Specials Reform

• 1st Feb 2005

The Specials are set to reform for a 2-Tone Records 25th anniversary concert in the band and label’s home town of Coventry.

In an interview with Mojo vocalist Neville Staple revealed that he recently met with fellow singer Terry Hall and organist Jerry Dammers to discuss getting the band back together.

Staple told the magazine, 'Everyone in the band's talking, there's no animosity and we'll meet again. The Specials was Jerry's band, everything goes through him. But if we did it, it would have to be the original seven of us. I reckon if we did play, we'd do five big cities and that'd be it. Can you imagine the interest? It would be phenomenal.'

Along with other Coventry bands like The Beat and The Selector took the ska sound of Jamaica in the late 60’s and translated it to Britain as the Thatcher government took up power. This was the forerunner to what we now know as ska-punk and was brought to the masses by 2-Tone Records.

As the 25th anniversary of the opening of 2-Tone draws near, plans are being made to host a celebratory concert at the 3000-capacity Skydome in Coventry.

Hilary Hopker, of the regional promotions agency CV Onetold The Independent, '2-Tone has become a crucial part of our history – musically it is the thing that Coventry is known for. Manchester has the Hacienda and Coventry has The Specials and 2-Tone.' It is hoped that the convert will be able to coincide with the city’s Peace Month, which celebrates good race relations.

The reunion is likely to include up to seven members of the band; as well as Staples, Hall and Dammer, Lynval Golding (who now lives in America), Horace Panter and Roddy Radiation have all expressed an interest. However, a sighting of the full line-up is unlikely, says 2-Tone producer Roger Lomas: 'A full reunion might happen one day but I think the truth is that if they wanted to get back together they would have done it by now.'