Customer Reviews

Issues + Options

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is another fine album of varied and textured, thoughtful and inspiring, by-all-rights-should-be pop music. Roy dares to take on big subjects (he even lists them on the cd insert, those very " 'i's and 'o's" of the title). But his artistry lies in his ability to do it so deftly and without pretense. Whenever a lyric tends toward the cliché or the heavy-handed, Roy balances it with a subtle, understated musical approach. Thus songs with such weighty titles as 'Hope in a Hopeless World' or 'The Have and the Have Nots', even 'God is not Sleeping' provoke but do not preach. Likewise, love songs like 'Amazing', 'My Love Will Find You', 'Melt', and 'The 29th Day' which, in another's hands, could easily become sentimental, even maudlin, are presented without more than a trace of saccharine. The music, like much of Sting's solo work, is lush and exotic. The performances are top-flight, especially those of guitarists Heitor Pereira and Ricardo Silveira. Roy's voice is evocative and pleasingly nasal, reminiscent of one of our favorites, Andy Pratt. If, in these dark days of popular music, Roy, like Pratt, fails to reach the wider audience he deserves, at least we will have been among the lucky ones.

There aren't enough stars in the rating system at amazon.com to express how I feel about this CD.
I am an avid music listener but I rarely make purchases due
to budget constraints. After hearing numerous songs on my local public radio station I decided to take a chance on "Issues + Options".
I literally have listened to this cd from beginning to end for several days now and still never tire of the lyrics and performances.
My favorites are "Hope In A Hopeless World, Melt, and This Is My Home.
Inspiring and vital. This one's an absolute "keeper".

If you love music, don't miss this album! Phil Roy has done what most singer/songwriters fail to do in this era of the split-second attention span: He draws on real emotion, his own honest experience, a wonderful command of the language, and the best of the traditions of pop writing, to create an album that speaks to everyone young and old in our society. The production is exemplary, reminiscent in sound and quality of some classic Quincy Jones recordings. There is not a bad song on this album. A truly enjoyable listening experience.

Phil's ISSUES + OPTIONS is a finely crafted work and a perfect follow-up to GROUCHYFRIENDLY. There is agony in his whispers and soul-baring in his lyrics. MELT will do just that to your heart. This cd is packed with raw emotion of every type, and there's fine musicianship to back it up. I cannot recommend this enough!

(this cd is FINALLY getting airplay on AAA! ABOUT TIME!)

Phil Roy has one of the most beautiful, plaintive singing voices I've ever heard. I'm 47 and my 27 year old friend turned me
on to his music a few months back. I'm hooked....it's beautiful and cannot lend the CD to someone else who'd like to listen.

Issues + Options is a beautiful collection of songs about our human condition. Phil Roy not only writes about life in a way which we can all relate, his soulful voice makes it easy to connect. Sometimes soaring, sometimes sensitive, Phil Roy sings from his heart. This album is a gem, truly an oassis in what can be a wasteland of popular music. Surrounded by excellent musicians, Phil Roy has made an exceptional record of comtemporary songs, a must for real music lovers.

I became a fan of Phil Roy due to the local indy radio station. The first song that I heard was "melt" and as many of the people that I have introduced this song to it spoke to my heart. While melt is on the previous release from Mr. Roy, it is also on this CD, and belongs there.
This CD has everything: a wonderful song about the events of 9_11, a song about going home, a song to make you laugh. This CD has a song for practically every moment, and has not left my player since purchased.

See Phil Live! You won't regret it.

Phil's ISSUES + OPTIONS is a finely crafted work and a perfect follow-up to GROUCHYFRIENDLY. There is agony in his whispers and soul-baring in his lyrics. MELT will do just that to your heart. This cd is packed with raw emotion of every type, and there's fine musicianship to back it up. I cannot recommend this enough!

I paint to this CD all the time. An incredible follow up to "grouchyfriendly". It's like an all time greatest hits album but we have never heard any of the songs. It flows from romantic to tragic to humorous with ease and sophistication. I am HIGHLY selective about the music I listen to and I most definately recommend this CD. It truly is special. (personal favorite song: "God is not Sleeping"... an absolute masterpiece.)

Phil Roy's CD, Issues and Options, is an album that stimulates the emotions more than any other I've heard. Phil is a long time songwriter, who only recently started recording his own songs and making appearances. His excellent voice is soft, smooth and very appealing and his songs evoke emotion like no others I've ever heard. I am tempted to list all the songs I like, but there are just too many. I will focus on two, but they are all wonderful. My favorite, Amazing, is a song I wish I wrote. I truly get a chill sometimes when I listen to it..the melody, the guitars, the words...it's just a beautiful song that I love. The other I will mention is She Hurts, which describes an elderly woman in decline who just wants to feel special to someone again as she did when she was younger. For those familiar with Amy Fairchild, another artist I am very fond of, this song reminds me of Counting Angels on the She's Not Herself CD in terms of the moving and emotional content. There are a couple of other songs that have a jazz feel, but, believe me, they are all wonderful and many stimulate the emotions like no other artist I have heard.

For those lucky enough to see him in person, be ready for a moving, emotional, almost spiritual experience. And, I want to add that I have spoken with Phil briefly after a show and he seems to be one of the most genuinely decent human beings I have met.

I strongly suggest you buy this Amazing CD.