The Beat.
The English Beat, for us Yanks. This band is one of my favorites in the world, and that fact always sneaks up on me.
When I worked in the record store and was dating the Diego Luna ex, he did a really sweet thing for me. We each were able to pick out music to play in the store, and he had chosen the English Beat's "Just Can't Stop It" to listen to that day. A co-worker said, "Oh great! I love the English Beat!" And Diego Luna ex said, "I didn't pick it for you, I picked it for her." Because he knew that whenever I hear the English Beat, I am a happy gal.
The English Beat is another one of those bands that didn't sound like anything else. Yes, you could tell what genres they took their cues from, but they never sounded exactly like those genres. They were part of that second wave of ska, but they didn't stick with that "boom-chicka-boom-boom" rhythm so particular to those bands. Their first big chart hit was a cover of Smokey Robinson's "Tears of A Clown." Reggae, dub, soul, rock... it all found it's way in. The band was a total mishmash of Birmingham lads and their styles, nothing excluded - everything included.
They lasted five years and put out three full length albums. Supposedly, singer Dave Wakeling said that every band only has three good albums in them, and that's it. So they broke up after the third album.
Listening to the Beat makes me think of sunny days, the beach, convertibles, fruity cocktails, scooters, trenchcoats and snazzy black hats, little mod girls and beat boys. Their music is absolutely beautiful. They stood up for what they believed in, played with who they wanted and in the styles they felt like, and ended before they started to suck. And they had fun.
I know you already know the hits from these guys, so I advise you to seek out the rest. There is nothing so beautiful as "Walk Away," groovy as "Doors of Your Heart," and menacing as "Noise in This World." And anytime I play "Too Nice To Talk To" at a DJ gig, everyone gets moving.
Buy all their records! You'll love them... and there are only three, after all.
