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Rating: "More Specials", the second album by the Coventry group, released in September of 1980, surprises the unsuspecting and carefree Nutty Boys dancing on the deck. The elegant black and white graphics of the debut album are replaced by an anonymous snapshot, returned, moreover, in color. Walt Jabsco, the Rude-boy symbol of the 2-Tone movement, was inexplicably revamping his wardrobe.
And yet with their first album, the Specials had sparked general enthusiasm in the land of Albion, effectively giving birth to the "Second Wave" of Ska. The lively upbeat rhythm imported from Jamaica had been updated with the frenzy of Punk, exciting the scene considerably and encouraging scores of young people to ride the newborn musical wave. But the restless Jerry Dammers, the true ideologue of the movement, scrutinizing the horizon, sensed that the "Second Wave" was becoming a worn-out cliché, a vessel teeming with clones destined to run aground on the shoals of boredom. Hence the decision to change course and lead the group, with courage and recklessness, towards unexplored waters. Destination: the Post-Ska lands.
The sea is rough and the magnetic needle of the compass is acting up; thus, inevitably, the vessel sails without a precise course. Discontent begins to slither among the crew while Cpt. Dammers, in the midst of the sonic storm, tries to keep the mixer lever straight. The hold is loaded with the most disparate goods: electronic drums, exotic instruments, obscure Eastern European choruses, Mariachi brass, kitsch embellishments, Lounge landscapes, and who knows what else.
The navigation proceeds inconsistently, crossing the dark atmosphere of "Man At C & A", the Lounge of "Pearl's Café", the Latin American sketch of "Holiday Fortnight", the electro-claustrophobic blend of "International Jet Set", yet it glides lightly on the calm waters of the excellent Soul of "I Can't Stand It", the sparkling Ska'n'Roll of "Hey, Little Rich Girl", or the lazy Rock-Steady of "Do Nothing".
Land is finally sighted with "Stereotypes". Divided into Pt. 1 and Pt. 2, the track is a dark psychedelic seven-minute excursion with continuous variations on the theme. A drunken and wandering trumpet, certainly a stowaway, introduces Hall's unexpressive singing, then continuously swaying in the background without peace.
The track is accompanied by an unsettling sonic undertow that overflows with Cossack choruses and balalaika weavings, unraveling inconsistently revealing kitsch veins, cabaret glimpses, Latin American urges, and bolero hints.
The rhythm is tied to a persistent electronic rumba supported by the metronomic bass groove.
The crew reaches the Caribbean islands (Pt. 2), with the rumba proceeding relentlessly on its path and the sound swaying from one channel to another, while Neville Staple's toasting, first hysterical, then disappears into the waves.
The "Specials" will take to the sea again, but the intensifying friction and internal tensions will lead to the mutiny of some crew members, and shortly thereafter, the project will sink definitively.
This album is an incoherent but courageous work, a much more interesting chapter than the debut album.
Therefore, I strongly recommend listening to it.
Bon voyage.
Tracklist Lyrics and Videos
05 Pearl's Cafe (03:10)
You saw a woman in a cafe, lips of crimson, yellow grin
Her shoes were wrong and she looked extremely thin
Her jewels were faked, she'd had a rinse, her hair was greyish blue
She looked ashamed when she explained to you
It ain't easy when there's no-one to lean on
It ain't easy when there's nobody there
It ain't easy when your lovers are all gone
Nobody there, nobody cares
The pubs were closed she'd got nowhere to go when she'd spilled her tea
Have you never thought "One day that could be me"?
Her temper changed, she looked so deranged, her perfume turned to gin
You looked at her and she began to sing
It's all a load of bollocks
It's all a load of bollocks
It's all a load of bollocks
And bollocks to it all
You tell me you think that they should lock her away and scrape the make-up off her skin
Then we'd see the warts around her chin
She tried to keep her looks but lost her mind when she lost her youth and grace
Your words were just an insult to her face
It ain't easy when there's no-one to lean on
It ain't easy when there's nobody there
It ain't easy when your lovers are all gone
And bollocks to it all
When I first met you, I really thought you were a wet dream come true
Now I know that you don't care, about somebody else's nightmare
10 I Can't Stand It (04:03)
When I woke up this morning alone in my bed
In a cold room with damp sheets, and a pain in my head
I saw you last night and you drove me insane
Why must you hurt me again and again
I've had enough, if I don't come back for more that's tough
'Cos I can't stand it, the way you've planned it
No I can't stand it any longer
Sometimes I get so I tired I can't get no sleep
I'm so drunk I can't stand up on my own two feet
I'm feeling so hungry I don't want to eat
You make me so angry I can't even speak
I'll stay at home where I can be alone
Because I just can't stand it, the way you've planned it
No I can't stand it any longer
Try not to cry as I lie in the rain
Feel like walking through walls just to get back home again
I saw you last night and I'll see you again
Maybe you're trying to drive me insane
I've had enough, if I don't come back for more that's tough
'Cos I can't take it any more
I'm going home where I can be alone
Because I just can't stand it, no I can't stand it
No I can't stand it any longer
Goodnight Terry
Goodnight Rhoda
11 International Jet Set (05:39)
Good evening ladies and gentlemen
This is your captain speaking
Welcome aboard DC-10 flight number 1313
We will be cruising at a height of 25,000 feet at an air speed of 600 miles per hour
Headphones will be provided by request for a varied program of in flight music
Have a good flight
Safety belts and sickness bags, jet lag downer pills
duty free booze and fags make me feel ill
A vapour trail from A to B, away from normal sanity
It all seems so absurd to me
I've seen the carpets on the walls of hotels rooms around the world
I never want to hear the screams of the teenage girls in other peoples dreams
Spread the disease, from the south China sea
To the beach hotel Malibu
Phone my girlfriend to ask her "How's her weekend?"
I say "Hi, Terry here", and she says "Terry who, the hell are you?"
The businessmen are having fun are they on a different plane to me
I've lost touch with reality, they all seem so absurd to me
Like well dressed chimpanzees
Spend and spend and spend and spend
Will the muzak never end?
Ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking
Due to expected engine failures we will be forced to attempt an emergency landing
Please remain seated, extinguish all cigarettes, and fasten safety belts
Follow the emergency procedures laid out in the pamphlet located in front of your seats
For normal breathing, oxygen masks will be released from the compartment above your head
Please remain calm and follow the instructions of your stewardess at all times
This is a recording...
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