More Specials [ECD] [Remastered] - Specials (The)

...debut album "Specials",but had even more greatness thrust upon them by an over expectant music press and ravenous fan base
all eager for more of their punk/ska riotous rapture ,however in
the spirit of true greatness and wanton defiance they delivered
"More Specials" in the autumn of 1980,and in direct conflict to its title could well have been called "Less Specials "

In the twelve ...
...and movements allowing for a more tolerant musical enviroment
free from the confines of punks tunnel vision and it was into this climate the genius of Jerry Dammers was allowed to thrive unchecked ,a youth mispent listening to samba ,ska ,soul ,
calypso,disco and film soundtracks was finally put to good use .

The resulting sound was so far ahead of its time that some
people never caught up,it condensed and distilled ... more

Some are born great,as the saying goes ,others have greatness
thrust upon them,and in the case of The Specials it seems not only did they achieve greatness with their debut album "Specials",but had even more greatness thrust upon them by an over expectant music press and ravenous fan base
all eager for more of their punk/ska riotous rapture ,however in
the spirit of true greatness and wanton defiance they delivered
"More Specials" in the autumn of 1980,and in direct conflict to its title could well have been called "Less Specials "

In the twelve months which had elapsed between their debut and this daring follow up the musical landscape had changed a great deal ,the fury of punk which gave rise to the groups foundations was now a fading memory as new sounds and movements splinterd into a varied buffet of sounds and movements allowing for a more tolerant musical enviroment
free from the confines of punks tunnel vision and it was into this climate the genius of Jerry Dammers was allowed to thrive unchecked ,a youth mispent listening to samba ,ska ,soul ,
calypso,disco and film soundtracks was finally put to good use .

The resulting sound was so far ahead of its time that some
people never caught up,it condensed and distilled the sound of a United Kingdom finally coming to terms with its own national
diversity and cultural availability ,it drew its sound from the suburbs of Kingston ,Jamaica and the blandness of Moseley,
and reflected back the sound of Notting Hill and the soul of Black America ,and someow found its way back to the post war
concrete of Coventry as it dissolved into unemployment and race riots ,happy days were here again!.

So to the music itself and as if to lull you into a false sense of security the album kicks off with the sing a long ska of
"Enjoy Yourself " a camp and joyous attempt at releiving he gloom of the bigger picture ,the real changes begin with
"Man at C&A" a rumbling dub heavy attack on the folly of nuclear arms ,as hard hitting and authentic as any reggae record at that time ,it was now the eclectic spirit of its chief creator which now firmly held the wheel and musically it was a case of hang on or let go, the bleakness of the previous track gives way to the lilting ska of "Hey Little Rich Girl"a cautionary tale of a good girl gone bad ,its downbeat lyric at odds with the music,the changes taking place were now obvious to all ,even on first listen ,not only had the band absorbed the outer layer of several new styles
but had broken the skin and mastered them as well ,the ice rink
organ on the sad and lonely "Do Nothing "and mod based funk
of "Sock it to em JB"provide testament to their growing repitoire
of sounds and style,s but all the while still sounding like The Specials .

A fact most apparent on the cheeky knowing wink of"Pearls Cafe"
Terry Halls dour delivery telling the pitfalls of getting old and lonely and ugly and poor while watching your life lapse into a gin soaked tragedy ,so no happy endings at the end of side one ,
though anyone who had got this far almost certainly stayed for the duration.

The massive leap forward became almost blindingly apparent
on the opening track of side 2,"Stereotype",not the radio friendly
version already tried on a sleeping public,but the dark,menacing
out of control ,rambling ,dubbed out nightmare ,8 minutes of stark teenage warning set to the tune from a Spaghetti Junction
western,and probably defines the spirit of the record more than
any other song ,a range of musical styles move the album along
from Mexican bar room to the social club disco on "I cant stand it " around the world in a couple of plays ,the sheer variety of form
continues on "Holidat Fortnight" a vibrant conga ,evoking the
shambles of a Spanish package holiday ,imagine sombrero,s
and sunburnt mother in laws and your half way there.

The albums most ambitious and stylistically radical track "International Jet Set" almost closes "More Specials",a predominantly instrumental track which once again harks back to the uncomfortable and the nightmarish ,themes which haunt the entire record in one guise
or another ,themetically it takes the package holiday a step too far into the realms of your worst Asian dream whilst sounding like the incidental music from an episode of Mission Impossible,
a kind of uneasy easy listening .

Once again as a finale we hear a reprise of the opening track
"Enjoy Yourself",this time in slow motion ,stripped down to a
Bontempi beatbox and auto chords ,the frantic opening version now seems like a lifetime ago and pushes the bounds of irony to
expect anyone to be "enjoying themselves "after this strangest and and most unsettling of rides ,nonetheless "More Specials "
is enjoyable and deserves its classic status if only daring to be different in the face of an easy opportunity to turn out a endless string of ska goes pop ,Dammers and his crew didnt take that route and the world of popular music will forever applaud them for that .

As a footnote its worth noting that there was no proper third album from the Specials ,but their immediate new offering after "More Specials "was the the immortal "Ghost Town",where thay might have gone after that we will never know alas a case of too much,too young can only leave us guessing.

 

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