Sammy Kay (ex-Forthrights) and his current band Sammy K and the East Los Three have started a fundraising campaign to support their upcoming album release Love Letters.  The band is using Big Tunes to raise a goal of $3200.  We got a taste of what the album would sound like when they released their EP last December, a mix of soulful ska, rocksteady and reggae.  The album also has guest musicians like Vic Ruggiero (Slackers), Chris Murray and Queen P (Ocean 11).

I encourage you all to check out and contribute to the campaign, you will be able to pre-order the album in digital, CD, or vinyl (colored) formats!  Take my word for it, Sammy is a hard-working, constantly touring musical force who has helped make the national ska scene a better, more well-connected place.

Check out the Big Tunes campaign for Love Letters (as well as some new songs from the album) HERE

I was chatting with Sammy Kay (The Forthrights) last month and he told me that he was coming back to ska music and had a new band brewing.  The yet unnamed band, featuring  Sammy along with a couple of guys from Royal City Riot and The Fad, were going to musically take Brooklyn by storm.  I waited with anticipation.  A month later, he sent me a track that is now available for streaming by the public.  The band is called Sammy Kay and The Fast Four.  The song is called “Sweet Misery.”  A hot little tune showcasing a new bright star in the galaxy of ska music.  I’m looking forward to seeing what else they have in store!

Friend of MNSKA and bassist for Brooklyn rocksteady band The Forthrights, Sammy Kay has started an Official Tour Blog over at Musical Occupation.  The Forthrights will be embarking on the Ska Is Dead: Young Guns Tour with We Are The Union, Stuck Lucky, Brunt Of It, and Green Room Rockers.  After that, the band will be heading West with Maddie Ruthless on the Rocksteady Ruined My Life Tour, which will be hitting Minneapolis on Thursday, May 26th at The Terminal Bar, featuring MNSKA bands The Dropsteppers and The Prizefighters.  Read through Sammy’s first blog entry and find a free download from Babylon Party Machine (aka Matt Wixson) who is mashing up The Forthrights’ latest EP Camp Birdman with the sounds of Motown.

You can follow The Forthrights tour blog HERE

The New York ska scene seems to be kicking into full-gear lately, so it’s only appropriate that we take time to check in with Sammy Kay from the sizzling Brooklyn rocksteady band The Forthrights.  Sammy and host Courtney Klos chat about growing up in the Long Island ska scene, why King Django College should be an accredited educational institute, and even get to some questions asked by our listeners.

You can check out The Forthrights HERE and on MYSPACE.  You can head over to Stubborn Records to buy their record.

Intro track: “Liquor Store” by The Forthrights
Outro track: “Other People” by The Forthrights

This show is brought to you in part by MNSKA.com, Minnesota’s Ska Community and the Fancy Pants Gangsters podcast network.  Become a fan of the show on Facebook, follow Courtney on Twitter, or email him at FOSS@fancypantsgangsters.com.

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