The Specials - WikiHQ

The Specials, also known as the Special AKA, were an English 2 tone and ska revival band formed in 1977 in Coventry. The first stable lineup of the group consisted of Terry Hall and Neville Staple on vocals, Jerry Dammers on keyboards, Lynval Golding and Roddy Radiation on guitars, Horace Panter on bass, John Bradbury on drums, and Dick Cuthell and Rico Rodriguez on horns. Their music combined the danceable rhythms of ska and rocksteady with the energy of punk. The lyrics of their songs included political and social commentary. The band wore mod-style "1960s period rude boy outfits (pork pie hats, tonic and mohair suits and loafers)".

In 1980, their The Special AKA Live! EP, of which the lead track was "Too Much Too Young", reached No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart. In 1981, the recession-themed single "Ghost Town" also hit No. 1 in the UK. Guitarist Roddy Byers (usually known as Roddy Radiation) agreed to join the band in March 1978 ahead of a recording session of demos.

The new line-up changed their name to the Special A.K.A. The Automatics after another band called the Automatics signed a record deal with Island Records. The new name was a bit of a mouthful and was shortened to the Special AKA. The name Special AKA soon evolved into the Specials – the moniker that would be used for most of the band's career.

Ascendancy of the Specials (1979–1981)

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 Selecter" by The Selecter appeared on the B-side. The fledgling 2 Tone records released "Gangsters" / "The Selecter" in a completely independent do-it-yourself operation. After initial good sales, Rough Trade then agreed to repress and distribute the single through its independent distribution network. In May 1979, John Peel played the record on his influential late night BBC Radio One show. 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,

Reverting once again to the name of 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 single, which hit No. 1 in 1981. At their Top of the Pops recording of the song, however, Staple, Hall and Golding announced they were leaving the band. Golding later said: "We didn't talk to the rest of the guys. We couldn't even stay in the same dressing room. We couldn't even look at each other. We stopped communicating. You only realise what a genius Jerry was years later. At the time, we were on a different planet." Shortly afterwards, the three left the band to form Fun Boy Three.

After Fun Boy Three, Staple and Golding joined Pauline Black of the Selecter in the short-lived band Sunday Best, releasing the single "Pirates on the Airwaves".

In 1990, Bradbury, Golding, Panter and Staple teamed up with members of the Beat to form Special Beat, He rejoined the band for their 2009 reunion, and continued to perform with them until his death in 2015.

From 1984 until 1987, Hall fronted the Colourfield, with some commercial success. After they disbanded, he pursued a solo career, working mostly in the new wave genre. He co-wrote a number of early Lightning Seeds releases. He also performed some vocals for a Dub Pistols album. He and Eurythmics member David A. Stewart formed the duo Vegas in the early 1990s, releasing an eponymous album in 1992. Hall joined the Specials for their 2009 reunion, and continued to perform with them until his death in 2022.

In 2006, Dammers formed large, jazz-style ensemble the Spatial AKA Orchestra.

Reunions

The Specials Mk.2 (1993–1998)

The first reunion under the Specials name occurred in 1993. Producer Roger Lomas was asked by Trojan Records to get some musicians together to back ska legend Desmond Dekker on a new album. He approached all members of the Specials and the four that were willing to participate were Roddy Radiation, Neville Staple, Lynval Golding and Horace Panter, they were also joined by Aitch Bembridge, who had been the drummer in the Selecter. In the 1970s, Bembridge had played with soul singer Ray King, who mentored and worked with Dammers, Staple, Golding and Hutchinson in their days before the Specials. A group of studio musicians filled out the band, including keyboardist Mark Adams. The album, released by Trojan Records as King of Kings, was credited to Desmond Dekker and the Specials.

The release of the album with Desmond Dekker created some buzz for the band, and led to an offer from a Japanese promoter to book a tour. Rejoined by Golding, along with Bembridge & Adams from the "King of Kings" sessions, the band added horn players Adam Birch and Jonathan Read and began rehearsing and playing live. Initially using the names the Coventry Specials, The X Specials, and Specials2, they shortly reverted to the Specials after accepting that it was the name promoters were using anyway, although the line-up was referred to as Specials MkII by those involved.), although limited touring with a different line-up continued into 2000. The release of the earlier Trojan sessions, Skinhead Girl in 2000 and Conquering Ruler in 2001, would be the last heard from the band for some time.

After completing a similar project with The Selecter in 1999, Roger Lomas brought the group back into the studio to record a number of classic songs from the Trojan Records back catalogue. Two weeks before this project, Golding left the group to return to Seattle. Later the same day, they played on the Park Stage, with Damon Albarn of Blur on piano and beatboxer Shlomo providing rhythm, to perform "A Message to You, Rudy". At GuilFest, Golding joined the Dub Pistols to again perform "Gangsters". In 2007, Golding regularly performed concerts and recorded with Pama International, a collective of musicians who were members of Special Beat.

thumb|300px|The Specials performing at [[Brixton Academy, London, May 2009 as part of their 30th anniversary tour]]

On 30 March 2008, Hall stated that the Specials would be reforming for tour dates in autumn 2008, and possibly for some recording. This was officially confirmed on 7 April 2008. On 6 September 2008, six members of the band performed on the main stage at the Bestival, billed as the "Surprise Act". By December 2008, the band had announced 2009 tour dates to celebrate their 30th anniversary, although founder member Dammers was not joining the band on the tour.

Hall was quoted as saying, "The door remains open to him". However, Dammers described the new reunion as a "takeover" and claimed he had been forced out of the band. Around that same time, longtime Specials fan Amy Winehouse joined Dammers onstage at Hyde Park, singing the song he wrote for the Specials, "Free Nelson Mandela", for Mandela's 90th birthday concert, dubbed 46664 after Mandela's prison number, and also the name of his AIDS charity, which received money raised by the birthday bash.

30th Anniversary Tour and beyond

On 10 April 2009, the Specials guested on BBC Two's Later... with Jools Holland. The following month, Bradbury and Golding expressed their intentions to release further original Specials material at a later date. On 8 June 2009, it was announced that the Specials would embark on a second leg of their 30th anniversary tour, taking in the locations and venues that they missed earlier in the year. In July and August 2009, the Specials toured Australia and Japan. In October, the band picked up the Inspiration Award at the Q Awards. In 2010, they performed at the Dutch festival Lowlands.

In an interview at the Green Room in Manchester in November 2010, Hall confirmed that there would be further Specials dates in the autumn of 2011, and confessed to having enjoyed playing live again: "It's a celebration of something that happened in your life that was important, and we're going to do that again next year, but then maybe that'll be it". In late 2010, the band re-released "A Message to You, Rudy" as a Haiti Special Fund available to download from iTunes in both the UK and the US, with proceeds going to aid the UNICEF effort to help children in earthquake-stricken Haiti.

In February 2012, it was announced that the Specials would perform at Hyde Park with Blur and New Order to celebrate the 2012 Summer Olympics closing ceremony. Panter said that the band were excited to be involved in such a momentous event: "We have been keeping it under our pork pie hats for a month or so now. I think it is going to be the only chance people get to see the Specials performing in the UK this year." The Specials' performance was said to have remained synonymous with Britain's political and social upheaval of the late 1970s and early 1980s.

thumb|250x250px|The Specials performing at [[Métropolis (concert hall)|Métropolis, Montreal, 7 July 2013]]

In August 2012, the Specials released a new live album, More... Or Less. – The Specials Live, featuring "the best of the best" performances from their 2011 European tour, selected by the band themselves on a double-disc CD and double-vinyl LP.

Departures of Neville Staple and Roddy Radiation

In January 2013, the Specials announced the departure of Staple with the following message on their website: "We are very sad Neville cannot join us on the Specials' UK tour in May 2013 or indeed on the future projects we have planned. He has made a huge contribution to the fantastic time and reception we have received since we started and reformed in 2009. However, he missed a number of key shows last year due to ill health, and his health is obviously much more important. We wish him the very best for the future".

The Specials completed a North American tour in 2013, performing to sold-out crowds in Chicago, Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, Portland and Vancouver.

In February 2014, it was revealed that Roddy Radiation had left the reformed group. In spite of his departure, the Specials played an extensive tour in the autumn of 2014 with Steve Cradock (Ocean Colour Scene, Paul Weller) as lead guitarist.

Death of John Bradbury

Drummer John Bradbury died on 28 December 2015 at the age of 62. On 22 March 2016, The Specials announced that The Libertines drummer Gary Powell would be performing on their upcoming tours. Powell was replaced by PJ Harvey and Jazz Jamaica drummer Kenrick Rowe on the Encore album and subsequent tour.

Encore and Protest Songs 1924–2012

thumb|286x286px|The Specials performing in 2022

In 2017, the band invited 20-year-old Birmingham native Saffiyah Khan to a show after a photo of her confronting an "English Defence League goon" in a Specials t-shirt at a counter-demonstration went viral. Less than two years later, Khan had performed on stage for the first time, recorded a song and toured North America with the band.

On 29 October 2018, the Specials announced a UK tour in 2019 to coincide with the release of a new album, Encore.

On 1 February 2019, the band announced a spring North American tour to promote the 1 February 2019 release of Encore (out via Island Records). The following week, Encore debuted at number 1 on the UK Albums Chart, giving the band their first chart-topping album since 1980. During 2019, the Specials invited 17-year-old artist and photographer Sterling Chandler to join the tour.

In March 2021, the band announced a UK tour. On 7 July 2021, Horace Panter announced a new 12-track Specials album that was released on 23 August 2021, titled Protest Songs 1924–2012. Vocalist Hannah Hu joined the band for their 2021 tour and also sang on the new album.

Death of Terry Hall

On 19 December 2022, the Specials announced on social media that Terry Hall had died at age 63 after a brief illness which was later revealed to be pancreatic cancer. They had planned to record a new album in the United States before Hall's health deteriorated.

In a 2023 interview, bass player Horace Panter confirmed that the Specials had ceased to be following Hall's death. He stated, "It would be ludicrous to tour without Terry, so yes, that's definitely the end of the Specials".

In December 2024, Sky Arts aired The Specials: Live From Coventry Cathedral, the last-filmed concert by the band before Hall's death in 2022. The show was directed by Hall's wife Lindy Heymann.

Members

Classic line-up

Terry Hall – lead vocals (1977–1981, 2008–2022; his death)
Lynval Golding – rhythm and lead guitar, vocals (1977–1981, 1993, 1994–1998, 2008–2022)
Horace Panter – bass guitar (1977–1981, 1982, 1993, 1994–1998, 2000–2001, 2008–2022)
Jerry Dammers – keyboards, principal songwriter, vocals (1977–1984)
Roddy Radiation – lead guitar, vocals (1978–1981, 1993, 1996–2001, 2008–2014)
Neville Staple – toasting, vocals, percussion (1978–1981, 1993, 1996–2001, 2008–2012)
John Bradbury – drums (1979–1984, 2008–2015; his death)
Dick Cuthell – flugelhorn, trumpet (1979–1984)
Rico Rodriguez – trombone, vocals (1979–1981, 1982; died 2015)

Discography

As The Specials

The Specials (1979)
More Specials (1980)
Today's Specials (1996)
Guilty 'til Proved Innocent! (1998)
Skinhead Girl (2000)
Conquering Ruler (2001)
Encore (2019)
Protest Songs 1924–2012 (2021)

As The Special A.K.A.

In the Studio (1984)

References

External links

The Specials history
The Specials on Facebook
The Specials Youtube channel
The official Specials fan forum
The Specials official website
The Specials profile Unofficial 2 Tone website
"The Specials at the Rico", BBC Coventry & Warwickshire, 15 May 2009