Bassist Phil Donnelly has a deep love for different genres of music. Known around the UK for his deep pocket and comfortability in improvisational jazz, country, and a host of other styles, he’s become a fixture of the music scene there. Still, he’ll concede that his latest recurring gig has been one of the most unexpected surprises of all for him. As the bassist in the Damian Lewis Band, Donnelly has found himself making music he loves while also experiencing the surreal moments that accompany someone as famous as Damian Lewis (Band of Brothers, Homeland, Billions, A Spy Among Friends). The BAFTA nominated/Primetime Emmy Award & Golden Globe Award–winning actor and musician has been highly praised for his freshman debut “Mission Creep” (2023), a bluesy and rootsy release with remarkably heartfelt lyrics. Contrasting what one might expect, Donnelly notes that he leans into the skills he honed in all of his jazz playing stating, “Fairly often on a live show with Damian, he will play us a new tune he’s been working on, in the sound check and we will jam around him and then put it into the set. Slight pressure of no charts- memory test, but a great way to try the tunes out in a real life show.” There’s an intersect where the Arts meet and Phil Donnelly is quite pleased to find himself within it.
Donnelly concedes that beginning his tenure with a new band doesn’t often start with meeting them in a foreign country and this facet should have indicated to him that playing bass in the Damian Lewis band would be unlike any other. Phil met Damian, Kitty Liv Durham (backing vocals, percussion and harmonica) Will Cleasby (drums) and guitarist Dave Archer (guitar) for a brief rehearsal before a performance in Davos at the World Trade World Economic Forum. It was on this initial gig that he recognized the fusing of music and performative emotion Lewis was wielding. He confirms, “I remember being so impressed by how Damian had that skill with the audience, and I knew from the start it was going to be an amazing show. Damian had the crowd exactly where he wanted them. He got them quiet and listening when appropriate and had them dancing when appropriate!” When the group performed to thousands at the Black Deer Festival (Eldridge Park, Kent), the audience and band were perhaps even more enthusiastic in celebration due to the performance also occurring on the release day of “Mission Creep.”
Hand-picked by Damian for their musical sensitivity and creative insight, the Damian Lewis band is undertaking one of the most daunting tasks in the world of music, the second album. The approach is that of a proper band rather than hired session musicians, comprised of preproduction rehearsals and demo recordings which precede the master recording sessions. Donnelly notes that while still early in the process, the new songs lean into a groove-based rock style influence owing to bands like Oasis, The Verve, Blur with elements of Bowie, Rolling Stones, and Led Zeppelin. It seems that this second offering is insistent on rebuking formulaic repetition; an exciting proposition for fans and music enthusiasts. Phil remarks, “It’s been great working with this band in the studio as they have such a core knowledge of Jazz, but the ability to take that mindset and ethos into a more pop/rock setting. Some of the ideas that have come out of the team have been amazing, and at such a fast pace. It really stops the record from just sounding like a bunch of people trying to sound like ‘insert band name here.’ It has been the defining sound of the record, Damian’s music, and all of us playing our role in the team.
The apex of music is storytelling with the transference of emotion. Regardless of the genre or era, the most accomplished artists have always possessed mastery of these two elements. Even with all of his success within the UK music community, Phil Donnelly recognizes the potential for his own growth through his inclusion in the Damian Lewis band. He illuminates, “It’s been insightful seeing how the integrity of the lyric is so important to Damian. As a world class actor, words are his sheet music, his score. Whereas other artists I have worked with will have deep and detailed musical ideas and a lyric, Damian has a lyric and this lyric constantly informs the musical choices. Not only is he conscious of portraying emotion but, where appropriate, he can really deliver a story or a narrative. Taking a song of his like ‘Soho Tango’ from Mission Creep- that’s a song about a wild night in London he had in his younger years- the lyrics paints the picture of the whole setting, story, and emotion so well- I feel like I am watching a film while listening to the tune, and of course the music matches it so perfectly. This has really made me think about how what I play doesn’t just support the harmony or the groove etc., but how it supports the whole story of the song. When the whole band is focusing on this, something really magical happens.”
Yes, Phil Donnelly is quite elated and amused when he finds himself playing a set with the Damian Lewis Band at Silverstone Formula 1 in the Paddock and surrounded post set by A-list celebrities including Brad Pitt, Will.I.Am, Lewis Hamilton, and others, but he’ll confess that he holds even greater excitement about recording more music and the touring that lies ahead in 2024…because artists are most alive when they are performing their craft.
*All Photos by Blackham Images
Writer : Basil Thomson