Experience the warmth, passion and romantic sensuality of Phil Sheeran’s acoustic guitar on his debut album Breaking Through. Full of energy and colorful Latin inflections, Breaking Through was voted by Earshot Jazz as one of the best jazz recordings of 1990 and remained on Billboard Jazz chart for over 3 months. Joined by the late great Brazilian bassist Nico Assumpçao and Carlos \"bala\" Gomez on drums, Gregg Karukas on Keyboards, Eric Marienthal on Saxophone and Richard Warner on Flute plus many more... together they helped to create the perfect orchestration for Phil Sheeran’s acoustic guitar and his debut breakthrough CD. Musicians: Phil Sheeran - acoustic guitar Gregg Karukas - keyboards Eric Marienthal - saxophone, (flute on J.P. Island) Nico Assumpçao - electric bass Carlos Goméz - Drums Gary Harding, Nonda Trimis - Percussion Greta Matassa - Vocals Richard Warner - flute Chuck Deardorf - acoustic bass Produced by: Gregg Karukas and Phil Sheeran REVIEWS FOR BREAKING THROUGH: Phil Sheeran is a solid guitarist with a real solid future. He plays jazz on classical guitar like it hasn’t been heard since the days when Charlie Byrd was laying down amazing tracks on the Verve/Blue Note albums. Except that Phil writes all his own material, and it’s top drawer. The album Breaking Through is so smooth and mellow that you hardly notice it the first time around, but listening beyond the shuffling surface, you see a musician at work, skillfully assembling the ideas that mainstream jazz uses as common coin, in slightly new and different ways. Although side one is good, side two contains the pieces that really deserve careful listening, such as Goodbye to a Friend. The album is spanking clean and very tight, a job well done. ---RESONANCE/ Music for Daily Living Feb, 1990 ____________________________________________________________ In the October issue of L.A. Jazz Scene, Jonathan Widran did a feature article on Phil Sheeran. Since then, KTWV (The Wave) has been playing his music with regularity. Each time I heard his name announced I told myself I had to buy his release, Breaking Through. I did and am I ever glad. This guy is not just another acoustic guitarist. His style is Jazz, New Age and Latin influenced…in short, he’s versatile. The energy of this release is catchy. After a long day of work, put it on and you’ll be energized too. Sheeran really mixes it up, offering a variety of styles and moods. The title cut is alive an free, “Tres Marias” a slow, melodic piece to relax the boy and soul. “One Sixteen C” has got a moving jazz beat and “Anacrusis” will have you “samba-ing” before the song is over. There’s more but I’ll let you discover them for yourself. This a release not to be missed and once you’ve heard it, you’ll beg for more. --Nancy Caldwell, LA JAZZ SCENE Dec, 1990 ___________________________________________________________ Seattle’s Phil Sheeran has a winner in his Brazilian flavored debut album, Breaking Through. His six-strings with unabashed romance and genuine Carioca spirit. Sheeran’s approach is unpretentious, and the results are refreshingly authentic. His rhythm section is a successful amalgamation of pianist/keyboardist Gregg Karukas, bassist Nico Assumpcao and drummer Carlos Gomez of Richardo Silveira’s Brazilian band and percussionist Nonda Trimis and Gary Harding of the Seattle-based group Beija Flor of which Sheeran is a member. Assumpcao deserves special recognition for the wonderfully subtle, acoustic feel of his electric bass. Eric Marienthal, a member of Chick Corea’s Elektric Band, adds lilting alto saxophone to several cuts – in unison with Sheeran on “October Sigh,” darkly passionate on “Sonhei ‘Once I Dreamt,’” and buoyant on “One Sixteen C.” His impressive flute work stands out on “J.P. Island” (a tune I fist heard Beija Flor perform at the 1988 Bellevue Jazz Festival). It begins as a lively calypso and ends in a full-blown samba. Other Seattle performers are Greta Goehle, who adds tasty background vocals to the title cut along with Richard Warner’s flute, and Chuck Deardorf, who plays acoustic bass on the lovely “Goodbye to a Friend.” A native of Spokane, Sheeran was schooled at Cornish and in Brazil, where he studied with Romero Lubambo, and tours with Astrud Gilberto. Sheeran has learned his lessons well in the world of contemporary music, for amid the morass of tainted commercialism his ingenuousness shines through. Note the album cover art by his wife, Jil. --Sandra Burlingame, EARSHOT JAZZ Feb, 1990