THE SPECIALS "THE SPECIALS" 1979 2 TONE UK EX./EX. ORIGINAL ISSUE SKA/PUNK/FUNK

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LAST YEAR I LOST ONE OF MY BEST FRIENDS TO CANCER, HE WAS A COOL MUSICIAN A DRUMMER BY TRADE, ORIGINALLY FROM SEATTLE, BUT RELOCATED TO L.A. IN 1985, HE AMASSED A VERY LARGE MUSIC COLLECTION, AND HAD KILLER TASTE FOR ROCK & ROLL, SADLY I AM SELLING OFF A LOT OF HIS COLLECTION ON BEHALF OF HIS WIDOW TO HELP PAY OFF DEBTS INCLUDING HOSPITAL BILLS, TAXES AND STORAGE UNIT FEES. I AM NOT TAKING ANYTHING FOR THIS SERVICE, DOING IT FOR MY FRIEND (MISS YOU DAVE!). THIS ITEM IS FROM HIS COLLECTION.

THE PHOTO'S MAY BE A LITTLE BLURRY (SORRY ABOUT THAT), OR IF THERE'S SOME REFLECTIONS. BUT THE PHOTO'S ARE OF THE ACTUAL ITEM YOU ARE BIDDING ON. I DO COMBINE SHIPPING!

THANKS FOR LOOKING. ALL RECORDS WILL MAIL OUT INSIDE A PROTECTIVE PLASTIC OUTER SLEEVE.

ARTIST- THE SPECIALS

TITLE- “SPECIALS”

TRACK LISTING- SEE PHOTOS & BELOW

YEAR OF RELEASE- 1979

LABEL- 2 TONE RECORDS UK

CAT.#- CDL TT 50001

RECORD CONDITION- THIS RECORD IS IN EXCELLENT CONDITION NICE SHINEY BLACK LUSTER, NO VISIBLE DINGS, MARKS, SCRATCHES, BLEMS ETC. BOTH SIDES SOUND GREAT. BOTH LABELS IN EXCELLENT CONDITION.

JACKET CONDITION- THE JACKET IS IN EXCELLENT CONDITION. STILL I ORIGINAL SHRINK WRAP

ADDITIONAL INFO: THE VERSON OF THIS RECORD IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT. PRODUCED BY ELVIS COSTELLO

MORE INFO ON THE ARTIST & RELEASE-

The Specials, also known as The Special AKA, are an English 2 Tone and ska revival band formed in 1977 in Coventry. Their music combines a "danceable ska and rocksteady beat with punk's energy and attitude". Lyrically they present a "more focused and informed political and social stance".

The band wore mod-style "1960s period rude boy outfits (pork pie hats, tonic and mohair suits and loafers)".[3] In 1980, the song "Too Much Too Young", the lead track on their The Special AKA Live! EP, reached No. 1 in the UK.[4] In 1981, the unemployment-themed single "Ghost Town" also hit No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart.

After seven consecutive UK Top 10 singles between 1979 and 1981, three members of the group abruptly left to form Fun Boy Three. Continuing on as "The Special AKA" (a name they used frequently on earlier Specials releases), a substantially revised Specials line-up issued new material through 1984, including the top 10 UK hit single "Free Nelson Mandela". Afterwards, founder and songwriter Jerry Dammers dissolved the band and pursued political activism.

The group reformed in 1993, and have continued to perform and record with varying line-ups (but without Dammers).

Ascendancy of the Specials (1979–81)

In 1979, shortly after drummer Hutchinson left the band to be replaced by John Bradbury, Dammers formed the 2 Tone Records label and released the band's debut single "Gangsters", a reworking of Prince Buster's "Al Capone". The record became a Top 10 hit that summer. The band had begun wearing mod/rude boy/skinhead-style two-tone tonic suits, along with other elements of late 1960s teen fashions. Changing their name to the Specials, they recorded their eponymous debut album in 1979, produced by Elvis Costello. Horn players Dick Cuthell and Rico Rodriguez were featured on the album, but would not be official members of the Specials until their second album.

The Specials led off with Dandy Livingstone's "Rudy, A Message to You" (slightly altering the title to "A Message to You, Rudy") and also had covers of Prince Buster and Toots & the Maytals songs from the late 1960s. In 1980, the EP Too Much Too Young (predominantly credited to the Special A.K.A.) was a No. 1 hit in the UK Singles Chart, despite controversy over the song's lyrics, which reference teen pregnancy and promote contraception.

Reverting once again to the moniker the Specials, the band's second album, More Specials, was not as commercially successful and was recorded at a time when, according to Hall, conflicts had developed in the band. Female backing vocalists on the Specials first two studio albums included: Chrissie Hynde; Rhoda Dakar (then of the Bodysnatchers and later of the Special AKA); and Belinda Carlisle, Jane Wiedlin and Charlotte Caffey of the Go-Go's. In the first few months of 1981, the band took a break from recording and touring, and then released "Ghost Town", a non-album Specials single, which hit No. 1 in 1981. However, shortly afterwards, Golding, Hall and Staple left the band to form Fun Boy Three.

The Specials is the debut album by British ska revival band The Specials.

Released on 19 October 1979 on Jerry Dammers' 2 Tone label, the album is seen by some as the defining moment in the UK ska scene. Produced by Elvis Costello, the album captures the disaffection and anger felt by the youth of the UK's "concrete jungle"—a phrase borrowed from Bob Marley's 1972 album Catch a Fire but equally apposite used here to describe the grim, violent inner cities of 1970s Britain.

Musically, the album encapsulates the wave of British ska, greatly reworking the original sound of 1960s Jamaican ska. The music shares the infectious energy and humour of the original sound, but injects new-found anger and punk sensibility. The resulting sound is considerably less laid-back and "Caribbean" sounding than original ska, and dispensed with much of the percussion and the larger horn sections used in the older variety. The Specials also brought guitar to the front of the mix; it had often been a secondary instrument in Jamaican ska. The album features a mixture of original material and several covers of classic Jamaican ska tracks, a debt which went uncredited on the 1979 release.

Many songs on the Specials' debut album were covers of older Jamaican songs. "Monkey Man" had been a hit for Toots & the Maytals in 1969, "Too Hot" was a Prince Buster original from 1966, and the opening track, "A Message to You, Rudy" was a Dandy Livingstone single in 1967. "You're Wondering Now" was originally performed by duo Andy & Joey and later covered by The Skatalites; the vocal version was recorded by Andy & Joey in 1964. Other tracks are reworkings of Jamaican originals: "Too Much Too Young" was based on Lloyd Charmers' "Birth Control" and "Stupid Marriage" draws heavily on the Prince Buster hit "Judge 400 Years" (also known as "Judge Dread").

A live version of "Too Much Too Young" was later released on a five-track EP, The Special AKA Live!, which went to number one on the UK charts. "'A Message to You, Rudy" was also released as a single.

Trombonist Rico Rodriguez, who performed on many '50s and '60s Jamaican recordings before moving to London in 1962, played on the band's version of "A Message to You, Rudy", as he had on the original recording 15 years previously. As a former member of the legendary Skatalites, a band that helped define the sound of ska, Rico's appearance on the album considerably added to the album's credentials.

A digitally remastered edition also featuring promotional videos to "Gangsters" and "Too Much Too Young" as enhanced content was released by EMI in 2002.

Also, the song "Little Bitch" is featured as a playable song on the very first release of the dance simulation game Dance Dance Revolution.

Tracklist Hide Credits

Companies, etc.

• Published By – R. & B. Music
• Published By – Warner Bros. Music Ltd.
• Published By – Plangent Visions Music Ltd.
• Published By – Melodisc Music Ltd.
• Published By – Blue Mountain Music Ltd.
• Published By – Copyright Control
• Phonographic Copyright (p) – Chrysalis Records Ltd.
• Copyright (c) – Chrysalis Records Ltd.
• Marketed By – Chrysalis Records Ltd.
• Engineered At – T.W. Studios
• Pressed By – Phonodisc Ltd.
• Lacquer Cut At – CBS Studios, London

Credits

• Bass – Horace*
• Design [Sleeve] – Carol Starr, Chalkie Davies
• Drums – Brad*
• Engineer – Dave Jordan
• Guitar – Lynval*, Roddy*
• Horns – Dick Cuthell, Rico Rodriguez
• Mastered By – TY*
• Organ – Jerry*
• Producer – Elvis Costello
• Vocals – Neville*, Terry*

Notes

I DO COMBINE SHIPPING. THE SHIPPING PRICE INCLUDES THE COST OF THE LP MAILER.

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