I am very, very excited about this:
http://www.pr-inside.com/entertainment-blog/2008/04/01/the-specials-to-reform-for-tour/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/6music/news/20080330_specials.shtml

Perfect timing for me, because I've recently been rediscovering the first youth culture movement I ever got into, with a vengeance.

Great news - some of my happiest memories in music, ever, has been seeing The Specials.
Will be, alas, a UK only affair - Two Tone never really made it over here.

as mentioned elsewhere, 2-tone was my first true love.
however, i've read that this reformation doesn't include Jerry Dammers, so its not a perfect set up by any means.
but i have to admit, the latest cd/dvd set from EMI has been a joy to listen to.

Yeah, if Dammers isn't involved, that's a real shame. But, like TV pianist Richard, I'll still go.

How the fuck did someone convince Hall to do this? And yeah, likely no chance it'll make it to North America. Bum.

They did tour N. America last decade, so they might do it again. I caught them live in San Francisco in 1998.

They really sucked, that was one of the biggest letdowns ever in my concert-going life, given that they are one of my very top favorites. No energy, not much of the original spirit, some of the wives were hanging out just outside the stage, it's almost as if you'd expect them to change the diapers between sets.

I guess that's the risk you run with revival tours, particularly by those acts that towered above everything else at their peaks, like The Specials did. Sometimes you do get pleasantly surprised by acts who manage to recapture their original mojo and almost completely still have it in them. Os Mutantes and Kraftwerk are perfect illustrations of this (two other phenomenal all-time favorites.) But unfortunately they are not the rule.

This thread has got me thinking about their original split, it took me by complete suprise at the time.
One second "More Specials" came out, the next "Fun Boy Free" were on TOTP.

Maybe I wasn't paying attention enough; but it seemed all very hasty and overnight.

What actually happened?

There's a cover story about it all in the latest Mojo.

Classic "musical differences"/"too many egos" stuff.

Basically Roddy Radiation wanted to take things in a rockabilly direction while Jerry Dammers wanted to move in a lounge-jazz direction, Neville Staple wanted to live the showbiz high life while Dammers wanted to keep things frugal, and on the day of the "Ghost Town" ToTP appearance, Terry Hall, Lynval Golding and Neville Staple issued Dammers with an ultimatum that unless he split the royalties equally seven ways, they were off.

Thanks SR - that clears it up for me.

I must subscribe to Mojo one day; if they only could guarantee the free CD's to overseas subscribers I would do it now, have to make do to hoping Frankfurt airport stock it.
Last one they had was a dreary one about British R&B in the Stones time, so I bought the 1978 New Wave "classic " reprint instead.
The Indie/Smiths one was good and free CD is still getting lots of plays.
Together with reading "Fear of Music " at the moment I think I'm locked in a bloody time warp.

Did you see The Beat at Shepherds Bush Empire on Saturday, SR?

Ooer. I've jizzed.

Nah.

I saw the proper Beat reunion at the Royal Festival Hall a few years ago, which was ace. I'm not as keen to see them without Dave Wakeling on board.

I knew the Specials when they were called The Automatics and played The Golden Eagle* on Hill Street every friday night. At that time they were a sort of punk-ska band, but even then pretty much every song from their first album was in their set, it was just all somewhat rougher.

Later on they changed their name to The Coventry Automatics and then later still to The Specials. Good bunch of guys.

*See the Northern Soul thread for details.

Purple Cow,
I remember going to see The Beat at the Mercat Cross (Adjacent to the Market ,bottom of Bradford Street) before they released "Tears of a clown" and remember gazing at David Wakelins tear drop Guitar.

Long long time ago....

Right, so something amazing happened last nig