The Spammed
On the 28th of Feb esteemed producer Chris Kimsey was at the control desk at Eastcote Studios in W10 with the semi legendary supergroup The Spammed. Their mission was to record a track for ‘Our Way’ a c.d. boxset of covers of songs made famous by The Rat Pack (a.k.a Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis, and Dean Martin). Money made from the recordings will go to teens and young adults with cancer or living in difficult circumstances.
The Spammed regulars; Kevin Eldon (lead vocals), Horace Panter (bass), Micko Westmoreland (guitar), Terry Edwards (sax) and Rat Scabies (drums) were joined by extra special guests; Nikolaj Torp Larsen on Hammond organ and Chris Foreman on Lead guitar. To say The Spammed's version of Ain't That A Kick In The Head was an improvement on Dean Martin’s original would be the understatement of the year.
Chris Kimsey was the engineer on Sticky Fingers and went on to produce albums by The Stones such as; Some Girls, Emotional Rescue, Tattoo You, Undercover and Steel Wheels. Chris has also worked with Peter Tosh, Marillion, the Cult, The Proclaimers, Duran Duran, The Cult, Killing Joke, and Jimmy Cliff. It was great to be a fly on the wall and see Mr Kimsey taken aback by the astonishing quality of the performances.
The lyrics for Ain't That A Kick In The Head was written by Sammy Cahn who enjoyed huge success with Let It Snow, Come Fly With Me, All The Way, Three Coins In The Fountain and High Hopes. It was Punk legend Rat Scabies who suggested The Spammed ‘punked’ it up. Kevin Eldon’s singing is superb. It’s a delight to hear him deliver lines such as, “As the Sailor said, quote: Aint that a hole in a boat!” All the musicians playing are on top form. Chris Foreman co-wrote some of the most loved Madness hits such as Cardiac Arrest, Our House, and Baggy Trousers. It’s great to hear him play on the same track as fellow 2-Tone legend Horace Panter from The Specials. The two main organizers of The Specialized Project are Paul Willo and Paul Ayriss. The albums they’ve put out over the last decade have raised over £100,000. If Kick In The Head is anything to go by, this new collection of covers of songs made famous by The Rat Pack (“Our Way”) will be their best release yet.
Le Doc were also allowed to attend a rehearsal that took place a few days earlier at the home of Micko Westmoreland.
All photos by Harry Pye.
To find out more about the project visit: www.specialzedproject.co.uk
