Customer Reviews

The Singles Collection

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I was captivated by the Specials when they appeared on Saturday Night Live way back in the late 1970s, and was hooked on ska and the Specials ever since. This collection however lacks the punch and enthusiasm of their first, self-entitled album or their later three-song EP "Ghost Town."

The CD includes some filler material ("Maggie's Farm" for example) and is most recommended for the three songs off the hard to find 1981 "Ghost Town" vinyl EP, including the title cut, "Why?", and the hypnotic "Friday Night/Saturday Morning." The lack of "Blank Expression" from the first album is baffling. It would have been a more solid collection if material from the post-Specials band, the Fun Boy Three, were included instead of the filler.

Overall, worth getting to round out your Specials collection. Music fans unfamilier with the Specials should start with their first album versus this collection to better understand their magic.

I like ska, but I don't LOVE Ska. This Cd does it for me. My only beef is that they could have packed a few more tracks onto it.

Now then... Unless you're seriously into ska, punk or jamaican music in general- this is probably all The Specials you'll ever need. This album is more conclusive than either the Specials (best of) CD or the More Specials (best of 2) Cd. Stylistically, it covers all the bases including several hard to fing cuts (most notably Ghost town, a sweet creepy little tune with an arabian sound to it- well used in Guy Ritchie's 'Snatch'... or maybe it was 'Lock, Stock...').

At any rate, this is all prime-rate, good stuff. If you are looking for a place to begin delving into ska, or simply trying to round out a decent CD collection- you could do far worse. No, actually, I'm pretty sure it was 'Snatch,' afterall.

The specials are an interesting band-- Elvis Costello, of all people, produced their first album.

This is a good collection-- these songs are pretty much easy to get a consensus on. 'Ghosttown', 'Too Much, Too Young' and 'Gangsters' shine through for what they are: some of the greatest songs of the 80's. There is a bit of filler on here, yes, but, it's filler that grows on you as time passes by.

This is a must-have record for the ska/punk enthusiast. It's worth a gamble for most other people as well.

I was captivated by the Specials when they appeared on Saturday Night Live way back in the late 1970s, and was hooked on ska and the Specials ever since. This collection however lacks the punch and enthusiasm of their first, self-entitled album or their later three-song EP "Ghost Town."

The CD includes some dull filler material ("Maggie's Farm" for example) and is most recommended for the three songs off the hard to find 1981 "Ghost Town" vinyl EP, including the title cut, "Why?", and the hypnotic "Friday Night/Saturday Morning." The lack of "Blank Expression" from the first album is baffling. It would have been a more solid collection if material from the post-Specials band, the Fun Boy Three, were included instead of the filler.

Overall, worth getting to round out your Specials collection.

I was captivated by the Specials when they appeared on Saturday Night Live way back in the late 1970s, and was hooked on ska and the Specials ever since. This collection however lacks the punch and enthusiasm of their first, self-entitled album or their later three-song EP "Ghost Town."

The CD includes some dull filler material ("Maggie's Farm" for example) and is most recommended for the three songs off the hard to find 1981 "Ghost Town" vinyl EP, including the title cut, "Why?", and the hypnotic "Friday Night/Saturday Morning." The lack of "Blank Expression" from the first album is baffling. It would have been a more solid collection if material from the post-Specials band, the Fun Boy Three, were included instead of the filler.

Overall, worth getting to round out your Specials collection.

anyone interested in the roots of ska/punk/reggae and political music will undoubtedly love this collection. i wasn't a huge specials fan before i bought this (i hadn't heard much outside of the amazing "ghost town") but this seals the deal. if you're like me, this is likely the only disc you'll ever need from these guys, as it includes all the singles (i assume). from the opening "gangsters" and "rudi, a message to you", to the safe-sex anthem "too much too young", it's clear that their earlier stuff is the best (some key members left after "ghost town"), but none of this disappoints. the music is uplifting and the lyrics raise awareness as a political band should, even if some of the material is a bit dated ("free nelson mandela" - though the spirit here never ages). the two live cuts are nice to have, especially since this music is usually better in concert, and the dylan cover "maggie's farm" is delivered passionately. this is an excellent disc that serves as a worthy overview of the specials' career when they were truly revolutionary (they pretty much kickstarted this whole movement in the late 70s), and it should be a welcome addition to anyone's music library, regardless of whether you've heard of them or not.

The Specials were one of the greatest bands ever to come out of the British music scene. They burnt a bright, yet short-lived flame consistently hitting the UK top 10 with an array of danceable and thought provoking singles. Songs such as Gangsters, Ghost Town and Too much Too Young show how the band were able keep the integrity of Jamaican ska and reggae whilst reflecting the British musical and social environment (especially punk). Conveniently labeled as "ska revivalists", this only tells half the story. Though ska was definitely the basis of much of their work, songs such as Stereotype, Rat Race and International Jet Set show The Specials ability to incorporate diverse influences and retain the group identity. This album recalls the times when the band dominated the British music scene. What a shame the original line up split when they did.

Much of this collection can be found on THE SPECIALS, the first LP by the greatest Ska band of my generation.

Get it because "Ghost Town," written about London after Ska-concert violence had caused the authorities to begin the clampdown on clubs and bands left town for the studio or the States, is the all-time greatest Specials single.

"Free Nelson Mandela" is dated, for obvious reasons, but it is the obvious and admireable outcome of The Specials, and Ska's, cross-racial harmony. I didn't notice the Pistols or Ozzy Osborne doing much for the battle against aparthied, for instance.

This collection of Singles, apparently the US version, is really good. I had it on cassette and it wore out quickly, but was reincarniated in recommendations by other friends. I won't belabor what others have already said about certain songs (although I can't resist: "Ghost Town" is truly a classic song you'll never get tired of listening to), but I do recommend finding the UK version of "The Specials: Singles" which has many of the songs here and more. The UK version has a great song (almost as great as "Ghost Town"), "(What I Like Most About You Is Your) Girlfriend" as well as "International Jet Set" -- if the US version of "Best of" had these 2 songs it would be perfect.

Anyhow, if you can't scare up the UK version (I give 5 stars), buy this US version. You won't be able to resist playing it over and over again.

The Specials Singles Collection spans their first album, through the "Ghost Town" single, to the Special Aka album "In the Studio". Three songs from their self titled debut album are present, "Gangsters", the funky "Nite Club" and "Rudy, A Message to You". Inbetween the first and second album, they have several singles, including two live songs from the "Two Much Two Young" EP. The harmonica and blues guitar laden "Rude Boys Outta Jail" is included, but is slight. The Dylan cover "Maggie's Farm" is augmented with african drumming and Terry Hall's deadpan delivery. "Do Nothing" and "Stereotype" from "More Specials" are included as well. The entire "Ghost Town" 12 inch single is also present, featuring the only Specials composition by the future Fun Boy Three member Terry Hall ("Friday Night, Saturday Morning") and another by FB3 compatriot Lynval Golding ("Why?"). The final two are from "In the Studio". Rounding out the album are the calypso "Racist Freind" and the celebratory anthem "Free Nelson Mandela". The only tracks not available on CD elsewhere are the singles, which aren't really essential. The "Ghost Town" songs are some of the best the Specials ever recorded, but are only really of intrest to die-hard fans. Everything is entertaining, and might serve as a decent first album, as an introduction or an overview of their career. Also, considering how hard "More Specials" and "In the Studio" are to find, this may be the only way to get many of these songs. Fans should already have it, though.