Jazzy D's Soul Notes

When I was living in my birth town of Rugby back in the late seventies and early eighties TwoTone was a thing - and based in Coventry just twelve miles away - it was the sound of a new form of ska - that Jamaican sound before reggae. I was well into it and had the two-tone black and white halved shirts and the small thin ties and pork pie hats and so on.

The Specials were the ones for me and early Madness of course.

The Specials - A Message To You Rudy



The Specials - It's Up To You



Now roll on to 2019 - they reformed with three of the original members still alive of course including Terry Hall.

The Specials - Blam Blam Fever



Reviewed in Wire that year as well. And in the current issue of Wire is their brand new album Protest Songs 1924-2012 which is on my want list already. Here is a track from it.

The Specials - Freedom Highway



Written by Pops Staples and performed by the Staples Singers in 1965. The song was written for the Selma to Montgomery march for voting rights.

"Freedom Highway feels very optimistic. Everybody's marching for something. There were so many protests last year and they're still ongoing. People are protesting about very serious issues, people protesting about ridiculous issues. But overall there is that thing in your head that you're on a path or highway, and you're searching for freedom." - Terry Hall

Pre-Order the new album here:
https://thespecials.lnk.to/ProtestSon...


ENJOY