The Specials – Sound of ska rebellion
Jerry Dammers assembled The Specials in Coventry in 1977 with a multiracial lineup, a checkerboard label, and a sound that put British working-class anger on a Jamaican beat.
Serge Gainsbourg – Aux armes et caetera
In January 1979, at Dynamic Sounds in Kingston, Serge Gainsbourg set La Marseillaise to a Sly and Robbie rhythm.
Bob Marley & The Wailers – A pulse wider than the island
Bob Marley & The Wailers turned Trench Town harmonies into Island Records reggae, and the rhythm section carried the songs abroad without dropping the Jamaican patterns.
Madness – Embarrassment
On 14 November 1980, Madness released Embarrassment on Stiff, a UK No. 4 single from Absolutely about a family shame Lee Thompson knew firsthand.
UB40 – Birmingham reggae that crossed the charts
UB40 took their name from the UK unemployment benefit form and formed in Birmingham in 1978.
Afterlife Interview with Bob Marley
Riffs and Beats finds Bob Marley on a Jamaican hillside at dusk, acoustic guitar on his back, treating the afterlife like one more soundcheck.
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