The Best Of The Specials
Specials- Gangsters
- A Message To You, Rudy
- Nite Klub
- Concrete Jungle
- Too Much Too Young
- Blank Expression
- Doesn’t Make It Alright
- Rude Boys Outa Jail
- Rat Race
- Man At C&A
- Do Nothing
- Stereotype/Stereotypes (Part 2) – Medley
- International Jet Set
- Friday Night, Saturday Morning
- Why? – Edit
- Ghost Town – Extended Version
- What I Like Most About You Is Your Girlfriend
- Racist Friend
- War Crimes (The Crime Remains The Same) – Edit
- Nelson Mandela
The energy of 1976’s punk explosion seemed a faraway memory by the summer of 1979 – British music had become stale. The climate was ripe for an act that could mix invention, relevance and a sense of fun. The time was right for The Specials – or The Special AKA as they were then calling themselves.
Having been formed in Coventry in 1977 by keyboardist and songwriter Jerry Dammers, guitarist Lynval Golding and bassist Sir Horace Gentleman, the group underwent a series of name and personnel changes before deciding on a settled line-up around the start of 1979. With the original trio augmented by second guitarist Roddy Radiation, singer Terry Hall, drummer John ‘Brad’ Bradbury and MC Neville Staples, the West Midlands septet’s high-octane blend reflected their multi-racial background and diverse musical interests.
Taking their name from the Jamaican hoodlums of the Sixties, Specials fans dubbed themselves ‘rude boys’ and dressed in loafers, Sta-Pres trousers, two-tone ‘tonic’ suits and bluebeat hats. The dawning of this new era demanded its own sartorial guidelines – and The Special AKA and their fans duly obliged.
Originally issued in 2008 as a CD/DVD set, this new, CD-only edition of THE BEST OF THE SPECIALS covers music that the band recorded between 1979 and 1984. Along with the group’s debut single “Gangsters,” the disc also includes both of The Specials’ UK #1’s – “Too Much Too Young” (1980) and an extended version of “Ghost Town” (1981).
Also featured are several songs that cracked the UK Top 10, including “A Message To You, Rudy,” “Rat Race,” “Do Nothing,” a medley of “Stereotype” and “Stereotypes (Part 2),” as well as the Special AKA 1984 protest song “Nelson Mandela.”