Skin deep
ska and reggae on the racial faultline in Britain, 1968-1981
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1558/pomh.v5i2.191Keywords:
ska, race, Britain, Two Tone, equals, punkAbstract
This article tracks the history of ska in Britain in terms of its relationship with the mainstream white population. The article tracks a brief history from The Equals, through the impact of reggae during the punk era, to the use of ska by the Two Tone, and similar, groups. One of the article’s most important concerns is with the relationship between the reception of ska and the ways that issues related to race were played out in Britain. The article argues that, while Jerry Dammers, the instigator of The Specials and founder of the Two Tone ska/punk sound, claimed that the reworking of ska by punk-influenced groups comprised of both black and white members was an assertion of racial equality, in reality the resurrection of ska marked a retrograde step full of nostalgia for an earlier time when black migrants were clearly positioned as subordinate to the white, British population.
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Thomas, M. 2008. ‘Official Biography of Trojan Records’. Michael Thomas: Official Website of ‘the’ Reggae Man. http://kivikko.intranetit.net/en/ajankohtaista/trojan_recordsin_ biografia.html
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Veal, M. E. 2007. Dub: Soundscapes and Shattered Songs in Jamaican Reggae. Middletown, CT: Wesleyan University Press.
Zuberi, N. 2010. ‘Worries in the Dance: Post-Millenial Grooves and Sub-Bass Culture’. In Britpop and the English Music Tradition, ed. Andy Bennett and Jon Stratton. Aldershot: Ashgate.
Anon. 2008. ‘The Equators—The Best Ska Band from the Early 80s You Never Heard’. Marco on the Bass. http://marcoonthebass.blogspot.com/2008/05/equators-best-ska-band -from-early-80s.html
Bradley, L. 2001. This is Reggae Music: The Story of Jamaica’s Music. New York: Grove Press.
Calcutt, A. 2007. ‘Me and The Specials’. The Spiked Review of Books. http://www.spikedonline.com/index.php?/site/reviewofbooks_article/3861/
Carrier, D. 2008. ‘He’s Electric! Eddy Grant’s Hometown Memories’. Camden New Journal. http://www.thecnj.myzen.co.uk/review/2008/072408/feat072408_01.html
Clayson, A. 1995. Beat Merchants: the Origins, History, Impact and Rock Legacy of the 1960s British Pop Groups. London: Blandford.
Coon, C. 1976. ‘British Reggae: Prejudiced Vibrations’. Melody Maker, Rock’s Back Pages Library, 9 October.
Ewing, T. 2009. ‘The Specials—“Ghost Town” ’. Freaky Trigger. http://freakytrigger.co.uk/ ft/2009/01/the-specials-ghost-town/
Fryer, P. 1984. Staying Power: Black People in Britain Since 1504. Atlantic Highlands, NJ: Humanities Press.
Gilbert, P. 2004. Passion is a Fashion: The Real Story of The Clash. London: Aurum.
Gilroy, P. 2002. There Ain’t No Black in the Union Jack: The Cultural Politics of Race and Nation. London and New York: Routledge.
Green, J. n.d. ‘Ghost Town: The Specials’. Allmusic. http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg. dll?p=amg&sql=33:axfwxzyrldhe
Hansen, R. 2000. Citizenship and Immigration in Post-War Britain: The Institutional Origins of a Multicultural Nation. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press.
Harrington, P., and B. Graham. 2004. The Session Man: The Story of Bobby Graham. Wales: Broom House Publishing.
Hebdige, D. 1979. Subculture: The Meaning of Style. London: Methuen. http://dx.doi.org/ 10.4324/9780203139943
–1990. Cut ’n’ Mix: Culture, Identity and Caribbean Music. London: Routledge.
–1993. ‘Reggae, Rastas and Rudies’. In Resistance Through Rituals: Youth Subcultures in PostWar Britain, ed. S. Hall and T. Jefferson. London: Routledge.
Howe, Z. S. 2009. Typical Girls?: The Story of The Slits. London: Omnibus Press.
Katz, D. 2001. People Funny Boy: The Genius of Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry. Edinburgh: Payback Press.
Kettle, M. and L. Hodges. 1982. Uprising!: The Police, the People, and the Riots in Britain’s Cities. London: Pan Books.
Letts, D., with D. Nobakht. 2007. Culture Clash: Dread Meets Punk Rockers. London: SAF Publishing.
Manzoor, Sarfraz. 2008. ‘The Year Rock Found the Power to Unite’. guardian.co.uk/ The Observer, 20 April 2008. http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2008/apr/20/pop androck.race
Morley, P. 1978. ‘Steel Pulse: Rainbow Theatre, London’. New Musical Express, Rock’s Back Pages Library, 4 November.
O’Brien Chang, K., and W. Chen. 1998. Reggae Routes: The Story of Jamaican Music. Philadelphia: Temple University Press.
Panter, H. 2008. Ska’d For Life: A Personal Journey with The Specials. London: Pan.
Petridis, A. 2002. ‘Ska for the Madding Crowd’. The Guardian, 8 March 2002. http://www. guardian.co.uk/culture/2002/mar/08/artsfeatures.popandrock
–n.d. ‘The Specials’. MOJO. http://www.2-tone.info/artists/the_specials.html
Reynolds, S. 1998a. Energy Flash: A Journey Through Rave Music and Dance Culture. London: Picador.
—1998b. Generation Ecstasy: Into the World of Techno and Rave Culture. Boston: Little Brown.
—2006. Rip It Up and Start Again: Postpunk 1978–1984. New York: Penguin Books.
Rotten, J., and T. Vance. 1977. ‘The Johnny Rotten Show: the Punk and His Music Capital Radio, Tommy Vance Show, July 16th 1977’. Fodderstompf: PiL Fansite Archive. http:// www.fodderstompf.com/ARCHIVES/REVIEWS%202/capital77.html
Salewicz, C. 1978. ‘Steel Pulse Articles’. New Musical Express, 6 May 1978. http://www.andybrouwer.co.uk/art0578a.html
Savage, J. 2005. England’s Dreaming: Sex Pistols and Punk Rock. London: Faber.
Shapiro, P. 2005. Turn the Beat Around: The Secret History of Disco. New York: Faber and Faber.
Stratton, J. 2010. ‘ “My Boy Lollipop”: Ska, Race and English Popular Music’. Journal of Popular Music Studies 22.4: 436–65. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1533-1598.2010.01254.x
—forthcoming. ‘The Travels of Johnny Reggae: From Jonathan King to Prince Far-I; From Skinhead to Rasta’. Communication and Critical/Cultural Studies.
Thomas, M. 2008. ‘Official Biography of Trojan Records’. Michael Thomas: Official Website of ‘the’ Reggae Man. http://kivikko.intranetit.net/en/ajankohtaista/trojan_recordsin_ biografia.html
Toynbee, J. 2007. Bob Marley: Herald of a Postcolonial World? Cambridge: Polity Press.
Veal, M. E. 2007. Dub: Soundscapes and Shattered Songs in Jamaican Reggae. Middletown, CT: Wesleyan University Press.
Zuberi, N. 2010. ‘Worries in the Dance: Post-Millenial Grooves and Sub-Bass Culture’. In Britpop and the English Music Tradition, ed. Andy Bennett and Jon Stratton. Aldershot: Ashgate.
Published
2011-11-21
Issue
Section
Articles
How to Cite
Stratton, J. (2011). Skin deep: ska and reggae on the racial faultline in Britain, 1968-1981. Popular Music History, 5(2), 191-215. https://doi.org/10.1558/pomh.v5i2.191
