Phil "Texas Tornado" Taylor is an award winning keyboardist with 24 years of experience in the DFW music scene. Phil is currently playing keys and harmonica as well as singing with The Kelly Moore Band. After so many years in the biz, Phil has seen the good, the bad and the ugly in the Texas Music scene. He has performed Country, Pop, Jazz, Funk, Rock, Blues, Contemporary Christian and Gospel in the best and worst music venues in North Texas and beyond. Phil has backed and / or opened for some of the greatest names in the music business. Best described as a "monster keyboardist" by his peers, he is also frequently called "bad a$%." Phil Taylor was awarded the Dallas Observer Music Award in 1992 for his work in Big Boss Groove and the Texas Tornado Award in 1993. To view Phil Taylor's name listed with all the other Texas Tornado's click the link below.
Scroll down to 1993. Don't miss all the famous names on the list on the way downPhil's style of keyboard playing is very unique. Other keyboardist will often scratch their heads while listening to his chops. While clearly he is influenced by the great keyboardist of the world his approach and interpretation is from a different perspective than most other keyboardists. Mostly self taught Phil often found himself surrounded by great guitarists. These great Texas guitarists influenced his approach to his instrument in such a way that his style is in some ways more related to guitar music than traditional piano music. "I try and find chops where ever I can," Phil says, "vocal hooks, horns, harmonica's as well as guitars are all fertile ground for me to glean new solo chops."This hybrid approach to keys makes him a favorite of guitarists around the state. Because of his unique playing style guitarists find that they don't encounter the same frustrations playing with Phil that they do when trying to coexists with more traditional pianists. Because Phil is able to rip of B3 organ style solo's that contain energy levels that rival guitar greats, many Texas guitar players love to swap chops with Phil onstage. His guitar approach to keyboards also makes him acutely aware of his place in the band and Bassist love that he rarely ever steps on their parts and tends to gel quickly into a band dynamic.Phil is also an experienced producer with numerous CD projects to his credit ranging in style from Country to Hip-Hop. This diversity also allows Phil to hear music in a way that other traditional players may overlook. Phil is well known for subtly combining elements from diverse musical styles to create a musical soundscape that goes beyond the plain and explores the unique and original, without going over the top.Phil's production skills also allow him to cover a lot of ground in a band as a utility player. Unlike other utility players that are multi-instrumental Phil has mastered the art of instrument replication. Utilizing the high-tech tools of sampling keyboards Phil is able to mimic a wide range of instruments both live and in the studio which makes him an invaluable tool in recreating today's divers instrumentation. Here is a short list of instruments that Phil is often called upon to mimic; Piano, organ, strings, violin / fiddle, saxophone, trumpet, acoustic and electric guitar, banjo, accordion, bagpipes, harmonica, flute, vibraphone, choir, mandolin, and various Latin and African percussion instruments.Besides his prowess as an instrumentalist Phil also serves as a top notch utility singer. Able to sing high third part country harmonies in the high lonesome sound makes Phil a natural in the country realm. Phil also has a strong lead vocal ability in the high tenor pop genre. Phil is a natural at covering many of the pop tenor singers such as Tom Petty, Lionel Ritchie, Ronne Millsap and Don Henley as well as many current bands such as Bowling for soup and Bare Naked Ladies.
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