Phil X
 

Ok, so thought i would start a thread on the ultra cool Phil X, great player fits right in and i didnt even miss sambo at brum. The man is doing a stirling Job.

I would have no issuesif Phil was to join the band if Rich Left !

What does everybody else think ?

Same here,dont see RS coming back tbh. I get the feeling last nights show wouldnt have been so long if he had been there too.
Maybe theyll do an Iron Maiden and have 3 guitarists(plus Jon):eek:.Or just get rid of Bobby. I know it wont happen but imagine Phil X and Richie trading riffs and solos either side of Jon.:crazyeye:

I have no issues with him as a live act, but I wouldn't want Sambora to leave, he's a session musician, he wouldn't have any imput on the new albums and we would have solo albums recorded with the band... and don't say "What About Now" is one of them as Richie actually had imput on that one, so imagine.

Sorry guys Phil may be a good thrash man but as far as BON JOVI goes there is only Sambora that can do the job.......Phil X was good at Manchester but what I missed was Richies fill ins and style, take Raise your hands for example where Richie has lots of fills to play, or Wanted......not the same without him. dont get me wrong Im not a huge fan of Richie at this moment in time, I was!! but after this he has got some ground to make up (if he does return) but for the BON JOVI sound I have etched into my being, Only Richie can do the job.......DOnt get me wrong I know we all need to embrace change and move forwards but for me Phil just doesnt fit in, thats not dissing him, i just dont believe hit fits into the BON JOVI machine.

Phil is amazingly cool and seems like a humble guy that's really pumped to be doing his job. One thing that I got out of all of this Richie mess is discovering Phil and I'm actually a fan of his work with the drills. If it was the only choice then I wouldn't have anything against Phil actually being part of the band as in recording or else, but i'd rather have Richie there, his style just fits Bon Jovi and even though he's an asshole, he's part of the experience. I'd rather have Phil open for Bon Jovi in the future :)

X can play just fine...its Richie's stage presence, his style, his stardom (the 'it factor') and his vocals/harmonies I miss the most. My last 4-5 shows (the end of US Circle tour) and 3 in April this year have all been X, and while I enjoyed them and am pumped for Soldier Field and Vegas, I'm ready for Richie to return...I'm thinking Soldier Field for the return.

This I'll say. Phil I think should finish off the tour, and I mean the entire tour. It would just seem so hypocritical of Sambongo to return mid tour like that without any reasonable explanation. Let X finish off the tour, then have a meeting with Sambo, settle whatever there is to settle and if and when Richie comes back, have him be 100% into it, no less....

Yup.

The man can play. If Richie was playing this good, albeit with his own Richie style, people would be clamoring over him. There are certain aspects of Phil's style that don't mesh perfectly with the Bon Jovi sound, but I don't think they could find a better replacement, especially with those big shoes to fill.

And to top it all off, he is genuinely enjoying this opportunity. He's a good enough guy to not wish the worst (whatever the **** it is) upon Richie, but I imagine he was thrilled to have the chance of playing to stadiums of people. Who the hell wouldn't?

I'm not wishing Richie has opted "out" for good, but I wouldn't mind seeing what a new album could be like with guitars exclusively by Phil X.

I say this for a few reasons.

Phil X could be a household name, if he could write killer anthems. nope. JBJ yep. (RS too - but he's opted out)
Phil X doesn't read notation, he has developed his own shorthand.
Phil X is popular as a session man, purely because he can rock up, hear the track and lay down a choice of killer solos, first attempt. (EVH - Beat it scenario) He is probably more at home in the studio than he is on the big stage.
Phil X played guitars for JBJ on the "Greatest Hits" track "What do you got?" so he's no stranger to the recording vagaries of the Bon Jovi machine.

If. RS is fed up with it, and some say it shows from the offerings on Because We Can, (in that the music has less balls) then some new blood from Phil X, with a return to the "Rockier" album sound, might open a whole new chapter for the future. I'd be happy to see (and hear) that.

I personally think Phil X has done a good job covering for Richie, for sure Richie Sambora is one of the great guitarists but after seeing them in Manchester and Birmingham, we got two really good shows and Phil looked to be loving it up there.

He might be good, he might be humble, he might fill the big boots well in the short run. But... just no. A few of my brain cells die every time I try to understand how can ANYONE on this planet fail to see how you either have Richie Sambora or you don't have Bon Jovi. The blues, the song-writing, the bond... everything.
And to top it all, as good as Phil is, he's miles away from Bon Jovi's style too. A thrasher in Bon Jovi? Wut?!?

I've grown to appreciate Phil X a lot more recently. He always seems up for it and is probably having the time of his life up there. But as a long term member he's just doesn't fit the bill. As the person above says, It's Richie or nothing.

Would certainly be interesting to see the out come of a recording session together, i would imagine it would be heavier which would suit me down to the ground. They really need to go back to their roots and stop following the fads, cause it just aint working, losing long term fans and not gaining any new ones

I might have agreed with a few of the points you mentioned but this one is not just wrong, it's stupid. Being technically proficient and being a thrasher are two very different types of playing. He still has feel, but he's on a different level than Richie, Richie is far superior, but that's because of the way he approaches the songs (he caters to the song and makes his solos sound as if it can be played by any instrument which makes them more than just solos but minor compositions of their own, well he used to anyway). Phil is more showing off and relying on technicality, nothing wrong with it, just different.



Plenty of soul and feel there, but more of a having a good time and partying vibe, again nothing wrong with that, just different and NOT "thrasher"...

I actually agree with everything you said. I might have used the wrong word for it, to me a thrasher could still be good and have feel, but maybe it's just my take on it. What I meant is exactly what you said. "Hotel California" shows it perfectly well, I think. It's good, it's passionate, but it's different in a way I can't really and fully enjoy. It sounds like the soul is gone and what's left is a dry and metal sound. I don't and didn't mean to belittle Phil X in any way, but he's just not my thing and I don't think he's Bon Jovi's either.

Having seen both Manchester and Birmingham this tour, I think it's fair to say that Phil X has fitted in a lot better than the UK crowd were probably expecting. I think in terms of memories of both shows the extended but still regular parts of KTF (keeping Mr Williams well out of it, even if the heart was in the right place) was a real eye opener and something I hadn't seen between Richie, Bobby and Dave in previous shows. And Phil's playing during Always (I think it was) seemed to impress more than I was expecting.

He was better than I expected and I really enjoyed both shows. The band have raised their game and at this time phil x is part of it and loving the opportunity. Fair play to him as he changed my mind!

That's fair, different tastes I guess. I on the other hand, enjoyed the hell out of those performances, but I'm a fan of the guy so I'm biased lol :p

Yeah he's pretty dreamy too.:)

I think if I listened to his original stuff I would probably enjoy it as well. My taste is very wide-ranged. But when it comes to him interpreting songs like Bon Jovi's, I feel like something is missing, because they lack that certain vibe that makes me delirious about those songs. I like Nickelback, but if Bon Jovi hired their guitarist and started to sound like them, it would be a problem for me. :p

I can't wait to see him on Thursday.

Improvement on the band for sure.

:lol: Hotter than Richie that's for sure :p

Stunning hair!

Seen him on Thursday and he was faultless, give everything and really looked like he was having the time of his life. His Twitter feed echo's this too.

I said it before and ill say it again, Richie you stay at home and sort what ever is going wrong in your head.

Give Phil the rest of the tour, ALL OF IT. He deserves the bigger concerts and i for one would welcome him to the band if Richie continues to throw his toys out of the pram.

Looking forward to seeing him again in Sunderland !

Let's put Phil's life at the moment in perspective. This from his facebook account that he shared.

Phil X shared Dustin Jack Photography's photo.
Took @philx1111 photo last summer in bradford before he played for 80 people. Tomorrow a short distance away he'll be in front of 60,000!! Kick ass brother.

Of course he is loving it at the moment, who wouldn't.

Bring this back! ****ing amazing.

Does he sing?

lol this is ****ing hilarious!!

Phil X @ Big Banana on BT, 1995

That guitar is interesting. I liked how he started Wanted and said "I've played this a few times before". :p

When people ask me "Who's Phil X?" I show them the Koontz... It's comical and shows the Frettedamericana stuff off to a tee!

Don't forget this New Orleans Jazz Festival was the first ever performance with Phil X.

VERY VERY Funny!

This is brilliant. I can't stand his voice when he's talking though. He sounds like a high school stoner.

Phil X having fun in Milan on a night off

http://youtu.be/L_CxOepUvfw

That was cool :)

Phil X is doing great, learned so much for these gigs - he is not nor will he ever be Richie. Don't think he is trying to be, sounds appreciative and I respect him for that. Think he would be great with the guys when Richie is back - but don't think that will be on the table or if he would even want that. Now, maybe in the future, Drills open for BJ (that way if Richie were to miss) you have your backup in house. Almost sounds funny when I type, but kinda practical too. I don't think he will finish out the entire tour - he has his first child due in Oct. and I'm thinking he will want to be stationary. Sambo mentioned maybe worked out by Sept.?? Who knows. People will be angry one way or the other no matter what happens at this point. Euro fans already grumbling will be angry if RS comes back for others and not there for them, some say not going without RS......and on and on :rolleyes:

I saw him twice in May on that 2011 tour. The Jazz festival was May 1 and I saw him May 6th and 7th when he was still quite new. Both shows were incredible as if Jon went over the top to put on a great show in spite of Richie being gone. I have appreciated Phil since then though most people only wanted Richie back then in 2011.

These days Phil seems to have more fans :D