Saturday, June 20, 2020

LOCK DOWN THEATER NIGHT 18

Here's a mess of Specials related stuff. The Specials were at the forefront of the second wave of ska, a primarily English movement, most of it on Two Tone records. What passed as ska was really more like kinda sorta ska. Nevertheless, they resusitated the music that hadn't been heard in the States or the UK for a decade or so and, well, and now you have the third wave, fourth wave and so on, all increasingly more removed from the original Jamaican ska. But what the heck, if they were able to introduce Dandy Livingstone, the Maytals and others to fringe punk rockers and new wavers, good for them. I remember hearing them and Madness for the first time and totally digging them from the git-go. Alas, Madness went the MTV route and the Specials morphed into Special AKA and though the later released some really good records, they left ska behind.

Tonight's fixation on the Specials came about after seeing a short documentary on the wide lasting influence of Two Tone. When I was watching it I was thinking that, while I love the idea behind the label and the movement, the Specials were just about the only band on the roster that I really cared for. The Selecter? I don't mind them. But don't come near me with any of that Beat stuff. I can't stand the English Beat. The Body Snatchers were good. "The Boiler" by Rhoda Dakar backed by the Special AKA is intense. Shit gets serious. Parties end.


There's a few songs below, and a video of complete show from their 30th anniversary tour in 2009. Though missing a few key players, it's good for a few.

~ NOTE: ALL MEDIA IS HOSTED BY THE BLOGS & SITES NAMED BELOW ~
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