All hail the King! King Hammond (the alter ego of Nick Welsh) will be gracing New York City with two shows this weekend -- backed by NYC dirty reggae band The Hard Times--on Thursday, December 1, 2011 at The Shrine in Harlem and Saturday, December 3, 2011 at The Lake in Bushwick, Brooklyn.
Welsh remains one of the busiest and most prolific ska musicians on either side of the Atlantic and his resume is a mile long. He has worked with and produced A-list artists like Prince Buster, Laurel Aitken, Dave Barker, Rico Rodrigues, and Judge Dread as well as Lee 'Scratch' Perry with whom he worked on the Grammy Award winning album 'Jamaican ET'. Welsh has also been the bassist and song writer in Bad Manners and The Selecter (helping to shepard both band's post 2-Tone careers - he wrote 'Skaville UK). If that wasn't enough, he also writes music for U.K. and U.S. television shows and video games. Welsh revived King Hammond in 2010 and since that time has released three albums (“The King and I,” “Jacuzzi,” and “Showbiz”) and a slew of vinyl EPs on his own N.1 Records imprint. In June 2011, King Hammond was a featured performer at the Ink ʼn ʼIron Festival in Long Beach, California.
I had the pleasure to meet Welsh in 1991 when my band Bigger Thomas was the support act for The Selecter's first tour of the U.S. since the band had broken up in the early 80's. Welsh, Pauline Black and Neol Davies were all very kind to us (it was our first proper tour) and they always made sure we got a sound check and a dressing room (which is more unusual than you might expect in the cut throat music biz). As a fellow bass player I was also always impressed that Welsh played a Steinberger bass (which is a very sleek guitar that has no tuning pegs.)
To get you in a royal mood, here's a little taste of The King. Give a listen to 'Rockin' On Ridley Road' from King Hammond's latest LP 'Showbiz' and 'Tatoo Girls' (there should be plenty of them at The Lake on Saturday night!). I'll be at The Lake on Saturday night, so if you make it out be sure to say hello!
The first step in Jimmy Cliff's musical comeback is out today. While the four song, Tim Armstrong-produced EP 'Sacred Fire' includes three covers, its the throwback energy and choice of covers which should resonate with ska and reggae fans of multiple generations. A full length album is due out in 2012.
Cliff started recording as a child in the early 1960s with producer Leslie Kong. In the late 1960s, he moved to Britain where he enjoyed considerable success with the song 'Wonderful World, Beautiful People'. He became a massive star after starring in 'The Harder They Come', the 1972 low-budget movie based on the exploits of Ivanhoe 'Ryghin' Martin, a gunman who terrorized sections of west Kingston in 1948. The film's soundtrack contains songs that are Cliff standards, including the title track, 'Sitting In Limbo' and 'You Can Get It If You Really Want'.
Cliff appeared on Jimmy Fallon last night where backed by The Roots he performed his classic cut 'The Harder They Come' and 'World Upside Down'.
Everyone I have ever met who is a truly devoted and passionate fan of 2-Tone and ska music tends to have followed a similar path no matter where in the world they are from. Like alien abductees, we all remember in great clarity and detail that singular moment when we heard The Specials first album for the very first time. And almost to a person, I have noted that the lightning bolt 'religious' experience of hearing that record has stayed with us and shaped our lives. For me it was when a friend at school played me The Specials first album in late 1979 (I sat opened mouth and was actually a bit afraid!). I rushed out and bought my own copy and that started a regular routine every Friday after school when I haunted the local record store near my house. I pestered and annoyed the clerks there so much about The Specials that when they saw me coming they would suggest new records for me to buy. This was the start of my ska and 2-Tone education and it lead me to where I am today.
José Luis "Caplís" Chacín is a fellow traveler and 2-Tone devotee. He is best known as the bassist and one of the founding member of Venezuela ska band Desorden Público (Public Disorder). Though we lived thousands of miles part, our love of 2-Tone and the impact it has had on us throughout our lives is striking. Chacín's first exposure to The Specials sent him and his band mates on a path that has made them purveyors of a an amazing hybrid of ska and Latin music and as both entertainers and political commentators in Venezuela.
Chacín's love of ska and 2 Tone started in Caracas in the early 80's, when as a heavy metal loving teen he was given The Specials first album. It set him and his band mates along the path to starting the one of the very first South American ska bands. Now after 25 years of popularity and success in Latin America, including eight studio albums, several greatest hit releases and live performance in over 30 countries, Desorden Público have reached superstar status throughout South America. Taking their name from Venezuelan military police trucks that had 'Orden Publico' [Public Order] written on the side, the band's name is political, but it is more tongue-in-cheek and humorous about advocating any serious form of public disorder.
With Desorden Publico a musical institution and celebrating their 25th anniversary, I thought it was high time I connected with Chacin to learn more about the beginnings of the band, their influences and what it was like growing up in Caracas, Venezuela as a Rude Boy in the 80's! For the uninitiated, imagine if Madness or The Specials had emerged in Venezuela. And while the band emerged just as 2-Tone peaked, they had trouble imitating the 2-Tone sound too closely. It just didn't work for musicians steeped in local Latin rhythms, culture and beats. The music of Desorden Publico has continued to evolve, thanks to near relentless playing and recording during the past two decades. The band has a dozen or so releases to their name and have had platinum sales, #1 and top 10 hits. They have tours that have taken them all over Latin America, North America and Europe.
Without further ado, I present José Luis "Caplís" Chacín:
What was it like growing up in Caracas, Venezuela in the early 80's?
It was great! I was born in 1964 and it means that I really had the eighties as my very influential years. Thank God it wasn't the 70´s!
Finding music in Venezuela in the 80's wasn't an easy task, so we had to beg every friend, every father or mother or relatives, who were travelling outside, to buy the new releases, and when you buy 2 or 3 LP´s and try to transport them in a luggage it´s kind of a nightmare.
Well, the thing is that here in our country many good and bad things came as an avalanche: Heavy metal, Punk Rock, New Wave, Hard Core, New Cool, Post Punk, Ska, Reggae. And before becoming musicians we were DJ´s of our own Sound System called ASEO URBANO. It was the only one in Caracas that specialized in New Wave, Punk and of course Ska, so we were the natural Sound System at the gigs of many new acts of the underground Punk scene of Caracas.
How did that experience effect you socially, politically and musically?
Being a teenager, here in Caracas in the 80´s was incredible. In a certain way Venezuela was for many years (in the decade of the 70´s) a country drunk on Petrodollars (money from the sales of oil), so we had an incredible “Bonanza” where the most of our government leaders were super corrupted. But suddenly, a serious crisis brought a hard fall of the prices of oil and our economy began to feel the consequences of many years of bad guidance. So suddenly we started to know a different country with a cost of living that was more and more expensive every day.
This was a perfect time for many young people to realize that too many things were going wrong in our country, and some of us started to open our eyes and do our own criteria of the society. Now we also had the lyrics of people like The Clash, Dead Kennedy's, Sex Pistols, The Specials, and also Latin American artists like Ruben Blades, Ali Primera, Soledad Bravo to help start to make sense of our own lives and Venezuelan society. We became critics and non-conformists with our reality. And we started this band!
Most people I've spoken to who are into ska remember the exact moment when they fell in love with it. How did it happen for you?
I remember I was a kid loved Disco Music to Heavy Metal. (I loved the first era of Van Halen, and still like it). But after 3 or 4 years of hard rock, I started to listen New Wave music: Devo, The B-52´s, Oingo Boingo, Wall of Voodoo, XTC, Joe Jackson, The Jam. One day I was working as a DJ at our Sound System and a good friend gave me a very badly recorded cassette of the first LP of The Specials. The first song 'A Message To You Rudy' was immediately the biggest revelation of lure lives. We didn´t understand what kind of music this was. I remember I had listened to the first two Madness albums but I could not engage with their version of ska. But The Specials definitely was the BOMB! An ATOMIC Bomb in our minds.
What was your first ska album you bought?
After I listened to that tape, I immediately order that first album by The Specials and when a good friend gave it to me, I just couldn´t believe how good the whole album was. Even today I still feel that sensation of how GREAT and how good that first album is.
How did you go from being introduced to ska music to starting Desorden Publico in 1985?
We were tired of waiting for the start of a ska band in our city. We finally decided to form our own band and we sold many of the equipments of our Sound System in order to save money to buy our first used instruments.
When did you decide to become a bass player? Did you play the bass before you were into ska?
At the same moment we decided to form DESORDEN PÚBLICO...
Can you explain what your band name means for readers who don't speak Spanish? Does it have a social or political connotation?
DESORDEN PUBLICO = PUBLIC DISORDER. It was a joke against the military trucks with the name of PUBLIC ORDER on the side. There are a very repressive institution here in our city
Fashion was such a huge part of the ska scenes here in in the U.S. in the 80's. Can you describe the importance of fashion in the Venezuelan and South American ska scene?
Here in Venezuela, especially in Caracas in the 80's, you could see Punks, Rockers, Rastas and of course Trendy's. There was not an Ska scene, so when we started to use our suits, we were like strange birds in this jungle! We didn´t look like Punks, Rockers nor Rastas and we had to explain that we were Rude Boys, hahahahahaha!
Your band tours the world regularly. Can you share any unusual stories about any live shows the band played that were particularly memorable?
Wow! There are many, many good and bad experiences, but talking about good ones, the fact of being in a same stage with people like Prince Buster, Jerry Dammers, Ray Barreto, Ruben Blades, The B-52´s, The Selecter, Ranking Roger and his version of The Beat. To be backstage with all the guys from Madness, thanks to the courtesy of my very good friend Coolie Ranx and all the guys from The Pilfers, that was magic!
I remember meeting Paul Weller in New York City. He was a very nice guy to me and my wife. Another magical moment in my life was the time I found the one and only Andy Summers of The Police totally lost in the corridors of the radio station where we have our radio show.
Last year, I was walking on the streets of Berlin visiting the best record stores, and to my surprise, I saw a very tall man walking just in front of me. It was none other than one of my all time musical heroes: Joe Jackson! This was great!
There are many anecdotes and good situations.
What was it like for the band to tour the U.S. in 2004? What kind of reception did you get from American ska audiences?
We were helped by our good friend Bucket from The Toasters and that was a good introduction for us to the North American ska audiences. It also helped that we had many good friends in New York and Boston, and many of them were at our first gigs. This helped provide the impression that the audience knew who were were! Hahahaha!
In those early tours, we also had the chance to do things for the Latin American market in the USA and also for the American public into the Ska scene. Surprisingly, I must say the reception we received from Ska audiences was 1000 times better than the reception we had from Spanish speakers! During that time most of the people from Latin America in New York were Mexicans, Puerto Ricans or Dominicans and those audiences were a bit hostile with bands from other Latin countries.
The band is celebrating 25 years this year! What has kept you all together and what plans do you have for 2011?
Well, here we are in 2011 and we have a new album called 'Los Contrarios', and we gave been promoting it all year long through national and international tours. The release party in Venezuela was on April 7th and we did a press conference in front of more than 3,000 people in one of the most popular shopping centers of our city (the owners were expecting 500!) In less than a month our first edition of 2,500 copies was totally sold out.
We also had a couple of good shows celebrating 25 years of playing music along with our good old friends from Argentina: Los Pericos, and that same night we traveled 2 hours for a second gig in Valencia here in Venezuela with King Chango. This summer we also played a great concert here in Caracas with our good friends The Busters from Germany. In June we travelled to Europe to do our 9th European tour and we did a Venezuelan tour in August. Hopefully we´ll return to USA with this new album! We are in conversation with an agency from Los Angeles.
Below is video of the band paying homage to their 2-Tone heros on a London double decker bus and performing Derrick Harriott's 'Monkey Ska' while on tour in London in 2005. The song appears appears on their 2007 album "Estrellas del Caos".
Below the band performs their distinctive mix of Latin and ska with the song 'Valle De Balas' live in Venezuela in 2010.
Finally, here is 'El Poder Emborracha (Power Drunk) from the band's new album 'Los Contrarios'.
Madness showcased songs from their brand new, as yet untitled, tenth studio album, in all its glory during their 'rehearsal set' this past Friday night at the House of Fun Weekender in the U.K. As with ‘The Liberty of Norton Folgate’ which the band performed live a full year before its release, Madness gave the new album tracks an early airing in their embryonic state for their most hardcore fans who attended the show. Quite a few of the songs have been played live during the band's summer tour, but it was the live debut for more than half the songs on the set list.
A fan in attendance at the Friday night performance reviewed the show on the Madness Central website:
"If Folgate was about grandeur and well crafted songs in a Kinks and English bands steeped tradition, this new as yet untitled Madness album is big time about pop music, All kinds, from the most upbeat and catchy new Madness bouncers I've ever heard, through themes harking back to Motown, big ballads and ages past of eras of the music they love. And it's flowing with love songs too.
Early it's a worry that the crowd wont take the new songs set with so many here to party, but we get a new spoken Chas intro, loud hailing from off stage and the heralded look behind the Madness curtain, into the machine and the workings. It's clearly explained what this is, and the band are not dressed in suits, to mark this with more casual look. Like it's a live rehearsal room? Well maybe. But man they didn't seem to need to crib off sheets much, apart from Carl seated at a stool. It's only the first song that false starts. And despite in band comments, and a lot of Woody's honest admissions that he's play some things from a box or he might need 2 goes, they all perform like hard worked rehearsals have paid off."
The set list of the 11/25/11 performance included:
Death Of A Rude Boy
Black & Blue
Big Time Sister
Deolali
My Girl II
La Luna
You Cant Keep A Good Thing Down
Kitchen Floor
I Never Knew Your Name
Misery (Loves Company)
1978
Crying
So Alive
How Can I Tell You
Powder Blue
Below are a few of the new songs as performed by the band over the summer:
Any discussion about Belgian 2-Tone era ska band Lou & The Hollywood Banana's must first start with the story of the Belgian singer Plastic Bertrand who gave the world the 1977 Euro-punk anthem 'Ça Plane Pour Moi'. Not familiar with the song? It reached #8 in the U.K. charts and also garnered airplay in the U.S. Despite being hatched in the studio by music producer Lou Deprijck (who it was later determined actually sang the lead vocal as well), the song may have been one of the very best songs of the punk era. Ca Plane Pour Moi would be covered and translated into in English as 'Jet Boy, Jet Girl' by Elton Motello. The song has an undeniable punk pop hook and was one of Joe Strummer's favorites:
"By purist rules, its not allowed to even mention Plastic Bertrand. Yet this record was probably a lot better than a lot of so called punk records." -- Joe Strummer Mojo October 2001
Plastic Bertrand was actually Belgian musician Roger Jouret. Originally a drummer, he was recruited for his good looks to take on the Milli Vanilla-like persona of Plastic Bertrand. However it is alleged that Jouret pulled a Milli Vanilli by fronting and lip-syncing during TV performances, but that the actual singing was really done by his producer Deprijck. Controversial stuff eh? A court case finally settled the case of the real singer of the song was in 2006, finding in Deprijck's favor.
Apparently Deprijck also had a penchant for ska. As Plastic Bertrand ran its course and 2-Tone took off in the U.K. in the late 70's, he turned his attention to his next project: Lou & The Hollywood Bananas. The name alone should give a sense about the seriousness of the project. While they were a one man studio project, Deprijck released some overlooked ska classics during 1978-80, including 'Kingston, Kingston' which was a hit in Belgium and France and later gained some attention in the U.K. While the name alone suggests a Weird Al Yankovic joke ska band, instead think a French-language version of Bad Manners, with Deprijck as Captain backed by two attractive Tenille-like back up singers. The look was goofy but the songs had solid ska chops and musicianship.
Deprijck is still active in the music industry and currently resides in Thailand. The story of his life in Thailand was shown in a Flemish-language documentary as part of the Belgian news program. Have a listen to some of Lou & The Hollywood Banana's best known ska tracks below:
The latest re-issue from Sean Flowerdew's fledgling U.K. reggae revival label Phoenix City Records is the long lost 'Gangster' album by The Detonators. The album was the brainchild of dub lover (and lover's rock producer) John Collins, who recorded the tracks in 1979 on a DIY studio he built in his front room in the North London neighborhood of Tottenham. Though released in the late 70's, the album has long been out-of-print until now.
Collin's work is a straight up serving of lovers rock with a dash of dub for good measure, and despite Collins’ DIY ethic, the magic he produced with his own handmade synths, drum machine and stdio effects on his 4 track studio studio put him on par with the UK’s finest reggae producers. Luckily, the reissue also includes a copy of the very rare 'Lift Off', a dub track which aside from being something of an ambient reggae experiment, also acted as the blueprint for The Specials’ 'Ghost Town' track.
According to Flowerdew, Collins is the British version of noted Jamaican producer King Tubby. By building his own recording gear and equipment, he developed his own brand of reggae and deserves credit for recording and releasing the very first U.K. dub track 'Lift Off'.
He’s credited by many as producing the first ever UK dub track, called Lift Off, which was on the flip side to a hit by Victor Romeo Evans called At The Club, bit of a lovers track. The Specials heard that and asked him to produce Ghost Town. But John’s instrumental side was the Detonators and he made this album that came out in ‘79, and he did things like building his own drum machine because none were available at the time. I mean Dennis Bovell was probably doing dub first but this had an electro vibe that was like nothing else.
As the story goes, on hearing 'Lift Off' on the flip of Victor Romero Evans’ 'At The Club', Jerry Dammers talked Collins into producing what would turn out to be The Specials final single. You can read more about the recording of 'Gangsters' over at Collins’ own Local Records website and while you’re at it, hit play below on 'Lift Off' which inspired Ghost Town’s iconic eerie intro, created by Collins in post production with a hand built Transcendent 2000 synth.
I had the pleasure to interview Collins about the recording of the album as well as the studio techniques he used to create his cutting edge dub sounds.
Where and how was 'Gangster' recorded? "Lift Off" was recorded in 1980 at my house in Tottenham on the 4 track Teac like the other tracks on Gangster. I started by playing and recording the bass (DIed) along with the (home made) drum machine and then overdubbed guitar, organ and tambourine.
How did you get the great dub effects on the album? I got the effect at the start by using a home made ring modulator and a signal generator along with the transcendent 2000 synth for the wind effect running live during mixdown onto the Teac 2 track. I used a Sony TC377 for stereo tape echo with my home made phaser in the feedback loop and a Hammond spring for reverb. The 2 track was put into record and the effects faded in, turning the dial on the signal generator gradually to get the "lift off" effect. When it felt right, I started the 4 track, faded in the rhythm, faded out the effects, muting tracks and playing with the echo and reverb - dub style. I then put the 2 track (semi) master 1/4 inch tape on the 4 track machine and recorded my voice doing the countdown on one of the inner tracks. This was pretty much the same technique I used on "Ghost Town" the following year.
Can the song 'Lift Off' be considered one of the first British dub songs? My first dub was "Working Dub" recorded in 1978 and released in 1979. UK band like Matumbi (Dennis Bovell) and Steel Pulse were around and must have released some sort of dubs before me, but I'm sure my recordings were the first "electro dubs" made using a drum machine.
What was the genesis of Victor Romero's involvement in the project? Victor was in a dance group when we first met and the tracks were made for their performances.
Do you think the songs on 'Gangsters' have stood up to the test of time? I certainly enjoyed listening to the old master tapes again, which were fortunately recorded on Scotch tape and in perfect condition - I've still got the Teac 2 track to play them on. The recordings have a period quality - it was a bit like looking at old photos for me!
You can preview and download a copy of 'Gangsters' over at the iTunes UK store and .
Her self-coined 'Tropical pop' sound is a bit of a misnomer since her songs and style are really an homage to British Lover's Rock reggae singers Janet Kay and Phyllis Dillon crossed with the sound of classic 60s girl soul and pop groups.
For those of you living outside the U.K. or who were not lucky enough to catch the program, here is Cook and her co-vocalist Horseman (and their excellent backing band) performing 'Body Beat' and 'Milk and Honey'. Enjoy some of the sweetest sounding reggae recorded and performed this year.
If you've read Horace Panter's memoir 'Ska'd For Life', then you know he is a great writer with a wonderful flair for conveying the truth about life as a musician. The book charts the rise and fall of The Specials from their founding in 1978 to their disintegration in 1981. I loved the book, particularly for the way in which Panter explains what can happen when seven very different individuals with unique personalities and distinct backgrounds can harness their creative energy and passion. If you haven't read the book, then I highly recommend you pick up a copy. Both Amazon.US and Amazon.UK have copies available.
If you have read the book, and were sorry when you finished, then I have very good news for you. Panter has just posted an update on The Specials website titled 'Specials U.K. Tour By Sir Horace Gentleman' which picks up where the last one 'Specials European Tour Blog' left off. The posts are detailed updates -- part travelogue and part tour diary -- of The Specials experiences on their very last U.K. tour (at least until 2013). As always, its great reading and a perfect epilogue to his book and a capstone on the band's final tour to celebrate their 30th anniversary. Panter provides a vivid look at how much chaos -- travel, boredom, traffic delays, bad food, bad sound and bad moods can impact a traveling band of 10 plus support (roadies, sound, family, etc) attempting to get from Point A to Point B on time. Oh and then there is the small detail of having to perform with energy and enthusiasm. Its not always pretty, particularly when most of the band are pushing 60 years of age and don't recover from the wear and tear of touring the way they used to. That said, the show must go on and the band is playing at the height of their powers. Here's to hoping Panter will consider putting it all down in another book about The Specials reunion.
The latest installment may be the best one yet. Its precise, concise and pulls no punches when it comes to providing a real look behind the scenes of this most recent tour. Heard about rumors of tension in the band? Panter writes about it openly and honestly.
The reason Roddy has been spitting and snarling through the past few shows is because Terry has started singing Concrete Jungle. It was always agreed that Rod would sing it and he has since the band reformed. Terry had brought up the subject a few months ago that we should re-visit it. Rod would never stand centre-stage to sing it and it looked visually awkward. I would take Terry’s mich for the choruses. The upshot of all this is that in Hull, Terry stayed on stage and, much to everyone’s surprise, sang Concrete Jungle with Rod. It sounded great, the extra voice gave the song a lot more power but it put Roddy’s nose out of joint. This hasn’t helped and has ratcheted up the tension. There now exists the band…and Roddy which is sad.
Even better, Panter and his bandmates are clearly self-aware enough of the conundrum that faces them moving forward. One of the selling points of the tour that just ended was that the band incorporated songs from their second album 'More Specials' which is night to the first album's day. The crowd reaction to these songs varied. Here Panter ponders if he and his bandmates are the world's greatest Specials tribute band or just The Specials?
International Jet Set is obviously not a rude boy crowd pleaser but there again, it wasn’t supposed to be. This is something I’ve noticed and we’ve talked about…The Two Specials. There’s the ‘first album’ band, all Doc Martens, tonic suits and Ben Shermans. Long Shot Kick De Bucket and 200 skinheads on stage. Then there’s the ‘2nd album/Ghost Town’ band which was a lot more studious, musically. The band that people associate with is not the second incarnation. There aren’t too many fans turning up to see The Specials wearing Zoot suits, berets and sporting goatee beards. The Manchester Skinhead Moonstompers don’t get the party they expected. It’s a difficult problem. Are we a tribute act to ourselves.. ‘Ladies and Gentlemen,The World’s greatest Specials tribute band…..The Specials!!’ Or do we become this ‘Heritage Act’ which gives us a certain room to maneuver, creatively.
It would seem that the answer to that question will be answered in the next year or so. In the meantime, here is some video of the the band performing 'It Doesn't Make Alright' from the show in Glasgow which Panter deemed 'blistering'. Enjoy!
I'm proud to say that I am a huge Prince fan (I even stuck with him through that period of time when he changed his name to an unpronounceable symbol). The 'Purple Rain' film and album still remain defining touchstones of my late adolescence and early adulthood. I saw the film the day it opened during the summer of 1984 and I never got tired of hearing 'When Doves Cry' played on the radio at the David's Cookies store I worked that summer (and that song was in HEAVY radio rotation).
As such, I got very excited when I recently learned that Radio Riddler Productions (Fast and Frank Benbini of Fun Lovin Criminals (FLC), who are reggae remix producers in their spare time), are working to pull together a completely reggae tribute to Prince and the 'Purple Rain' album in its entirety (as well as a collection of Marvin Gaye's vocals over reggae music). Rumor has it that the album will feature a variety of artists and singers including members of The Specials brass section, members of Madness, former UB4O singer Ali Campbell (who will be singing 'Purple Rain'), Sinead O'Connor (performing 'I Would Die 4 U') and many more. It certainly doesn't hurt that Benbini is originally from Leicester in the U.K. and is well connected in the British music scenic.
Though originally from New York and best known here for their tune 'Scooby Snacks', FLC was never fully embraced by American audiences, though the UK and most of Europe really took the band to their hearts. The band members in turn always seemed to understand and tap into a uniquely European, and especially British, sense of humor.
Having worked to produce reggae remixes for a variety of artists, the Radio Riddler 'Purple Rain' project is a extension of their love of all things reggae and of Prince in particular. According to an interview that FLC drummer Frank Benbini did late last year, the album is a true labor of love that originally came about as a lark and took on a life of its own.
Yeah, across the board. It was one of those things where we love reggae, and we have a reggae remix outfit called Radio Riddler. We’ve remixed a lot of people…Lily Allen, Coldplay…you know, we’ve done a lot of remixes for a lot of people. So we thought, what can we do? He went – “Why don’t we do the soundtrack to ‘Purple Rain’?” I was like – “That won’t work, that won’t happen, it just won’t work”. He was like – “Well, let’s give it a go”, and he did the first one, ‘Purple Rain’, he got the beats ready and sent it to me, and I was like – “Fuck! It sounds great!” Then I got a lot of my hometown players, brass sections, people from The Specials playing on there. I sang all the songs but then it was like – “Let’s get some guest artists on it”. So I started to approach different people and one person I approached was Sinéad O'Connor. She hasn’t sung a Prince song since ‘Nothing Compares 2 U’ which was an international number one so I didn’t think she’d go for it. But she did, and did a version of ‘I Would Die 4 U’. Amazing. Then we’ve got Plan B, he’s doing one, Madness are doing one, the singer from UB40’s doing one. So, yeah, that’s a great little project we’ve got going.
The album release has been delayed in part to complications in getting publishing approval from Prince and his camp, who are notoriously picky about anyone recording covers of his back catalog. That said, all indications suggest its just a matter of time before the tracks see the light of day.
While they put the finishing touches on the Purple Rain album, Radio Riddlers have been very busy remixing a variety of artists and track including a wicked remix of the track 'Hard Life, Harsh Times' by Leicester-based reggae/ska band By The Rivers (who are just off tour as the support band for The Specials U.K. tour). Have a listen below:
The good news is that The Specials have decided not to call it quits after all following what was to be the very last show of their three year reunion in London on Thursday night. And despite what you may have read in a variety of media outlets (including this blog), guitarist Roddy 'Radiation' Byers, has NOT left the band. The decision to continue on was confirmed by Lynval Golding and the band are now hinting that new material may be on the way.
The news represents a complete about face for the band, who announced the tour would be their very last. In fact, only recently, front man Terry Hall had announced that after this tour they’d call it a day.
“I just don’t want to be in a band any more," he said. "I think that this is the time to say, 'Thanks very much. See you later really.' I have been doing this for over 30 years and just think it is time to go now. I am 52, and I am the youngest in the band. I don’t get much time with my family, and touring tires me out.”
However, after the show on Thursday night, it seems like splitting up is a thing of the past. Vocalist Neville Staple stated:
"Seeing the people dancing right into the back of the venue made us reconsider our decision and we realised that an iconic band like The Specials shouldn’t go and leave their fans in this sad way. We thought we’d rather celebrate the last show of our tour in style.
Despite any confusion about Byers role in the band moving forward and contrary to what his band mates may have been quoted as saying, the iconic guitarist, whose sound and stage attitude add so much to The Specials, is still a member of the band. His publicist shared a statement with me that makes it clear where Byers stands:
Byers plans to continue playing live with his band The Skabilly Rebels who have recently released an album. The band's next show is on November 18th in Derby.
So what does this news mean for fans of the band? First and foremost it would suggest more touring, particularly in the U.S. and Japan which are markets where the band remains incredibly popular. It also means the band may have finally committed to writing new material as they have now taken the live show of the their two albums as far as they can. It also begs the question: What role will or won't Jerry Dammers play in the future? With Byers still in the fold, the band has three legitimate song writers in Hall, Golding and Byers. Stay tuned!
Who is Barnsley Bill? Its an incredibly obscure musical question but one that bears asking only because the answer is so ultimately satisfying.
First the details. Barnsley Bill could be the man responsible for the first British Rap record! This obscure 1981 12" single 'Freewheeling Rap', pre-dates any other U.K. 'Rap' record ever released. Signed to the independent label, 'Mother-In-Law-Records', Bill took a uniquely British approach to early 80's rap, choosing to deliver his rhymes in his native Northern accent. In fact, Bill is so 'hard', he can "fold a newspaper", "drive 75,000 miles a year" and even "eat THREE Weetabix!" The track was produced by Ronnie Bossanova, and backed by The Daves International who supply the heavy funk riff, (borrowed from the classic 'Shack Up'). Have a listen and see if the answer becomes clearer!
Any clearer yet?! For those living outside the U.K., Barnsley is a coal mining town in South Yorkshire, England located between Sheffield and Leeds. While I'm no native, my guess is that Barnsley Bill is tweaking the locals and the local culture if you will.
How about the sound of that cornet/flugel horn? Its quite distinct and may lend a clue to the real identity of the artist?
Give up? Believe it or not, but Barnsley Bill was the alter ego of Horace Panter of The Specials. During the time after 'Ghost Town' when band members were taking a break (read: breaking up), Panter recorded the song on a lark at a cost of just £300! And rumor has it that the one and only Dick Cuthell laid down that unmistakable horn line.
The song and another that Panter recorded as Barnsley Bill titled 'Wedding Rap' are both long out-of-print so if you like what the Specials bassie cooked up 30 years ago, feel free to download the song below.
