va Pick It Up (2005)

 This is a short compilation of bands from Holland and the surrounding area.

It's rare that I can listen to a ska compilation all the way through without having to skip a track but this is one of those rarities. There are only nine songs here. There could have been 20 but then we might have had to skip a few. This way there is only the best songs from great bands with no filler.

In my opinion the song by Zwit is the top track.

Zwit has been playing since 1984 but it's really hard to find their music anywhere. I have a small collection of songs by them, most of which are live. If this band ever did any studio recordings please let me know. I would love to hear more of them.  

1 Stenchtown - Sail On

2 Ska-D-Lite - Skaramanga

3 Skapiche?! - Ska D-H-D

4 De Groeten van Henk en Bep - Lone Ranger

5 Ollie Q. & The Deep Six - Waking Up Dead 

6 Splendid - Straight Up

7 2nd Hand Sneakers - One Night Stand

8 Zwit - Lock You Up

9  Mensergerjen!et - Laat Maar

 

DOWNLOAD

 

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Nu-Hu - War Games (demo tape 1986)

 It seems that there was a reggae band in Cleveland, Ohio in the 80s called Kaya. I know nothing about this band and I can't find anything online about them. But I do know their lead singer Max Nuhu went solo and released one record in 1987. The song "Let Me Be the One" was the A-Side and "Give It Up" was on the B-side. It is highly sought after and I have never found a copy in my life. Thankfully somebody posted the A-side on YouTube. 

He even had T-shirts.

 A few years ago I had incredible stroke of luck while searching for this record and I found a demo tape. It includes both songs from the record with many other songs I didn't know existed. 

Here's the full "War Games" demo tape by Max Nu-Hu with the re-recorded version of "Let Me be the One" from the record and a re-recorded version of the song "War Games" that would have been the title track of the album if he ever released an album, plus another song he recorded later called "Third World Woman".

 Max Nuhu passed away in Jamaica in December 2020. 

 

1 Blood Money

2 Retribution

3 Give it Up

4 Give it Up Version 2

5 Let Me be the One

6 Ezy Come

7 Go Getta

8 Island Summer*

9  War Games

10 Bubbla

* Let Me be the One 7" version

* War Games 

* Third World Woman

 

DOWNLOAD 

 

* (The song Island Summer is very low quality. The quality of that song is much different than the other songs on the tape. I tried multiple times to get a good rendition of it but this is the best I can do). 

 

Rudeness Empire - demo tape (1995)

 All three songs on this tape were on the CD but all three are different mixes. The vocals are the exact same but there are variations in the placement of the vocals. Some "chickitup-pickitup" are moved to different bars and in the song "Vampire" the scream isn't there and, instead, there is simply the word "vampire". I don't know which version I like best.

Some sound effects that are on the CD are absent on this recording so, even though the recordings are the same for all three songs these are unique versions not found anywhere else. 

1 Vampire

2 Skaville Express

3 June 

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Skaboodah And The Skalaktites - The Sound of Stink (1995)

 

 I bought the CD from eBay many years ago. The seller said it was ska. The band is called "SKA"boodah and the "SKA"laktites. They have a horn section.

You, the ska fan who comes to this ska blog, can decide. 

Too "funk" for my taste. I don't hate it, but I certainly don't like it. 

1 The Hills of Rural New Jersey

2 Can You Picture That?

3 Troubadours of Foam

4 Hunt the Wumpus

5 Rat the Wet Screwdriver 

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Skavers - Skavers (2007)

 Traditional-leaning ska from Sweden. Male and female vocals. Most lyrics are in English.

1 Evigheten

2 Devil in Me

3 Weigh Your Money

4 Simplify

5 Devil's Beat

6 Boomchikatchi

7 Sha-by

8 Sokarna

9 Fiiin

10 Stiffelyn on Booze

11 Lillebror 

DOWNLOAD

 

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Ziptacular! - Don't Call J.J.! (2008)

 Ziptacular was a ska-punk band from Michigan who, I am pretty sure, only released one album in 2009. This was a demo CD-R that the band put out before the album. There are six tracks on this demo and five of them are on the album. Same recordings and I think the same mixes. The only track that wasn't on the album is "This is It!" which is just over a minute long and is more of a intermission than a full song.

 Very third-wave sounding with tight musicianship and male vocals with some female backing vocals.

 

 You can hear their full self-titled album HERE.

1 Not Today!

2 250 Plus!

3 This is It!

4 One Missed Call

5 We're Sorry Yoshi!

6 Henry the VIII!

 

DOWNLOAD

 

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I Fratelli di Soledad - S/T demo tape (1990)

 1. Brescia Bologna Ustica

2. La Sigaretta

3. Io Non Ballo (Sono Un Duro)

4.  Circoli Viziosi

5. Quello Che Puoi

 

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The Flys - State of Mine 7" (1985)

 The Medflys was a power pop band from California who released a self-titled tape and then changed their name to The Flys and put out one 7".

 Their song "State of Mine" was kind of their big hit. It was a pseudo-funk new wave tune. It was on the KSJO "Best of the Bay" compilation in 1985 and it was the A-side to their only record.  

I haven't heard their tape so I don't know how much they dabbled in the ska sound but the B-side to their only record was a great ska song called "Should've Stayed Home".

 I have heard their demo tape and, surprisingly, they had a full-on ska version of "Wild Thing" which I included in this download. 

 

A - State of Mine

B - Should've Stayed Home

* - Wild Thing

 

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Son of Blob - The Hippest Cats in Skaville (2001)

 

I recently received more information about the band Son of Blob from the band's guitarist Maurice Bierhuizen who commented:

"Hi there, I recently read this nice post. I played guitar in the Son of Blob and 2nd hand sneakers back in the days. I've recently remastered the album The Hippest Cats in Skaville (the sound was pretty muddy before), I thought you might be interested.

To give a bit of more info; Skippy was our second male singer in the Son of Blob, and was replaced by female singer Lilian who can be heard on The Hippest Cats in Skaville album.
When the Son of Blob broke up, most of us moved on in the new band 2nd Hand Sneakers, with a new female singer Nina. Great potential, but people went abroad and the band broke up in around 2 years time." 

He shared the link to his YouTube channel and his post for the full "Hippest Cats in Skaville" album. 

CHECK IT OUT. 

Thank you Maurice for the corrections.