On My Radio: A New Book Explores The 2 Tone Phenomenon
A chat with author Daniel Rachel plus 10 essential 2 Tone tracks!
When punk rock splintered in the UK — which, according to the people who were there, happened as early as 1978 after the Sex Pistols’ breakup — there was an immediate search for The Next Big Thing.
Both the media and the fans were looking for something to fill the void — something that would offer both a musical and sociopolitical salve. They found it, at least for a short time, with 2 Tone.
As Daniel Rachel explains in his exhaustive new book Too Much Too Young: The 2 Tone Records Story, 2 Tone was both a label and a genre. The guiding light behind it was Jerry Dammers. Dammers was not only the keyboardist and chief songwriter for The Specials, but also the man who started the 2 Tone label, envisioning it as a sort of latter day, British version of Motown.
2 Tone’s heyday was admittedly brief: from roughly 1979 to 1982. But during that time, it made a huge impact in the UK both in terms of its music and its message. The latter was racial unity — as exemplified by the black and white checkerboard pattern that adorned many of the label’s releases. But even if you weren’t into the politics, it was hard to deny the music. The “big four” of the 2 Tone label (in terms of both talent and popularity) were The Specials, Madness, The Selecter and The Beat. (That last band was known here in the States as The English Beat to avoid confusion with the California-based power pop group of the same name). Each of these bands had a distinct identity and sound, though all four played an updated version of ska (a genre that had originated in Jamaica in the late 50s known for its rhythms on the off beat). The 2 Tone bands took ska, sped it up and added some of punk’s rebellion and social conscience to make something timely and unique.
The Specials were the first 2 Tone band and one of the best. Seven guys — five white and two Black — from Coventry who wrote songs that were both intelligent and danceable. They boasted two lead singers and some very talented musicians but could not seem to get along with each other. After two albums (and a lot of musical growth in a short time), The Specials called it a day. Singer Terry Hall, toaster Neville Staple and singer-guitarist Lynval Golding went on to form the Fun Boy Three.
Madness, also a seven piece, was probably the most lighthearted of the “big four” (although they did venture into social commentary more as time went on). They were also the only band of the four whose members were all white. Whether that was why they became more successful in the States than anyone else on the 2 Tone label is up for debate. Madness was certainly a talented band in their own right. But being whiter and “lighter” than the other 2 Tone bands likely made them easier for Americans to digest.
The Selecter, by contrast, was also a seven-piece — but with the exception of guitarist Neol Davies, they were all Black. They also had two lead singers — one of whom, Pauline Black, was female. The Selecter only released two albums before self-destructing — a trajectory very similar to that of The Specials.
Finally, The (English) Beat was a six-piece: three black members and three white — who could do it all. From R&B covers to straight up ska, from political statements to love songs, they had you covered. The Beat managed three albums before the two frontmen, Dave Wakeling and Ranking Roger, left to form General Public. Oddly enough, guitarist Andy Cox and bassist David Steele would find greater commercial success a few years later when they linked up with singer Roland Gift and became The Fine Young Cannibals.
In Too Much Too Young, Daniel Rachel offers insight into all these bands, plus a few of the second stringers. He also delves into the backdrop against which the 2 Tone saga played out — an England that was rife with racism, unemployment and violence at the start of the ‘80s. While this is definitely a niche book, it’s essential reading for anyone who is interested in post-punk music or modern British history.
I recently had the pleasure of talking with Rachel for the Rock & Roll Globe.
Before I ask you about the book and the bands, I [wanted to] know how old you were when 2 Tone hit. Was it a movement that you enjoyed at the time or did you find out about it a bit later on?
When “Gangsters” came out, I was nine or 10. I was aware of the bands because of Top of the Pops in 1979. I was getting into music at that age. And within a year, I was buying records. The year before, my parents had driven a car that I was in into the middle of a National Front demonstration — on the night that The Clash were playing Birmingham, my hometown. I subsequently found that out because of the Clash film Rude Boy. There’s footage of the demonstration — and it kind of confirmed my memory that I’d been there.
The roots of 2 Tone — which is obviously right wing, neo-Nazi activism — had affected me as an eight-year-old boy. And then the music a year later. I was a very young fan. So yeah — 2 Tone was really important to me.
In England, unlike in the States, there seems to be a very short time between when a band gets together and gets a record deal and then appears on Top of the Pops. I was shocked to see how quickly it happened to some of the bands. In America, it usually takes much longer. Do you attribute that to England being a smaller country or is it something else?
I can’t speak to the U.S., except for what I’ve gleaned second hand. My assumption is it’s way easier to make it big quick in the UK. Well, one if you could get onto Top of the Pops in 1979 [or] 1980, that’s it! You’ve suddenly performed in front of as much as a third of the population [of the country]. And how do you get onto Top of the Pops? You need a chart hit or something in the Top 40. That isn’t that difficult, really. If a band can get a major following — you either tour or you [get] into one of the music papers: NME, Sounds, Melody Maker.
Ranking Roger left school at the beginning of 1979, as a 15-year-old. At the end of the year, he was on Top of the Pops! The Selecter formed in July 1979. By autumn, they had a hit single. And by the end of the year, they’d made their first album! But what that belies is a band [whose] members had played in multiple bands before. Pauline Black had been a folk artist, playing in the back of pubs. Most of the other members of [The Selecter] had been in reggae bands. So they had the wherewithal to be what they needed to be — but not the chemistry to make it [last].
The Specials struck me very much as a band. I know Jerry [Dammers] was the leader, but everyone seemed to contribute something important. A couple of guys sang, a couple of guys wrote. But the flip side of that [was that] it felt like you had seven really strong personalities. It was bound to explode or implode. Would you say that’s accurate?
Well, that’s correct in a sense. Jerry is the leader, but [he] also meticulously hand picked each player and they were brought in for a purpose. There’s a great quote in the book from [guitarist Roddy Radiation] where he says, “I thought I was Johnny Thunders. Terry Hall thought he was in The Cure. Horace [Panter] thinks he’s in Little Feat or Average White Band.” You know, he goes through each member of the band and they all [think they’re] in a completely different band!
For that reason, The Specials worked. But I think what’s important is that Jerry is the driving force. He’s the musical arranger. He has the vision. And when he brings on each member of the band — starting with Horace and then Lynval — he’s saying, “This is what we’re doing. These are the songs we’re playing. This is how we do it.” And they all fall in with their style within Jerry’s ideas. So even Roddy — who’s playing a rockabilly [or] punk kind of guitar — has to find a way to make that work to [suit] Jerry’s idea. These aren’t members of the band that are given much license to do what they want. You know, Jerry wrote 90 percent of the bass lines.
Really? Wow.
I was shocked when Horace told me!
It felt like a sad, premature ending [to The Specials], particularly when you look at that “Ghost Town” single. I mean, the song itself is incredible. But the two other songs on the back of the English 45 — “Friday Night Saturday Morning” and “Why” — were also excellent. And the three songs felt different from each other. You had the feeling they really were at their peak and could have done even more amazing work.
No, it’s really interesting. Terry wanted “Friday Night Saturday Morning” to be sung with just him and a piano in a kind of traditional English barroom style (laughs). But Jerry overruled that and created what we know as that song.
The Fun Boy Three demoed “Why” and had their version of that song, including a whole rap by Neville Staple. Again, all that was exorcized from the song to conform to Jerry’s idea of what would be best for that EP.
Dave Wakeling [told] me something that I still remember. He said something like, “There was a bit of magic with The Beat because every member was the first person we looked at. We made three great albums — well, two and a half. But magic moments don’t last forever.”
Well, Dave walked out of it. So did Ranking Roger. The two of them walked out on what could have continued. They had an alternative vision and did General Public. And they had the freedom to do that.
I [wonder] which half of the album he doesn’t like! (laughter)
I’m guessing it was the second one, Wha’ppen. But I could be wrong. I did wanna ask you about Roger, since you knew him and also since we lost him not that long ago. I guess I wanted to ask you about both him and Terry Hall. These are premature losses.
Yeah. And Gaps from The Selecter — just last week.
Well, I knew Terry Hall the least. I met him a handful of times. And a couple of times he was very much in his own headspace and it was wise to leave him alone. Terry was just the pop star we all grew up with. After The Specials, he really came into his own. That second Fun Boy Three album, Waiting, that David Byrne produced is still one of my favourite albums ever. It’s just fantastic. His lyricism’s great.
Ranking Roger was such a lovely guy. We spent hours and hours together for his memoir. And his memoir was read to him by his sister Aggie — pretty much on Roger’s deathbed because he couldn’t read. He told me he loved it and it was his final testament. That’s as much as we can all hope for, really. But I really miss him.
Daniel Rachel Too Much Too Young book tour:
8/23: West Hollywood, CA — Book Soup
8/25: San Francisco, CA — The Make Out Room
8/27: Las Vegas, NV — The Writer’s Block
8/28: Tempe, AZ — Changing Hands Bookstore
8/30: Denver, CO — Tattered Cover
9/8: Cleveland Heights, OH — Mac’s Backs Books
9/9: Saugerties, NY — Orpheum Theatre
9/11: Jersey City, NJ — WORD Bookstore
9/12: New York, NY — Rough Trade NYC
9/14: Washington DC — MLK Memorial Library
10 Essential 2 Tone Tracks!:
1. The Specials — “Gangsters”
The song that effectively launched the 2 Tone movement. “Gangsters,” the first single by The Specials, was infectious and foreboding at the same time. It caused a stir in the UK upon its 1979 release and was later included on the band’s self-titled debut.
VIDEO: The Specials “Gangsters”
2. The Specials — “Ghost Town”
“Ghost Town” was the original Specials’ swan song. Much more downbeat than their previous work, it was an eerie commentary on the state of England in 1981. The two songs on the single’s flip side — “Friday Night Saturday Morning” and “Why” — were also pretty amazing.
VIDEO: The Specials “Ghost Town”
3. Madness — “One Step Beyond”
An early song by Madness (or, as they were sometimes known, The Nutty Boys) as well as an MTV favourite back in the day. Barely more than two minutes in length, it was the title track of the band’s debut album.
VIDEO: Madness “One Step Beyond”
4. Madness — “Bed and Breakfast Men”
Another great tune from the One Step Beyond disc.
VIDEO: Madness “Bed and Breakfast Men”
5. The Selecter — “On My Radio”
One of several popular tracks from The Selecter’s debut, Too Much Pressure, which ushered in the 80s. The insanely catchy “On My Radio” was written by guitarist Neol Davies but featured the distinct vocals of Pauline Black.
VIDEO: The Selecter “On My Radio”
6. The Selecter — “Washed Up and Left for Dead”
The Selecter’s sophomore set, Celebrate the Bullet, was considered by many to be a letdown after the promise of their debut. But to these ears, “Washed Up and Left for Dead” was a worthy song that showed a darker side of the band.
AUDIO: The Selecter “Washed Up and Left for Dead”
7. The English Beat — “Mirror in the Bathroom”
The opening song from The Beat’s 1980 debut, I Just Can’t Stop It, “Mirror in the Bathroom” was a jittery song about paranoia and being hungover. Top notch bass playing from David Steele and saxophone by Saxa (who was 30 years older than the other band members!).
VIDEO: The English Beat “Mirror in the Bathroom”
8. The English Beat — “I Confess”
“I Confess” appeared on the band’s third and final album, Special Beat Service. A soaring song with a calypso feel, it was a minor hit on these shores.
VIDEO: The English Beat “I Confess”
9. The Friday Club — “Window Shopping”
The Friday Club had the dubious distinction of being the last act signed to the 2 Tone label. Despite being a bright, infectious tune that was in step with other mid-80s artists like Swing Out Sister, “Window Shopping” was not a hit.
AUDIO: The Friday Club “Window Shopping”
10. Rhoda Dakar with The Special AKA — “The Boiler”
After leaving The Bodysnatchers (an all-female ska band), Rhoda Dakar released this solo effort, backed by members of The Specials. “The Boiler” — a long, harrowing song about rape — was arguably the darkest song in the 2 Tone catalog.
VIDEO: The Special AKA feat. Rhoda Dakar “The Boiler”
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