Come on in, it's been a while...Thursday 7th May 2009
Brixton Academy, London
Thanks to my folks I’ve been listening to The Specials from a very young age. ‘A Message To You Rudy’ was a favourite of mine as a little girl and I played it so much even my folks got sick of it. So when, after 30 odd years, the boys from Coventry announced 5 – count ‘em 5! – night’s at Brixton Academy I was first to sign up for bar shifts.
Then came the wait – 3 months of barely containable excitement pushed to boiling point until the afternoon of the first show. I ran throughout my day job shouting ‘Happy Specials Day!’ to everyone, listened to their tunes all day and watched old footage of clubs gig’s I wished I’d been alive for. Then I got the call. 5:15pm Wednesday 6th May 2009. 45 minutes until I was due to work at Brixton. ‘It’s Tina’ said my boss ‘They’ve cancelled due to illness’.
My screams echoed throughout the office and snapped everyone out of their Outlook afternoon haze. This was awful! This was horrible! ‘They haven’t cancelled tomorrow though so be on stand by’. We’d been waiting for 30 years I suppose, what’s one more day?
It’s hard to describe the energy that fills a room when 5000+ people arrive to see a band they’ve been waiting to see for 30 years. To say everyone was ‘excited’ would be an understatement (and my tips for the next 5 nights certainly proved this!). Sitting through supports was almost torture, apart from the Dub Pistols who played the first 2 nights and were excellent. But I’ve gotta say, Ska these days just isn’t the same. I’m not sure if it’s the cultural influence, social conscience or music that’s lacking, but it just ain’t the same.
There was also a DJ and MC playing some top notch old ska and dance hall tunes that provided perfect pre-set sing-a-long conditions. Every night the crowd turned into a grand choir delivering drunken versions of ‘A Town Called Malice’ and ‘The Israelites’ at the will of the MC. And his ever present chant of "Ruuudde Boooyyy’ was always met with an enthusiastic response.
Anticipation was at breaking point when The Specials hit the stage. Opening with ‘Do The Dog’ they set Brixton off – beers were thrown, clothes and bags were cast aside as years of bottled up skanking exploded in 2 hours of beats, jams and lyrics that have been blasted in bedrooms for years. They played the perfect set each time: Monkey Man, Little Rich Girl, Rudy, Rat Race, Ghost Town, my very favourite Night Klub, and the perfect finale Enjoy Yourself.
It was so amazing to see The Specials after 30 years off the circuit, and after some tumultuous times they’re still as relevant as ever. Their performances were spot on and they never missed a beat, nor the chance to convey their regret to the crowd for having taken 30 years to return. I am now stylishly equipped with a Specials bag and T-shirt (never to be worn together lest ye risk looking like a stalker). They later announced shows at both Glastonbury and Hammersmith Apollo (my other place of bar tending) which pleased me no end, as they became like a house band no one ever wanted to see the end of at Brixton. Once they were gone I missed them so. And as I recall these skatastic tales I feel butterflies in my stomach as I remember the excitement and happiness they’re shows produced in people.
Enjoy yourself, it’s later than you think.
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