Bob Dylan's Idiot Wind marks his re-emergence, 1975

When Bob Dylan went to ground in 1966, it would be eight years before he returned to live performance. Eight momentous years, during which the singer's words became entwined with astonishing events - freedom marches, assassinations, the war in Vietnam, the moon landings.

The poet and author Daniel Mark Epstein witnessed Dylan's return to the stage at Madison Square Garden in 1974. He had last seen Dylan perform live in 1963.

"Since then, his words had become prophetic."

And now, "Bob Dylan returned to the spotlight, with his guitar and harmonica, riding waves of applause. He launched into 'The Times They Are A-Changin'' and the audience cheered as they recognised the words."

Dylan getting used to playing live again, 1974

Come gather round people wherever you roam
And admit that waters around you have grown
And accept it that soon you'll be drenched to the bone.

But Dylan was nervous, understandably after such a long period away from the stage. He sang at a breakneck speed, "as if he couldn't wait to put it behind him, with all that burden of personal and shared history." 

As the set progressed though, he warmed to his task, resurrecting many of his most iconic songs and showing that he still had the fire in his belly; his ability to memorise lyrics in full display.

Darkness at the break of noon
Shadows even the silver spoon
The handmade blade, the child's balloon
Eclipses both the sun and moon

It's Alright Ma, I'm Only Bleeding runs to 113 lines and almost 700 words. The darkness at the edge of noon is a metaphor for mankind's interference with nature. Dylan takes aim at the pillars of society and, in a radical lyrical change, received with great applause, he takes aim at Richard Nixon, at the time accused of criminal conspiracy to steal secrets from his political opponents.

"...even the President of the United States, sometimes must have to stand naked"

Dylan's last studio album, Planet Waves, was a collection of pleasant songs, including one genuine contender in Forever Young. But fans still yearned for the poetry and social conscience that marked Dylan out as the voice of a generation in the 1960s.

The 1974 concerts with The Band showed Dylan where he needed to be. As his cosy family life dissolved and he embraced his music fully once again, he produced a masterpiece.

Blood On The Tracks contains some beautiful, graceful songs of love lost, tender moments shared and trust betrayed. It's arguably his most romantic album, apart from perhaps Blonde On Blonde, but it's also in parts his most angry.

Idiot Wind is the centrepiece song from side one. It's the tale of a man misunderstood, interwoven with bitterness and personal attacks on a former lover.

With typical obtuseness, Dylan denied the lyrics are in any way autobiographical, but it is very hard to believe him, given the proximity to his break up with wife Sara, and the sheer bile he invests in the lyrics.

On Idiot Wind, a poison pen letter to an estranged lover and confidante, Dylan lashes out at his partner and laments his predicament as a misunderstood public figure.

"People see me all the time, and they just can't remember how to act."

The line, "I haven't known peace and quiet, for so long I can't remember what it's like," is so pointedly personal it's hard to believe he isn't talking about himself.

Domestic bliss in Woodstock

He then seems to acknowledge that despite his life of family contentment, he wasn't cut out for it:
"You tamed the lion in my cage, but it just wasn't enough to change my heart."

So much anger and hate in these lines, it feels like intruding on private grief:

"I can't feel you anymore
I can't even touch the books you've read"

And the final dismissal:

"I've been double-crossed now
For the very last time and now I'm finally free
I kissed goodbye the howling beast
On the borderline which separated you from me
You'll never know the hurt I suffered
Nor the pain I rise above
And I'll never know the same about you
Your holiness or your kind of love
And it makes me feel so sorry."

Idiot Wind....

Great songs and all, truly, but the reason I think Blood On The Tracks was so successful artistically and commercially, was that it was relatable. Anyone who has gone through a bitter break-up could empathise with the protagonist of Idiot Wind. The anger and spite in that song is not typical of the remainder of the album, which has some of the most romantic and heart-felt songs in Dylan's entire repertoire. Who amongst us cannot relate to the emotions expressed in "If You See Her, Say Hello" or "Simple Twist of Fate"?

Is it wrong to get enjoyment from a famous artist dissing their ex so publicly? The answer lies in how we project ourselves onto these words.

The clip featured here is from the second leg of the RollingThunder Revue tour - the 1976 stadium tour rather than the small club tour featured in Martin Scorsese's movie. 

This clip, while not of the greatest visual quality, packs a punch on the musical front. The band gives the song a bouncier feel but there is nothing bouncy about Dylan's delivery. It captures the anger of the recorded version very well, which is perhaps a reflection that has reconciliation with Sara around this time wasn't working out. 

The recording is from a TV special aired in September 1976 but dating from May 23 in Fort Collins, Colorado. It was the penultimate show of the Rolling Thunder tour. Reviews at the time noted how the initial charm of Dylan's travelling show had largely worn off. This performance was also released as part of the Hard Rain live album. Apart from bassist and band leader Rob Stoner, the band at this late stage of the tour consisted of T-Bone Burnett, Steven Soles and David Mansfield on guitar, Scarlet Rivera on violin and Gary Burke on drums.

Someone's got it in for me
They're planting stories in the press
Whoever it is I wish they'd cut it out quick
But when they will I can only guess
They say I shot a man named Gray
And took his wife to Italy
She inherited a million bucks
And when she died it came to me
I can't help it if I'm lucky

People see me all the time
And they just can't remember how to act
Their minds are filled with big ideas
Images and distorted facts
Even you, yesterday
You had to ask me where it was at
I couldn't believe after all these years
You didn't know me better than that
Sweet lady

Idiot wind
Blowing every time you move your mouth
Blowing down the back roads headin' south
Idiot wind
Blowing every time you move your teeth
You're an idiot, babe
It's a wonder that you still know how to breathe

I ran into the fortune-teller
Who said, "beware of lightning that might strike"
I haven't known peace and quiet
For so long I can't remember what it's like

There's a lone soldier on the cross
Smoke pourin' out of a boxcar door
You didn't know it, you didn't think it could be done
In the final end he won the wars
After losin' every battle

I woke up on the roadside
Daydreamin' 'bout the way things sometimes are
Visions of your chestnut mare
Shoot through my head and are makin' me see stars
You hurt the ones that I love best
And cover up the truth with lies
One day you'll be in the ditch
Flies buzzin' around your eyes
Blood on your saddle

Idiot wind
Blowing through the flowers on your tomb
Blowing through the curtains in your room
Idiot wind
Blowing every time you move your teeth
You're an idiot, babe
It's a wonder that you still know how to breathe

It was gravity which pulled us down
And destiny which broke us apart
You tamed the lion in my cage
But it just wasn't enough to change my heart

Now everything's a little upside down
As a matter of fact the wheels have stopped
What's good is bad, what's bad is good
You'll find out when you reach the top
You're on the bottom

I noticed at the ceremony
Your corrupt ways had finally made you blind
I can't remember your face anymore
Your mouth has changed
Your eyes don't look into mine

The priest wore black on the seventh day
And sat stone-faced while the building burned
I waited for you on the running boards
Near the cypress trees, while the springtime turned
Slowly into autumn

Idiot wind
Blowing like a circle around my skull
From the Grand Coulee Dam to the Capitol
Idiot wind
Blowing every time you move your teeth
You're an idiot, babe
It's a wonder that you still know how to breathe

I can't feel you anymore
I can't even touch the books you've read
Every time I crawl past your door
I been wishin' I was somebody else instead

Down the highway, down the tracks
Down the road to ecstasy
I followed you beneath the stars
Hounded by your memory
And all your ragin' glory

I been double-crossed now
For the very last time and now I'm finally free
I kissed goodbye the howling beast
On the borderline which separated you from me

You'll never know the hurt I suffered
Nor the pain I rise above
And I'll never know the same about you
Your holiness or your kind of love
And it makes me feel so sorry

Idiot wind
Blowing through the buttons of our coats
Blowing through the letters that we wrote
Idiot wind
Blowing through the dust upon our shelves
We're idiots, babe
It's a wonder we can even feed ourselves

- Bob Dylan 1975

Also on this blog:

Bob and Joan and Scarlett and Joni... The Rolling Thunder Revue

Joan Baez, Bob Dylan - I Shall Be Released - RollingThunder Revue, 1975

Blonde On Blonde - Bob Dylan's artistic peak in the 1960s

A Complete Unknown - movie trailer

A Complete Unknown featurette

Bob Dylan & Joan Baez - It Ain't Me Babe (Live 1964)

Joan performs Dylan's Percy's Song, 1965

Bob Dylan & Joan Baez - 2009 Documentary

Bob and Joan chat about their relationship, 1975

The Lady Who Edited Woodstock

Michael Wadleigh filming Richie Havens

I'm kind of obsessed with the 1969 Woodstock Festival. Not just the movie and the music, but how the event came together in bizarre circumstances - how it was both a triumph and a disaster. Perish the thought, but if I was ever to appear on the quiz show Mastermind, this would be my specialist subject.

Here's a wonderful story from someone who was right there in 1969.

My favourite podcast is This Cultural Life on BBC Sounds. Fascinating interviews by John Wilson with artists, writers and film-makers and not one that I haven’t enjoyed over about 50 episodes. In this episode, Wilson interviewed renowned film editor Thelma Schoonmaker, who has worked closely with Martin Scorsese for over 50 years.

Marty and Thelma in 1969

Thelma, now 85, reveals the process of working with Scorsese in the cutting room and how, through him, she met her late husband Michael Powell, whose films with Emeric Pressburger, both she and Scorsese had so admired from childhood.

The most remarkable part of the interview for me - and my long-held fascination with Woodstock - is when Thelma recalls how she and Scorsese were part of the filming and editing team on the Woodstock festival movie, for which she received her first Oscar nomination for Best Film Editing - the first documentary ever to be nominated in that category.

She tells how the team of documentary makers acquired a new editing machine that would allow them to have three images displayed at once. “We thought, why don’t we make a movie like this," said Schoonmaker. 

Thelma with Wadleigh and the editing team

"With great bravery, Michael Wadleigh, the director, decided to go for broke and spend his own money to get us all up at Woodstock, filming. That was just an amazing experience."

What they encountered at the site of the festival was not what they had expected.

"We had rented motel rooms. We thought we would drive back there after the evening performances. But we couldn’t even get out. It was jammed with traffic and people. So for three days we didn’t have a place to sleep. We slept on the ground – tics in our hair – no food. Every once in a while, someone would come up with a frankfurter, if you were lucky."

Thelma said, "Marty felt we were going to be able to go out to dinner. He had brought cufflinks."

"The Who kicked us off the stage"

Although Woodstock was an ordeal, they found it tremendously exciting as the festival unfolded, with a bonded crowd of 400,000 young people entertained by many of the greatest acts of the 1960s. The film-makers' challenge was how to document it as closely as possible, in very difficult conditions.

"We had six cameramen on the stage; 15 out in the audience. We had no idea what we were getting. We were hoping it was OK because we couldn’t send the film out to be developed," said Schoonmaker.

"The main cameraman was Michael Wadleigh, who was looking through a lens for three days solid – no sleep, no food – doing these amazing shots of people like The Who."

Scorsese at Woodstock

Scorsese was helping Wadleigh decide what songs to shoot and negotiating with managers for the rights to do it. Sometimes they would get kicked off the stage.

"The Who actually kicked us off the stage, but then they didn’t even notice – they were putting on such a great show - that we snuck back on."

Thelma was mainly underneath the stage, trying to load the film magazines. "It was raining a lot and the cameras were jamming, so they would throw the magazine under the stage and we would try and reload it. It was a mammoth, absolutely back-breaking job, but so exciting.

“The great moment was the last day. It was dawn; we had been shooting all night, again. We were completely exhausted and then Jimi Hendrix came on. I thought, is this really him, or am I dreaming? And he did this incredible job of playing The Star Spangled Banner and massacre-ing it to show what was happening in Vietnam. It was a transformative moment.”

Hendrix performing to a thinned-out crowd

And then suddenly, it was all over.

"Everyone had left and there was just mud and detritus everywhere. We packed up and on the way home we stopped and ate. Michael Wadleigh was so tired his head just crashed into his spaghetti. When I got home, I had big whelts on my pants because I’d been wearing the same thing for three days.

In the BBC interview, John Wilson points to the visceral excitement that comes across in the movie, which Schoonmaker says was helped by the fact that she, as the editor, was there and she knew how it felt.

“Of course, we hadn’t seen all the footage we had of the people who were out in the field. There were so many wonderful interviews that we didn’t even know we had."

However, Warner Brothers were not interested in the film. "They said it’s a news event, just get it out quickly. We said no, you don’t understand, we have something very special here; a breakthrough in how to film festivals, how to film music."

It took an act of thievery to prevent them from cutting the movie back.

"A breakthrough in how to film music"

"We were supposed to bring the movie to New York City to show the press. Warner Bros were saying you have to cut the movie, you have to cut it down; we said no.

"Dale Bell, who was one of the producers, and I, stole the soundtrack from the vaults, to keep them from cutting it. So they had no choice but to send the version we wanted to New York.

"They had Pinkerton guards in the projection booth. I wasn’t allowed to go in, because they knew we had stolen the tracks. At one point I was standing watching the press reviewers and they were getting up and dancing in the aisles, which I’ve never seen. So we knew we had something special."

As the credits rolled, Ted Ashley, the head of Warners Bros, came up and touched Thelma on the shoulder. "OK, you’re right," he said. "We won’t cut it."

My Woodstock 50th Anniversary Diary

Also on this blog:

2-Tone and possibly my best gig ever

Queen's 1976 Free Concert in Hyde Park

Memories of the Reading Festival, 1975

Five Days of High Drama at the Isle of Wight, 1970

From Pinner to LA - Elton's Big Breakthrough, 1970

A Wizard, A True Star - my all-time favourite album

Blonde On Blonde - Bob Dylan's Artistic Peak in the 1960s

 Joni Mitchell - The Hissing of Summer Lawns

People Power - Live Aid , Mandela and Human Rights Now!

My mother just messaged me to say she's watching the re-run of Live Aid on the BBC.

"I'm looking for you in the crowd."

"But Mum, I wasn't there!!"

I'm not sure why I wasn't at Live Aid, 40 years ago today. As a committed concert-goer back then, I certainly would have been up for it. I imagine the event must have sold out quickly before I could get hold of a ticket. 

On the day, I remember I was in my car with the radio on, and hearing the now famous announcement: "It's 12 noon in London, 7am in Philadelphia and around the world it's time for Live Aid!"

I watched the day unfold on TV with friends, into the early hours of Sunday morning. I still have the audio tapes. On one of them, at the conclusion of Led Zeppelin's Stairway To Heaven, you hear DJ Mike Smith saying "Well, if you won't give us at least a quid after hearing the most requested song of all time, well, there's no hope is there?"

My Live Aid cassettes

Live Aid showed what was possible when a whole community of artists work together to benefit those much less fortunate than themselves. It also engaged a generation of 20 and 30-somethings in a way that is perhaps hard to imagine now. 

The 1980s was a politically-charged time, with issues of civil and human rights, and the environment gaining prominence. The use of music to highlight these issues, although it was radical, it also seemed quite natural at the time. And after Live Aid, the torch was carried forward by some of these high profile rock stars in the fight for human rights, the fight against apartheid in South Africa and many other worthy causes.

Sting became involved in highlighting the destruction of the Amazon rainforest. His songwriting reflected an awareness of oppression in the Soviet Union (Russians) and in South America (They Dance Alone). Peter Gabriel wrote 'Biko' in response to the death in South African police custody of the anti-apartheid activist Stephen Biko. The song was often used at the climax of Gabriel's live shows, encouraging the audience to chant in sympathy and comradeship.

So while much is rightly being made of the 40^th anniversary of Live Aid, the humanitarian and charity events that followed it are also an important part of the story. As such, the immediate legacy of Live Aid was the string of politically-charged concerts in the late 80s, beginning with another cracker of an event music-wise, the Nelson Mandela 70th Birthday Tribute at Wembley Stadium. 

My ticket

The June 1988 concert that spurred the release from jail of Nelson Mandela, was a remarkable collection of global talent. More diverse than Live Aid and featuring many of the biggest artists of the day.

It was probably the most politically influential of any concert held in the UK. The BBC fended off resistance to the idea of giving a whole day's TV (again!), not for famine relief this time, but to support the release of a political prisoner. 

Mandela had at this point served 26 years in prison. After the 70th Birthday Tribute concert was shown around the world (except in South Africa, of course), growing domestic and international pressure forced President F. W. de Klerk to release Mandela in 1990 and negotiate an end to apartheid. In 1994 Mandela became president of South Africa. 

Here’s the list of artists who appeared at the June 1988 show:

Harry Belafonte, Sting, George Michael, Eurythmics, Al Green, Joe Cocker, Ashford & Simpson, Natalie Cole, Tracy Chapman, Midge Ure, Phil Collins, Joan Armatrading, Paul Young, Bryan Adams, The Bee Gees, Salif Keita, Youssou N’Dour, Sly & Robbie, Aswad, Mahlathini and the Mahotella Queens, UB40 and Chrissie Hynde, Hugh Masekela, Miriam Makeba, Courtney Pine, Simple Minds, Peter Gabriel, Steve van Zandt, Jerry Dammers, Whitney Houston, Stevie Wonder, Dire Straits featuring Eric Clapton, Jessye Norman. With contributions from Whoopi Goldberg, Richard Gere, Jackson Browne, Michael Palin, Harry Enfield and a particularly emotional introduction to Dire Straits by Billy Connolly. 

Emotions ran high from the very start of the show. Sting had been persuaded to appear, even though he had a gig that night somewhere in Europe. Credit to him for going on early and getting the concert off on the right note, with his tribute to the Mothers of the Disappeared, ‘They Dance Alone’.

George Michael also went on early in the show and bravely chose to cover Stevie Wonder’s Village Ghetto Land.

Unfortunately for Stevie, and for us, the hard drive for his keyboards went missing just as he was about to take the stage. His scheduled performance was scrapped and Tracy Chapman stepped forward with her guitar and played Fast Car. Apparently, her record sales went stratospheric after this. 

Simple Minds came on and pumped up the audience with Waterfront and Alive and Kicking. 

The day would not have been complete without Jerry Dammers and an augmented Special AKA performing Free Nelson Mandela, with Ndonda Khuze on vocals. As the carnival vibes were ramped up, the crowd chanted "The Whole World Is Watching!!"

In the Royal Box, Neil and Glenys Kinnock were rocking and rolling. It was a birthday party, why not?

Whitney Houston won the audience over with the sheer power of her voice. Her appearance on the bill was perhaps seen as tame in the midst of the other edgier artists, but after a few of her trademark vocal somersaults, we all looked at each like, wow, this girl can sing. It was a phenomenal performance, in less than ideal conditions for her, in the open air with the temperature dropping.

Then Stevie Wonder appeared suddenly. No keyboards, just standing at the mike calling out the key changes to the band. He didn't stay long. It fell a bit flat, to be honest. 

Night fell and Billy Connolly come on to introduce Dire Straits. He told us that when the band's album went to number one in South Africa, rather than take the royalties, they said send the money to Amnesty International.

"It must break the hearts of those shits, to sign the cheque every year and send it off. And as result, the boys are banned in South Africa, which is a compliment. Ladies and gentlemen, with a happy heart and a tear in either eye...Dire Straits". 

The band sounded immaculate, augmented by Eric Clapton, and as Dire Straits played Brothers In Arms, I've rarely witnessed such a charged atmosphere at a show. Maybe this clip gives some sense of what it was like. Mark Knopfler was clearly affected by it. 

"Best birthday party we've ever been to," he told the audience.

Jessye Norman sang Amazing Grace at the finale. The perfect end to a special day. 

The second Nelson Mandela concert, in April 1990 also at Wembley, was notable less for the music (although it was another bumper list of artists) but most of all because Mandela was there in person.

That remains one of the most thrilling and inspiring moments of my life. After 27 years in prison, he walked out on the stage to a massive ovation. It seemed to last a long time - in fact it was only about 6 minutes - before he was able to speak. 

Nelson Mandela on stage at Wembley

The Anti-Apartheid movement had been galvanised by that first Wembley concert, to increase the pressure on the South African regime to release Mandela. And here we were, two years later, to welcome him back. It may seem crazy to believe a pop concert could really make that much difference. But here was the proof. 

The Human Rights Now! concerts in September 1988, held around the world and featuring Bruce Springsteen, Sting, Peter Gabriel, Youssou N'Dour and Tracy Chapman, were another example of how rock musicians put themselves forward as advocates for political change and awareness. This time, they didn't just turn up to Wembley and plug in, they took it out on the road and worked it. South America, Africa, Asia and points in between. Again, it was inspiring and engaged a new generation in the fight for freedom and equal rights.

My ticket

Here's Bruce Springsteen getting the crowd jumping in Argentina.

As the decade came to a close, the fall of the iron curtain across Eastern Europe and the release of Mandela were the culmination of this new sense that people did have the power to force change. Oppression and inequality haven't gone away, but events such as this gave us the belief that change can happen when people come together to show their opposition and resistance. 

Also on this blog:
2-Tone and possibly my best gig ever

Queen's 1976 Free Concert in Hyde Park

Memories of the Reading Festival, 1975

Five Days of High Drama at the Isle of Wight, 1970

From Pinner to LA - Elton's Big Breakthrough, 1970

My Woodstock 50th Anniversary Diary

A Wizard, A True Star - my all-time favourite album

Blonde On Blonde - Bob Dylan's Artistic Peak in the 1960s

 Joni Mitchell - The Hissing of Summer Lawns

2-Tone and possibly my best gig ever

If I had to pick the best concert I’ve ever been to, there are several candidates. I’ve written about seeing Pink Floyd play Dark Side Of The Moon in 1974, seeing the outrageous Tubes at Hammersmith in 1977, BobMarley at Madison Square Garden in 1978, or the sensuous and sublime Joni Mitchell in 1983. Steely Dan at Hammersmith in 2000 had probably the best sound.

But above all those, I think, in terms of sheer funky excitement was this genuine contender for best gig ever. It was 17th November 1979 at Loughborough University Students Union – The Specials, The Selecter and Dexy’s Midnight Runners. Three bands at the top of their game.

What a gig. Each band put on a funky soul-stirring show that would have been terrific if it had been just the one band alone. As a three-fer it was outstanding. I couldn’t say who was better, they were all fantastic.

I even kept the street poster - massive, like the ones you used to see posted on street corners. Kept it for years until I emigrated and it was just too big to pack into my memorabilia case. Wish I still had it, as a memento of a wild night. The one pictured here is from the same time, different venue.

Dexy’s Midnight Runners had already released their debut single, Dance Stance (changed to its original title, Burn It Down, on the album Searching for the Young Soul Rebels) and had been looking for a major label deal. Jerry Dammers, leader of The Specials and founder of the 2-Tone record label, wanted to sign Dexy's and offered them a support slot playing alongside The Specials and The Selecter. They replaced Madness who had left the 2-Tone tour after their initial success. Dexy's eventually signed for EMI, but for this brief moment, they were attached to 2-Tone. 

Dexy's Midnight Runners, 1979

This was Dexy’s Midnight Runners in their full soul-boy mode, all of them wearing black thigh-length coats and wooly hats. They must have been boiling on stage.

Their second single, Geno had yet to be released. For now, they had to be content with third billing. Six months on from this gig, Geno would get them to Number One.

Like the other bands on that night, Dexy’s were at their best in a live club situation, with exuberant horns and a front man, Kevin Rowland, consumed by a passion for the soul music of his youth. 

Rowland told The Guardian “The lyrics are all true. I saw Geno Washington in '68 at the Railway Hotel in Harrow. I was 15 years old and out with all the older kids – short-haired, cool-looking mods-turning-into-skinhead types. I didn’t have any intention to be a singer at that point. I just thought you go to school, go to work and that’s it. But when Geno came on swinging a towel, something clicked in me."

This studio staged video for the song 'There, There My Dear' gives you some idea of how Dexy's came across at the time.

Where Dexy's relied heavily on the soul bands of the 1960s for their style, the Specials and The Selecter combined reggae and ska with the energy of punk rock. 

Jerry Dammers said he saw punk as a piss-take of rock music: "it was great and it was really funny, but I couldn't believe people took it as a serious musical genre which they then had to copy. It seemed to be a bit more healthy to have an integrated kind of British music, rather than white people playing rock and black people playing their music. Ska was an integration of the two."

The Selecter, 1979

I was an early adopter of 2-Tone. I had already bought Gangsters by The Special AKA the week it was released, and when The Selecter released their first single, On My Radio, that became a firm favourite too. As a big fan of funk music, The Selecter’s brand of funky ska was actually my favourite sound at the time. 

'Three Minute Hero' captures that energy in this live clip. Their leader and chief songwriter, Neol Davies, put together a group of the funkiest players in Coventry, topped off with the charismatic Pauline Black as lead vocalist. 

They were terrific live, totally a match for their label-mates in musicality and sheer exuberance. And like The Specials, The Selecter were a deliberately mixed-race band. Pauline Black said 2-Tone was standing for multiculturalism before the word had even been invented. "It was an exciting time. We'd all come to it from different backgrounds, but we found a unity in the message we were saying."

The 2-Tone movement started out at the same time as Rock Against Racism. "For me, it was no good being anti-racist if you didn't involve black people, so what The Specials tried to do was create something that was more integrated," said Dammers.

Rock Against Racism was a reaction to the rise of the far-right National Front and the race riots that had become more frequent in the late 1970s, peaking in 1981, just as The Specials were getting to Number One on the charts with 'Ghost Town'. It was a time of violent confrontation on the streets, reflecting conflict not just between whites and blacks, but the police as well. A disproportionate number of black men died in custody in those years, and still do.

The Specials. Jerry Dammers (centre)

The country was falling apart, said Dammers. "You travelled from town to town and what was happening was terrible. In Liverpool, all the shops were shuttered up, everything was closing down. Margaret Thatcher was closing down all the industries, throwing millions of people on the dole.

"You could see the frustration and anger in the audience. In Glasgow, there were these little old ladies on the streets selling all their household goods, their cups and saucers. It was unbelievable. It was clear that something was very, very wrong."

Dammers wasn't afraid to use his platform to confront people on the issues of the day. He tapped into their frustration and lack of hope with songs that addressed them directly. Songs like Too Much Too Young, Rat Race, Stupid Marriage and Racist Friend.

You need stamina for a gig where all three bands are playing not just foot-tapping sounds but get-up, jump-about-go-crazy music. This was a student union, so not a massive gig, maybe a thousand people, and that lent an electric intimacy to the event. After Dexy's and The Selecter had done their thing, I remember thinking how can The Specials top that? 

Once they hit the stage, their connection with the audience was such that there was never any question this was their show. They really were, yes Special. They could get a song about contraception to number one while uniting a black and white audience. It was completely unprecedented. The Specials live shows were so full-on and the crowd so rowdy, it really was like a punk gig at times, without the bad vibes. Each gig would finish with the audience invited onto the stage, and despite the chaos, the band carried on playing. 

It's a shame that personality clashes brought an end to The Specials after just two albums. They were the conscience of a generation for a short period of time and it should have been longer. 

In fact, all three bands went through some tough times after the initial excitement of those first gigs, with infighting and wholesale personnel changes. 

Once Dexy's Midnight Runners broke through with Geno, they copped a lot of flak from the media for Rowland's confrontational stance: "We took the music press on by putting statements out in adverts instead of giving interviews, which infuriated them. We took everybody on, really. I take responsibility. I was far too controlling and aggressive."

Dammers was arguably just as controlling within The Specials. He had a right to be, but after a while the others didn't share his view that everything has to be political. "At first it was a great laugh, we're all in this together, there's no stars here," said Dammers. The level of intensity in The Specials music and their live shows would have been difficult to maintain, though. 

Once the original band had dispersed, Dammers ploughed on. Another hit single, Free Nelson Mandela, led to Dammers founding the British wing of Artists Against Apartheid, raising awareness of the jailed South African leader of the African National Congress, and providing the inspiration for the 70th birthday tribute concert at Wembley Stadium in 1988. Another of my all-time best gigs. 

BBC Documentary - 2 Tone The Sound of Coventry 

THE SPECIALS: Live in Concert (UK Television 1979)

The Specials - "Blank Expression" (Live 1979)

Guardian article - The year rock found the power to unite

Also on this blog:

People Power - Live Aid, Mandela and Political Gigs

https://bangnzdrum.blogspot.com/2025/07/live-aid-and-political-concerts-of-1980s.html?m=0

Seeing Bob Marley - live in New York 1978

How my mid-1980s funk band was revived in 2019

ALSO - Check out Michael Burdett’s live show ‘Before Fame’ in which he talks about discovering Wham! when they were a ska band. True story. 

https://beforefame.co.uk/

New release from my 1980s funk band World Series

World Series live, 1984

My more devoted readers (bless you) may remember I wrote about my jazz funk band from the 1980s - World Series - and how our first single was re-released in 2019. 

The initial revival of World Series was remarkable enough, but it has gained momentum, and now another of our songs is featured on a new compilation album entitled 'The Voice of Love’. 

The Voice of Love is (it says here) “a collection of British sophisti-pop and jazz-funk from the 1980s” released by Henry Jones' California-based archival record label Smiling C. 

World Series, a feature of the Britfunk scene in London in the mid 80s, recorded this song, Take My Love, as their follow up single to the double A-side Try It Out / Head Over Heels, re-released in 2019.

Take My Love features Mark Ambler on piano and synthesiser, Mike Frankel on guitar and vocals, Keith Mawson on bass, Richard Newell (me) on drums and Pablo Cook on percussion.

Check it out on Youtube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XIzq7VKgsIc

Test Pressing's review of The Voice of Love LP described it as "offering up a dreamy window into the smooth sounds of the UK underground at the time." World Series provided "the lush jazz-funk and R&B sounds of 52nd Street."

Smiling C have sold out of their initial run of the LP, but you can still get your copy here: https://boomkat.com/products/the-voice-of-love-ee688565-87e5-4ab2-a6cd-d0fd96e4b7ee You can buy the Digital Album here https://smilingc.bandcamp.com/album/the-voice-of-love And four World Series songs, including Take My Love, are on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/artist/7N3SSM1fpu0kkHQTBixHC6

If you have any trouble getting hold of a copy, let us know. Enjoy!

If you'd like to buy the vinyl version of Try It Out / Head Over Heels by World Series, click on the link below. 
https://chuwanaga.bandcamp.com/album/try-it-out-head-over-heels?fbclid=IwAR0FH8IF386eFKmUvJqejUMJtRiwysNcrb_OXTJD9JpOzyEv1YrEzx6sChY

How My Mid-1980s Funk Band Was Revived in 2019 https://bangnzdrum.blogspot.com/2019/12/world-series-how-my-mid-1980s-funk-band.html?m=0

Also on this blog:
2-Tone and possibly my best gig ever

Queen's 1976 Free Concert in Hyde Park

Memories of the Reading Festival, 1975

Five Days of High Drama at the Isle of Wight, 1970

From Pinner to LA - Elton's Big Breakthrough, 1970

My Woodstock 50th Anniversary Diary

A Wizard, A True Star - my all-time favourite album

Blonde On Blonde - Bob Dylan's Artistic Peak in the 1960s

 Joni Mitchell - The Hissing of Summer Lawns