The original Gangster Pump formed in the late 1943 by 6 injured military men with an aim to entertain the troops still fighting in France and the Pacific Theater. K.C.'s grandfather, Gaylord "Spiller" (banjo and crooner), John's grandpappy Horace "Van De Kamp"(electric guitar), Den's granddad Jasper (zither/guitar), Jeff's grandfather Schlomo "the Haifa Hooligan" Zarge (accordion), Jeremy's pop pop Angus (traps) and Vince's grandiggitydad Honus "C-Ration" Kelle (piano) played their first show as Gangster Pump in blackface (as was fashionable at the time), singing songs from their self-produced first album, Seamen Down Her Booby Hatch (She's a Fine Ship). Songs with a war theme were popular during this time and Gangster Pump wowed their audiences with such crowd pleasers as "The Only Good Jap is a Dead German", "Hey Mister, You Ain't a Chinaman", "Run, France, Run", and "Dresden-6500". Their initial popularity landed them a spot on the short-lived Lucky Strike Asbestos and Lead Paint Family Hour on NBC.
As tastes in musical styles began to change, in addition to changes in band personnel due to polio, the band managed to change with the times and continued playing throughout the fun-lovin', colored-discriminatin' ', hand-holdin' 1950's. Schlomo was replaced by his son, Yitzak "Mortgage Foreclosin'" Zarge and the band released a string of hits including "Lets Neck Over by the White Drinking Fountain" and a rare instrumental "Smoker Films at the Moose Lodge".
In the 60's, Yitzak switched from the accordion (which had grown out of style by then) to organ. C-Ration died suddenly while shoeing a farm horse and was replaced by his son, Diamond Joe "Vic" Kelle on electric bass. The band developed a following with the new "hip" generation and was asked to play the Woodstock festival in New York. Since Yitzak refused to drive the van that far while the rest of the band threw Schlitz cans at the back of his head, the band instead elected to play the first Brandywine Arts Festival to a crowd of 7.
The 1970's saw more personnel changes within the band. Gaylord "Spiller" left the band for medical reasons and was replaced by his own liver for part of 1 show (the liver, Spiller, collapsed from exhaustion). His son, Rufus Spiller, took over the singing duties and there were like 3 or 4 different guitar players - all related somehow by blood. The band focused on the new "heavy metal" sound as played by the likes of the MC5, Arthur Brown, Status Quo, and Norman Greenbaum. They had FM crossover radio play with the hard driving "Get Your Goddam Hands (Off My Motorcycle Boots)" and "I Smoke Less in the Hospital".
The band took a break during the 1980's due to the barrage of shitty music that was dumped on the USA courtesy of England (new wave) but they enjoyed the fine punk rock that was being played in New York, LA and DC.
Gangster Pump ushered in the 1990's with a new sound that drew on the musical inspirations of the 6 members. More personnel changes brought in Dave "Gnarly Hands" on bass, John on guitar, K.C. Spiller on vocals, Dennis on the other guitar, "Ron" Jeremy on drums, and Jeff "Finger" on keyboard. This lineup produced some of their finest work to date with the release of 2 studio albums, touring, many unreleased tracks, a shitload of beer and hundreds of live performances. Reggae, metal, jazz, funk, blues, skiffle, zydeco, mariachi, etc. were combined to give Gangster Pump a distinctive sound. They recorded a demo tape with 3 studio tracks and 1 live track. For some reason the band were written up in several local magazines and their live shows became as big a draw as cover bands. For a short time they had gifted (well-hung) trumpeter Jay Chilly X join them for a few notable live performances.
Fearful of being targeted as a band with a stable lineup, they changed bass players again and nabbed Rob "Are You Scared? Good!" from 6 other local bands. Since we are frightened by long hair, Rob left and we brought in Randy on bass. Drummer Ron Jeremy departed the band and Kevin "23 Consonants" Protokowicz took over on drums. The band continued to record and gig constantly. The millennium brought yet more changes to the band, namely drummer Francis "Dont Call Me Tom" Ginochio and Pete "Fugly Neck" Romano on bass; also added was Ted McGinley on keyboards.
Gangster Pump finally finished recording several songs that were put on hold but have yet to be released. Area writer and band hopper Jim Miller put down some great Hammond B3 on several songs (Cheapest Gift, The Walk, Souvenir, among them). A CD release party is scheduled for later this year.
Gangster Pump is alive and well and is currently booking live dates.
