Ghost Town by The Specials

[ragudave]

Was "Ghost Town" by The Specials the first ever Trip Hop track ? Or would Portishead / Massive Attack / Tricky take that honour ?

Of course maybe twas Sons of Arqa ?

Dave

[Frosty Jack]

Technically, I believe it was 'Jake the Peg', Rolf Harris.

3/10

[betamax]

Originally posted by ragudave:

Was "Ghost Town" by The Specials the first ever Trip Hop track ? Or would Portishead / Massive Attack / Tricky take that honour ?

Of course maybe twas Sons of Arqa ?

Dave

dont know ...but probably

although some Bootsy Collins stuff verges on trip hop....especially played at the wrong speed

but a guy we worked with in England, Jon Rivers produced Ghost Town and has the gold disc on his studio wall

lovely chap too, camper than a camper van but a fantastic bloke

he had fond memories of making the Ghost Town and said non of the Specials thought it would have anything like the impact it had....a lot of it was made up on the spot too....plenty of weed was involved obviously.... and the real genius of the band was the black guy on vocals and not so much Terry Hall, the bands perceived main man

one of the best records ever made probably

[M.A.R.T]

"and now for our national anthem..."

[-matthEw-]

Originally posted by ragudave:

Was "Ghost Town" by The Specials the first ever Trip Hop track ? Or would Portishead / Massive Attack / Tricky take that honour ?

Of course maybe twas Sons of Arqa ?

Dave

dunno whether it was the first ever or what not, but i do know its an absolutley fantastic record!

[Frosty Jack]

Re: Re: Ghost Town by The Specials

Originally posted by betamax:

and the real genius of the band was the black guy on vocals and not so much Terry Hall, the bands perceived main man

one of the best records ever made probably

Neville Staple? Or was it Lynval something? Can't remember.. Didn't they have 'Sir Horace' somebody too?

And it is a fantastic record, although I may prefer 'Too Much Too Young'. Wouldn't have said so at the time of course, I was a 'metaller' and wasn't supposed to like 'mods', but they really stopped me giving a fuck about 'genres' and just appreciating all music. Weren't they the first band to do it all themselves, and form their own label?

[kirkt]

genius...pure genius...I was speaking to my Dad bout it and he can't appreciate it no more cos it's use in Father Ted which is a shame

[betamax]

Re: Re: Re: Ghost Town by The Specials

Originally posted by Frosty Jack:

Neville Staple? Or was it Lynval something? Can't remember.. Didn't they have 'Sir Horace' somebody too?

And it is a fantastic record, although I may prefer 'Too Much Too Young'. Wouldn't have said so at the time of course, I was a 'metaller' and wasn't supposed to like 'mods', but they really stopped me giving a fuck about 'genres' and just appreciating all music. Weren't they the first band to do it all themselves, and form their own label?

Twas Neville he was talking about....also said he was a genuine hard nut and quite intimidating...but nice with it

Got some good snippits of info about the Buzzcocks of him too....but thats another thread

[ragudave]

Re: Re: Re: Ghost Town by The Specials

Originally posted by Frosty Jack:

Neville Staple? Or was it Lynval something? Can't remember.. Didn't they have 'Sir Horace' somebody too?

About Ghost town - The release of the single Ghost Town in the summer of '81 hit a nerve in the U.K. Inspired by racial tensions and unemployment, it coincided with the race riots in Brixton and Liverpool of the time (guitarist Lynval Golding was a victim of a racial attack, having had his throat slashed, requiring thirty stitches). Although the single went to #1, it was banned from the BBC.

Well Neville Staple was def a member of The Specials and has a great voice as those present @ the Ltree last year will testify. NS is actually a rather decent at dancehall style singing as is Ari Up...

BTW Mark Lamarr was at Neville's last London show and was so impressed that he phoned up Suggs from Madness. Suggs got down for the last couple of tracks and ended up singing on stage for the last track,

Dave

[delboy]

'ghost town' still shits me up to this day especially the extended version, a band at the height of their powers and captured the paranoid mood of 1981 perfectly.

[kirkt]

I can def hear the trip-hop connection. This was shown 15 years later when Tricky did his "Nearly God" side project and Terry Hall guested as vocalist on one of the songs, if im right in thinking

[Pierre Von Mondragon]

Neville Staples was dead good at the Lemon Tree last year, even played 'Man at C & A'. Can't remember if Ghost Town came out before the 'More Specials' album, but 'I cant stand it' on said LP is even more proto "trip" hop (i always fukn HATED that label, there used to be a night at the Peli in the mid-90's on a Wed and they called it Dub Narcotic Jazz, much more aesthetically suitable. Rant over). In fact 'More Specials' is just one of the best albums made, just so Modern, perhaps more so now than it was; proto- loungecore, James Brown tributes, old school rock n soul workouts, nuclear paranoia and the proper version of International Jet Set. Most modern bands are dung by comparison.