Phil Coulter
| Phil Coulter | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Philip Coulter |
| Born | 19 February 1942 |
| Origin | Derry, Northern Ireland |
| Genres | Folk, pop, traditional Irish |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, songwriter, record producer |
| Instruments | Vocals, piano |
| Years active | 1967–present |
| Website | philcoulter |
Phil Coulter (born 19 February 1942) is an Irish musician, songwriter and record producer. He was awarded the Gold Badge from the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors in October 2009.
Coulter has amassed 23 platinum discs, 39 gold discs, 52 silver discs, two Grand Prix Eurovision awards; five Ivor Novello Awards, which includes Songwriter of the Year; three American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers awards; a Grammy Nomination; a Meteor Award, a National Entertainment Award and a Rose d'or d'Antibes. He is one of the biggest record sellers in his native land.
Coulter was born in Derry, Northern Ireland, where his father was a Catholic policeman in the Royal Ulster Constabulary. He grew up with his two brothers and two sisters.
Coulter's father, also called Phil, encouraged music in the house. He played the fiddle whilst his wife played the upright piano. The younger Coulter recalls this piano, made by Challen, as "the most important piece of furniture in the house". “I always stayed away from the fiddle, having inflicted enough pain on my family with the piano," he laughed. Coulter confesses that he came close to abandoning the piano at an early age. "The truth is I hated the piano at first. I'd love to say I was a natural but I wasn't. I hated playing it and I hated my music teacher. My father, who was a canny man, told me, 'We have to scrimp and save to pay for these lessons, you might as well give them up.’ “It wasn't long before I gravitated back to the piano, trying to play the songs that I was listening to on the radio. I always wondered what my left hand was supposed to be doing though. But after two or three years at St. Columb's College I began thinking of the piano as an extension of myself."
One of Coulter's most popular songs, "The Town I Loved So Well", deals with the embattled city of his youth, filled with "that damned barbed wire" during the Troubles.
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