The Colour Field- Virgins and Philistines (1985) / Deception (1987) MP3 & FLAC -For Stefano-

"Let's conjure up a day of beauty, fulfill our tender duties."

After the demise of Fun Boy Three, a strange and occasionally brilliant hybrid of Ska and New Wave pop, Terry Hall formed The Colour Field in Manchester. Whereas Fun Boy Three, despite a strong impulse toward experimentation, always kept its finger on the pulse of current UK pop trends, on their debut, The Colour Field sounded like a band completely out of time and place in the mid-eighties, all but ensuring their commercial failure. Drawing on various influences from the sixties such as baroque Chamber Pop, Jangle-Pop, and Psychedelia, Virgins and Philistines has held up rather well over the years, whereas much of what was "contemporary" in 1985 now sounds badly dated. Such are the ironic whims of pop culture. Terry Hall's approach as a vocalist in The Colour Field isn't much different from his work with The Specials and Fun Boy Three: cool, laconic, and minimalist but thoroughly charming. For example, on "Castles in the Air," Hall's coy vocals provide a perfect counterpoint to the song's baroque melodrama that comes complete with weeping cellos and Spanish guitar. On their second album and swan-song, Deception, The Colour Field largely abandoned the sixties pop fetish for a more recognizably eighties sound; nevertheless, Hall's acerbic wit is still fully on display, and the album contains some genuinely fine moments such as "Miss Texas 1967," a gorgeous acoustic ballad that sounds like it would have been more at home on Virgins and Philistines.

The Specials- S/T (1979) MP3 & FLAC

"What you gonna do when the morons come for you? They won't go away; they want the whole world painted grey."

Unquestionably the defining statement of the late 70s British Ska revival, The Specials' debut album, with its satirically bitter tales of urban decay and racial violence, is no less relevant today than it was in 1979. While the album contains a number of impressive "reworkings" of songs originating from the "first wave" Jamaican Ska, it is to the band's credit that their original compositions stand toe-to-toe with (and occasionally best) these classics. While most Ska bands of the time engaged political issues on some level (although often very obliquely), The Specials were political through and through, explicitly dealing with topics such as class hatred, racism, and economic hopelessness; despite this, they never sound overly didactic and the music is never anything less than danceable. A great marriage of art and politics, and an absolute classic in every sense of the word.

Various Artists- Too Much Two Tone: Ska Classics (2001) MP3 & FLAC

"Twenty-one years in captivity. Shoes too small to fit his feet. His body abused but his mind is still free."

Ska's "second wave," also called the "2-Tone" movement in honor of the record label that served as its main catalyst, was a radical hybrid, wedding the rhythm and style of 1960s Jamaican Ska and Rocksteady to the sonic aggression and socio-political lyrics associated with the then-burgeoning British Punk-Rock scene. As a result, second wave Ska had more on its mind than being merely danceable; many of the 2-Tone bands such as The Specials, The (English) Beat, and The Bodysnatchers (to name only a few) wrote lyrics touching on both the public and private disaffection of black and white working-class youths during the early years of Thatcherism. While the ironically titled Too Much Two Tone: Ska Classics is far from comprehensive as a compilation of second wave Ska (for example, The Beat are entirely missing), unlike many of the other available 2-Tone collections, this one includes several obscure, yet important tracks otherwise unavailable on compact disc.

The Specials- "Too Much Too Young" Video (1979) Live, Old Grey Whistle Test

These guys are ridiculously underrated. As good as (or better than) any band of their era, Ska or otherwise:

The Specials- "Ghost Town" Video (1981)

Here's an ode to 2011 because I'm always a bit depressive on New Years (something about time slipping irrevocably by)- The Specials with their iconic Ska sing-along. More Ska greatness coming soon...