2 tone records Archives - Vinyl From The Vault

Various Artists “Dance Craze”

sfilzen — Mon, 05 Jan 2026 18:57:04 +0000

Various Artists “Dance Craze” 1981. 2 Tone Records. Soundtrack from the movie Dance Craze, “the best of British ska…live!” and that hype isn’t wrong. The movie, shot in ’80, is a movie about the 2 Tone movement; according to wiki director Joe Massot originally intended the movie to be just about Madness but it evolved into a tour documentary of the bands in the UK. Songs on the LP include a selection of track from the film: Madness of course (though apparently on later album pressings their songs were removed, my guess for copyright issues or similar), plus The Specials, English Beat, The Selecter, Bad Manners and one lone track from The Bodysnatchers. I don’t think I’ve seen the movie (which is a situation that needs to be rectified soon) but this record is great! I adore Madness so their tracks “Razor Blade Alley,” “Night Boat to Cairo” and the forever fave “One Step Beyond” are for sure tops. English Beat is another band that has been a favorite of mine for 40 plus years (and we’ve seen them multiple times live) so I extra appreciate “Mirror in the Bathroom,” “Big Shot” and “Ranking Full Stop” which are their featured tracks. The Specials are epic and they have “Concrete Jungle,” “Man at C&A” and “Nite Klub” on the soundtrack. I’m less familiar with The Selector’s catalog – we do have one of their records – but I really like their “Too Much Pressure.” Same with Bad Manners though I know we have or had one of their albums (and their track “Inner London Violence” on here is pretty great), and am also woefully under-informed about The Bodysnatchers who appear here with “Easy Life.”

You can see the movie in its entirety here

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The Specials “More Specials”

sfilzen — Tue, 20 Dec 2022 20:33:22 +0000

The Specials “More Specials” 1980. 2 Tone Records. Today’s ska spin is in honor of singer Terry Hall, who died Sunday at age 63. More Specials is the band’s second LP; it hit #5 in the UK and edged onto the US chart at #98. Of note: More Specials features Hall’s first co-composition (with keyboardist/primary songwriter Jerry Dammers), “Man at C&A.” The record also has contributions by members of the Go-Go’s on background vocals. Hall and Go-Go Jane Wiedlin had affair around the time of this album’s recording, which resulted in the Go-Go’s hit “Our Lips Are Sealed,” co-written by Wiedlin and Hall, a fact – and song – that delights me to no end. (Hall’s band Fun Boy Three, formed in 1981 after Hall left The Specials, recorded their own version of “Our Lips Are Sealed” in 1983; it went to #7 in the UK.)

More Specials is a lot ska, but it also has other elements like lounge (not a fan: the song “Pearl’s Cafe” is not good), rockabilly and soul (am a fan: the track “Sock It to ’em J.B.” kicks). There’s even a touch of spaghetti western on the single “Stereotype” which hit #6 in the UK. The Specials released three other singles: the upbeat “Enjoy Yourself” (first recorded in 1949 by Guy Lombardo and His Royal Canadians), “Rat Race” (on the US release, not the UK version) which went to #5 in the UK and to #89 on the US Dance chart, and “Do Nothing” (#4 UK).

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The Specials “The Specials”

sfilzen — Mon, 20 Jul 2020 18:11:29 +0000

The Specials “The Specials” 1979. The Specials’ debut album, produced by Elvis Costello, mashed up classic ska with a few twists of 70′s UK punk to become a pivotal moment for ska revival (it’s considered one of the best British releases of the era). The Specials has several covers of classic Jamaican ska/rocksteady tracks like the fantastic “A Message to You, Rudy” (originally by Dandy Livingstone, 1967; trombonist Rico Rodriguez played on Livingstone’s and The Specials versions) which went to #10 in the UK; this is one of my favorite ska songs of all-time. They also cover “Monkey Man” (originally by Toots & the Maytals, 1969) – another favorite – as well as “Too Hot” (originally by Prince Buster, 1966) and “You’re Wondering Now” (Andy & Joey, 1964 and The Skatalites). I also really like the more punked-up tracks like “Do the Dog” (originally by Rufus Thomas who was not a ska musician but rather a DJ and R&B musician from Memphis) and “Concrete Jungle,” a Specials original written by guitarist Roddy Byers. Ours is the 1980 US release on Chrysalis Records (the original UK version was on 2 Tone Records) so includes the track “Gangsters” (written by Specials keyboardist Jerry Dammers) and shortens “Too Much Too Young” down by several minutes.

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