| Phil Hey | |
| Birth Name: | Philip C. Hey |
| Birth Date: | 21 May 1953 |
| Birth Place: | New York City, U.S. |
| Genre: | Jazz, bebop, hard bop |
| Occupation: | Musician, composer, educator, bandleader |
| Instrument: | Drums, percussion |
| Associated Acts: | Phil Hey Quartet, Benny Weinbeck Trio |
Phil Hey (born May 21, 1953) is an American jazz drummer. He has worked with Dewey Redman, Jay McShann, Mose Allison, Benny Carter, Charlie Rouse, Harold Land, Charlie Byrd, David "Fathead" Newman, Geoff Keezer, Mark Murphy, Benny Golson, Stacey Kent, and Kenny Barron.[1]
Born in New York City, Hey grew up in Philadelphia and the St. Paul suburb of Roseville, Minnesota. He started his music study with mentor and legendary jazz drummer Ed Blackwell at the Creative Music Studio in New York in 1975. His relationship with Blackwell continued until Blackwell's death in 1992.[2] He has also studied with Floyd Thompson[3] and Marv Dahlgren, the former principal percussionist of the Minnesota Orchestra.[4] He considers the Beatles and 1960s rock groups early music influences. He also credits his parents and his childhood band instructor for their support and encouragement in pursuing a music career.
Hey performs with several groups and leads the Phil Hey Quartet with Tom Lewis on bass, Dave Hagedorn on vibraphone, and Phil Aaron on piano. The quartet's album Subduction: Live at Artist's Quarter (2005) was named Best Jazz CD of the Year by the Twin Cities alternative weekly newspaper City Pages.[5] City Pages also named him 2006 Jazz Musician of the Year.[6]
His first album, Let Them All Come with Pat Moriarty, was released in 1977 on the small private label Min Records. The cover art by Homer Lambrecht is featured in Freedom, Rhythm, and Sound, a compilation of a jazz album artwork by Gilles Peterson and Stuart Baker.[7] He has appeared on over 125 recordings and remains a first-call musician supporting regional recording artists as well as touring jazz artists. His jazz recordings include Von Freeman's Live at The Dakota,[8] Pete Whitman's X-Tet Where's When?, Tom Hubbard's Tribute to Mingus, and Ed Berger's I'm Glad There is You, all of which received four out of five star ratings by Down Beat magazine reviewers.
In addition to his work as a jazz musician Hey has played regional performances with blues and rock acts, including Nick St. Nicholas, George "Mojo" Buford, and Mississippi Fred McDowell. He has appeared on the soundtrack of the 6th Day (2000) starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and several independent film soundtracks including Been Rich All My Life (2006). In addition, he has played many touring theater productions, including The D.B. Cooper Project, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, and Irving Berlin's I Love a Piano and has performed with comics Bob Hope, Red Skelton, and Don Rickles.
Hey is a faculty member at the University of Minnesota School of Music where he teaches jazz percussion and directs the jazz ensemble. He is on the music faculty at St. Olaf College[9] and the MacPhail Center for Music. He taught music at Macalester College from 1997 to 2008.
Ellis Drum Shop released the Phil Hey Signature Kit, a limited edition six piece shell drum kit with maple shells in 2012.[10]
With Chris Bates
With Ed Berger
With Terry Lee Burns
With Laura Caviani
With the Cedar Avenue Big Band
With Debbie Duncan
With Dan Estrem and John Holmquist
With Connie Evingson
With Von Freeman
With Dave Hagedorn
With Glen Helgeson
With Tom Hubbard
With the JazzMN Orchestra
With Gordon Johnson
With Dave Karr and Mulligan Stew
With Mary Louise Knutson
With Chris Lomheim
With the Minnesota Klezmer Band
With David Mitchell
With Lucia Newell
With the O'Neill Brothers
With the Out to Lunch Quintet
With Preston Reed
With Rio Nido
With Claudia Schmidt
With Ted Unseth and the Americana Classic Jazz Orchestra
With Benny Weinbeck
With Pete Whitman
With Steve Yeager
With Benny Weinbeck Trio