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Lin grew up in Monterey California in a family of singers and musicians. Her mother noticed Lin’s singing abilities at age two. Lin joined her mother on stage and sang in many USO shows. She went on to appear on radio (KDON) in Monterey at age five. She won a Nelson Riddle Song contest in college and went on to compete at state level. She didn’t win, but was on her way. At 18, she started singing in nightclubs around Monterey. She moved on to San Francisco clubs. Most notable, was the hungry “i”, El Matador, Purple Onion and Keystone Korner. Jazz festivals were next on her “to do list”. She sang University concerts at Stanford, UC Cal Berkeley, UC Santa Cruz, Foothill College, UC Santa Clara and occasionally conducted vocal clinics. She appeared on local radio/TV spots, i.e. San Francisco’s KQED “Open Studio”.
Studio work intrigued Lin. Fearlessly, she launched into jingles, commercials and the voice over world. She studied at Samantha Parris’s Voicetrax in Sausalito. She recorded numerous LPs with the Jazz group Solar Plexus. The music genre was a combination of Latin, Fusion, free form and Brazilian. "It was a real growth space for me," said Lin. "Our original compositions were in odd meters and mix metered music, and no lyrics. It was extremely challenging. I was the 'voice as horn' in the group and expected to solo and sing harmony and lead lines." Unaccompanied electronic vocalizing solos were also a part of her package on stage.
Lin’s work was singled out by jazz critics. Don Heckman, Phil Elwood, John Wasserman, Al Evers, Ralph Gleason, Leigh Weimers and James Murray, praised her work. But it was Herb Wong that brought the group to Inner City Records, a New York based jazz label. Lin shared stages with the likes of Dave Brubeck, Eddie Duran, Buddy Montgomery, Smith Dobson, Mark Murphy, Richie Cole, Jackie and Roy, Abe Most, Eddie Miller, Chet Baker, Vince Guaraldi, Mavis Rivers, Bill Watrous, Jimmy Borges, Eddie Duran, Al Jarreau, Cal Tjader, Don Grusin, and George Van Epps. Her composition Seascape (ded. to Urszula Dudziak), was a Cashbox preferred cut. Radio Review, High Fidelity, and a best cut cited by Billboard, joined ranks.
Date: April 1, 2010
Reviewer: Joseph Taylor
CD Reviewed: Lin McPhillips: My Shining Hour,
Lin McPhillips spent 35 years in the Bay Area singing jazz, and she did a stint in the 1970s and ’80s with the jazz fusion group Solar Plexus, where she used synthesizers and electronics to create wordless vocals, becoming in effect a co-soloist with the other band members. McPhillips, who now resides in the Pacific Northwest, took 20 years off from performing so she could raise a family and teach singing, but she’s returned full force with My Shining Hour, a collection of 11 tracks of traditional vocal jazz.
Her version of Russ Freeman’s The Wind, a song covered by a number of jazz instrumentalists and by singer June Christy, is light, with woodwinds setting the tone. McPhillips grabs the tune, singing it with a winning confidence and a playful feel for the bossa nova rhythm. Her scat singing leads to a nicely developed guitar solo by Scott Sorkin, who arranged well over half the disc and whose solos are consistently impressive.
McPhillips dedicates a medley of Ellington’s I Don’t Miss You and Solitude to her father, and she sings it accompanied only by a piano for most of the tune. Her vocal control, along with her understated emotion, lets the beauty of the two songs carry her along. McPhillips caresses the melodies of the songs on My Shining Hour and lets the lyrics lead her emotions. She never lets her technique overpower a song’s story. Consequently, I found her straight singing preferable to her scat singing, which is sometimes multi-tracked and otherwise enhanced.
The musicianship throughout My Shining Hour is of the first order, and the recording is outstanding. Woodwinds and keyboards sound natural and resonant, bits of percussion are solidly placed, and McPhillips is strikingly present in the room. I hope this is the beginning of a long return to music for her.
Date Reviewed: March 24, 2010
Reviewer: Christopher Llewellyn Adams
CD Reviewed: Lin McPhillips - My Shining Hour
Modern jazz has evolved more than any other musical genre. America's best contribution to world music, jazz has seen several adjustments in style and grown throughout them all. Lin McPhillips is a terrific example of the best in modern jazz, and "My Shining Hour" is a definite addition for any diverse music collection.
Hailing from the San Francisco region, McPhillips is both blessed with enormous musical gifts and skilled friends to boot. The collected talent on this album is as diverse as the artform itself, and their shared efforts have resulted in a bona fide modern jazz gem.
Of all the songs on My Shining Hour, I'd pick When April Comes Again as the best track. McPhillips sensational voice and the collected musicians create a timeless classic to be enjoyed by longtime jazz fans and novices to the artform alike.
Art, in its purest form, spawns from tireless work and unlimited love for your craft. Lin McPhillips is a modern maestro whose passion for musical beauty is as limitless as the blue Pacific waters she sees out her bedroom window make My Shining Hour a destination on your life's musical journey.
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