Spike’s Journey
Best known as legendary rock band QUEEN’s touring musical director and keyboard player since 1984, British multi-instrumentalist Spike Edney has toured, recorded and performed with the living and late legends of our time, throughout his extraordinary career.
Spike’s illustrious musical journey began in the mid 70s, as keyboard player and musical director for Soul & Motown legends Ben E. King and Edwin Starr.
In the 80s, after tours and studio work with Bob Geldof’s Boomtown Rats, Dexy’s Midnight Runners, Thomas Dolby, Haircut 100 and Duran Duran, Spike commenced his 40 year career with QUEEN, joining them for two world tours – “The Works”, culminating with the band’s iconic performance at “Live Aid” in 1985 and “The Magic Tour” in 1986, which included 2 nights at Wembley Stadium (“Live at Wembley” DVD) and Freddie Mercury’s final performance at “Knebworth”.
Following the death of Freddie Mercury, Spike continued to perform and record with both Brian May and Roger Taylor on their solo projects. In 1987 Spike founded the band The Cross with QUEEN’s Roger Taylor, co-writing and arranging songs on 3 albums, “Shove It”, “Mad Bad and Dangerous To Know” and “Blue Rock”.
In 1992 Spike joined The Brian May Band for the “Back to the Light” tour (the first of two world tours), followed by the “Another World” tour in 1997.
The 90s also saw the launch of The SAS Band (a.k.a Spike’s All-Star Band), hailed by its followers as the “Ultimate All-Star Band!”. Since their debut in 1994, Spike and his band have made television appearances and performed at select private, corporate, and major public events around the world. Several of those internationally televised concerts, with Spike as MD and his all-star band backing an array of stars, including the 2000 & 2001 Prince’s Trust “Party in the Park” concerts and the 2003 – 2009 Nelson Mandela “46664” concerts for aids research and support. The band’s releases include the studio album “The SAS Band” and two live performance DVDs, “The Show” and “Motown 2 Memphis”. A TV pilot for a new music chat show “In Session with The SAS Band” is awaiting production and the band will be celebrating their 30th anniversary in 2024 with a UK concert, featuring appearances by artists from over the years.
The artists and musicians who have performed with The SAS Band to date are part of an ever growing collection of some of the world’s greatest Rock and Pop performers and include such names as Roy Wood (The Move, ELO, Wizzard), Chaka Khan, Roger Daltrey (The Who), Lionel Richie, Roger Taylor & Brian May (QUEEN), Jeff Beck, Paloma Faith, The Sugababes, Gary Brooker (Procul Harum), Jack Bruce (Cream), Paul Young, Marti Pellow (Wet, Wet, Wet), Paul Rodgers (Free, Bad Company), Madeline Bell (Blue Mink), Tony Hadley (Spandau Ballet), Sir Bob Geldof (Boomtown Rats), Lulu, Suggs (Madness), Midge Ure (Ultravox), Errol Brown (Hot Chocolate), Graham Gouldman (10cc), Kiki Dee, Leo Sayer, Chris Thompson (Manfred Mann’s Earth Band), Toyah Willcox, Ronnie Spector (The Ronettes), and Fish (Marillion), to name a few.
As Nelson Mandela’s “46664’s” musical director and bandleader, Spike and his band have also had the opportunity to work with such legendary artists as Amy Winehouse, Beyoncé, Anastacia, Bono & The Edge, Annie Lennox, Stevie Wonder, Cyndi Lauper, Peter Gabriel, Josh Groban, Leona Lewis, Lil’ Kim, Queen Latifah, Jimmy Cliff, Jesse McCartney, Zucchero, Alicia Keys, Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, Simple Minds, The Soweto Gospel Choir and Johnny Clegg.
In 2005, Spike resumed his familiar position on the QUEEN stage for their 2005/2006 “Return Of The Champions” international tour and their 2008 “Cosmos Rocks” European and South American tours, with a new line-up, featuring the legendary Paul Rodgers on vocals.
Spike joined QUEEN again for their 2012 Summer shows in Kiev, Moscow, Wroclaw and London’s Hammersmith Apollo with new vocalist Adam Lambert. Spike has been fulfilling his keyboard and musical director duties since on several world tours, joining the band for their 2015 “South American Tour”, their 2017-2018 “News of The World” tour, celebrating the 40th anniversary of the iconic lbum and currently their worldwide 2019-2024 “The Rhapsody Tour”, which included their historic opening of the 2019 “Oscars” ceremony in Hollywood, the “Global Citizen Concert” in Central Park and “The Australian Firefight Benefit Concert” in Sydney, Australia in February 2020, and the opening of Queen Elizabeth’s “Platinum Jubilee Concert”, broadcast globally from Buckingham Palace. Spike’s other work in his capacity as live music director for QUEEN includes the “Freddie Mercury Memorial Concert”.