One day when I was about 10 years old or so, I asked my older brother, who had a pretty extensive collection of music, if I could borrow a couple CDs. I was looking for something besides my usual suspects: symphonic rock, the Phantom of the Opera, and the Chipmunks.

One of the CDs he gave me was The Specials: Specials.

The Specials original line-up had actually broken up the year before I was born, and to this date have not played together in their entirety, although many of the original members have formed and re-formed many times in many combinations over the last 30 years to put out an occasional album or play on tour here and there. I remember a concert for the Special Beat being advertised by KJQ. According to the house rules, I wasn’t old enough to go.

That is pretty much where it all started. Since the first time, The Specials have always been music that I could get down to. In San Diego, some of the local radio stations play “A Message to You, Rudy” a couple times a day. It is my all time favorite “on the way home from a 10 hour day in the work truck and stuck in traffic because it took us too long to get the job done” song. Sometimes during my shifts at Starbucks, I get to listen to some of my old time favorites: “Monkey Man,” “Nelson Mandela,” “Ghost Town,” and even their version of “Pressure Drop,” as they have made it onto official “hear music” play list.

However, none of the aforementioned songs were ones that I would listen to on repeat in my room for hours at a time while reading or playing videos games or whatever. “Doesn’t Make It Alright” was.

To my brother, I say: thanks for sharing.

To everybody else, I say: enjoy.

Click to Play———–> “Doesn’t Make It Alright”

For whatever reason, there was a huge Ska scene in SLC during the early 90′s. I mean, 3 out of 4 local bands that regularly played gigs were Ska groups. Some of my favs were Swim Herschel Swim, Stretch Armstrong (from Provo), and Model Citizen (from Logan). After seeing so many local Ska shows, I started to become a huge fan of the genre. At first I really thought that all of the horns and stuff were kinda corny. I mean, I would totally get down to it in the pit, during a show, but for some reason it was weird listening to Ska music in my bedroom at home. It just isn’t the type of music that you would ever want to blast with the windows down while dragging State St. Hahahahah.

I soon became very keen on some of the larger names in the Ska Scene like the Specials, and the English Beat. My friends and I started to learn all of the rude boy terminology, etc.. Although, we never went as far as forming a Vespa gang or wearing checkered Chuck Taylors with skinny ties. I did at one point own a fedora, though. Okay, several fedoras. Once No Doubt came through town, on their “Trapped in a Box” tour. This was long before “Tragic Kingdom,” When ND really did play Ska music. I had one of my two run-ins with Gwen Stefani that night at their show. It was performed in a Racquetball court, at some Lo-bo sports club in Orem UT. I’m trying to remember who went with me. I don’t think that I could even drive yet. Taylor or Tadd, did you go to that one? I’m pretty sure that Gavin and Kim were there. I was wearing combat boots, 2 sizes too big. I was up on top of the pit, and they tossed me on stage. I stumbled to get my balance and knocked Gwen right onto her booty. Whoops, hahaha.

Back to the point: I’m sharing one of my favorite English Beat Songs, “Too nice to talk to.” I had the pleasure of seeing them perform this diddy live a couple of times, even before they merged with the Specials, to become Special Beat. It is an amazing track, full of Ska flavor. Give it a listen.

Note: The .M3U link will only work in Windows Explorer. I have still been too lazy to build a little pop-up player. I’ll try to work it out by the time I write the next music post.