Philip Rambow - I’m An Artist (2025)

An album that pulls on the threads of a long career. Great songwriting is at the core of a reflective set of songs. Philip Rambow is a Canadian-born singer, songwriter, and guitarist, who moved to London to front pub rock band The Winkies. He had a brief solo career, and worked with Brian Eno, Mick Ronson, Ellen Foley, and Kirsty MacColl, among others. I’m an Artist’ is his first album in five years and drops right back into the pub rock feel. ‘A Dollar Short’ is a close relative of Dr Feelgood, ‘Milk and Alcohol,’ and the title song has soulful brass and piano that the Rumour would have been proud to have.

Things calm down a bit with the Stones-ish ballad ‘Cold Blue Steel’ and’ Bus Stop’ which take him back to his Canadian roots, and his journey form there to here. ‘Roots and Wings’ is another more reflective tune about leaving home early. He is clearly thinking deeply about the world. ‘The Emperor’s Clothes’ may or may not be about the newly reinstalled US president, it was written in 2020, so may be talking about what we then assumed to be his demise. But in 2025 it is more a song of hopefulness. “Haven’t you heard there’s a Great Speckled Bird who appears when it matters. An ominous portent in perilous times when dreams and beliefs are shattered. Pray for the winds of change. Pray for the Truth and cleansing rain.”

‘Motherfuckers’ is another piece of power roots rock, and ‘The Man In The Iron Mask’ lets his inner Dylan out for air on another song contemplating the past and his place in it. “There’s a guy out there pretending to be me. He’s slim, fit, and stylish, cashed up and carefree. He’s had at least 3 great careers, and still up for any task. I’m here in my lonely room, the man in the iron mask.”

The country stomp of ‘The Road To Hell’ is one of the highlights, with Dobro and harmonica adding to the roots feel, and is the real closing song. The Randy Newmanesque ‘Lost Without You’ is a very much and engaging and delightful coda.

Rambow’s last album was 2019’s ‘Canadiana.’ And that also seems to be the name of yet another subgenre. This is a traditional rock songwriting with the roots showing. “I had been gathering up all the best tracks from the Covid days and sending the best ones to Malcolm Doherty for him to knock into shape. He did a lot more than that as you will see on this album. He played all the instruments, arranged, and produced all the tracks, leaving me to do all the guitars. In the relative vacuum of Covid lock down there was time and emotional variance to look at a wide range of topics themes and emotions,” Rambow says. “The working title was ‘Masks, Myths, Mugs and Muggers’“. Philip Rambow has passed the last few years contemplating those things and more, and it has resulted in an album which reflects the discarded title but absolutely endorses the one he picked.