The story of The Specials
Amid grey skies and bitterly cold temperatures, the streets of Coventry, the birthplace of The Specials, were awash with red, white and blue – it was 1977, the year of the silver jubilee. This erroneous display of nationalism, however, had little to do with celebrating Queen Elizabeth; a decade on from the formation of the National Front, the far-right hate group had infiltrated much of the British working class. Dr Martens boots, coupled with shaved heads and “sieg heils”, became a common sight in the city and around the nation as a whole, something which a young man named Jerry Dammers sought to eradicate.
The plague of racist attitudes which had gripped the UK during this time resulted from political responses to growing levels of immigration. During the post-war period, the UK had called upon citizens of the Commonwealth to help rebuild the country. So many people travelled across from the Caribbean in search of work and a better life, but they were rewarded with institutionalised discrimination and violence. The early period of immigration and the Windrush generation saw race riots, enforced poverty and extreme racist attitudes.
By the time the 1970s rolled around, the first generation of British-born kids of Caribbean heritage were growing up. Due to the fact that many Caribbean families were pushed into low-income areas, in cities like Birmingham, Leeds and Coventry, this generation of kids were growing up side-by-side with white working-class kids. The results of this multicultural society would change the cultural fabric of the nation forever.
In the early part of the decade, the skinhead subculture rose to prominence. Emerging from the harder end of the mod, skinheads were characterised by work boots, blue jeans, shaved heads and a deep appreciation for Jamaican ska and boss reggae. Skinhead was one of the first instances of youth subculture transcending race, uniting Britain’s racially divided youth through the incredible music of artists like Dandy Livingstone and Prince Buster.
So, let us return to Coventry in 1977. The racial unity of the early skinhead subculture has been hijacked by the political far-right and is now characterised by neo-Nazism and hate crimes. However, amid this backdrop of racial division, three-day weeks and rolling blackouts, a small group of musicians in the city were beginning to create a totally unique kind of sound. Blending the recent punk rock explosion with the old-school Jamaican ska that had inspired the first wave of skinhead, Jerry Dammers set about forming a group of musicians to pioneer this genre-bending sound.
Such was Dammers’ ambition that he was not happy with simply forming a band; he wanted to establish an entirely new subculture in an effort to advance societal change. By recruiting the Jamaican-born guitarist Lynval Golding, skilled bassist Horace Panter, and the dark and mysterious frontman Terry Hall, The Coventry Automatics were born. The early years of the group were incredibly exciting, but it was not until Neville Staple and lead guitarist Roddy Radiation joined up in 1978 that an edge was brought to their sound. The Specials were here, and nothing would ever be the same again.
With the release of their debut single ‘Gangsters’, shortly after replacing original drummer Silverton Hutchinson with John Bradbury, The Specials established their own independent record label, providing a name to this new musical movement: 2 Tone. Like the band itself, the label was identified by its distinctive black-and-white colour scheme and pastiches of old-school ska, paying homage to the artists that had come before them. Alongside The Specials, other groups sprang up both in Coventry and further afield. Soon enough, the 2 Tone label had recruited bands like The Selecter, The Beat, Madness and, eventually, the all-female ska group The Bodysnatchers.
Mere months after the 1979 general election – a pivotal moment within the political history of the United Kingdom – The Specials released their debut album. The election saw Margaret Thatcher rise to power, where she would stay for a decade; during that time, decimating the north of England, destroying the power of trade unions and leading the country into a violent and unnecessary war. Specials offered direct opposition to the oppressive attitudes of Thatcher and the Tory party. Encapsulated within the grooves of that LP, there is stunning social commentary on the decline of industrial cities; there are messages espousing the importance of contraception, racial unity and the dangers of far-right hate groups. On a deeper level, though, there is a distinct sense of joy – a feeling that The Specials were beginning a kind of social revolution rooted within the traditional rhythms of ska.
Punk rock had attempted to take on the musical mainstream years prior, and, for the most part, it failed. In contrast, The Specials and the 2 Tone movement dominated the charts in the late 1970s and early 1980s, with multiple bands on the label enjoying the dizzying heights of Top of the Pops. The Coventry band had offered a voice for the disenfranchised and racially diverse youth of the country, and those kids had responded with utter adoration. The Specials, however, were not pursuing commercial stardom; they were making a difference. Their heavy involvement with the Rock Against Racism movement affirmed their commitment to anti-racism and positive societal change.
Touring extensively, The Specials established themselves as one of the country’s premier live acts. The euphoria of those live shows is best represented within the film Dance Craze, which features stunning live footage of performances from all the bands on the 2 Tone label – and, regrettably, Bad Manners. Outside the music venues, the National Front and the Conservative government were fanning the flames of racial hatred within the country, but inside, black and white was united under a common love of pop music.
For a short but blissful period of time, The Specials were at the forefront of Britain’s musical landscape. The release of their second record, More Specials, was the beginning of the end. Within a band of seven people, plus a horn section including the legendary Jamaican artist Rico Rodriguez, it was inevitable that heads would clash. More Specials, though an undeniably brilliant album which explores muzak, reggae and more experimental influences, was not nearly as successful as the band’s debut.
The band’s days were numbered, but they had one more trick up their sleeve. Their final release came with the non-album single ‘Ghost Town’, a track that defined the 1980s and remains relevant today. A stunning indictment of Thatcher’s Britain, ‘Ghost Town’ surrounds the rapid decline of previously industrial cities, something that people around the country could relate to at the time. Complete with blaring horns and haunting vocals from Terry Hall and Neville Staple, the 1982 single was the band’s last hurrah, as they would officially split while recording the song at the BBC for Top of the Pops.
In the years following, the various members of The Specials spread out into various different projects. Terry Hall, Lynval Golding and Neville Staple formed the new wave pop trio Fun Boy Three, while many of the remaining members reverted back to The Special A.K.A. That project, though fairly lacklustre, did produce ‘Free Nelson Mandela’, a track which is credited with bringing the struggle of the anti-apartheid activist to a wider audience in the UK. Years following the split, The Specials reformed without Jerry Dammers, gradually losing members until it landed upon the lineup of Terry Hall, Horace Panter and Lynval Golding, who released two commendable albums in Encore and Protest Songs 1924-2012.
2 Tone was short-lived, but its impact still endures to this day. The Specials provided the nation’s youth with a euphoric alternative to the political brainwashing perpetuated by groups like The National Front. Their message was equally as important as their music, and both aspects of the band remain as relevant today as they were back in the 1970s and 1980s. Sadly, drummer John Bradbury died in 2015, followed by frontman Terry Hall in 2022, meaning that the world has likely seen the end of The Specials. The band, however, will live on in the hearts and minds of its countless dedicated fans, going down in history as one of the most important groups to ever grace the British airwaves.
