Dennis Walker

Philipp Fankhauser liner notes for Try My Love due out in December 2010.

Philipp Fankhauser's new album Try My Love  showcases the eloquence and understanding of a truly talented singer. He illuminates Soul and Blues, a ray of sunshine in the murk clouding those time-honored African-American musical genres today. Dark clouds? The great Solomon Burke recently departed for the great choir in heaven, and, truth told, Burke's fellow luminaries Etta James, Bobby Bland, Mavis Staples, Mighty Sam, and, to name one more, Syl Johnson are in the winter of their careers. Oh yes, many of the middle-aged and young singers performing under the banners of Soul and Blues are capable entertainers, but you have to search far and wide to find those who possess special convictive powers. Located in Switzerland, Fankhauser belongs to the exclusive group; the real wonder of it all is that he carries hope, resignation, pleasure, pain, and redemption in his voice though not a native son of Soul, Blues, and Gospel America.

Try My Love  sounds like his crowning achievement in the studio. Two-time Grammy-winning producer-songwriter Dennis Walker, who's made four albums with the singer since the mid-1990s, and not one to engage in hyperbole, told this scribe, "The biggest thrill I've gotten out of working with Philipp is to see the constant, incredible growth he's shown over all these years. I realized when I started cutting these new tracks that he was ten times a better singer than he was before. Dumbfounding. He would set there with his computer screen open to whichever song we were cutting and sing the lyrics right off the top of his hat, as honest and emotional as any man could ever be." On the title track, Fankhauser lays bare his broken heart with a quiet intensity that draws the listener into this well-crafted tune from Walker and his songwriting partner, Alan Mirikitani (also important to the session for his fine blues guitar work). The Swiss' big voice, with its grainy texture enhancing interpretive drama, socks home ten other songs just as convincingly. Five gems were composed by the singer, and there's a Robert Cray-identified Walker classic, two more grade-A Walker-Mirikitani collaborations, an unbeatable blues from Texan Johnny Copeland, and a poignant tune about grueling road work taken from the songbook of the now-deceased, underappreciated blues-and-more guitarist Chris Jones. Fankhauser is mighty effective at all tempos, yet one can argue he's on the top of his game with what Waller calls his "tear-wrenching emotion" on the slow-moving title song (spontaneously nailed in one take) and Walker/Mirikitani's riveting "Then It Rained."

Walker asserts, "It's all about the vocal." He's too modest. His signature less-is-more production is vital to the artistic success of the session. The Californian producer gave lots of space to the vocals, thus highlighting Fankhauser's skills as a storyteller. (Love, broken or secure, is his favorite subject.) Solos on guitar, organ, trombone, and sax solos from first-call musicians generally fit well in the songs, no grandstanding anywhere. The vocalist's working band is completely in synch with him, their five years together paying dividends. Several American friends are as dependable as, pardon, a Swiss timepiece. Praise, too, goes to Tom Peterson for his horn arrangements; the West Coast USA jazz saxophonist (who's worked with Bob Florence's Limited Edition, etc.) evokes the Southern Soul past without letting the four horns slip into nostalgia or rank imitation. Note as well that Fankhauser is an impressive guitarist and keyboards player in his own right.

The man knows he's really delivered the goods this time. "I truly believe that Try My Love  is a leap from our previous work," Fankhauser reveals. "Without departing from my deep love, the Blues, we've succeeded in recording our own brand of music. The beauty of it is that none of it was premeditated. We were not looking to produce anything that would please media or fans, we just had fun doing it, and we ourselves were amused and somewhat surprised how it turned out. Thanks to Dennis, and not to forget Alan, who brought in a few new twists and his knowledge as a musician, and thanks to my great band."

And a big thank-you to articulate Philipp Fankhauser for providing Soul and Blues with life-affirming jolts of passion.

- Frank-John Hadley

Downbeat