By skamonic
We had a terrific gig at Croydon’s Oval tavern last night.
The pub was packed, and there were people dancing almost all the way through both our sets.
We took the opportunity to try out four new numbers:
My Baby just cares for me, which although a song from the 1930s will always be associated with Nina Simone. But while sme may not have been aware of it, it is very definitely a ska rhythm going on in her right hand.
London Calling – there’s lot of reggae and ska influences in the Clash, but perhaps not so much in the original of this. Now it is ska.
Hall of the Mountain King is from the Peer Gynt Suite by Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg. We thought turning this into a ska tune was wildly imaginative – and then we found that Madness had done a version.
Come Dancing is a great Ray Davies song that was a hit for the Kinks. We just like it a lot.
Each seemed to get a good reaction from the crowd, which is not always the case. Sometimes something can sound good at rehearsal and then be a bit of a flop.
This is what we played in our two sets. And we hope it won’t be too long before we get invited back.
- Chinatown
- Guns of Navarone
- Latin Goes Ska
- The Tide Is High
- I’m in the Mood For Love
- My Baby Just Cares For Me
- Alley Cat Ska
- Mambo Number 5
- London Calling
- Enola Gay
- Price Tag
- Red Red Wine
|
- One Step Beyond
- Hall of the Mountain King
- Come Dancing
- Simmer Down
- 99 Red Balloons
- Tainted Love
- Rudy – A Message To You
- Baggy Trousers
- My Boy Lollipop
- Night Boat To Cairo
- Gangsters
|
By skamonic
When Phineas Fogg set off to get around the world in eighty days, he left from the Reform Club on Pall Mall in the heart of London’s club land.
And this is where we played a gig last night.
It is a very grand building that reeks of history, and the many distinguished people who have passed through its doors.
As it’s so grand, we had to dress up. The pre-gig refreshments was also a cut above what we sometimes get.
And this is what we played in one long set:
- Chinatown
- Guns of Navarone
- Latin Goes Ska
- Mood For Love
- Fly Me To The Moon
- Work Song
- Mambo Number 5
- Egyptian Reggae
- Enola Gay
- Price Tag
|
- Red Red Wine
- Tequila
- Misirlou
- Simmer Down
- 99 Red Balloons
- Tainted Love
- Rudy A Message To You
- Monkey Man
- My Boy Lollipop
- Night Boat To Cairo
|
By skamonic
A great time was had by all at the New Cross Inn ska night yesterday. It’s fair to say that we were the closest to ska’s roots, but each band had an interesting take.
The gig was livestreamed on YouTube – and we hope to have a copy of the video so we can share the best bits.
As Leah had a family funeral, we were lucky to get Mari to join us on tenor sax for the evening. Despite the short notice, no-one would have known that this was the first time she was playing with us.
This is what we played:
- Chinatown
- Guns Of Navarone
- Latin Goes Ska
- Mood For Love
- Tide Is High
- Enola Gay
- Simmer Down
- 99 Red Balloons
- Tainted Love
- My Boy Lollipop
- Gangsters (Vocal)
By skamonic
We had a great time playing a sixtieth birthday party in Southgate last night.
It was a bit special as the party was celebrating the birthday of Chris’s mum – so we put him centre stage.
We got to play a full two sets, and as a special request, we slotted in some Stevie Wonder tunes – only one of which has any relation to the ska, rocksteady and early reggae that we play, so we made Chris play the tricky bits.
We don’t have any photos, but this is what we played.
- Chinatown
- Guns Of Navarone
- Latin Goes Ska
- Tide Is High
- Mood For Love
- You Can Get It
- Harder They Come
- Man In The Street
- Mambo Number 5
- Enola Gay
- Price Tag
- Red Red Wine
|
- I Wish
- Sir Duke
- Master Blaster
- Simmer Down
- Pata Pata
- Tainted Love
- Rudy A Message To You
- My Boy Lollipop
- Monkey Man
- Baggy Trousers
- Night Boat To Cairo
- Baggy Trousers
- Gangsters
|
By skamonic
A year ago we were asked to play at the opening of a country pub near Andover.
We were delighted to asked back to play at their first birthday party.
This nearly turned into the gig from hell as the car carrying Veronica, Frank, Nigel and the PA system got stuck in in terrible traffic despite having left what should have been more than enough time to get there well in advance.
Even on the last ten miles they got stuck behind a tractor for most of the way. This does not happen on the way to gigs in Camden.
We were due to start playing at 8pm. The rest of the band were therefore more than relieved when the PA turned up at 7:20.
With a little bit of luck, a lot of organisation and a 3 minute sound check we were still able to play our first song by a few minutes past 8. It was good that we were playing in a marquee as they help prevent feedback.
And once we were playing everyone relaxed into a great party atmosphere and we played two hour long sets to much appreciation. Everyone seemed more chilled about our late arrival than we were – as we pride ourselves on a professional approach. But you can’t plan for that many accidents on the M25 and M4.
This is what we played.
- Chinatown
- Guns Of Navarone
- Latin Goes Ska
- Tide Is High
- Mood For Love
- Harder They Come
- Alley Cat Ska
- Man In The Street
- Mambo Number 5
- Dr Who
- Egyptian Reggae
- Enola Gay
- Price Tag
- Red Red Wine
|
|
- Tequila
- Misirlou
- One Step Beyond
- Simmer Down
- Pata Pata
- 10 Out Of 10
- 99 Red Balloons
- Tainted Love
- Rudy A Message To You
- My Boy Lollipop
- Monkey Man
- Baggy Trousers
- Night Boat To Cairo
- Gangsters
|
By skamonic
We had a great time last weekend playing the vintage event that was part of the Crystal Palace Overground festival.
We decided to play music from the 1960s or earlier for our set to make sure we kept to the vintage vibe. And this is what we played.
- Chinatown
- Guns Of Navarone
- Latin Goes Ska
- Mood For Love
- Tide Is High
- Fly Me To The Moon
- Mambo Number 5
- Simmer Down
- Tainted Love
- My Boy Lollipop
- Gangsters
And we could have played many more 60s tunes if we had been given more time to play.
We hadn’t quite realised before that the Skamonics are an ideal fit for a vintage themed event. Normally they draw influences from a number of decades, but tend to rely on 40s swing for their music. There’s nothing wrong with that but adding some authentic 60s ska adds variety.
We commissioned some photos ourselves as we don’t have any good ones from an outdoor festival. Mouse over the one below to start the gallery. And there are some more photos and phone video taken by others on our Facebook page.
By skamonic
We were delighted to play for Roger’s 60th on Saturday in Greenwich.
This is what we played:
- Chinatown
- Guns Of Navarone
- Latin Goes Ska
- Tide Is High
- Mood For Love
- Harder They Come
- Man In The Street
- Mambo Number 5
- Egyptian Reggae
- Enola Gay
- Red Red Wine
|
- Midnight Hour
- One Step Beyond
- Misirlou
- James Bond
- 99 Red Balloons
- Tainted Love
- Rudy A Message To You
- My Boy Lollipop
- Baggy Trousers
- Night Boat To Cairo
- Gangsters
|
This was the first time we’ve played Egyptian Reggae for many years (and in a new arrangement).
We were also happy to do Midnight Hour (not as ska or reggae) so that Roger could join us on the vocals, as he used to be in a band with members of the Skams.
And here are some pictures from the soundcheck.
By skamonic
We played a private party gig on Saturday – in fact a significant birthday for our bass player Nigel.
We managed to video and record the gig, so after we have had the chance to do some mixing and editing, we should have some reasonably good quality live video of the band.
This is what we played.
- Chinatown
- Guns Of Navarone
- Latin Goes Ska
- Mood For Love
- The Tide Is High
- Man In The Street
- Mambo Number 5
- Enola Gay
- Red Red Wine
- Simmer Down
- Pata Pata
- 99 Red Balloons
- Tainted Love
- My Boy Lollipop
- Gangsters
By skamonic
The Earl Haig is an old British Legion social club in Crouch End now converted into a pub and social centre for the area.
We like it because it has a good stage, and great sound.
We played two sets last night, with special guest Jackie Grant making her debut on tenor sax.
It was too dark – and a bit too much of a rush – to take more than a few snaps.
But this is what we played:
- Chinatown
- Guns Of Navarone
- Latin Goes Ska
- Tide Is High
- Mood For Love
- Harder They Come
- Alley Cat Ska
- Man In The Street
- Mambo Number 5
- Dr Who
- Price Tag
- One Step Beyond
- Work Song
- Simmer Down
- Pata Pata
- 10 Out Of 10
- 99 Red Balloons
- Tainted Love
- My Boy Lollipop
- Night Boat To Cairo
Thanks to Elliot for being a great sound engineer.
By skamonic
We had a great night last Saturday at Dumplins Live Ska at the Fiddler’s Elbow., playing with Ipswich’s finest, The Downsetters.
As ever at Dumplins, there was great sound, a crowd who really like ska and a brilliant atmosphere. It is one of our favourite gigs.
It was only the second time that we have played Simmer Down, but it went down a storm.
This is what we played – the solos were extended on a few numbers so it was a longer set than perhaps it looks:
- Chinatown
- Latin Goes Ska
- Mood For Love
- Tide Is High
- Man In The Street
- Mambo Number 5
- Simmer Down
- Tainted Love
- My Boy Lollipop
- Night Boat To Cairo
We are hoping for some good photos as there was a talented photographer busy all evening. And we have put some snaps on our Facebook page.
