More Specials

Release type:What's this?
studio album
First released:
Oct 1980

Overview Edit

More Specials is an October 1980 (see 1980 in music) album from the ska band The Specials. The album was the band's second, after their self-titled debut, and expanded the group's 2 tone sound to include lounge music and other influences. It includes collaborations with The Go-Go's, Rhoda Dakar from The Bodysnatchers and Lee Jay Thompson from Madness. The lyrics, like the previous album, were often intensely political.

On the charts, the album hit the Top Five in the UK, where "Rat Race", "Stereotype" and "Do Nothing" hit the Top Ten. "Rat Race" hit #89 on Billboard Music Chart's (US) Club Play Singles chart, while the album as a whole hit #98 on Billboards Pop Albums chart.

More Specials was a hit in the two-tone movement, a late-1970s revival of Jamaican ska from the 1960s. Along with bands like the Bodysnatchers and Madness, The Specials would go on to be a leader in this revival, and later heroes for two further ska-punk revivals on the opposite side of the Atlantic: the late 1980s Southern California scene (NOFX, Operation Ivy) and the mid-1990s "third wave of ska" (Sublime, No Doubt) which popularised the mixture in the US.

The Overview appearing in this section is attributed to Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/More_Specials. Portions of this Overview may be available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, version 3.0 or any later version, available at: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/. Additional terms may apply. See Wikipedia Terms of Use for details.

This particular version Edit

Record label:
unknown
Catalog number:
PV 41303
Release dates:
  • Oct 1980 in United States

Genres

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What do Amazon.com customers think?

5 stars Unique blend of ska, soul and kitsch
More Specials is definately not for every ska fan. In fact, this album is a mix match of so many different genres that I would not even call it a ska album. Whereas The Specials first album gets you up off your rear end and dancing this is a more contemplative album to really listen to. The album moves around from darker themes to the silly with an overriding feel of 60's kitsch. Another 2Tone classic.
Written by lou
3 stars Hosed Again
Why do these record companies put out remasters and then remove a song or two from them? One has to wonder where Rat Race disappeared to? It isn't on this cd anymore. Oh, nevermind. I found it on the Hits disc. How Lame. They did the same thing with the remaster of English Beat. Don't buy this crappy version of this cd unless you either can't find the original issue or you absolutely have to have the video of Ghost Town (a pretty good vid) and Rat Race (a pretty crappy vid).
Written by N. Ciasullo

Track listing Edit

  • CD 1 : More Specials

    format:
    number:
    title:
    number name artist hh:mm:ss
    1
    Enjoy Yourself (It's Later Than You Think) - The Specials, Magidson, Conrad
    ?:??
    2
    Man at C & A - The Specials, Dammers, Jerry
    ?:??
    3
    Hey, Little Rich Girl - The Specials, Byers, Roddy
    ?:??
    4
    Do Nothing - The Specials, Golding, Lynval
    ?:??
    5
    Pearl's Cafe - The Specials, Dammers, Jerry
    ?:??
    6
    Sock It to 'Em J.B. - The Specials, Dunn
    ?:??
    7
    Stereotypes/Stereotypes, Pt. 2 - The Specials, Dammers, Jerry
    ?:??
    8
    Holiday Fortnight - The Specials, Byers, Roddy
    ?:??
    9
    I Can't Stand It - The Specials, Dammers, Jerry
    ?:??
    10
    International Jet Set - The Specials, Dammers, Jerry
    ?:??
    11
    Enjoy Yourself (It's Later Than You Think) (Reprise) - The Specials, Magidson, Conrad
    ?:??

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Other versions Edit

More Specials 11 tracks format: 1 x CD
catalog number: PV 41303
release dates: May 21 2002
view details
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