"It takes a songwriter such as Sam Phillips to depart from the routine expectations set by the last 50-plus years of pop music," says the Chicago Tribune, and at the start of her fall tour this past weekend at Chicago's Old Town School of Folk Music, "she detoured into German cabaret, French chansons and a waltz, as well as lightly tracing elements of American gospel and blues." As the area Sun-Times paper, Southtown Star, reports, she delivered "a masterful performance that was enchanting from beginning to end" for a "superb show."

Sam Phillips begins her two-week tour of the US, with songs from her new album, Don't Do Anything, at the end of this week, beginning with two nights in Chicago. To catch a glimpse of Sam on stage, go to nonesuch.com/media for a video of her performing The Magnetic Fields tune "Underwear" at L.A.'s new Largo. The album is now available in the UK, with the Sunday Times, Scottish Daily Express, and Q magazine each giving it four stars, and The Sun giving it four-and-a-half stars, calling Sam "a talent who has stayed true to herself" and her tunes "first class."

Sam Phillips's latest album, Don't Do Anything, was welcomed with critical praise upon its release earlier this summer. The Rochester Democrat and Chronicle adds to the kudos, calling her "a monument to artistic vision" in the mold of Tom Waits. The San Antonio Current also praises the new record, saying Sam's writing style "works beautifully, especially with the uncanny title track, one of the most remarkable love songs ever penned."

In her review of Sam Phillips's latest Nonesuch release, Don’t Do Anything, USA Today's Elysa Gardner writes of Sam that her "wonderfully fuzzy vocals and wry, lyrical songwriting are two of the world’s underappreciated wonders." Gardner says that the "gorgeously quirky sensibility" of Sam's previous releases, is matched on the new record, which also features songs with "a dusky beauty that’s distinctly their own."

Sam Phillips recently stopped by NPR's World Cafe to speak with host David Dye about her latest Nonesuch release, Don't Do Anything. She also performed four songs off the new album, accompanied by Eric Gorfain on violin and guitar.

"I don't think enough people have heard the music of Sam Phillips," says Bob Boilen, host of NPR's All Songs Considered, "and now seems like a good time to change that." Boilen invited Sam to perform songs from the new record at the NPR offices as part of the new All Songs Considered "Tiny Desk Concert" series ...

Congratulations to Punch Brothers' Chris Thile has been nominated for a 2008 Americana Award by the Americana Music Association. Chris joins an esteemed group of nominees in the Instrumentalist of the Year category, which also includes Sam Bush, Gurf Morlix, and Buddy Miller, who appears on Emmylou Harris's new album, All I Intended to Be.

Sam Phillips's recent Nonesuch release, Don't Do Anything, is her first self-produced album, and, writes Time Out New York's Mikael Wood in a four-star review, "Phillips fills the role masterfully here, adorning her romantic confessions with a painter's palette of avant-folk details ... Bewitching." ...

Sam Phillips's new album, Don't Do Anything, is out Tuesday, and she'll celebrate by kicking off a two-week tour of in-store performances at Borders from coast to coast, starting with her hometown store in LA. Rolling Stone picks "Little Plastic Life" as a standout track off the record, including the song in its "Single Minded" list. "The magnificent Sam Phillips returns with a song that demonstrates her knack for blending curious vocals with a big parched strum," writes Rolling Stone. "To put it another way: she was Feist before there was Feist." Beliefnet says of the new album: "This underrated singer's unique vocal stylings are at their finest here, and the musical arrangements are masterful." The site lauds Sam's "prowess as an artist of true distinction," one who "still has the courage to encapsulate her emotions and experiences in her music in a way few artists ever do."

Many a fan of the TV series Gilmore Girls, which ran from 2000 to 2007 on the WB network, got to know the music of the show's composer, Sam Phillips. Sam wrote original music throughout the series' seven-season run; the show also featured songs from her Nonesuch debut, Fan Dance, and its follow-up, A Boot and Shoe. And Sam herself even joined Lorelei and Rory Gilmore in fictional Stars Hollow, Connecticut, as a troubadour of sorts. Now, with Sam's third Nonesuch album, Don't Do Anything, set for release this Tuesday and available for pre-order now, fans of the show can enter to win a free, signed and personalized copy of the CD at GilmoreGirlsNews.com. The contest is on now and runs through June 5. 

"Can't Come Down," a track from Sam Phillips's upcoming album, Don't Do Anything, is featured today on NPR's All Songs Considered. Listen at npr.org.

Sam Phillips's Don't Do Anything hits stores in two weeks, and today, the album track "Little Plastic Life" was named Today's Top Tune by KCRW, 89.9 FM, out of Santa Monica, and kcrw.com online.