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JOHN PHILLIPS - Songs of Gentleness 1969-1976

Songs of Gentleness is a 4LP box set that casts John Phillips of Rhodesia as the last great outsider folk discovery of the 20th century. The set resurrects Phillips' beguiling debut John for the very first time since its inaugural South African release in 1969 and unveils three new albums of previously unreleased works from the 1970s. Songs of Gentleness presents every surviving recording by this hitherto mysterious Southern African musician.

Born in 1945, John Phillips was the first child of an English couple living in India. The Phillips family went on to settle in Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) in 1957. A sensitive and bookish teenager coming of age in the 1960s, Phillips embraced the bohemian world of literature and song and studiously evolved into a proficient guitarist and skilled songwriter. After a brief period working as a journalist in Zambia, he relocated to South Africa to pursue music and recorded John (1969) for the independent RPM label in Johannesburg. With no international distribution, the album couldn't reach its niche audience at the time but is a worthy companion to contemporaneous cult folk classics from the Anglosphere like Nick Drake's Five Leaves Left and Linda Perhacs' Parallelograms.

While confronting depression, substance abuse and gender dysphoria in the 1970s, Phillips remained a passionate and prolific songwriter and studio sessions from 1972 and 1976 document the breadth of his talent and the depth of his soul. Songs of Gentleness details his remarkable story with guidance from his brother Gordon Phillips and input from late musical collaborator John Oakley-Smith (creator of the 1976 album Matinees on Saturdays) in a booklet featuring archival photographs and drawings. John Phillips retreated into a life of isolation over the course of the 1980s and died of cancer in England in 1995. These gentle songs are his enduring gift to the world.

• John (1969) Original Album

• John 1972 First Edition LP

• John 1976 First Edition LP

• Demos (1976) First Edition LP

• Stoughton Tip-On Jackets

• Large Format 16-Page Booklet

• Deluxe Slip-Case Enclosure

RELEASE DATE – FEBRUARY 2026

DIGITAL SAMPLER

STREAMING on Spotify / Apple Music / YouTube

JOHN PHILLIPS - Songs of Gentleness 1972-1976 (Sampler)

A sampler of previously unreleased songs recorded in 1972 and 1976 by singer-songwriter John Phillips of Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe). This compilation prepares the way for the release of the collected works of John Phillips, in which three previously unreleased albums are presented with the album John (1969) as a 4LP box set with a 16-page booklet entitled Songs of Gentleness 1969-1976.

* DIGITAL SAMPLER *

* STREAMING on Spotify / Apple Music / YouTube *

Songs of Gentleness 1969-1976 is a 4LP box set that casts John Phillips of Rhodesia as the last great outsider folk discovery of the 20th century. The set resurrects Phillips' beguiling debut John for the very first time since its inaugural South African release in 1969 and unveils three new albums of previously unreleased works from the 1970s. Songs of Gentleness 1969-1976 presents every surviving recording by this hitherto mysterious Southern African musician.

Born in 1945, John Phillips was the first child of an English couple living in India. The Phillips family went on to settle in Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) in 1957. A sensitive and bookish teenager coming of age in the 1960s, Phillips embraced the bohemian world of literature and song and studiously evolved into a proficient guitarist and skilled songwriter. After a brief period working as a journalist in Zambia, he relocated to South Africa to pursue music and recorded John for the independent RPM label in Johannesburg. With no international distribution, the album couldn't reach its niche audience at the time but is a worthy companion to contemporaneous cult folk classics from the Anglosphere like Nick Drake's Five Leaves Left and Linda Perhacs' Parallelograms.

While confronting depression, substance abuse and gender dysphoria in the 1970s, Phillips remained a passionate and prolific songwriter and studio sessions from 1972 and 1976 document the breadth of his talent and the depth of his soul. Songs of Gentleness 1969-1976 details his remarkable story with guidance from his brother Gordon Phillips and input from late musical collaborator John Oakley-Smith (creator of the 1976 album Matinees on Saturdays) in a booklet featuring archival photographs and drawings. John Phillips retreated into a life of isolation over the course of the 1980s and died of cancer in England in 1995. These gentle songs are his enduring gift to the world.

JPS 101 – FIRST EDITION 4LP BOX SET WILL INCLUDE:

JPS 169 // John Phillips – John (1969) • First Reissue LP

JPS 272 // John Phillips – John 1972 • First Edition LP

JPS 376 // John Phillips – John 1976 • First Edition LP

JPS 476 // John Phillips – Demos (1976) • First Edition LP

• Stoughton Tip-On Jackets

• Large Format 16-Page Booklet

• Deluxe Slip-Case Enclosure

RELEASE DATE – FEBRUARY 2026

COMPANION RELEASE:

SF17 // John Oakley-Smith – Matinees on Saturdays (1976) • First Reissue LP

• Direct-to-Board Sleeve with Double-Sided Lyric Sheet/Photo Insert

SF17 // JOHN OAKLEY-SMITH - Matinees on Saturdays (1976)

Exquisite singer-songwriter outing from 1976 South Africa with private-press sensibilities. A quirky and intelligent yet deeply moving set from a contemporary of Rhodesian folk outsider John Phillips.

John Oakley-Smith was part of a generation of songwriters from the 1970s, spearheaded by the likes of Nick Drake and Joni Mitchell, who expanded the creative and confessional boundaries of folk music and altered the course of popular music as we know it. Written and recorded in South Africa from 1973 to 1975 and originally released in 1976, Matinees on Saturdays is an obscure classic that weaves intimate and poetic narratives into a melancholic set with flourishes of wry attitude and sharp wit. The album is notable for its subtle yet ornate production with Oakley-Smith's fragile vocals and graceful piano at it's core.

Born in Zimbabwe in 1949, John Oakley-Smith came of age at a time of political and military escalation during the country's war of independence in the 1960s and 1970s. He migrated to South Africa to avoid conscription and attend university and later evolved into a key figure of the folk music and fringe theatre community that frequented Johannesburg's Troubadour Club and Chelsea Hotel. With support from the independent 3rd Ear Music label, Matinees on Saturdays was a labour of love produced by Oakley-Smith alongside engineer Nino Rivera and issued by a local subsidiary of Warner Bros. Records as a small pressing in South Africa only. The album was his only official release and has been restored and reissued for its 50th anniversary in 2026.

During the 1970s, John-Oakley Smith played music with the likes of Johnny Clegg, Mike Dickman and Thomas Mapfumo. He also collaborated with John Phillips on the 1972 session featured on the Songs of Gentleness 1969-1976 box set. He helped found Johannesburg's Market Theatre in 1976 and worked closely with figures like Richard Haines, John Kani and Janet Suzman. Retiring as a performer in the 1980s, Oakley-Smith returned to Zimbabwe and dedicated himself to composing and arranging music for theatre, including the Royal Shakespeare Company in England. In his later years, he worked as a writer and editor as well as a high-school music teacher and mentor of aspiring young musicians. John Oakley-Smith was the victim of what remains an unsolved murder at his home in Mutare in 2021.

• First vinyl reissue since 1976 release

• Includes double-sided lyric sheet/photo insert

• Black vinyl as well as limited edition colour variants

All Songs Written, Arranged and Performed by John Oakley-Smith

All Instruments and Vocals by John Oakley-Smith

Engineered by Nino Rivera

Cover by Dennis Scouse

Published by 3rd Ear Music

Special Thanks: David Marks and Lucien Oakley-Smith

Cat. No. SF17

DIGITAL ALBUM