Recorded in just four days with a small core of session musicians, with the bulk of the instruments and vocals cut live, Little Moon motors along with a free swinging energy and a natural polish that only seasoned professionals can accomplish without a retouch. ”Seal It With a Kiss” has a soulful groove that matches Phillips’ sophisticated croon. He’s no longer the loud and volatile alt-rocker of his youth, but rather a skilled songwriter with a love for classic forms. Dixieland horns flesh out “It Ain’t the Same Old Cold War Harry,” strings underline “Blind Tom,” while a piano gently steadies the haunting ballads, “Nightbirds” and his welcome home to his baby girl, “Violet.” Fatherhood has made Phillips a happy man. From the opening swing of the un-ironic “Good Morning Happiness,” he walks and sings with an extra skip in his step. “Oh baby, don’t you know we’ve all got hidden treasure?” he sings at the beginning of the upbeat “Buried Treasure.” Even the slow piano creep of “Older Now” immerses itself in the richness of life experience.