a snapshot of Philip's first European tour with Healey and his band.

Career

Sayce quickly gained attention as a teenage guitarist through his regular gigs at Toronto clubs, and he gradually developed a solid fan base. Sayce moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

with his wife to expand his music career. He soon landed a gig with

Uncle Kracker Matthew Shafer (born June 6, 1974), also known by his stage name Uncle Kracker, is an American singer and musician. He was previously a turntablist for Kid Rock's backing group Twisted Brown Trucker; since 1999, he has recorded as a solo artis ...

and toured with him for eighteen months. During this time the powerful cover of Dobie Gray’s ''Drift Away'' set a Billboard record for most weeks at #1 on any chart, for a staggering 28 weeks in the United States. With Uncle Kracker, Philip appeared on the album "No Stranger To Shame", and on TV shows such as ''New Year's Rockin’ Eve'', '' Regis and Kelly'', '' The Tonight Show with Jay Leno'', and ''The CBS Early Show''. Sayce also wrote the music for the 2002 short film, ''Cockroach Blue'', which he also starred in. It was produced and directed by award-winning Robert Crossman. The film was shown at the 2003 Woodstock Film Festival. In the autumn of 2003, Sayce met John Shanks in the amp department at Westwood Music in Los Angeles while trying out some amplifiers. Just a week before, Melissa Etheridge had mentioned to Shanks that she was looking for a guitar player and was thinking of trying somebody different. Shanks referred Sayce to her and in January 2004, Sayce joined Etheridge and her band for her ''Lucky Tour''. Sayce also appeared on Etheridge's '' Lucky'' CD and the ''Lucky Live'' CD & DVD, released in September 2004, ''Melissa Etheridge Greatest Hits: The Road Less Traveled'' released in 2005, ''The Awakening"'' released in 2007, and ''A New Thought For Christmas'' released in September 2008. He also performed on Etheridge's " I Need To Wake Up" from the

Al Gore Albert Arnold Gore Jr. (born March 31, 1948) is an American former politician, businessman, and environmentalist who served as the 45th vice president of the United States from 1993 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. He previously served as ...

2006 documentary film '' An Inconvenient Truth''. Sayce appeared with Etheridge at the 2007 Academy Awards,

Live Earth Live Earth was an event developed to increase Environmentalism, environmental awareness through entertainment. Background Founded by producer Kevin Wall, in partnership with former U.S. Vice President Al Gore. Live Earth 2007 The 1st series ...

in 2007, The 2005 Grammy Awards as part of a tribute to

Janis Joplin Janis Lyn Joplin (January 19, 1943 – October 4, 1970) was an American singer and songwriter. One of the most iconic and successful Rock music, rock performers of her era, she was noted for her powerful mezzo-soprano vocals and her "electric" ...

(along with Joss Stone), and at the

2008 Democratic National Convention The 2008 Democratic National Convention was a quadrennial United States presidential nominating convention, presidential nominating convention of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party where it adopted its national platform an ...

Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

. Sayce released his album ''Peace Machine,'' on Provogue Records in 2009. He released a second album ''Innerevolution'' in Europe, in May 2010. In July 2010, Sayce supported

ZZ Top ZZ Top is an American rock band formed in Houston, Texas, in 1969. For almost 56 years, it consisted of vocalist-guitarist Billy Gibbons, drummer Frank Beard (musician), Frank Beard, and bassist-vocalist Dusty Hill prior to his death in 2021. ZZ ...

in Europe and in December 2010, he supported Deep Purple on their French dates. Sayce released the albums ''Ruby Electric (2011)'' and ''Steamroller (2012)'', produced by Dave Cobb, in Europe, and promoted these releases with multiple tours across Europe and the United Kingdom. He performed at

's Crossroads Guitar Festival 2013 in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as the Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh and Eighth Avenue (Manhattan), Eig ...

, and was highlighted among the top performances of the festival by Premier Guitar. Sayce signed with Warner Music Canada in 2015 after Warner VP Steve Waxman discovered Sayce's music while streaming tunes on

Spotify Spotify (; ) is a List of companies of Sweden, Swedish Music streaming service, audio streaming and media service provider founded on 23 April 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon. , it is one of the largest providers of music streaming services ...

. Sayce made his major label album debut on April 7, 2015 with the release of ''Influence'', and scored a top 20 hit at rock radio in Canada with his rendition of Ten Years After's, "I'd Love To Change the World". Sayce toured in support of ''Influence'' in 2015, with performances at the

Fuji Rock Festival is an annual music festival, rock festival held in Naeba Ski Resort, in Niigata Prefecture, Japan. The three-day event, organized by Smash (Music promoters), Smash Japan, features more than 200 Japanese and international musicians, making it th ...

, Montreal International Jazz Festival, and Ottawa Bluesfest. '' Scorched Earth'', a live EP recorded at The Silver Dollar Room in Toronto, Canada was released via Warner Music Canada in 2016. Sayce released his album ''Spirit Rising'' in 2020 with Warner Music Canada during the Covid pandemic, and it quickly became his most popular release to date receiving millions of streams of songs such as ''Burning Out'', ''Spirit'', and ''Black Roller Coming''. The entire album is dedicated to Sayce's father, who is instrumental in Philip's love of music. In August 2021, Sayce shared social media posts from the studio in Los Angeles where he is recording his follow-up to ''Spirit Rising''.

Discography

As leader

* '' Philip Sayce Group'' (1997) Hypnotic Records/

MCA Records MCA Records was an American record label owned by MCA Inc. established in 1972, though MCA had released recordings under that name in the UK from the 1960s. The label achieved success in the 1970s through the 1980s, often by acquiring other ...

Canada; reissued on True North Records (Canada) * '' Peace Machine'' (2005/2009) Provogue Records * '' Silver Wheel of Stars EP'' (2007) * '' Silver Wheel of Stars'' (2007) * '' Innerevolution'' (2010) Provogue * '' Ruby Electric'' (2011) Provogue * ''

Steamroller A steamroller (or steam roller) is a form of road roller – a type of heavy construction machinery used for leveling surfaces, such as roads or airfields – that is powered by a steam engine. The leveling/flattening action is achieved through ...

'' (2012) Provogue * '' Influence'' (2014)

Warner Music Warner Music Group Corp., commonly abbreviated as WMG, is an American multinational entertainment and record label conglomerate headquartered in New York City. It is one of the " big three" recording companies and the third-largest in the gl ...

Canada * '' Scorched Earth: Volume 1'' ive at the Silver Dollar Room, Toronto, April 14, 2016(2016) Warner Music Canada * '' Spirit Rising'' (2020) Warner Music Canada

As sideman

* Jeff Healey Band ''Get Me Some'' (2000) *

''No Stranger To Shame'' (2002) * Melissa Etheridge ''Lucky Live'' CD & DVD (2004) * Melissa Etheridge/ Joss Stone "Cry Baby/Piece of My Heart" (2005) Grammy Awards Performance * Melissa Etheridge ''The Road Less Traveled'' (2005) * Jimmy Barnes ''Double Happiness'' (2005) * Jeff Healey Band ''Live at Montreux'' (2005) * Melissa Etheridge " I Need To Wake Up" (2006) Academy Award-winning song * Melissa Etheridge ''The Awakening'' (2007) * Melissa Etheridge ''The Awakening Live'' DVD (2008) * Melissa Etheridge ''A New Thought For Christmas'' (2008) * Lily Wilson ''The Right Time'' (2008)

Equipment

Philip's favorite instrument is a white 1963

Fender Stratocaster The Fender Stratocaster, colloquially known as the Strat, is a model of double- cutaway electric guitar designed between 1952 and 1954 by Leo Fender, Bill Carson, George Fullerton, and Freddie Tavares. The Fender Musical Instruments Corpora ...

named "Mother". He also owns another vintage Stratocaster in a sunburst finish as well as various other vintage instruments. For amplifiers, Sayce has used a vintage Fender Super Reverb, which he called "my favourite amp", for much of his live work as well as some custom made amplifiers. The Diaz Texas Square Face and Diaz Texas Ranger, other effects include a TS808 tube screamer, univibe and a Clyde McCoy Wah. Philip has worked with Cesar Diaz, Tommy Cougar, and Alexander Dumble to help shape his sound and tone.

References

External links

Philip Sayce official website

Philip Sayce Youtube Channel

Philip Sayce MySpace page
*
Philip Sayce Instagram
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sayce, Philip Living people Musicians from Aberystwyth 1976 births 21st-century Canadian guitarists 21st-century American guitarists Provogue Records artists Canadian blues guitarists