Two-tone or 2 tone, also known as ska-rock and ska revival, is a genre of British popular music of the late 1970s and early 1980s that fused traditional Jamaican ska, rocksteady, and reggae music with elements of punk rock and new wave music. Its name derives from 2 Tone Records, a record label founded in 1979 by Jerry Dammers of the Specials, and references a desire to transcend and defuse racial tensions in Thatcher-era Britain: many two-tone groups, such as the Specials, the Selecter and the Beat, featured a mix of black, white, and multiracial people.
Jeremy David Hounsell Dammers GCOT is a British musician who was a founder, keyboard player and primary songwriter of the Coventry-based ska band the Specials and later the Spatial AKA Orchestra. Through his foundation of the record label Two Tone, his work blending political lyrics and punk with Jamaican music, and his incorporation of 1960s retro clothing, Dammers is a pivotal figure of the ska revival. He has also been acknowledged in his work for racial unity.
The Selecter is an English 2 tone ska revival band, formed in Coventry, England, in 1979.
The Bodysnatchers were a seven-piece all-female band involved in the British 2 Tone ska revival of the late 1970s and early 1980s.
The Specials is the debut album by British ska revival band the Specials. Released on 19 October 1979 on Jerry Dammers' 2 Tone label, the album is seen by some as the defining moment in the UK ska scene. Produced by Elvis Costello, the album captures the disaffection and anger felt by the youth of the UK's "concrete jungle"—a phrase borrowed from Bob Marley's 1973 album Catch a Fire—used to describe the grim, violent inner cities of 1970s Britain. The album features a mixture of original material and several covers of classic Jamaican ska tracks.
Bad Manners are an English two-tone and ska band led by frontman Buster Bloodvessel. Early appearances included Top of the Pops and the live film documentary Dance Craze (1981).
2 Tone Records was an English independent record label that mostly released ska and reggae-influenced music with a punk rock and pop music overtone. It was founded by Jerry Dammers of the Specials and backed by Chrysalis Records.
Douglas Trendle, better known as Buster Bloodvessel, is an English singer who has been the frontman of the two-tone band Bad Manners since forming the band in 1976. He took his stage name from the bus conductor played by Ivor Cutler in the Beatles' 1967 film Magical Mystery Tour.
Too Much Pressure is the debut studio album by English 2 tone ska revival band the Selecter. After the band's official formation in 1979 in Coventry, following the release of a song entitled "The Selecter" by an unofficial incarnation of the band, the band's hit single "On My Radio" prompted their labels 2 Tone and Chrysalis to ask the band to record their debut album. Working with producer Errol Ross, the Selecter recorded the album at Horizon Studios over two months. The album contains original material, mostly composed by band founder and guitarist Neol Davies, as well as numerous ska and reggae cover versions, in a similar fashion to the Specials' debut album.
"Lip Up Fatty" is a single released by British 2 Tone and ska band Bad Manners in June 1980, which reached No. 15 in the UK Singles Chart. It is one of a number of songs by Bad Manners about 'being fat',. According to Bloodvessel "Lip Up Fatty" was an expression used at his school "to tell people to shut up". Its signature melodic lines were a simple but careful blend of brass instruments and lead harmonica theme, played by Alan Sayag.
Ska'n'B is the first album by British 2 Tone and ska band Bad Manners from the year 1980. It reached number 34 on the UK album chart.
Klass is a compilation by British 2 Tone and ska band Bad Manners, released in 1983.
Anthology is a compilation album by the British ska band Bad Manners, released in 2001.
Can Can is a live album by British 2 Tone and ska band Bad Manners, released on 18 July 2006.
Rhoda Dakar is a British singer and musician, best known as the lead singer of The Bodysnatchers, who were signed to the 2 Tone record label. She also worked with The Specials/Special AKA, and also other 2-Tone artists.
Party Party is a 1983 British comedy film about three friends and their North West London crowd. This crowd includes workers, spivs and young police constables. A British entry into the teenage/youth house party genre typified by John Hughes' films, the movie was directed by Terry Winsor and written by Daniel Peacock and Winsor. It is notable for its soundtrack and as the early work of several of the cast members.
"The Boiler" is a single by Rhoda Dakar with The Special AKA. It was released in January 1982 on 2 Tone Records.
"Let's Do Rock Steady", also known as "(People Get Ready) Let's Do Rock Steady" and "People Do Rock Steady", is rocksteady song by Dandy Livingstone that was first released in October 1967 as the flip side to his single "We Are Still Rude". It was then released in early 1968 on his album Rock Steady with Dandy as "People Do Rock Steady". The song is better known for being covered by the Bodysnatchers in 1980.
"Special Brew" is a song by British 2-tone and ska band Bad Manners, released in September 1980 and was the third single from their first album Ska 'n' B. It was the band's joint biggest hit in the UK, reaching number 3 in the UK Singles Chart, where it stayed for two weeks. The song takes its inspiration from the Carlsberg lager Special Brew and is about someone who loves it like a significant other.
