Birmingham, England's the Beat formed in 1978 and in its short time as band, became one of the earliest and most important ska revivalist groups. Known as the English Beat in the U.S. to avoid confusion with Paul Collins' band of the same name, the band carved a distinct sound led by vocalist and guitarist Dave Wakeling. The band released three studio albums in the early 1980s: “I Just Can't Stop It,” “Wha'ppen?” and “Special Beat Service” and gave the band many hits including "Mirror in the Bathroom," "Save It for Later" and "I [...]
With hardcore Northwesterner's now back from a cold but successful weekend at Treefort Music Fest in Boise, we have a whole week of great new shows to warm you back in Seattle. On Monday night, we welcome Iris DeMent at The Triple Door, and then on Tuesday we have an exciting night out with Duff McKagan's It's So Easy and Other Lies, A Punk's Revue at the Moore Theatre, Major Lazer, Angel Haze, and Lunice are at Showbox SoDo, and Doldrums and Sean Nicholas Savage are downstairs at Barboza. More surprises on Wednesday [...]
Justin Timberlake 's second single off The 20/20 Experience , "Mirrors," has managed to become his second chart-topper as a solo artist in the UK this week. JT recently performed the song at the BRIT Awards , and has been in England doing promo for his upcoming third LP. Prior to "Mirrors," the onetime *NSYNC member hit the top across the pond with "SexyBack" — though, curiously, none of his singles with his former boy band ever made it to #1. (Timberlake also landed at the top in [...]
"I don't know . . . I think it looks more like a fish." The ska revival of the early '80s that was one of the greatest of the punk offshoots wouldn't have been what it was if not for the self-titled debut album by The Specials, released in late 1979. It was released nearly simultaneously with the first album by Madness, one of the other major instigators of the scene (The English Beat was slightly after, releasing their debut in 1980), but the Specials infused more of a political consciousness into [...]
Here again: every newly announced show for the week! On page one you'll find a quick list of shows that particularly caught our attention, followed by embedded YouTube videos; there, you can chec... Continue reading "Pinback, The English Beat, The Spits and More in This Week's Show Announcements" >
Being the old guy around here has its advantages. And when I say I remember the classics, it means bands before Vampire Weekend. One such band that everyone knows because of movie soundtracks ( Grosse Point Blank , Ferris Bueller's Day Off , SLC Punk! , Weird Science ) and numerous spin-offs and side projects (because of band disagreements), is The English Beat . The American touring version is Dave Wakeling's band of solid musicians; Dave shares The English Beat name with Rankin Roger who tends to stay [...]
Allstar Weekend: With Cute Is What We Aim For, Tiffany Alvord, Beneath The Sun., Wed., Jan. 30, 6:30 p.m., $18.00-$68.00. House of Blues, 1204 Caroline, Houston. Augustana: With Lauren Shera., T... Continue reading "Upcoming: The Residents, Every Time I Die, The English Beat, Sleepy LaBeef, Mondo Generator, Etc. " >
Did you really think I'd live you hanging on Thanksgiving day? Of course not... If Henry Rollins is working on Thanksgiving, then I am, too! Thursday, November 22nd Henry Rollins: The Long March at Yoshi's - San Francisco It seems that Henry Rollins has retired entirely from music. Which is fine, because he's best when [...]
The sleepiest kimodo dragon in Las Vegas, dreaming of biting a tourist and tracking them to the buffet at Excalibur! The best live tracks from the latest reissues: Peter Gabriel - Shock The Monkey - And the news is breaking. R.E.M. - Little America (Live at Muziekcentrum Vredenburg, Utrecht, Holland) - I pledge allegiance. The English Beat - Mirror In The Bathroom (Live At Hammersmith Palais, October 1982) - You can watch yourself [...]
The odd pairing at the State Theater on Friday, October 12—two-tone legends The English Beat and power popsters the Paul Collins Beat —presented me with a chilling sartorial dilemma. Should I show up in full rude boy regalia, complete with pork pie hat and checked socks, or should I arrive wearing a white jacket with black shirt, just like the ones Paul’s wearing on his 1979 debut album, The Beat? I struggled until I realized I don’t own any of these items of apparel, and finally settled for a Piggly Wiggly t-shirt and a pair [...]
British ska revival group The English Beat will be performing this evening with The Paul Collins Beat at World Café Live. The English Beat, spearheaded by Dave Wakeling, recorded three albums together between 1980 and 1982. The all-ages show tonight will start at 8; more ticket information can be found here. Below, watch The English ... Continue reading
Not the album being discussed here today, but no other album cover would be fitting to pay tribute to Andy Williams (1927-2012). Andy Williams (1963) The English Beat (1980) Today's Cover Friday is serving double duty, as both a cool cover (of course!) and as a tribute to Andy Williams, who died this past Tuesday at the age of 84. Williams was always a personal favorite of mine when it came to the "crooners," primarily because he was responsible for some of [...]
While I have reservations about any lineup of the English Beat that doesn't include Andy Cox or David Steele, the David Wakeling-led reformation of The Beat seems to get consistently good write-ups in the press. I'm more intrigued by Paul Collins going back to his power-pop roots with "Paul Collins Beat". This Fall, English Beat will hit the road alongside The Paul Collins Beat. “ It’s the essence of power pop, which is wider than continents, ” says Dave Wakeling, mastermind behind English Beat about the recently announced tour. “ Short, sharp, catchy, exciting and memorable!” It’s [...]
Smashing Pumpkins: “Oceana” From the very first notes of “Oceana” there is no denying that this is a Smashing Pumpkins record. The military drums, the low rumbling bass, the screaming vocals wrapped in the quiet-to-loud wall of sound is everything you've come to expect from Billy Corgan's one man band. That said, there is something missing in these 13 new tracks, the hooks that got songs like “1979,” “Tonight Tonight” and “Cherub Rock” stuck in your head, and made them the soundtrack of the 1990s. [...]
myworldmusicfriends.com It's almost a shame that the English Beat found success on commercial radio, as "Tears of a Clown," "Mirror in the Bathroom" and "Save it for Later" positioned the Birmingham sextet as just another singles band. But the truth is, in three years, the Beat released a trio of albums that would prove to be monumentally groundbreaking. Shout! Factory's The Complete Beat packages their entire catalogue as a stylish box set. Going the traditional rout of re-releasing each album with the obligatory bonus tracks tacked onto the end, 1980's [...]
Sigur Rós plays on Wednesday at Paramount As we recover from a beautiful (and hot!) weekend in Seattle, we have a whole crop of new and amazing shows to share with you this week. We start off slowly with some great small club shows at the Tractor with Phosphorescent and Mimicking Birds, and at the Sunset with Southeast Engine and Danielle Henry . Tuesday night, we recommend a great show at Neptune Theatre with Sharon Van Etten, Tennis, and Lemolo . [...]
The final week before Outside Lands, and we have a whole lot on our docket. We've got no less than 8 bona fide rock legends coming to town, as well as 3 of SpinningPlatters' all time favorite acts. Consider this your warm up for Golden Gate Park. Thursday, August 2nd Tears For Fears, Carina Round [...]
In this edition of Audiography, we feature reviews of the latest releases by Aesop Rock, JEFF the Brotherhood, and Old Crow Medicine Show. We also feature a conversation between Consequence of Sound ’s Len Comaratta and Dave Wakeling. As the vocalist and leader of The [English] Beat , Wakeling wrote and sang on classic hits including “Mirror in the Bathroom” and “Save It for Later”. After dissolving the Beat in 1983, Wakeling and Beat bandmate Ranking Roger formed the post-punk supergroup General Public . Recently, in light of Shout Factory’s five-disc box set, we caught up with Wakeling to [...]
One of the bands who revolutionized traditional ska into new wave music, The English Beat (also known just as 'The Beat'), play Philadelphia tonight. Only producing three albums in the 19802s, they have a vast amount of hit singles including "Save it for Later" and "Mirror in the Bathroom". The multi-instrumentalists play this evening at ... Continue reading
Still no reply from anyone on my plea for a German speaker to help me out. Look people, I have this really cool thing I want to write about, but it's in German. So the sooner I get in contact with someone who can sprechen sie deutsch, the sooner I can make that happen. Third World Now That We've Found Love (Paul Hardcastle Mix) Sometimes the artist is the thing I care the least about when buying a strange-looking 123 single. Take this one for example. The thing about this [...]
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The Dodos – “Confidence”
