THE SPECIALS  -  THE SPECIALS

YEAR:  1979
LABEL:  2 Tone
TRACK LISTING:  A Message To You Rudy,  Do the Dog,  It's Up To You,  Nite Klub,  Doesn't Make It Alright,  Concrete Jungle,  Too Hot,  Monkey Man,  (Dawning of A) New Era,  Blank Expression,  Stupid Marriage,  Too Much Too Young,  Little Bitch,  You're Wondering Now
IMPRESSIONS:  The undoubted epicenter of the explosion that was the U.K. ska movement in the late 70s.  A perfect snapshot of the disillusioned anger of British youth at the time.  As wikipedia for once puts it rather eloquently, the British version of ska "...shares the infectious energy and humour of the original sound (of Jamaican 60's ska), but injects new-found anger and punk sensibility.  The sound is more manic than its Caribbean laid-back ancestor while bringing the guitar to the fore and having the traditional horn section and percussion lessened somewhat.  Ska was such a phenomenon in Britain at the time that a TV special called "DANCE CRAZE" aired examining it (and I'm lucky enough to own a copy of that broadcast).  The Specials really were the epitome of British ska and were even more short-lived than the short-lived ska craze itself; soon to break up into the equally short-lived but excellent Fun Boy 3.  But here in the Specials' debut album is the manifesto of ska through original songs as well as copious Jamaican ska covers (which went uncredited at the time but nowadays are properly attributed).  "THE SPECIALS" is a message to you, rude bwoy, and it stands up just as proud all these years later.
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  All of dem.
GUEST ARTISTS:  Elvis Costello (producer),  Rico Rodriguez (trombone),  Chrissie Hynde (vocals)
FACT SHEET:  THE SPECIALS is the Special's first album.  The Specials were Terry Hall (vocals), Neville Staple (vocals), Lynval Golding (rhythm guitar), Roddy Radiation (lead guitar, vocals on "Concrete Jungle"), Jerry Dammers (keyboards), Sir Horace Gentleman (bass guitar) and John Bradbury (drums).  "A Message To You, Rudy" is a cover of a Dandy Livingstone song; former Skatalites member Rico Rodriguez played trombone on the original Jamaican version 20 years before and appeared here with the Specials' cover version.  "Rudy" in the title of the song is not a proper name but is a shortened form of the Jamaican term "rude boy".  "Do the Dog" is a cover of a Rufus Thomas song.  "Too Hot" is a cover of a Prince Buster song.  "Monkey Man" is a cover of a Toots & the Maytals song.  The song "Concrete Jungle" is NOT a cover of the Bob Marley song but the title was obviously inspired by it.  On some US versions of the album, the song "Gangsters" appears between "Too Much Too Young" and "Little Bitch".  Q Magazine rates the album at number 38 on the 100 Greatest British Albums Ever list and Rolling Stone ranks it number 42 in their list of the 100 Best Albums of the 1970s. 

WAITING - Fun Boy Three

YEAR: 1983

LABEL: Chrysalis

TRACK LISTING: Our Lips Are Sealed, The Tunnel of Love, The Pressure of Life (Takes the Weight Off the Body), Things We Do, The Farmyard Connection, Murder She Said, The More I See (The Less I Believe), Going Home, We're Having All the Fun, Well Fancy That!

IMPRESSIONS: I was always a fan of The Specials and the late 70's ska craze so I loved Fun Boy Three. The music on WAITING still has that moody atmospheric sound from The Specials but is also quite danceable. On top of that, they hide biting lyrics which comment on the social foibles of the day. Back in the day, my mother and I played this album often. The moaning, groaning sound of their cover of the Go-Go's hit "Our Lips Are Sealed" was a revelation (co-written by secret lovers Jane Wiedlin and Terry Hall) while "The Farmyard Connection" was hilarious fun. Tracks like "Things We Do" and "The Tunnel of Love" were little snapshots of sometimes bleak early-80's England which somehow managed to have a sense of bemusement; things never got too depressing. Terry Hall's impassive and immobile face probably had something to do with eliminating any sense of "woe is me" wallowing. Whenever I hear this album I am immediately rocketed back to the early 80's and high school. WAITING was awarded the retroactive honourary Penguin Award for Album of the Year.

MY FAVOURITE TRACKS: Our Lips Are Sealed, The Tunnel of Love, Things We Do, The Farmyard Connection, Murder She Said, The More I See (The Less I Believe), We're Having All the Fun

GUEST ARTISTS: David Byrne plays guitar as well as producing and mixing

FACT SHEET: Fun Boy Three emerged from the wreckage of The Specials. Formed by Terry Hall, Neville Staple and Lynval Golding, the band still only lasted a mere two albums (sadly); WAITING was their second and final album. The songwriting and production is less "doom and gloom" and more light and poppy without losing any of the lyrical sharpness. "Our Lips Are Sealed" and "Tunnel of Love" were both Top 20 UK hits while only "Our Lips Are Sealed" became a single in America with heavy rotation on MTV. The instrumental "Murder She Said" is a cover of the theme music for the Agatha Christie/Miss Marple films starring Margaret Rutherford. After the release of WAITING, the group toured the US and promptly disbanded afterwards. The album is produced and mixed by the Talking Heads' David Byrne with arrangements that feature interesting rhythms and instruments such as the cello and trombone (brought over from the ska days). Fun Boy Three were also instrumental in jumpstarting the career of Bananarama by dueting with them on "T'ain't What You Do (It's the Way That You Do It)" on their first album and then dueting with Bananarama on their own album with their Motown cover "Really Saying Something"; both in 1982.