wax&wires

Wax Pick: The Specials

Break out your 2-tone and get ready to skank. Amazon’s got the original rude boys, The Specials, for just $1.99.

Like every good band nerd, I played in a ska group back in my early years; bass guitar. It seemed like the only genre in which all of our friends could be together in one band… especially because the majority of us played marching band instruments rather than the “cool stuff” like guitar or drums. Needless to say, The Specials quickly became one of my favorite groups.

My history teacher, Mr. Woodward, actually gave me this album for keeps because he knew I was into the newer ska/punk stuff at the time like Reel Big Fish, Sublime, Link 80, etc. and wanted to be sure I had my roots right. He’s also the same guy who brought me back a souvenir fromthe U2 tour since I couldn’t get tickets… seriously… best teacher ever.

You’ll undoubtedly recognize at least a handful of these tracks from various commericals and movies. They’re also favorites to be covered in your local bar scene, so for under $2, you can feel right at home.

The Specials – The Specials

This entry was posted on Wednesday, April 15th, 2009 at 12:35 am. It is filed under wax picks and tagged with ska. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.