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Spike Edney | |
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| Background information | |
| Born | (1951-12-11)11 December 1951 (age 73) Portsmouth,Hampshire, England |
| Origin | Hackney,London, England |
| Genres | Rock,pop,hard rock |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1970s–present |
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| Formerly of | |
Philip "Spike"Edney (born 11 December 1951) is an English musician who has performed with a number of bands since the 1970s, most notably withQueen in their live concerts since 1984.
Edney's association with Queen began in 1984 duringThe Works tour, replacingFred Mandel. Edney's collaboration with Queen included mostlykeyboards (his main instrument), plus rhythm guitar and backing vocals. After the death of Queen's lead singer and main pianistFreddie Mercury in 1991, Edney took over his role on piano during theQueen + Paul Rodgers 2005, 2006, and 2008 tours, playing all piano parts on aKorg Triton keyboard,[1] in addition to all other keyboard parts.[2] He returned as keyboardist for theQueen + Adam Lambert tours in 2012, 2014, and the 2015–2020 tour schedule. He has also been the keyboardist for the London production ofWe Will Rock You since it opened in 2002.[3]
Edney was also the musical director of the official Queen tribute band, theQueen Extravaganza.
Edney can be seen on Queen'sLive at Wembley Stadium andHungarian Rhapsody concert films, playing rhythm guitar on "Hammer to Fall," and piano on both "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" and "Tutti Frutti." He can also be seen playing in the background during Queen's 1985 Live Aid performance at Wembley Stadium. He would later comment that once Queen got on stage, the "lazy afternoon feeling..." "...changed instantly into a proper gig".[4]
During the mid-1970s, Edney recorded and toured withthe Tymes andBen E. King. As well as keyboards he also plays bass, guitar, trombone and contributes backing vocals. In the late 1970s, he was musical director forEdwin Starr and, during the early 1980s, worked withDuran Duran,the Boomtown Rats,Dexys Midnight Runners,Bucks Fizz,Haircut One Hundred andthe Rolling Stones. He also appeared withPeter Green on his comeback tour.
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Edney formedSAS Band (Spike's All Stars) in 1994, playing their first gig atThe Gosport Festival (near Edney's hometown ofPortsmouth). The original band featuredCozy Powell on drums,Neil Murray on bass andJamie Moses on guitar.[5] The band has constantly fluctuating personnel, including musicians from Queen,Whitesnake,Free,Roxy Music,Toto, andSpandau Ballet, and solo artists includingFish,Roy Wood,Leo Sayer,Kiki Dee, andPaul Young. Others that have appeared with the band includeSuggs,Lionel Richie,Bob Geldof andToyah Willcox.[6]
During tours with Queen in the mid 1980s, Edney played a Gibson Les Paul Junior as his main guitar for the rhythm parts of "Hammer to Fall".[7] During the Queen + Paul Rogers tours he used a Korg Triton, and during the Queen + Adam Lambert tours he used a Korg M3 before settling for a Korg Kronos.[1]
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