(immediately) Phil deGruy. What can you say? It’s a shame more people don’t know about him. He’s one of those guys who has changed the face of the guitar without using a lot of spandex. He’s taken the vibe of Lenny Breau, Chet Atkins and Bill Evens. The first time I saw him perform was in his room in New Orleans. There were five other musicians watching him play. It was the truth. No bullshit at all. Just this guy and his totally insane playing. He can even take the corniest tune in the world — like this one, which I could stand never hearing again — and make is sound golden. He has his own sense of humor and sense of harmony, incredible voicing, and you can’t mess with his right-hand chops. Plus, no one else in the world can play that instrument. This album is the only solo-guitar record I can listen to now. Every guitar player should have this in their collection, no matter what kind of music they play. Stars? Oh, a million. Five million and a half.
Phil de Gruy is one of the most astounding talents to ever touch strings. He commands his instrument, the harp guitar, or guitarp, passionately, flawlessly and with a sense of artistry that only a few fall out of bed with. This medley of Who Can I Turn To? and My Romance will have you hitting the repeat button to be sure you just heard what you did. Other artists have used the harp guitar as a concert novelty, and in varying degrees of seriousness, but Phil de Gruy, like Earl Scruggs, George Van Eps, Wes Montgomery and Charlie Christian has taken his instrument into new dimensions.
– Jim Carlton, Vintage Guitar Player, 2010
“He’s a virtuosic genre-straddler with a flair for solo guitar inventions and a blissful resistance to convention.”
– Josef Woodard, JazzTimes, April 1995
“Phil’s approach to the guitar sounds like John Coltrane meets Mel Brooks at a party for
Salvador Dali. It’s uncanny the way he has conjured such an unorthodox way to attend virtuosity.”
– Steve Vai
“I’ve never been more impressed with anybody’s playing, ever!”
– Danny Gatton
“Phil has changed the face of the guitar without using a lot of Spandex.”
– Charlie Hunter
The language of the guitar is being recalibrated daily by Phil deGruy. He has kept a clear vision of his guitar mentors Lenny Breau and Chet Atkins while evolving relentlessly and greatly broadening the possibilities he learned from them. And this barely scratches the surface. Phil is absolutely one of the most unique and creative musicians on the planet. Given his irreverent (and possibly skewed) worldview there could (let’s go with WILL) also be a raft of thought-provoking social commentary via songs and spoken word diatribes. Whatever happens, it will only happen this way once!
~ Cranston Clements, New Orleans’ premier guitarist who has PEFECT PITCH!
Interview by Charlie Hunter for NYC Records, ’95
Jazz Fest Interview, 2014