Customer Reviews

Very Best of

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

 

 

Dear prospective consumer,
Under no circumstances purchase this CD! This is basically a series of cover tunes sung by former member Neville Staple. I was stupid enough to buy this and it is now propping up the wonkie end of my coffee table! I was hoping for some serious fun boy three reminiscing of my home country and my teenage life spent kicking about the London Borough of Merton and other such wonderful fun zones, Brixton especially. Anyway this is not what you would expect it to be and if you really feel up to tossing your money away then go mad!
Otherwise stay well clear of this dodgie recording. Sorry Neville I am sure you probably need the dosh!

First thing I noticed when I listened to this was that none of these songs are the original recordings. They're all completely redone. The second thing I noticed was that Neville Staple is the only musician from The Specials or Fun Boy Three on this album. What this means is that you're not really listening to The Specials or Fun Boy Three at all. You're just listening to Neville Staple and a bunch of other guys. This, of course, is not the impression you'd get from looking at the front of the CD case.

I'm not qualified to comment on any of the Fun Boy Three material here, as I never really listened to them. As a fan of ska music these songs were forgettable to me. I will say that The Specials songs redone here are OK, but the original recordings were much better. Since Neville is the only original member of the band on the album these songs just don't really sound like The Specials. They sound like generic ska music, what more can I say? A few songs manage to stand out on their own merits though. I liked Man at C&A, Leave it Out, and It's You. You're still better off with the originals but these aren't bad.

I also need to warn you, there are two remixs at the end of this album, one of Ghost Town, and one of Our Lips are Sealed. They're both techno. It was really the most revolting thing I'd ever listened to in my life. I actually like techno sometimes, but yeesh. For some guy to do a techno remix of Ghost Town is just blasphemous. Both of these are horrible

My verdict is that you shouldn't buy this album if you're looking for anything by the Specials or Fun Boy Three. You will find niether here. If you're just getting into ska music and The Specials then this is not the album for you. If you want to listen to the Specials find a compillation of their original recordings or buy their first album.

I give this album one star for each of the three songs I liked, then I will deduct a star for the horrible techno remixes at the end of the album, resulting in a final score of two stars.

I'm not sure how this is legally possible, but I'm sure there must be some loophole that has allowed a SINGLE member of the original bands listed on the cover to re-record mediocre versions of amazing songs and turn them into lackluster duds. Some sort of ego this Neville Staple must have (the sole member present), to spend the time doing this and not be able to hear it for the let-down it is.

If you are a Specials/Terry Hall (the original vocalist) fan, AT LEAST try to listen to this garbage before you purchase it. Check the iTunes Music Store for audio previews. If you still enjoy the listless, aimless, downright shabby knock-offs of the original recordings, THEN buy it. This is NOT a case of "Well, I'd like to check this band out, so I'll get the greatest hits as a primer."
NO. Buy the first 'Specials' album with your money.

VERDICT: Unnacceptable treatment of the Specials fanbase

SENTENCE: Neville Staple, responsible for this misstep, must be PELTED with THIS CD whenever sighted in public

When you purchase "The Best Of" this or that band, you expect the *original* songs. Unfortunately this is not the case, and this fact is not made clear until you have wasted your money.

You would do infinitely better getting the proper "Best Of" compilations of the two bands on separate albums.

One star for misleading the public...

...it's not that bad an album (the version of Gangsters" is a good ska rocker IMHO). It shouldn't have been listed as a Specials album though, it should have been The Neville Staple Band. They are a very tight touring band, usually going under the name of Neville Staple's Specials, which is also misleading. If you want the original versions, there are plenty of complilations out there, including at least one with all the Specials and FB3 hits on. This is more for us that know the songs well, and were up for hearing them reinterpreted.

So there.