Customer Reviews

Trojan Ska Revival

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Another great box set from Trojan. This ska revival set includes tracks by the Specials (as well as old Coventry Automatics recordings), the Selecter, Bad Manners, The Special Beat, and some Desmond Dekker. At first I was a little taken aback to see that most of the tracks were live, as I usually prefer the original recorded version of a song, but the live renditions of such classics like Nite Klub, Lorraine, and Gangsters grew on me. You really get a feel for the bands' energy on some of these live tracks, especially the Bad Manners' performances. This album is a nice compilation of some of the greatest hits (and near misses!)of the most influential second wave ska groups--certainly worth purchasing for any fan of ska.

It is hard to understand the appeal of ska without going back in time to the Two-Tone era that gave this genre a boost of energy. Bands like Bad Manners and The Selecter had a stage presence that electrified and inspired many musicians, of their day and ours, all around the world. This set is a sampler of live recordings that helped me understand and better enjoy ska. This set in essence is a record each of Bad Manners, The Selecter, and The Specials/Special Beat/Coventry Automatics, an excellent deal. I hope for more sets like this from Trojan.

Would love to know what the difference between this album and the one titled 'Trojan Ska Revival' on the Trojan/Sanctuary label is? It says that the other set is remastered, so why is it so much cheaper? Would also love to know the connection between Trojan and Two Tone Records?

Anyone who was around at the time of this boom will love this collection. It brings together the main players and their hits, minus Madness, who strangely appear on another Trojan recent release. Nearly all the tracks are live and are of better quality than the few studio recorded classics. What is with that `hiss'? It's 2004, CDs have been out for nearly a quarter of a century and were supposed to improve sound quality, but we are instead treated to `hiss' on digital equipment. And these record companies complain that their profits are down.

Ska Revival / Trojan Box Set: Trojan produces cheep box sets and this is no exception in that regard, but this one is generally better in content. This one is mainly Live recordings of various quality (from good to poor), yet there are some very excellent live performances preserved here. Overall, this is one of Trojan's best box sets, as long as you are not too fussy about quality. While this is good, there has yet to be produced the kind of anthology of Ska or Two-Tone music that would do the genres justice. However, this one is still enjoyable and worth having. Four Stars