Review:

on 2011-05-24 CharlesMartel Said:

Over the years, I have gathered together quite the little collection of freebie CDs given away by newspapers. Indeed, for some of these newspapers, such as the Sunday Mail or the unbelievably trashy Daily Star, these will be the only occasions when I purchase one of their dreadful offerings. However, it would be true to say that this collection I have built up is almost without exception among the worst items of music in my collection.

It was therefore with part trepidation and part fascination that I trotted down to my local supermarket last Sunday to pick up a copy of the Sunday Times. It was giving away a free CD of the Specials' recent live concert in Brixton earlier in the year. The Specials were a part of my growing up. Even though I never got round to purchasing any of their stuff (money was tight as a student and record purchases had to be carefully selected), I had always regarded them as being part of that exciting year when British music combined the popularity of the mainstream with sometimes biting political commentary.

Imagine my surprise then when I found that the free CD contained within the newspaper was actually a bloody good deal. Twelve tracks, all of them among the top songs the Specials had ever issued, and all recorded in crystal clear clarity at a gig at the Brixton Academy. What could be better? A Sunday read and a fine collection of some of the best ska tracks you will ever hear all for about a quid and a half.

The passage of time has seen the Specials lose none of their edge. And the stories contained within the songs are as pertinent now as they were nearly three decades ago. "Friday Night/Saturday Morning" and "Nite Klub" detail the pitfalls of the single guy on a weekend pretty much as they are today  going out, getting pissed out of your head on crap beer, ogling women, starting a fight and stopping off on the way back at the chippie, all of it on the dole. The words of the latter today still ring out over the years  I can still hear some of my friends making exactly the same point over thirty years ago:

"I won't dance in a club like this
All the girls are slags
and the beer tastes just like piss"

And I doubt much has changed.

On the other hand, "Blank Expression" and "Do Nothing" stand out as condemnatory of the lack of involvement of individuals in what was going on around them. Again, it is not hard to see the same apathy around today. The reaction of many to the actions of the Police today would be the same as 1980:

"Policeman comes and smacks me in the teeth
I don't complain, it's not my function"

If I were to have one criticism of the CD it would be the omission of the iconic "Ghost Town" from the list of songs. I am not sure why this is, but surely they could have squeezed it in without too much difficulty. But, despite that, this is a collection of live tracks that is as good as any that has been commercially released over the last few years. And it comes from an era which is still as fresh and as vital to me as it was all those years ago. Nostalgia is a wonderful thing, and this brings it all back.
Rating: 7/10