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PRESS Slim Jim Phantom in the media |
| THE NEW ZEALAND HERALD (interview by Graham Reid) (New Zealand newspaper/news web site) 26 February 2009 The Stray Cats are soon to strut their stuff in Auckland. GRAHAM REID talks to drummer Slim Jim Phantom about the band's heyday in eighties London and keeping on top of today's hectic schedule. In these days when people are losing their jobs, Stray Cats' drummer Slim Jim Phantom seems to have more than his share: he co-owns the successful Cat Club on Sunset Strip where he usually plays Thursday nights with celebrity guests; is in The Head Cat with Lemmy from Motorhead; this year is getting together the Forgotten Saints with long-time friends Captain Sensible of the Damned, which will drag in a different guest for each gig; and seems happy to pick up his drum sticks for anyone who calls. "It's true, but the Stray Cats trumps everything," he says from his home in Los Angeles, "that's The Band. But we're selective with what we do and plan pretty far in advance so everyone knows their schedule for the next year. "The other things are harder to organise, the Captain is very technical but doesn't return phone calls, and Lemmy is completely, you know ... You have to go to his house and knock on the door." Not that Slim Jim has been playing much with anybody lately. Last year he fell off stage after a gig in Brixton and broke an arm in three places. It meant eight weeks in a cast ("I watched a lot of television") and doing what he was told by his therapist. "That was the longest I've ever been away from making music, but the cast came off around Thanksgiving and I did a couple of shows with Lemmy. About five songs in I realised my arm hadn't fallen off, so it was back into it." And now he's back on the road with the Stray Cats - with singer/guitarist Brian Setzer and bassist Lee Rocker - the band that brought rockabilly, drape jackets and huge quiffs into the post-punk scene in Britain when they arrived in London, broke but curious, in 1980. They were different, immediately attracted attention, found a fan in producer Dave Edmunds, and cracked a string of classic singles with Runaway Boys, Rock This Town and Stray Cat Strut, all of which appeared on their self-titled debut album. The Stray Cats from New York had found their natural home among the teddy boys and punks of London. "We were doing okay in New York but we wanted to find people of a like mind and it really was just right place-right time. So when we got the opportunity to do gigs in London we were ready, we'd been playing five nights a week in New York. "We really wanted to be teddy boys and we heard in England there were people walking around like that. We thought we'd step off the plane and everyone would look like that. We had no idea what we were in for." What they hadn't reckoned on was a more angry cultural climate in Britain where the violence of New York seemed tame in comparison with punks and running fights between teds and rockers and whoever else came along. "We could relate to crime like if you steal something and profit from it, that made sense. But in England, to fight over a haircut? We were oblivious to that, and I think that played in favour because our feeling, even now, is anyone with a haircut against the squares is trying to go outside the game. "I don't care if it's a crewcut or a pompadour, it's all alternative culture." Slim Jim - who grew up in a family where music wasn't important - was drawn to drums from an early age and admired jazz players like Buddy Rich. "I discovered rockabilly later and thought, 'This I can do'. But play like Buddy Rich? No one ever could be that good. And the other guys who I'd known since we were children also thought rockabilly was something we could actually do." He acknowledges when starting out they had little idea of the history of 50s rockabilly and only later came to recognise the pure American-ness of it and its rich legacy. "Everything since has been influenced by it to some extent. It influenced the Beatles and they influenced everyone since. That I got afterwards. "I think the Stray Cats made rockabilly more accessible and available. Before us you really had to root around in old record stores to find it, but now with the Cats it's a bit easier to access Gene Vincent. "And there are always kids who want to seek out something alternative which is not on the radio, even alternative radio. They want to dig deeper into the roots of things and if you do the research in rock'n'roll you find rockabilly." Since their peak in the early 80s the Stray Cats endured declining fortunes, notably in record sales. They still toured but never quite captured that early magic on record. In 1984 they broke up and since then have re-formed occasionally. Slim Jim says by only appearing intermittently as the Stray Cats, that keeps it special for them and their audience. Not that he waits for the Cats, he's a busy man. Except when he broke his arm. Watching television, eating pizzas, turning into Fat Jim Phantom? "That can't happen no matter what I do, it just doesn't work. I can eat burgers and pizzas forever," he laughs. "I have a natural level of stress." |
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| NEWS.COM.AU / PERTH NOW (report by John Flint) (Australian news web site) February 2009 "WHAT you been up to in the past 17 years?" Brian Setzer asked. “Waiting for you three cats to come back,” was the reply of many of the 3,000-plus who would have crawled over broken glass to be at this gig. Online petitions to concert promoters, begging letters to band members and prayers to the original rock`n’roll gods had been answered, and after almost two decades since their last show here, the Stray Cats were back in Australia. Some of the young cats and kittens in the crowd – looking every inch the part in their 1950s-inspired threads – weren’t born when the Stray Cats led the global rockabilly revival of the early 1980s. For them, thank god for all the old concert footage on YouTube. But the cruel sting in the tail was that last night’s Fremantle concert was the opening night of their Farewell Tour. After such a long wait, they were really coming to say goodbye. Cue plaintive wailing at the end for just one more song. The Cats, who undertook their sell-out Farewell European Tour last year, aren’t calling it quits. Setzer says he’s had his fill of international airports, lost luggage and sleep deprivation, so anyone who wants to catch the band in future will have to do so in their native America. Setzer turns 50 this year, while bandmates Lee Rocker and Slim Jim Phantom turn 48. They’re not spring chickens – though Rocker looks great for his age and Slim is still very slim. They might be middle-aged, but there’s nothing tame about the show they put on. Phantom’s bass drum had to be drilled and screwed into the stage before the band came on. Just as well considering all his jumping around and pugilistic stick work. As dusk fell at the outdoor venue, the band launched into their aggressive call-to-arms Rumble in Brighton. The adrenaline-charged opener took some of us older fans back to the days when the Stray Cats took London by storm in 1980 and 1981. Then, the band, with their massive quiffs and sharp clothes, infused some punk influences into their wild rockabilly. Rocker got to share the vocals on 7 Nights to Rock and the pace quickened with Double Talkin’ Baby, a no-nonsense, riot of a song. Something’s Wrong with My Radio is about the fact that it’s nigh on impossible these days to find original rock`n’roll on the radio dial. Such is the banal, predictable, non-risque nature of commercial radio here and elsewhere it’s hardly surprising that so many young people are unfamiliar with the music or even the term “rockabilly”, despite its strong underground following in Australia and around the world. The next two songs Cry Baby and Lust`n’Love were off the band’s last studio album Choo Choo Hot Fish and would have been unfamiliar to those who came along just to hear their 1980s hits. They didn’t have to wait long as the audience crooned along to the alley cat anthem Stray Cat Strut followed by their irrepressible debut hit Runaway Boys. Lee Rocker did one of several solos and throughout the one-hour, forty minute gig slapped his double bass as if his very life depended on it. The late Gene Vincent and Eddie Cochran were remembered on Gene and Eddie and Sweet Gene Vincent. It’s a great shame these legends were dead long before the Stray Cats arrived on the scene. Elvis, who as the “Hillbilly Cat” played rockabilly in his early Sun recordings (1954-1955) before finding fame with more commercial records on RCA, died one year before the Stray Cats got together as a band in Long Island, New York. But the late Carl Perkins got to play with them and acknowledged them as the new kings of the genre. Gina and Bring It Back Again hail back to a turbulent period in the band’s history, with the band splitting on a couple of occasions in the 1990s. Blast Off is a neo-rockabilly space rocket of a song. Who can resist lyrics like: Well I didn't take a bath in 48 hours So I took a detour and had a meteor shower Had a date with Venus and I wanted more So I gave Mr. Spock a pompadour Which leads me to the "rockingest cat in the galaxy" Brian Setzer. In rockabilly circles, Brian Setzer inspires a mix of awe and jealousy. The outrageously talented frontman is a multiple grammy award-winning artist in his own right and one of the most gifted guitar slingers on the planet – make that the galaxy. Last night he played his signature orange Gretsch, a cherry-red sparkle Gretsch, leopard print Gretsch, and a bright purple Gretsch, each worth more than $10,000. If he’d dropped the one he threw high up in the air and caught, Gretsch would have happily replaced it – they’ve named several of their guitars after him. No Stray Cats gig is complete without Fishnet Stockings and Rock This Town, and Setzer’s incendiary guitar playing on these was worth the 17 year wait. (It felt like a 17 year wait for a drink as well, with queues stretching for miles to the one beer tent.) Rocker, Phantom and Setzer all have brilliant side projects that fill most of their time. But something magic occurs when these three guys come together. Their sound is tighter than ever and as powerful as it was when I first caught them – and lost a shoe in the melee – at London’s Lyceum Ballroom in 1982. All that sound from one electric guitar, a double bass and the most minimal drum set. The Cats came back for two encores. Please Don’t Touch was followed up by Baby Blue Eyes, a classic rockabilly song by the legendary Johnny Burnette Rock 'n' Roll Trio. According to Google Maps, it is 25,490km by car and kayak from Fremantle to Memphis, but the penultimate song of the night took us a bit closer with 18 Miles to Memphis, which is vintage Stray Cats. The night concluded with I Fought the Law, originally recorded by Sonny Curtis in the 1950s and made famous by The Clash. Setzer and the late Joe Strummer were close mates and collaborators, and the former lead singer of the English punk rock band would have no doubt approved. In addition to all the wax they’ve laid down over 30 years, the Stray Cats have forged friendships with some of the biggest names in rock, like Robert Plant and the Rolling Stones. But their greatest legacy has been exposing millions of people to a forgotten musical-style, encouraging people to explore the roots of rock`n’roll and to discover rare and obscure gems from the 1950s. The Stray Cats weren’t the only band in the late 1970s and early ‘80s who were playing rockabilly in small clubs and bars, but they led the charge. Like the pioneers of the 1950s, they were a catalyst for thousands of other artists and bands to follow. It’s a shame that Perth’s talented rockabilly bands like the Rusty Pinto Combo or The Continentals weren’t added as support acts – no disrespect intended to the slick surf guitar of Day of the Dead. If you went to last night’s concert and want to know where you can catch red-hot rockabilly on a Saturday night, usually one of these two bands can be found at the Mustang Bar in Northbridge. Get out there and support the scene in Perth. *Also a note to the organisers of the Fremantle Blues and Roots Festival. How about fewer pop acts and some real roots music? Stray Cats Perth Concert Fremantle Arts Centre February 15, 2009 |
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| FOCUS IN THE MIX (with Denise Ames) (L.A. based TV Show) January 2008 Jim and Lemmy (Motorhead) joined Denise on her show, and by all accounts had an awesome time! A dvd copy of the interview is available for purchase, please contact Denise for info: DeniseAmes15@hotmail.com |
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JUMPING FROM SIX TO SIX |
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| CLASSIC ROCK REVISITED (US Rock webzine) March 2007 Interview: www.classicrockrevisited.com/Interviews07/SlimJim07.htm |
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| SOUTH WALES EVENING POST (Welsh newspaper) Friday 20 October 2006 A short interview with Jim ahead of the Dead Men Walking concert at Cardiff's St David's Hall on Tuesday 24 October. Click here to enlarge and read interview. |
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| EASYRIDERS (German Biker magazine) November 2006 Issue 401 (European Issue) During the 2006 C'mon Everybody European tour Jim took time out to talk with Easyriders magazine at the 10th Hamburg International Tattoo Convention on 16th April. The interview (in German) covers a 4 page spread and features photos from the SJP trio's gig at the convention. |
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RIOT
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| SLEAZEGRINDER (US Rock webzine) June 2006 "Kat Men" album review: www.sleazegrinder.com/reviews.htm |
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RHYTHM
(UK drum magazine) December 2004 Issue 105 Rhythm magazine caught up with Jim whilst on tour with Dead Men Walking in the UK. This issue features a 4 page interview including some great Phantom photos. "Stand & Deliver: When cool dude Slim Jim Phantom stood up and danced with The Stray Cats, he started a one-man drumming revolution. Out went the monster stadium kit and in came the bare essentials, a snare drum, a cymbal and a rockabilly attitude. Slim Jim remembers how they took the world by storm." |
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RHYTHM
(UK drum magazine) November 2004 Issue 104 Slim Jim features in Rhythm's November issue as a drum hero in the magazine's 'UpFront' section. "You know him best by his: Driving snare drum beat and slick '50s bad boy image as the coolest stand-up rockabilly drummer on the planet." |
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ROCK
& FOLK (French music magazine) September 2004 Issue 445 France played host to two of the Stray Cats' July concerts and Rock & Folk magazine bears record of the memorable opening show at Le Zenith, Paris in it's September "Absolutely Live" column which includes a great photo of a Triumph-ant Setzer and Slim Jim. |
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WOM
MAGAZIN (German music magazine) August 2004 After the Stray Cats' successful July tour of Europe, Wom feature the feline trio in their free music magazine over a two page spread, including a 'highlights' discography from each band member's solo career. |
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CLASSIC
ROCK (UK music magazine) August 2004 With the Stray Cats European Tour 2004 just underway Classic Rock features a reflective interview with Stray Cats guitarist Brian Setzer. The 4 page spread includes some cool vintage photos of all three cats. |
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ROCKABILLY
MONTHLY (US Rockabilly magazine) June 2004 In April '04 Jim was interviewed by Rockabilly Monthly magazine for their special Stray Cats issue ahead of the summer 2004 European tour. Free tour poster included in the issue is shown below to the right. |
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SONICMANIA
DIGEST
(Japanese TV programme) Saturday 20 March 2004 Slim Jim, Brian Setzer and Mark Winchester joined forces to perform at the 2 day Sonicmania festival in Japan, on 31 January and 1 February 2004. The
photos here were taken directly from the TV when 'Sonicmania Digest'
aired on 20 March 2004. A clip from each band's live performance
at the festival was featured on the programme along with a greeting
from the band. The trio were shown playing Stray Cats classic ROCK
THIS TOWN. |
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GUITARIST
MAGAZINE (UK guitar magazine) Wednesday 14 January 2004 www.guitarist.co.uk |
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GREASE
UP |
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SCOTTISH
NEWS OF THE WORLD
(UK tabloid) Sunday 19 October 2003 "SLIM JIM PHANTOM - surely the coolest man in rock - proved he's still one of the most exciting drummers on the planet with a spine tingling rendition of Stray Cat Strut."
The photo used in the article was taken for SJP.com at The Marina Theatre, Lowestoft, UK on Friday 26 September. |
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