THE SPECIALS

Last night I dreamt I had to write my dissertation on the philosophical implications of this album. Clearly I was a relieved man when I awoke and realised the far more philosophically worthy Jean-Paul Sartre remained the subject of my thesis but I still took the dream as a sign that today was the day I should pen this particular review. I have been reluctant to tackle this album previously just in case its appeal subsequently wore off. As it is, I feel calm and assured in stating this has become one of my all-time favourite albums of the punk and post-punk era. As with most great albums the Specials picked their moment perfectly. The original punk movement was dying a premature and prolonged death and most of the decent bands had either split up or considerably changed their sound in the name of artistic progression. Either way, the kids in the street were abandoned. The bands going strong in 1979, the Clash and the Police prominently, were hardly speaking out to their fellow peers as the young oiks had done back in the initial 1976/77 explosion. Coventry, no disrespect to fellow web-reviewer Adrian Denning, is a bit of a dump and has contributed just shy of diddly-squat to the human race. Apart, that is, from this album. Out of a shit town suffering from a stagnating music scene the Specials saw their moment and grabbed it. Based prominently and uniquely on the Jamaican ska and reggae scene of the sixties the Specials went further than the Clash in founding the innovative fusion of punk and ska. Complete with laconic brass and perky hammond organ and complemented by the double vocals of skinny white kid Terry Hall and the Jamaican-descended Neville Staples the ska-punk approach on this album completed the punk appropriation of reggae started by the Clash with their cover of "Police and Thieves". Where this album really succeeds, though, is with the peerless songwriting skills of keyboardist and bandleader Jerry Dammers (he wasn't a bad entrepreneur, either, founding the Two Tone record label which this was released on). Basically every song on here is an instantly memorable and delightfully catchy fusion of the punk ethic with the dynamics of reggae, ska and even dub. Furthermore, the kids in the street could once again rejoice that music was being made for them with the no-nonsense peer-to-peer approach of Hall's lyrics. At times it does sound like Grange Hill style moralising (ie. "just say no" bands that play at school events) but once you fully appreciate that Hall really cares about the issues at stake (his emotive vocals on the anti-racist "Doesn't Make it Alright" being the highlight of the album) you have to applaud him for his mature sense of social responsibility. Indeed, this album is a perfect blend of serious but catchy social commentary, party tunes and the odd comedy number. In the former's case there is the excellent duo "Stupid Marriage" and the classic "Too Much Too Young" (the extended studio version is far more dub-influenced than the live version released as a single) both of which criticise young couples who have babies without considering the consequences. The legendary tag-line "you've done too much, much too young, now you're married with a son when you could be having fun with me" perfectly sums up Hall's message. The sublime "Doesn't Make it Alright" is an affecting and sincere plea to the meat-head racists and was particularly pertinent coming from the ethnically diverse midlands. Indeed, Dammers' step of recruiting a mixed race band, particularly given the Jamaican origins of Staples and guitarist Lynval Golding, was an unambiguous statement of intent and shows he practiced what the band preached. As it happens, I far prefer Hall's weedy, frail vocals to Staples' Caribbean bark. I don't know whether that makes me a latent racist but it certainly means Eminem should be my favourite rapper. In terms of the party numbers there is the trio of traditional covers "Do the Dog", the Staples-sung "Monkey Man" and "A Message to You Rudy" as well as the classic original "Nite Klub" (the latter pair were released as singles) which features the hilarious punch-line "all the girls are slags and the beer tastes just like piss". The pick of the comedy numbers is almost certainly the satirical "It's Up to You", although "Stupid Marriage", despite the social overtones, is essentially a comedy number. Of course, the Specials' approach was not completely original and "(Dawning of a) New Era" starts identically to the Dead Boys' "All This and More" and the brilliant "Little Bitch" recycles the "Brown Sugar" riff (and therefore sounds even more like the recent Dandy Warhols' song "A Bohemian Like You"). Their breakthrough single "Gangsters" is not included on the British issue of the album but the remastered CD does include the video as an MPEG. This album was produced by Elvis Costello who does a damn fine job of capturing the power of the band and still retaining the unique vibe of the sixties ska scene. In fact, there is hardly anything at all amiss about this album - one of the greatest and most important albums of its musical era.

From: Madeleine Hague

I don’t know how long ago you penned this piece on The Specials, but I sure enjoyed reading it. I just love this joyous, infectious album with its important messages. In Canada, we don’t have such clashes between black and white, we have very few skinheads, and we never had a Mrs. Thatcher at the helm, but I got a very clear picture of the UK in the 1970’s from listening to The Specials..
Recently, I read a great book called Soulsville USA – History of Stax Records. How incredible, that in Memphis, in the early 60’s, when there were still schools and even drinking fountains for whites only, these black and white men and women were godparents to each other’s kids, held each other up and made so much great music. The Specials are another example of black and white coming together to make fabulous music. I have no idea what the ex-Specials are doing now, or where they are, but hope they still get along.

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Email me at: jackfeeny@yahoo.co.uk