Bassist goes it alone for new solo project

Derek Smalls is quitting Spinal Tap.

The bassist says he’s had enough of the band in the wake of the ‘hatchet job’ that was the newly released movie sequel and is to go it alone with a new solo project.

‘I’m not going to talk about the movie’, says the alter-ego of comic Harry Shearer. ‘Except to say, it’s another hatchet job that makes us look like a bunch of fuckwits. Whilst that may be two-thirds true, this one-third has had enough.’

Smalls was positioned as the ‘lukewarm’ member of the band between the fire of David St Hubbins (Michael McKean) and the ice of Nigel Tufnell (Christopher Guest).

But now he says: ‘David and Nigel have treated me as the third wheel on the unicycle for the last time!

‘A few years ago I went solo because we weren’t playing together. Now I’m going solo because we were. 

‘Nigel and David started as fire and ice. They ended up as a match and a cube. It seems like their gonads have turned into gone-nads.'

‘Our landmark songs were Sex Farm, Big Bottom and Bitch School. My ex-mates lost interest in doing saucy songs like that. If rock music doesn’t spend half its time below the belt, it’s spending all its time in the pantry.’

Shearer is heading back to the studio to record more songs as Smalls with further details of the solo project to be revealed ahead of its October 22 launch date.

Spinal Tap II: The End Continues is in cinemas now.

Published: 23 Sep 2025