Oh, no!
Terry Hall, the lead singer of the legendary ska band the Specials…has died, his bandmates in the Specials have confirmed. They broke the news on social media, writing, “It is with great sadness that we announce the passing, following a brief illness, of Terry, our beautiful friend, brother, and one of the most brilliant singers, songwriters and lyricists this country has ever produced.” Hall was 63 years old.
He's in there on the iconic "Ghost Town," but not the only vocalist--a song that, for obvious lockdown reasons, became a hit again last year with a new remix of it. I had already placed it on my list of “2020 songs.” Unforgettable.
You get more of Terry on most Specials’ songs, however.
And this one never would have worked without him.
Hall wasn’t necessarily the most special thing about The Specials, but he brought a punkish style to the band, a certain sardonic edge. His later projects included the Fun Boy Three, and a largely forgotten band called The Colour Field.
That band had a haunting song which I hestitate to bring up today given its title, “Pushing Up the Daisies,” but given the way many a tribute to Hall will underline his hatred of Thatcher, and other progressivist tics and check-marks, there’s a danger many will forget the anti-crime message—a conservative message?— in the lyrics of top Specials’ songs (the lyrics were likely from leader Jerry Dammers) like “Concrete Jungle,” “Gangsters,” and “Ghost Town,” songs which Hall sang, to say nothing of the sheer contempt for rich hippie types that oozes from every pore of this song, which I think Hall penned:
In recent years writers have wanted, it seems to me, to forget that Gen-X, or very-late-boomer, ire towards the hippie-boomers, and how it was a big part of punk and new wave movements. You sure can’t forget it listening to Hall.
Here’s a recent interview with the mature man:
A decent chap, who seems at the summer ‘21 time of the interview, saddened and constrained in what he can say, given the lockdowns. He was itching to get out there with the newer version of The Specials. I do wish he had come out in open support of Van Morrison’s denunciation of the live music bans. It’s merely a guess, but I suspect he agreed. I could be wrong, sure.
And of course, if his family refuses to release any info about his final illness, the speculation in 2022 will quite naturally run towards the questions: was he jabbed? how many times? That just isn’t avoidable at this point, given all the strange deaths adding up. Some of you do keep up with Mark Crispin Miller’s stack, right?
Whatever happened, a real loss. RIP.
Enjoy yourself, it's later than you think
Enjoy yourself, while you're still in the pink
The years go by, as quickly as you wink
Enjoy yourself, enjoy yourself
It's later than you think