Jazz Legends: SIMON PHILLIPS • Protocol V feat: Alex Sill, Ernest Tibbs,Otmaro Ruiz & Jacob Scensey

Simon Phillips, whose drumming spans over four decades, has demonstrated remarkable versatility across diverse musical genres. His performance is defined by precision, power, and emotional depth in every context. By his early twenties, he had already collaborated with major artists including Jeff Beck, Jack Bruce, Pete Townshend, Al Di Meola, Jon Anderson, Jan Hammer, Stanley Clarke, Jon Lord, Mike Oldfield, Brian Eno, and others. High-profile recordings and tours followed quickly with Mick Jagger, Asia, The Who, Gary Moore, Joe Satriani, and many more. However, the premature passing of drummer Jeff Porcaro led to a 21-year tenure in Toto (1992-2014), marked by ten studio albums and extensive world tours. During this time, Phillips also contributed to projects led by Steve Lukather, Michael Schenker, Derek Sherinian, and others. His own compositions and band concept began to form with the Protocol II album released in 2013. Since then, three additional Protocol albums have been issued, concluding with Protocol V in 2022. The current lineup includes longtime bassist Ernest Tibbs, keyboardist Otmaro Ruiz (formerly of John McLaughlin), saxophonist Jacob Scesney, and guitarist Alex Sill.