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Ricky has often stated that he played every zip code starting with
EiEiO before ever getting a major gig. Although known as the bass
player for Bad English and The Babys, some of the other artists he
has been invited to perform on stage and/or in the studio with include:
Jimmy Page, Joe Cocker, Roger Daltrey, Mick Jagger, Sammy Haggar,
Jeff Beck, Joe Satriani, Julian Lennon, Ted Nugent, Eddie Money, Steve
Stevens, David Coverdale, Glenn Hughes, Joe Lynn Turner, Steve Lukather,
Vinnie Caliuta, Alan White, Jeff Porcarro and Terri Bozzio. He has
written, performed, sung, produced, and engineered music for various
artists as well as for film and television. His styles of writing
range from the rock genre he's known for, to children's music for
Nickelodeon, jazz themes for CNN, Be Bop,
Flamenco, blues and contemporary pop. |
 
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Biography...
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| Jamming with family
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Ricky Phillips was born in Iowa but raised in Northern California. He comes
from a musical family and both of his parents were actively involved in
their local theater."My family sang in the car...everywhere we went...My
dad would start...then my mom...and my brother, and I would come up with
harmony parts and go for it", recalls Phillips. He started piano at
the age of 6 and remembers he and his brother hanging around the theater
and acting at an early age. "Mike was a great actor and passed me up
on the piano in no time. I'd rather be out playing Little League or jamming
to my dad's records than
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| "Worlox" |
learning lines or reading music. I think I had 7 piano teachers over the
years and I hated them all." A few years later, he began sneaking out
his dad's Martin guitar. He taught himself Beatles, Stones and whatever
else he could lift off the radio. By the age of twelve, he began forming
his first band with childhood friend Steve Gunner. They called themselves
The Warlox. For a few years, Phillips was consumed by the guitar until one
week his bass player decided to leave his bass at Rick's house where they
were rehearsing. "I was beginning to notice (Paul) McCartney's melodic
lines were my favorite parts of the songs and was blown away by the aggressive
style of John Entwhistle...so I played this guys bass...like...all week
end. My hands were shot and the blisters were pretty bad, but I was hooked." |
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Phillips continued pursuing his love of the guitar through school but eventually quit in his senior year at San Francisco State to play full time. He spent the next few years playing 4 and 5 sets a night in rock clubs around the US and Canada. "That was my real education...on a lot of levels," quips Phillips. "I was looking at graduating and all I really wanted to do was play music. I had to at least give it a shot." |
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| The Babys |
At a certain point, he knew he had to make his move to either New York or
Los Angeles. He ended up in Los Angeles with a suitcase, a bass, a guitar
and 20 borrowed dollars in his pocket. He auditioned for a high profile
LA band and got the gig. That gig got him the exposure he needed. Marc Salter,
who was working for the British band The Babys, saw Ricky play. John Waite
was replacing himself as The Babys' bass player so he could concentrate
purely on fronting the band. Salter tracked Ricky down and brought Waite
to meet him in a Hollywood music store where Ricky had begun working for
$100 a week. Phillips recalls, "I grabbed a bass off the wall...price
tag swinging and walked across the street where they'd been holding auditions
for three weeks. We played two new songs 'HEAD FIRST' and 'RUN TO MEXICO'
and then Waite, Cain, and myself sang the chorus to 'ISN'T IT TIME' and
something else... I don't remember what... They left the room for five minutes
and came back with their manager Chip Rachlin and asked me to join the band." |
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| Bad English |
After 3 years, and three great albums, The Babys all went their separate
ways and Rick began writing, doing sessions and extensive touring as a sideman.
He landed some of his music in the film, The Terminator, which opened
the door to more film and television work. Eventually, at a vineyard in
Saratoga California, he and Jonathan Cain would decide to put another band
together, which would become Bad English. In essence it was the merging
of The Babys and Journey, with a platinum selling debut album garnishing
#1 and #3 CHR hits, a #1 Rock Chart hit, and 3 other top 40 hits. Rick's
next venture was with Jimmy Page and David Coverdale. Another platinum release
called was Coverdale/Page. During the recording of this record, Ricky was
building a studio in North Hollywood for his writing and production projects.
The first CD he produced and engineered in this studio was the critically
acclaimed Frederiksen/Phillips CD. A duo with ex-Toto singer Fergie Frederiksen
which featured guests from YES, Chicago, Journey, Mr. Mister, Tower of Power,
Mr. Big, CCR, and an array of fellow session players. Ricky also produced
Fergie's solo release, Equilibrium and the band Elements of Friction. |
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Rick is currently at work writing, producing and developing new projects. (See: Current Projects)
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For more pics of Ricky, friends, and fellow musicians, visit the picture
gallery. |