From:   "Dik de Heer" 
Date:  Thu Mar 20, 2003  1:18 am
Subject:  Born To Be With You : Slim Jim Phantom
 
SLIM JIM PHANTOM (By Shaun Mather)

Born 20 March 1961, Brooklyn, New York City, New York

Slim Jim made his mark on popular music as the drummer with the
rockabilly revival trio, the Stray Cats. The Cats came from New York
to London in 1980 and spent a couple of vintage years in the UK and 
European charts, playing an energetic set of modern rockabilly. Slim 
Jim's driving snare drum was an integrral part of the sound they created.
For a while you couldn't visit the dentists or hairdressers without reading
about his marriage to Britt Ekland in the UK's glossies and tabloids.

Following the split up of the Stray Cats, Slim Jim has worked on various
projects. Together with Lee Rocker and guitarist Earl Slick they formed
Phantom, Rocker & Slick. Their self-titled debut spent six months of 1985
on the US album charts and contained the single Men Without Shame,
their most successful 45. Their follow-up, Cover Girl sank without trace 
and the group went their separate ways. 

Rocker and Phantom worked together on the odd Stray Cats reunion and 
also formed the Swing Cats with Danny B. Harvey. The group recorded 
with mixed results and their CDs are hidden in the back of one of my 
cupboards, together with the Slick LP! Slim Jim has also worked with
the Lemmy and played on the Carl Perkins TV special, where he excelled 
despite the irritating Ringo Starr's beard being all over his kit. 

His latest project is Col. Parker (featuring Gilby Clarke of Guns n' Roses)
and he also jams at his Cat Club joint on Sunset Strip. He has signed an
endorsement deal with Peace Musical Co. who've called their latest snare
drum the Slim Jim's Phantom Beauty.

Recommended listening:
Pretty much any Stray Cats album, plus the many live albums.
Phantom, Rocker & Slick - at a push. 
Swing Cats - Swing Cats. Mixture of rockabilly and swing, slightly
recommended.