...is the title of a recent Pan Macmillan published book. Essentially, it's a biography of Britain's best ska-revival band, The Specials, and it's written by Specials' bass player Horace Panter. Panter these days is a special needs teacher although he can still be found doing weekend gigs in and around the Coventry area. It's good to be close to your roots.Lucky you, dear reader, if you're old and ugly enough to remember this lot. They had the best songs and (according to many reports) were the best live band going at the time. Being at primary school at the height of their fame, I never got to see them and I would've had to be accompanied by one of my parents had I went, which would not have been cool. They then split up in October 1981 leaving me more than pissed off.
This book is a must-have historical document for any fan of the band, ska and the 2-Tone movement. It's also a valuable wealth of information for pop culture historians. Not only does Panter give his version of events in an openly honest manner, he describes the frictional and often ugly political culture that was very much a part of British life back in the late seventies and early eighties. Run-ins with right-wing "fans" that seig-heiled the band at venues occured but sometimes these thugs went further. Panter describes the time when rhythm guitarist Lynval Golding got a race-related beating on leaving The Moonlight Club in London by three men. Golding's unfortunate experience eventually lead to the composition of the song "Why?" which ended up as a b-side of "Ghost Town" (Horace gets to drive the 1962 Vauxhall Cresta in the promo video of the latter).
Clothes fashions of the time are reflected on with fondness. The sharp suits, the loafers and Doc Martens, the pork pie hats are all remembered here. Oh, and let's not forget the ridiculous garish woollen jumpers that they wore for their mimed performance of "Do Nothing" on Top of the Pops (our Horace got away with not wearing one as David Steele, The Beat's bass player, stood in for him while Panter bass-mimed to The Beat's "Too Nice To Talk To" on the same show).
Well written with a unique style that's easy to get into, "Ska'd For Life" gives a funny, brutal and shocking insight into what life was really like as The Specials' bassist. The camaraderie, the friendships, the cliques, the arguments as well as the gigs, the tours, the drugs - it's all here along with insights of the band's origins and rise to their decline and inevitable split.
This Coventry rude boy wrote a book and he did well.
I hope all you die-hard Specials fans are ready for the following clip:
17 comments:
The ghost: Rrest rest O perturbed spirit, time is out of joint, O cursed spite, that ever I was born to set things right"
Sorry, I just woke up out of a dream- I was writing a book on your last post, and ..............
.... never mind, fuck it, nobody'd buy it, they'd just fall asleep reading it.
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Yes, I've got the scars. I was there, the time that is not 100% special, but I was awake to it, and the book is a defo. I'll have to order it in english, or wait for me mate Dave from Coventry comes this way agaig to see him woman.
"When Charlie speaks of Lester
You know someone great has gone
The sweetest swinging music men
Had a Porkie Pig hats on
A bright star
In a dark age ...."
Strange that hit the Ghosts of Margaret was the end of it all.
Man we need more bands on the pulse, or are there and the youngster, are not tuinin' in.
You'd imagine with the big upheaval in the world today the clarian call would be resounding.
No, no no, they want me to go to rehab, but ...cool enough I love it but as rockmother would say- "where's the fuckin' riot," without the foul language naturally.
Ooo, I'm out of it istvanski.
Great post. Catch you later man, all right!
PS: please forgive the bad spelling, and the gram..........
Oh, I love The Specials. Best of all the late '70's ska bands by a long chalk. Ska was loads more popular in our school than punk had been. Probably more accessible to most kids. Terry Hall had that wonderful deadpan, sarcastic quality. It was a pretty violent time - their lyrics were really dark even by punk standards, but they ended up having loads of big selling singles! A pity their success was short lived, but inevitable.
A shame about Lily Allen appearing in the YouTube clip. The screen froze when she came into shot. The computer must have good taste!
Great to see bloody Billy Bragg enjoying himself. Just a shame Jupitus wasn't there with him in a Hammertime love-in. And Lily's dad who probably got her into everything Jamaican in the first place.
Sounds like a book well worth reading. The Specials were the business.
I quite liked the Specials in their day, but I was never that much of a rude boy. More of a mod really. The post was excelelnt though. A really good review that made me fancy reading the book. I hated all that late 70's politcal bollocks rathering to be red than dead etc. It was all a load of cobblers really. Sweet.
Is it just me, or am I the only person who can't listen to Ghost Town without remembering that fabulous episode of Fr Ted when they ran the disco with only 1 record.....
Thank you for that Ist. I must confess to being somewhat unfamiliar with the genre. I have numerous excuses that I won't bore you with.
Lucky Lily... Terry Hall, a great underrated genius of English pop...
I love the Specials too, definitely sounds like one for the wishlist.
Sylvia, "Let's stand for the national anthem" :-D
Istvanski, great post, it had me off looking up more videos.
This'll have you all dancing
Oh happy golden halcyon days. I remember being 14 and chased by really nasty skinhead girls out of a Specials gig at the Lyceum Ballroom off The Strand 'up West'. I had to jump onto a no9 bus to get away. Thank god for the Routemaster and their open platforms. I seem to remember I was had uberskintight dogtooth check trousers on at the time which made it really hard to run really fast. I never got to see the band. My only chance gone, lost forever. Terry Hall's delivery is so unique and as Betty points out so indicative of the time - it was the years of SUS, police-bashing and race riots - and the serious onset of Thatcher. A very dark time indeed.
Thanks for all the comments everyone, the book is well worth a read and you can pick it up for a few quid on Amazon.
Sean - The thing about "young, angry bands" in Britain today is that they sound much like the young angry bands that I used to listen to as a youth but the current ones get washed up with the success to easily, they lose the anger that used to fuel them and they become well fed and satisfied. But the bands from back then (The Specials in particular) had an energy and enthusiasm that was lacking in their contemporaries at the time...maybe XTC had it for a while but Andy Partridge broke down on tour. And that was that.
Betty - "Best of all the late '70's ska bands by a long chalk."
Yes, absolutely. I seem to recall The Beat being a close second after The Specials and I was fortunate to see a line-up of a reformed Beat a few years ago in Brum Centre at a punk all-dayer. Even with the absence of Dave Wakeling, they managed to get everyone dancing and were clearly the best band on the bill...until The Undertones came on. Close call though. What was it about the Midlands that gave birth to the best ska revival bands?
Geoff - Speaking of Jupitus, he writes the forword that's in this book. You don't have to read that part of it, which is a good thing.
Axe Victim - Hello, mate! The political side of it was quite prominent at the time and it certainly affected The Specials' music.
I remember walking home from school with a classmate who was black. We crossed the road and nearly got run over by this big, nasty and greasy looking car. The driver of it (who was also big, nasty and greasy) looked at my classmate and said "we get 10 points for knocking n*gg*rs down". This guy was serious and we were only kids out of primary school that were just starting to get a grip of what was going on in the big wide world. To be exposed to that viciousness at that age was quite an eye-opener and to some extent, that kind of behaviour was responsible for spawning the Red Wedge campaigns a few years later - which were well meaning, but embarrassing.
You say you used to be a mod-merchant. Do you happen to frequent the Dirty Water club these days? They sometimes have good mod-influenced stuff going on.
Sylvia - It's just you (unless anyone else cares to own up?). When I think of Father Ted, I start singing "My Lovely Horse". Ah, Folk Euro-pop heaven.
DH - Cheers, Dick. What you missed at the time you've made up for by experiencing scenes that others never did for one reason or another. Isn't blogging wonderful!
Annie - I hope Keith tells his daughter how lucky she was to have been part of that gig. Is Lily pregnant in that clip or does she naturally have swollen ankles all the time? Bless.
Joanne - Thank you. Now, that "Concrete Jungle" live version was filmed for a ska / 2-Tone film called "Dance Craze" (as it says in the clip) and it featured a lot of their other ska bands from the same period. The film flopped but the soundtrack sold bundles. I think Stiff Records owns the rights to that film and they should release it on DVD. Also notice in that clip how all the band members (with the exception of the drummer) were dancing about on stage? The fans would shortly join them up there dancing with them too (as on the "Too Much, Too Young" clip), which used to be a common and joyous occurence.
RoMo - I'm gutted for ya, I really am, but at least you managed to escape the 4 skins. My mate went to see them at the Hammy Palias (it probably was the same Specials gig that Phil Jupitus attended and keeps boring everyone about). He said they were absolutely mental and that there was an atmosphere at the gig that was never repeated by any other band he saw. The Specials were great when they performed under pressure, wether it was brought on politically or when it was during inter-band squabbling.
hello there, ister - thanks for the recommendation. i'll look out for that - i'm amply old and ugly to remember the specials (although i must confess to preferring the beat). i couldn't BEAR ub40, though - something very bogus about them.
I've saw Dance craze (as well as the whole of the internet) Swan Lake is my fave off it.
Hello RG - I can only stomach the first UB40 album. Red,Red Wine? What was all that about? Bogus Reggie.
Joanne - Madness! Yes, I'm going to hunt that one down now - thanks for reminding me. "Rocking in A Flat" (as in G sharp) is also a corker - that latter song was done by an old St Martin's art college band called Bazooka Joe (which featured a very young Adam Ant).
well done, sugar! thanks for the trip down memory lane ;-)
Ska ... two tone ... rude girls ... twanging braces ....oh the memories!!!
Savvy - You're welcome, sugar.
Llewtrah - You've been a meatalhead all your life. Are these recollections of rival factions that you're having?
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