P.F. Sloan(1945-2015)

Singer/songwriter P.F. Sloan was born Philip Gary Schlein on September 18, 1945 in New York City. Phil grew up on Long Island before eventually moving with his family to West Hollywood, California in 1957. At age twelve Sloan landed a record contract with Aladdin Records and recorded the single "All I Want Is Loving." In 1963 Phil formed a fruitful partnership with his frequent collaborator Steve Barri; among the hit songs the duo wrote are "Kick That Little Foot, Sally Ann" by Round Robin, "You Baby" by The Turtles, "Where Were You When I Needed You" by The Grass Roots, and "She's a Must to Avoid" by Herman's Hermits. In addition, Sloan and Barri formed the delightful surf-rock group The Fantastic Baggys and wrote, produced, and worked as session musicians for such artists as Jan & Dean.

Phil achieved his greatest success and notoriety as a songwriter when he penned the powerful and controversial protest rock anthem "Eve of Destruction," which was a #1 hit for Barry McGuire in the fall of 1965. He created and played the guitar intro on the song "California Dreamin'" by The Mamas and the Papas and wrote the song "Take Me for What I'm Worth" for The Searchers. Moreover, Sloan recorded several less successful solo albums in the mid to late 1960's. Acclaimed fellow songwriter Jimmy Webb wrote the glowing tribute song "P.F. Sloan" about Phil. Sloan's song "From a Distance" was a huge hit in Japan in 1970. Phil went into semi-retirement after his album "Raised on Records" flopped in 1972. Sloan played a handful of concerts in New York City in the mid-1980's. He recorded the belated comeback album "(Still on the) Eve of Destruction" in 1993. Phil released the follow-up album "Sailover" in 2006 and his last solo album "My Beethoven" in 2014. Sloan died at age 70 from pancreatic cancer on November 15, 2015 at his home in Los Angeles, California.