The Beat Live at the US Festival 1982 1983

Live at the US Festival is a live album and DVD of The English Beat performing live at the US Festivals in 1982 and 1983. British fans know the group as The Beat,

CD Tracks 1-9 were recorded September 3, 1982
CD Tracks 10-17 were recorded May 28, 1983
DVD Tracks 1-12 were recorded September 3, 1982.
DVD Tracks 13-26 were recorded May 28, 1983.

Both festivals were held at the Glen Helen Regional Park in San Bernardino, California.

As someone who listens to music much more than I watch DVDs, I find it irritating that we lose nine tracks on the audio version that we can load into our mp3 players. That said, I think the editors did it sensibly by not duplicating the hits. The DVD has two versions of Mirror In The Bathroom within three songs.

The English Beat Live at the US Festival

While The Beat broke up in 1983, Ranking Roger joined with members of The Specials to create Special Beat and released a number of live albums.

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The Specials Live at the Moonlight Club 1979

The Specials Live at the Moonlight Club is a live album by The Specials.

It was recorded in London in May 1979 and was originally released in 1992. The concert was recorded about six months before their debut album The Specials was released in November 1979 and shortly after their first single, Gangsters started to be played on UK radio. Strangely that song is missing from this album which is a shame.

2 Tone took the old ska rhythms that predate reggae and added a punk attitude. I wonder how much it was influenced by The Clash and their experiments with reggae including Police & Thieves (1977) and (White Man) In Hammersmith Palais (1978).

Like punk in late 1976 and 1977, this was another exciting development in music.

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Madness Live At The Hammersmith Odeon 1980

Live At The Hammersmith Odeon – 23.12.80 is a live recording that’s available with the 2010 enhanced version of their second studio album Absolutely.

It was recorded in London and broadcast by the BBC.  Their are 21 live tracks on the UK version on the Union Square Music Limited but the US version on Amazon.com had lost a few of the live tracks. Careful needs to be taken when buying it to make sure that you get the version that offers the best value for money.

This is from the time when Madness were still a ska band although there were signs of their nutty pop sound coming through on hit singles like Baggy Trousers. If you like The Specials, The Beat, Bad Banners and The Selecter but you’re put off Madness by their irritating hits, you need to investigate this album.

Madness Live At The Hammersmith Odeon

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The Best Ska And 2 Tone Live Albums?

While the Ska movement in Jamaica is part of the history of the development of reggae, it became popular in the UK thanks to the success of 2 Tone bands, The Specials, Madness, The Beat, The Selecter and Bad Manners in the very late 1970s and early 1980s.

The Third Wave of Ska started in the mid to late 1980s and saw success in the 1990s.

What Are The Best Live Albums By Ska And 2 Tone Bands?

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The Mighty Mighty Bosstones Live From The Middle East 1998

Live From The Middle East is a live album by The Mighty Mighty Bosstones.

It was recorded live at The Middle East Restaurant and Nightclub in Cambridge, Massachusetts

The Mighty Mighty Bosstones Live From The Middle East

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