Phil "Philthy Animal" Taylor
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| Phil "Philthy Animal" Taylor | |
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Phil Taylor |
| Also known as | "Philthy Animal", "Philthy Phil" |
| Born | 21 September 1954 |
| Origin | Chesterfield, England |
| Genre(s) | Heavy metal |
| Instrument(s) | Drums |
| Years active | 1975—present |
| Associated acts | Motörhead |
Phil Taylor, better known as "Philthy Animal" Taylor, was the drummer in the British heavy metal band, Motörhead from 1975 to 1984 and 1987 - 1992. The mark IV Motörhead line-up, considered classic by fans consists of Lemmy, Philthy Animal Taylor and Fast Eddie Clarke.
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[edit] Biography
Born on 21 September 1954, in Chesterfield, England, Taylor replaced Motörhead's first drummer, Lucas Fox, during the recording of the band's self-titled 1977 debut album, Motörhead. Lemmy explains choosing him to play in Motörhead 'because he had a car and could give a lift back down to the studio, the drummer they had wasn't working out very well and Phil kept saying that he could play'. Taylor introduced the band to "Fast" Eddie Clarke, having worked with him while painting a houseboat. Taylor was unable to overdub the drumming on the 'Lost Johnny' track as he was arrested for being drunk and disorderly, and the studio time had run out by the time he was released.
In 1978, Taylor, Lemmy and Clarke interrupted one of The Damned's Chiswick album sessions, turning it into a recorded 'jam session', one track from this - "Ballroom Blitz", appeared as the B-side of "I Just Can't be Happy Today". Shortly after recording 1980's classic Ace of Spades album, Taylor broke his neck after being lifted above the head of a friend in a test of strength, only to be dropped upon his head. Taylor continued to play in Motörhead with the aid of a neck brace, as is visible in the music video for "Ace of Spades". As a result, Taylor now has a prominent lump located on the back of his neck (affectionately referred to as his "knob"), thought to be a calcium deposit caused by his previous spinal trauma. Tour-disrupting injuries were not unfamiliar to Taylor at the time, as he had previously broken his hand whilst punching a man outside of his flat in London. In typical uncompromising Motörhead style, Taylor continued to drum by duct-taping his drum stick into his hand until it had sufficiently healed.
After a 'final' appearance on The Young Ones in 1984, Philthy left Motörhead. The following year, he made appearances with Waysted, and joined another ex-Motörhead man, Brian Robertson (who is also ex-Thin Lizzy), to form the band Operator.
Taylor returned to Motörhead in 1987 and continued playing in the group until 1992. After having been warned three times in the previous two years "to get his act together", he was fired after recording "I Ain't No Nice Guy", because of his poor performance.[1]
More recently, he played in a band called The Web Of Spider.
In 2007 Taylor was back with a new band called Capricorn, along with former Danzig guitarist Todd Youth, former Monster Magnet guitarist/vocalist Phil Caivano and former Nashville Pussy bassist Corey Parks.
[edit] Discography
[edit] Motörhead
- Motörhead (1977)
- Overkill (1979)
- Bomber (1979)
- Ace of Spades (1980)
- No Sleep 'til Hammersmith (1981)
- Iron Fist (1982)
- Another Perfect Day (1983)
- Rock 'n' Roll (1987)
- 1916 (1991)
- March ör Die (1992)
[edit] Other recordings
- The Muggers (album) The Muggers Tapes Live recording from a brief spell of about 4 gigs Phil drummed with Fast Eddie Clarke on guitar, John 'Speedy' Keen, also on guitar, and Billy Wrath on bass. The album was released as a 'bonus' to a 'Best of Motorhead' release.
- Philthy Phil & Fast Eddie (album) [Naughty Old Santa's Christmas Classics]] (1989)
- GMT One By One 12" single (1989)
- GMT War Games CD release of same tracks + one other (1991)
- The Deviants Have Left The Planet (album) drummed with Ladbroke Grove pals Mick Farren on vocals, Larry Wallis on guitar, etc (1999)
- Sheep In Wolves' Clothing Motorheadbangers fan club tribute CD. The Deviants Mick Farren vocals, Andy Colquhoun, guitar, David Ito, bass and Philthy, drums; re-recorded the Motorhead / Farren song 'Lost Johnny' for the CD - released April 7th, 2008.
[edit] Other appearances
- Taylor appears, dressed in drag, part way through the Girlschool promotional video for their song "Yeah, Right".[2]
- Classic Albums - Ace Of Spades DVD. Taylor is in interview and playing drums on several of the Ace Of Spades albums classic tracks.
[edit] References
- ^ Kilmister, Ian and Garza, Janiss White Line Fever (2002) — Simon & Schuster pp. 242-243 ISBN 0-684-85868-1
- ^ Girlschool Promo video from Bronze Rocks You Tube video
