You already know Phil Cook, at least if you’ve listened to any of the most essential folk-rock, indie rock, or even gospel records of the last decade. The spirited piano solo on Hiss Golden Messenger’s “Day O Day,” the incisive melody of Bon Iver’s “AUTAC,” the mesmerizing elegance of the keys on Hurray for the Riff Raff’s “Life on Earth”—yes, those are all Phil Cook, a beloved collaborator capable of transforming an entire song with a pretty lick here, a sharp line there. The War on Drugs, The Blind Boys of Alabama, Ani DiFranco, Nathaniel Rateliff, Frazey Ford, the Indigo Girls: Cook’s partnerships in just the last dozen years shape their own best-of.

But now, Phil Cook has returned to his first musical love: solo piano. It is, after all, the instrument of his upbringing and now the most direct line between his fathoms-deep sensitivity and the ears of his audience. On the new release, All These Years, Cook’s playing—a chronicle of gorgeous and emotionally expansive meditations—reorients expectations of solo piano composition and improvisation. Indeed, that exquisite album is just the start for a player approaching the grand old instrument from the perhaps unlikely foundation of American folk music.

Two decades ago, Cook left his native Wisconsin for North Carolina, largely to be closer to the American roots music that had taken over his life. The blues, bluegrass, old-time, country: They formed a composite lingua franca for Cook, who began to deliver his keen understanding of these sounds with a guitar or a banjo, a slide or fingerpicks. He funneled that information into his pioneering avant-folk band Megafaun and subsequent duties as an in-demand sideman. But in early 2020, Cook paused his relentless touring duties with others, intent on focusing on how all his experiences and erudition could fit into his own songs. He found a cabin in the North Carolina mountains and woke early and wrote late, penning aubades and nocturnes and endearing reflections on his own life. The results feel like a mirror held to a heart and mind squinting to find light in our age of darkness, hope in a moment where it’s easier to believe in its absence.

Traditional folk music, we are rightly told, was often the sound of people getting by, of chronicling despair and worry so that they might get through that stuff, if only for the next five minutes. Technique and melody and vocabulary aside, that is the absolute essence Phil Cook summons at the piano, whether supporting some famous singer or offering the warm flicker of his solo work. This is music that makes you glad to have heard it, glad that it exists, glad that you’re here with the chance to be glad at all.

Limited tickets will be sold at the door.

COVID-19 Policy:

In accordance with NYC guidelines, all audiences will be required to show proof of vaccination + ID for Sound Room entry. Some examples of proof of vaccination include the NYC COVID Safe App, Excelsior Pass, CDC Vaccination Card \[or photo\], NYC Vaccination Record, or an official immunization record from outside NYC or the U.S.

Safe Space Policy:

Public Records aims to provide a safer space for all. We reject all forms of aggressive behavior including, Racism, Misogyny, Transphobia, Homophobia, Genderphobia, Religious Bigotry, and hatred or discrimination of any kind. Consent is paramount, please respect the personal space of our patrons and staff. If you, or someone around you is being harassed. Please notify one of our staff members immediately. Anyone found in violation of our rules and safer space policy will be removed from the venue. To share feedback about an incident regarding harassment that happened in our space, please email hello@publicrecords.nyc

This is a 21+ event.

Presented by Public Records.

PUBLIC RECORDS

Top track

Phil Cook

Top track

About

Lineup

Venue

Public Records

Download the DICE app