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Guilty 'til Proved Innocent! (MCA Records) is the latest album from the legendary ska band The Specials.
The Specials started in 1977 as the Coventry Automatics, a punk-reggae band. After about a year, they decided it wasn't working out. They added a few members, renamed themselves to the Specials, and started pumping out ska classics. Their beginnings were short lived however. They only released two albums, one in 1979 and the other 1980, before breaking up. Some of the members went on to form Fun Boy Three and the rest went their separate ways.
However, The Specials were not doomed. After a brief hiatus of only 15 years, they released a new album in 1996, Today's Specials. The line up contained new and old members. The Specials are still going strong with their new release, Guilty 'til Proved Innocent! I liked this album. The album contains fifteen studio tracks plus three bonus live tracks. It's full of catchy hooks and swinging horns.
The Specials stayed very close to their ska roots on this album. The sound more like a cross between jazz and reggae rather than the punk stylings of more recent ska bands like Less Than Jake and Reel Big Fish. I would recommend this album to anyone who wants to hear some good traditional ska.
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Along with the Specials, Madness were one of the leading bands of the ska revival of the late '70s and early '80s. As their career progressed, Madness branched away from their trademark "nutty sound" and incorporated large elements of Motown, soul, and British pop. Although the band managed one crossover American hit in 1983, the band remained a British phenomenon, influencing several successive generations of musicians and becoming one of the most beloved groups the country produced during the '80s.
The origins of Madness lie in a ska group known as the Invaders, which was formed by Mike Barson, Chris Foreman, and Lee Thompson in 1976. By 1978, the band had changed their name to Morris and the Minors and had added Graham "Suggs" McPherson, Mark Bedford, Chas Smash, and Dan Woodgate to the group. Later in 1978, they changed their name to Madness, in homage to one of their favorite Prince Buster songs. The following year, Madness released their debut single, a tribute to Prince Buster entitled "The Prince," on Two-Tone. The song was a surprise success, reaching the British Top 20. Following its success, the band signed a record contract with Stiff Records and released another Prince Buster song, "One Step Beyond," which climbed to number seven.
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