RICO SPECIAL AKA JUNGLE MUSIC SPECIALS 2 TONE SKA RARE

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	$		53

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RICO AND THE SPECIAL AKA

JUNGLE MUSIC

RASTA CALL YOU

RELEASED ON 2 TONE RECORDS  CHS TT 19

THIS RECORD HAS 2 TONE PAPER LABELS

One of the most prolific session players of Jamaica's pre-ska era, trombonist Rico Rodriguez later emerged as a catalyst behind the UK's 2-Tone movement of the late 1970s, recording both as a solo artist and as a member of the legendary Specials. Born October 17, 1934, his musical pursuits began while attending Kingston's Alpha Cottage School, an institution for wayward boys, where he studied trombone under the legendary Don Drummond. In the years to follow, Rodriguez emerged as one of Jamaica's most highly regarded session musicians, often working under the direction of the renowned producer Duke Reid. In 1961, in the months prior to the explosion of the ska phenomenon, he relocated to the UK, where he recorded a number of sides for the fledgling Island label and gigged extensively on the jazz and R&B circuits, playing with Georgie Fame's Blue Flames and others. He also remained a top-notch session man, appearing on Sugar & Dandy's 1967 classic "A Message to You Rudy," among others.

Despite maintaining a permanent residence in Britain, Rodriguez held fast to his strong Rastafarian beliefs, and Island frequently paid for him to return to Kingston to record with the city's most prominent session players; while his forte remained jazz, he adapted brilliantly to any environment, and applied his improvisational skills to productions from notables including Sly & Robbie. In 1977, Rodriguez also cut a solo LP, Man from Wareika, credited to simply "Rico; " it was followed a year later by Midnight in Ethiopia. In 1979, he appeared on the Specials' cover of "A Message to You Rudy," and soon joined the band as a full-time member; for the group's 2-Tone label, Rodriguez also helmed his own outfit, Rico and the Rudies, to yield the albums Blow Your Horn and Brixton Cat. Again as Rico, he also cut another pair of solo LPs, 1981's That Man Is Forward and its 1982 follow-up Jama. Session work was then primary focus for over a decade, but in the mid-1990s Rodriguez returned with a number of solo projects, among them 1995's Roots to the Bone and 1997's Tribute to Don Drummond.

True innovators of the punk era, the Specials began the British ska revival craze, combining the highly danceable ska and rocksteady beat with punk's energy and attitude, and taking on a more focused and informed political and social stance than their predecessors and peers.

The band was originally formed in Coventry, in 1977, as the Coventry Automatics and later the Special A.K.A. by songwriter/keyboardist Jerry Dammers, with Terry Hall (vocals), Lynval Golding (guitar, vocals), Neville Staples (vocals, percussion), Roddy Radiation (guitar), Sir Horace Gentleman (bass), and John Bradbury (drums). An opening slot for the Clash stirred up interest with the major labels, but Dammers instead opted to start his own 2-Tone label, named for its multiracial agenda and after the two-tone tonic suits favored by the like-minded mods of the '60s. The Dammers-designed logos, based in '60s pop art with black and white checks, gave the label an instantly identifiable look. Dammers' eye for detail and authenticity also led to the band adopting '60s-period rude-boy outfits (porkpie hats, tonic and mohair suits, and loafers). The band released the "Gangsters" single, which reached the U.K. Top Ten. Soon after, hordes of bands and fans followed in the same tradition, and the movement was in full swing. Over the next several months, 2-Tone enjoyed hits by similar-sounding bands, such as Madness, the (English) Beat, and the Selecter. Late in 1979, the band released its landmark self-titled debut album, produced by Elvis Costello. They followed with several 2-Tone package tours and a live EP, Too Much Too Young (confusingly credited to Special A.K.A.). The title track, a pro-contraception song, was banned by the BBC but reached the number one spot in the U.K. At this time, the band switched musical directions, releasing album number two, More Specials, with a new neo-lounge persona. Signs indicated that the movement was fading and 2-Tone began to experience financial troubles. Nevertheless, a film documenting the 2-Tone package tours, Dance Craze, as well as its companion album, saw considerable success. The Specials released the timely "Ghost Town" single in 1981 amid race-related unemployment riots in Brixton and Liverpool. The single jumped to number one, but the band was falling apart. Hall, Staples, and Golding left to form Fun Boy Three, leaving the band without its trademark voice. Dammers held on, reverting back to the old name, Special A.K.A., and enlisted a new vocalist, Stan Campbell. After several years, they returned with In the Studio in 1984. They managed a few hits with "Racist Friend" and "Free Nelson Mandella," but the album stiffed. The band's final single, "What I Like Most About You Is Your Girlfriend," failed to break the British Top 40. Dammers dissolved the unit, pursuing political causes such as Artists Against Apartheid.

Shortly after the official breakup, various members of the band joined up with other bandless ska revivalists (English Beat, etc.) to form a touring unit named Special Beat. By the mid-'90s, in response to the third wave ska revival, a Dammers-less version of the Specials reappeared with a series of shameful cash-in albums: Today's Specials (1996,) Guilty Til Proved Innocent! (1998,) and Conquering Ruler (2002.)