| Russell
Simins
Long before the days of beastiemania.com,
there was once a popular Beastie Boys website by the name
of grandroyal.com. As it turns out, the people behind Grand
Royal also had a well-liked magazine and it was in this
magazine's second issue that the Russell
Simmons vs. Russell Simins confusion was solved once
and for all
A quick recap for those who have
not read the Who's Who entry on Russell Simmons: Russell
is the African-American media mogul who was behind such
successful ventures as Phat Pharm Clothing Company, Def
Comedy Jam, and Def Jam Records. On the other hand, Russel
Simins is famous for his work as drummer for the band Jon
Spencer Blues Explosion. Both the Roots and Jon Spencer
Blues Explosion opened for the Beastie Boys during the 1995
North American tour, so perhaps you've seen Russell perform
and did not even realize it until now.
From a fan's prospective, it would
seem as though Simins (which is a Jewish name shortened
from Siminski upon arrival at Ellis Island) is particularly
friends with Mike D; for
it was Mike D who conducted the Grand Royal Issue #2 Simins
interview and it was Mike D who went on to work with Beck
and the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion on the song "Flavor."
For those bootleg collectors who own the concert footage
that Ricky Powell shot of
the May 11th, 1995 Long Island performance, it
is pretty obvious that Mike D spends more time hanging out
with Russell than anyone else backstage. Perhaps that is
the reason that Russell never had problems getting Grand
Royal to release any of the various projects that he was
involved with. In 1996 Grand Royal put out Butter 08's album,
which Simins produced in addition to his playing bass, guitar,
and drums. Then in 2000, Russell put out his first full-length
solo work, Public Places. This album featured former
Luscious Jackson keyboardist
Vivian Trimble, who was likely returning a favor to Simins
for his work on Luscious Jackson's biggest hit, "Naked
Eye" (1996). In between those projects, Simins also
contributed to Money Mark's
pop masterpiece, Push the Button (1998).
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