To build on a recent ska kick of mine, I thought I'd make a post where I list ten albums that are probably not listed very often by critics (lol ska + critics) or only brought up by ska fans to prove how great their obscure taste is (I tend to think they never even listened to the albums when they do, though), but tend to get overlooked since heavy hitters from the 90s are still around like Reel Big Fish and Less Than Jake as well as other bands like Streetlight Manifesto and the serious ska bands that have tended to co-opt the genre unintentionally for many other likeminded bands.
I'm not going to put numbers because I consider these all classics and are all well worth listening to. If you want to find these, most of these bands are broken up so you might as well download them. Just go to google and search with 'band name - mediafire' and you'll most likely find them.
Anyway, gibberish over, here's my list:
Spring Heeled Jack - Songs From Suburbia
1. Mass Appeal Madness – 3:06
2. Jolene – 3:09
3. Beggin' – 4:03
4. Pop Song (Green) – 2:06
5. Waiting, Watching – 2:40
6. Tied Up – 3:41
7. MCMLIX (1959) – 3:31
8. Where I Belong – 3:33
9. Makisupa Policeman – 3:27
10. Time – 2:53
11. Morning Sun – 3:35
12. Man of Tomorrow – 3:40
Fuck this band for breaking up. Seriously, how the fuck can you drop a classic like this and just break up. Such squandered opportunity. Though personally I think Pop Song and Time could have been left off simply for not reaching the rest of the albums glorious heights, and my favorite SHJ song (Pay Some Dues) isn't on the album, this is pretty much as perfect as ska can get. I know being on a shitty record label killed this album and all, but the fact that Beggin' is not a radio staple is just insane. In my opinion, this is up there with the Specials, One Step Beyond, and whatever other ska classics you can think up.
Potshot - Pots & Shots
1. We Are Potshot 1:06
2. Someone to Lean On 2:26
3. Radio 1:49
4. Handle 2:35
5. Time 2:49
6. Since Yesterday 1:46
7. Anytime 2:33
8. Clear 2:35
9. Under the Blue Sky 3:00
10. Tears of a Clown 1:06
11. In Hi-Fi 2:27
12. Not Worth Your While But Worth My Life 2:49
13. Mexico 3:15
14. Change 3:40
As stated before, this is the absolute pinnacle of the style of ska punk. Every song is full of explosive energy, the songs all have extremely careful construction (something Potshot only ever achieved one more time on Til I Die) and will all get you singing along even if you don't understand what the heck they're saying. Just listen to Anytime for the single best ska punk song ever written. This is the best ska punk album ever written as merging the absolute pure core of the two styles together could possibly ever achieve. If you're not hooked by Someone To Lean On, you're hopeless.
Dancehall Crashers - Honey I'm Homely
1. Lost Again
2. Will Tomorrow Ever Come
3. All Mine
4. Salted
5. Next To You
6. I Want It All
7. Elvis & Me
8. Whisky & Gin
9. Cold Shower
10. Last Laugh
11. Mr. Blue
12. Stand By
13. The Truth About Me
14. Big Mouth
15. Over Again
I can't fucking believe I have to list this. But no one remembers this album anymore. To be fair, this is the band's fault for literally vanishing from existence, after making such great albums like this one. Another band that should have been huge but just wasn't for no apparent reason, this is about as pop as ska has been since Madness came out. If you haven't heard this yet, you might as well get on that right now.
The Pietasters - Willis
1. "Crazy Monkey Woman" – 2:38
2. "Out All Night" – 3:16
3. "Ocean" – 3:38
4. "Fat Sack" – 2:40
5. "Stone Feeling" – 4:06
6. "Higher" – 4:45
7. "Time Won't Let Me" – 3:06
8. "Without You" – 3:23
9. "Crime" – 5:02
10. "Quicksand" – 2:46
11. "Bitter" – 3:53
12. "New Breed" – 2:59
13. "Moment" – 3:45
The meeting point of ska, rock n roll, and classic soul music. This is the peak of this band (though Turbo was brilliant) and such a unique sound they've never quite recaptured with the pure passion and energy of Willis. Everything they did before was just a warm up for this, which is a complement since their early stuff is actually awesome, too. Now I know why this album isn't well known, it's simply because it's two niche styles on this album that never seem intersect with each other normally outside of this band and unfairly quarantines it to be a niche album. But listen to this fucking album and have your fucking brains blown out by it. I know I still rock out to this one. It's on HellCat, so at least it's easily available.
Assorted Jellybeans - What's Really Going On!?!
1. "Contordations" - 1:37
2. "Wiggerside" - 3:03
3. "The Rhythm" - 1:53
4. "Juttered" - 2:38
5. "Loadie Mission" - 1:57
6. "Booshduckdow" - 2:32
7. "Rebel Yell" - 2:39
8. "Entry Level Positions" - 2:17
9. "Dead Neighbors" - 3:34
10. "Parents" - 3:09
11. "I'm Out" - 2:11
12. "Instrumental" - 3:29
13. "3 Chords" - 1:59
14. "Loadie Mission" (Reprise) - 1:57
A really weird step forward for ska and punk, a trippy, hilarious, and sometimes forward thinking (but not overly serious or nihilistic) album by a band that left too early. Yes they're back again, but unfortunately, no one seems to care. But this album is truly unique and has to be ingested to be understood. Every song has this weird construction to it where parts sort of change into other parts fast and hard, but only begin to make sense with a lot of listening. Ignore the shitty art (Kung Fu Records has always been full of bands with shitty artwork, not to mention distribution and pricing) and listen to the sounds within. It's also one of the few punk albums that can be remixed and still sound totally right.
Billy The Spikes - In The City
1 - Opening
2 - Confidence
3 - Down Beat Alley
4 - Black Boots
5 - Go Beast
6 - Confusion
7 - Dog Was Dead
8 - Liberty
9 - Spikey Billy
10 - Be In A Real Pinch
11 - In The City
12 - Toys For Dragon
Yes, I mention these guys a lot, but with good reason. The heart of rockabilly and ska are well alive in this band (who after only one EP after this broke up... Dammit...) with some of the best sounds to come out of a slap bass before Chris Cheney forgot how to write fucking songs, and one hell of a horn section. If you're not won over by Black Boots, Dog Was Dead (One of the best ska songs ever actually, thanks for asking) or the killer rockabilly romp of Spikey Billy, then go fuck yourself. We have nothing to discuss.
The Hippos - Forget The World
1 "Far Behind"
2 "Please"
3 "When Will I Learn"
4 "Diane"
5 "Don't Worry"
6 "Celebrate"
7 "Irie"
8 "Asleep at the Wheel"
9 "So Lonely"
10 "Rock 'n' Roll"
11 "Forget the World"
Another band that is forgotten because of it's own decisions. Another 90s ska/punk classic, while they followed up with a decidedly less ska album, this album still has it's unique touches and is pretty fucking rocking in all honestly. My love of Please and When Will I Learn (great lyrics) are untouched for this band. Unfortunately, this album suffered from some shitty distribution as well as the band quickly abandoning this style (and after their follow up, abandoning good music) leads this to be the poster child for what happens when you abandon what you're good at simply to gain credibility doing 'serious music'. In other words, it's a dead end. Still, forgotten band, even more forgotten album.
The English Beat - I Just Can't Stop It
1. "Mirror in the Bathroom" – 3:10
2. "Hands Off...She's Mine" – 3:01
3. "Two Swords" – 2:19
4. "Twist & Crawl" – 2:35
5. "Rough Rider" – 4:52
6. "Click Click" – 1:28
7. "Big Shot" – 2:34
8. "Whine & Grine/Stand Down Margaret" – 3:51
9. "Noise in This World" – 2:19
10. "Can't Get Used to Losing You" – 3:04
11. "Best Friend" – 3:01
12. "Jackpot" – 4:19
Nobody ever talks about this album. What the hell? This is better than the first Specials album, and yet no one ever mentions it. The first band to show the potential of the genre of ska music as more than a music style to confine to a fucking box with set limitations. With the first song, you know this band had the right idea, and with Two Swords you know they're still smarter than most ska and punk bands today, and with Jackpot you just knew this band would be huge. (Well they were in the UK) The band continued to play ska and add in more reggae and experiment a bit with their style, but never stopped being themselves. The Beat is probably the best two tone band there ever was.
Suburban Legends
1. "Popular Demand" – 2:55
2. "I Want More" – 4:14
3. "Don Juan" – 3:14
4. "Alternative Is Dead" – 2:15
5. "Desperate" – 3:39
I'm only counting this EP because it's so damn good. As bands tend to go on, their early material tends to get left behind, and I fear this will never be regarded as the classic that it really is. Yes, I posted that cover simply because I have never seen it in person, but I do prefer the other version. (The version with the red cover features a different singer, but the same music) This is a ska classic and should never be forgotten. It's also saddled with the realization that this band will never sound like this again.
The Selecter - Too Much Pressure
1. "Three Minute Hero" - 3.00
2. "Everyday (Time Hard)" - 3.10
3. "They Make Me Mad" - 2.47
4. "Missing Words" - 3.22
5. "Danger" - 2.38
6. "Street Feeling" - 3.11
7. "My Collie (Not A Dog)" - 2.45
8. "Too Much Pressure" - 3.48
9. "Murder" - 2.39
10. "Out On The Streets" - 3.28
11. "Carry Go Bring Come" - 3.02
12. "Black and Blue" - 3.17
13. "James Bond" - 2.16
The "other" band from the two tone era. This album is never mentioned except when a ska fan is trying to list bands from the second wave. This album is as good as the band has ever gotten, with some fantastic songwriting, and some clever lyrics among some otherwise rather standard lines, but the execution of them more than makes up for how this direction would lead this band out into the wilds where it would never recover. Like Home Grown's "That's Business" it's an instance of a band capturing a spark they would never come close to capturing again.
All in all, a top ten list of albums that really should be listened to and not just forgotten in the mists of time and bargain bins. Give these the chance they deserve.
