An Ode To Ska- Me and my Crappy Music Taste

Okay guys, let’s cut to the chase, me and my taste in music can only be described as...well...trash. I can hide behind my love of Joy Division and Nirvana all day, but nothing puts my love of shit music on display like my unrequited adoration for Ska. I know, I know, I can see you shaking your head behind your screen and laughing, “but Amy you aren’t a 70 year old man with shitty head tats and a fedora, you can’t like Ska”. And to that I say, NO ONE ASKED FOR YOUR OPINION ADAM.

It all started when I fell down a rabbit hole of Madness, not literally of course, we’re talking about one of the biggest Ska bands there is. Much like a cancer I didn’t know my tumour was there until it was too late, I was too far gone and my soul couldn't be saved. Everyone and they’re goldfish know the classic British anthem ‘Our House’, right? Much like Mr. Brightside, when it comes on the radio all the white folks can’t help but tap their feet and sing along. Well sorry to break it to you buckaroo, but you just listened to Ska and...well...enjoyed it. And sadly, it’s Stage 1, and there’s nothing you can do but embrace the madness and get on your checkered suspenders and skank- yes that’s the real term for ska dancing.

Literally made with the sole purpose of making you dance, Ska was born in a strange yet magic marriage of mento and calypso music, mixed with American jazz and R&B, though on paper it seems like it shouldn’t work and this polyamorous relationship will end in a messy divorce, but it doesn’t, they live in a weird sort of harmony. The frankenstein that is Ska was created in the late 50’s to early 60’s, with the most prominent figure being Coxsone Dodd, though not a formal musician, he recognised that after the counties separation from Britain, Jamaica was in dire need of national pride and identity and thus began recording popular bands in his now-legendary studio, Studio One. Thus being one of the founding fathers of Ska- and not to mention Reggae.

The music itself can be characterized with a drumbeat on the 2nd and 4th beats (in 4/4 time) and with the guitar hitting the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th beats, Which is creative in of itself. And the culture surrounding it is just as interesting, the 60’s saw a rise in a subculture called Rude Boys.These people were usually poverty ridden, unemployed and extremely stylish and were usually hired by sound system operators (mobile DJs) to crash each other's street dances. Most of these interactions led to violence and consequently, gangs. Fashionable clothing for Rude Boys was to dress as closely to Al Capone as possible. The Rude Boy culture became a huge source for ska lyrics.

One of my favourite Ska bands are the specials. Forming in 77 in good ole’ Coventry, England, the band consisted of Terry Hall and Neville Staple on vocals, Lynval Golding and Roddy Radiation on guitars, Horace Panter on bass, Jerry Dammers on keyboards, John Bradbury on drums, and Dick Cuthell and Rico Rodriguez on horns- so quite a small band. Dripping with enthusiasm and energy The Specials remained on of the most influential Ska groups of their time, with such hits as ‘Ghost Town’ and ‘A Message to you Rudy’, there isn’t a doubt in my mind as to why they reached the popularity that they did, and why they can still sell out concerts today.

Weirdly enough, though I really do adore ska and the creativity that goes into making the sounds that they do, but I can see why not everyone likes it. I can seem noisy and un-put-together, but if you listen closely and just let the music talk, you can't help but move along. So now i’m going to leave you with some recommendations on some of the best Ska bands I know, and YOU WILL listen to them, or else… you’ll hurt my feelings :(

The Specials, Madness, The Ethiopians, Clive and Naomi and Dottie and Bunny. Do it, just do it.