Tuesday, September 28, 2021

Beanstalk - What You Gonna do When the Reggae Breaks Your Heart 7'' (1982)

Beanstalk was a new wave/reggae/ska band from South Africa who probably never released anything besides this one record. 

The B-side is a self-written pop song with a reggae influence but the A-side is a 2 Tone style rendering of the Johnny Average Band's song from 1980. 

 Very rare and awesome record. I have to thank Rude Rich for telling me about this record. I might have never known about it if it wasn't for him. 

A - What You Gonna do When the Reggae Breaks Your Heart

B - Metal Streets 

DOWNLOAD from MEGA 

 

DOWNLOAD from Zippyshare

 

 

Space Ate Mafia - In the Good Name...of Bad Taste (1998)

Space Ate Mafia was a ska punk band from New York / New Jersey area. I'm not entirely sure. I think they had more than this one release but, again, I'm not entirely sure.
At one point they changed their name to Space 8. They could have released some more music under that name but I'm not entirely sure.

This is a CDR with a computer printed sticker label and an early computer printer style inlay card. The CD and packaging are beautiful. It's nice to find one this age that hasn't degraded or rotted yet.

There are four up-tempo ska tunes with a reminder that they were recorded in the ska-punk era but I wouldn't call anything on here 'punk' despite that punk/metal intro on the first song.
The last track is a mellow one with beautiful horn and jazz-guitar harmonies. 

1 Wait for the Sun

2 In the Park

3 Espionage

4 Moonglow

5 Kleinfeltersville

 

DOWNLOAD from MEGA

DOWNLOAD from Zippyshare
 

Tuesday, September 21, 2021

2 Tonic

2 Tonic was a British ska band that was active for the better part of a decade. You probably never heard of them because they were not out for world domination. They played locally and they released three studio albums and two live albums that were released on CDRs with photocopy covers that were basically only sold at their shows. 

Being from California I would have, most likely, never heard of them in my lifetime if it were not for the awesome power of Myspace. 

Over the years I have been looking for their releases and I was fortunate enough to find three out of the five. As it turns out, I found the three studio releases and neither of the two live CDs. C'est la vie. 

2 Tonic - Welcome to My World (2001)

1 Welcome to My World

2 My Girl Lollipop

3 Here Come da Hurricane

4 Big Shot

5 Porkies

6 Dave & Mary

7 Boys

8 Death & Glory

9 Same Old Song

10 Who's Sorry?

11 Asta la Vista

 

2 Tonic - Factory Yarns (2003)

1 Who's Sorry Now

2 Sleepless

3 Gotta Get Away

4 Hurricane

5 No Way

6 48 Hours

7 Replay

8 Just Messin'

9 Hasta la Vista

10 Secret Lover

11 Big Shot

12 Porkies


 


 2 Tonic - Beneath the Desert Sun (2006)

1 Desert Sun

2 Blus Suited Revenge

3 English Boy

4 Dead End Job

5 The Boys are Back in Town

6 Secret Lover

7 Who's Sorry Now (JC Mix)

8 Bankrobba

9 Shine a Light (live)

10 Xmas Medley

11 Dead End Job (Baritone Mix)


 

DOWNLOAD from MEGA

 

DOWNLOAD from Zippyshare

 

 


 

Wednesday, September 15, 2021

Unity - Tell-a-Star 7" (1980)

Believe it or not there was a large community of Jamaican citizens in Toronto, Canada in the 70s and 80s. They brought their music aptitude with them. 

One guy that you probably never heard of named Jay Douglas put a band together called The Cougars and recorded a single in 1969 that became legendary. They recorded an experimental reggae (ska) version of the Temptations "I Wish It Would Rain". I'm not certain but I think there were less than 100 copies of this record pressed (one website I found said it was less than 10 but I have my doubts).

Luckily for us (me) a record label called Light in the Attic put out a compilation that included the A and B side of The Cougar's record. I don't know how they tracked down the recordings but they have a Bandcamp page that has a lot of their releases and there is at least one other artist on that page that was included in their Jamaica/Toronto series. 

HERE's THEIR BANDCAMP PAGE

Jay Douglas played around Toronto in other bands over the years but there are very few recordings. I have this one little record by him and, as it seems, the few people in the world who have this record don't have the sleeve. I have a copy of the record in a tatty sleeve but, with my amazing talents in Windows Paint, I was able to restore the cover to it's proper standards. There is no other rendition to be found online.
 

Both sides are the same song - a cover of Edwin Starr's 1977 tune "Tell-A-Star". The A-side with vocals. The B-side has the instrumental version.   


A Tell-A-Star

B Tell-A-Star (Instrumental)


This download includes the 1980 Unity single and the 1969 Cougars single.

DOWNLOAD from MEGA


DOWNLOAD from Zippyshare



Saturday, September 11, 2021

Bamboo!!! - Je Suis Bamboo 7'' (1985)


 The A-side is a really good song but it isn't exactly ska. That B-side though...

 

A - Je Suis Bamboo

B - Time Bomb

 

DOWNLOAD from MEGA

 

DOWNLOAD from Zippyshare 

 


Wednesday, September 8, 2021

Housewife's Choice - Housewife's Choice 7" (1999)

This is a ska band from the 90s that focused on covering old tunes in a 2 Tone style. They were from Finland and all four tracks on this record are cover songs. I don't know that they ever recorded anything else.
 

A1 -  Can't Take My Eyes Off You (Frankie Valli - 1966)

A2 - What a World (Busty & Cool - 1962)

B1 - Fire (Bruce Springsteen - 1985)

B2 - It's Raining (Three Tops - 1967)


DOWNLOAD from MEGA


DOWNLOAD from Zippyshare

Sunday, August 29, 2021

Mad Monster Sound [Germany]

 Mad Monster Sound was a German band that formed in the late 1980s in the "Unicorn Era". They started as a punk band but they played ska and other things. They ran the gamut between punk, ska, new wave, anarcho punk/ska, punk reggae, and even a bit of metal and skiffle. They alternated between male and female vocals and also between English and German. They recorded their first album in 1989. The A-Side was pure punk. The B-Side was pure ska. (I remember that when I was younger I sang "Come on come on all you bastards" but that's not what he's singing. It's "Come on come on all you Busters"). Long-time followers of this blog know that I am no big fan of bands recording cover songs but their song "Moonstomping" is actually original. It is a cover of "Skinhead Moonstomp" but they added their own lyrics to it. I approve. 

 They stopped performing in the mid 90s but came back in the year 2000 with a mini-album called "Ten Years Later" that really did pick up where they left off. It's as good as their earlier releases. 

This is the post I was supposed to make last weekend but I didn't post it because my scanner is failing and the scans in this post are very low-resolution and probably the worst scans I've ever presented on this blog. I was going to try to re-do them but the new scans were no better. It's not about the scans though, is it? It's about the music.  And the music sounds great as far as I'm concerned.


Mad Monster Sound - Mad Monster Sound (1990)


 

1 Alles Zu Spät

2  No More Pardon

3 Stories

4 Geld Regiert die Welt

5 F.C. Busters

6 Moonstomping

7 Love and Hate

8 Geisterstunde

9 Monkey Dance 

10 Sahara Ska

 


 

Mad Monster Sound - One for the Road - It's Party Time (1993)

1 Let's Have Fun

2 Subway Love

3 I Wanna Be

4 New Generation

5 Borderline

6 Crime City

7 Nutty Goes Reggae

8 Don't Waste Ur Time

9 Dreadful Terror

10 Anything

11 Eisbär

12 Ska-Skiffle

13 Monstergang

14 Bonus (Eisbär Extended)



Mad Monster Sound - 10 Jahre Später (2000)


 

1 Franziska

2 This is SKA

3 Stand By

4 Ghostclub

5 Fresse Verbeult

6 Laut + Lustig

7 Roomservice

8 Pied Piper

9 No More Pardon



DOWNLOAD all three releases from MEGA



DOWNLOAD all three releases fromZippyshare


Sunday, August 15, 2021

Potlatch - Gringo (1994) -and- An Album by Potlatch (1995)

 

Potlatch was a ska-punk band from Sweden who put out an EP and a full-length album in the 90s.

Before the EP they had a 4-song demo tape that, I think, was pure punk without any ska. I don't know for sure because the Japanese release of the EP included the four demo tracks and, of course, I bought that one. 

There are lots of copies of the 12-track Japanese version of "Gringo" available today on Discogs but that wasn't always the case. I ended up finding a copy on a site called From Japan that had all 12 tracks. It wasn't terribly expensive but it took four months to arrive and you can guess the end of this tale.

That's right. It was the wrong one. It was the 8-track mini-album/EP. It wasn't worth it for me to send it back for a refund so I kept it and I have found two of the other tracks on YouTube. Jesus and Friends, and Minor.  I like punk but for some reason I don't feel any pressing need to get the other version any time soon. Maybe someday, but here's what I have for now.

 Potlatch - Gringo (1994)

 1 Intro - Role Model*

2 Nazi Punks Fuck Off

3 You Never Know

4 O.P.

5 Grrl Burn

6 Right

7 Back to the Amanda Room


*8 tracks if these are counted as two separate tracks


Potlatch - An Album by Potlatch (1995)

1 Mr. Potlatch

2 Onetwothreefour

3 Wrong Time, Wrong Place

4 Think About It

5 Hey Dad

6 I Wish

7 Reason

8 Hope I Never See Ya Again

9 Pack It

10 Ghosts 'n Goblins

11 Emo

12 Fourtwenty

 

DOWNLOAD from MEGA

 

DOWNLOAD from Zippyshare

Friday, August 13, 2021

Atlantic Five - I Was Walking 7" (1979)

 Very rare record from this French band. I don't know what they were thinking with the A-side but the B-side needs to be heard. The B-side could have been a pop-reggae/ska hit in 1984 but it was released in 1979. People just weren't ready for it yet. I love that haunting keyboard, especially at the end of the song. .

Somebody on Discogs said that this might be an all-female band but that makes me wonder if they've actually heard it. Are these female vocals? I don't think so. 

A - I Was Walking

B - I Adore You 


DOWNLOAD from MEGA


DOWNLOAD from Zippyshare

Wednesday, August 11, 2021

Spliff Sound - Spliff Sound (1998)

90s Italian female-fronted ska. I love this band. Very original in their songwriting. Amateurish in the end but you can hear that they were probably a lot more professional than any other band in their scene at the time. Most songs are in English with a few in Italian with occasional male vocals taking the lead.

I don't know if they ever released anything else besides this tape. This tape is professionally made but I had second generation demo tapes that sound better than this tape. I ripped it three times on three different tape players and this rip is really the best I can do with the copy I have. I want to say that it's just mixed badly with the low ends being turned up way too high but, then again, I might just have a warped copy of this tape. 

If anybody else has a better rip of this tape I'd like to hear it. It really is a great album. A true classic!

1 Big Brother

2 La Violación

3 Mine

4 Not Many

5 Not Alone

6 Intolerencia

7 In a Cloud

8 Libertad

9 Bond's Ska

 

DOWNLOAD from MEGA

 

DOWNLOAD from Zippyshare

 

Tuesday, August 3, 2021

Crombie Bruisers - Crombie Bruisers EP (2013)


 This is more contemporary than what I usually post. It's not from the tone nor the wave era but I'm posting it for two reasons:

1. I like it (well...I like some of it)

2. It's extremely rare


This was a band from Denmark that had a respect for the 2Tone era as much as they did for traditional ska and reggae but their energy came from Oi! and punk. They didn't record much. In fact I think this is all they released. They may have recorded more but they didn't make it freely available, did they? I guess they liked playing live more than they liked being a studio band, which is just as well.

The reason I say that is because, if you've been following this blog for any length of time, you know I'm not big on bands recording cover songs. It's great to see them play a familiar tune live but if the band records it, well then, it better be pretty damn spectacular or we'll just listen to the original instead. And not play your music. 

The cover I'm bitching about here is 54-46. It's been done. It's been done too much. Don't. 

Thankfully Sugar Sugar is NOT a cover. It's not a bad song but the winner for me is the song Stitch.

Stitch is misspelled and the track list on the CD inlay is out of order with how the songs are ordered on the CD.  The band's name is misspelled on the spine of the CD inlay.

It's a CD-R with a photocopied inlay. I like it DIY like that. 


1 54-46

2 Stitch

3 Sugar Sugar


DOWNLOAD from MEGA


DOWNLOAD from Zippyshare


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


...and now it's time for a good ol' rant.


Devotees of this blog might have noticed that I no longer allow comments, I have removed links to my email and social media, and I no longer do re-ups. 

There's a reason.


I have done this blog for over a decade and I have had the incredible opportunity to interact with so many of you and it solidified my notions that ska people are the greatest people in the world. We are the punks, the skinheads, the Rastas, the musicians, the jocks, the nerds, the liberals, the conservatives, we are vegans as well as those who can bar-b-q some pork ribs better than anybody else. We can watch Bugs Bunny one minute then follow it with a Shakespeare play. We are more knowledgeable about world events than most people but we never let ideologues divide us. 

We are different in many ways and the same in many ways. 

We love music. All different kinds of music. We are not racist. We are not sexist. Some of us have religious beliefs but we embrace our brothers and sisters who have different beliefs. We don't care who you're attracted to no matter their gender. We accept that there are people out there who actually don't like Star Wars. We see people supporting the opposing sports team as a comrade with bad taste, not somebody to hate.


Unfortunately people who did not feel this way took advantage of my email address being on this blog. I was called all kinds of horrible things and some people made it clear that they knew everything about me. The names of my family members, where I worked, where I live. Veiled threats. 

Someone even started a YouTube account using my name that they used to start problems with other people. 

They got very aggressive and it went on for over a year. I initially decided to shut everything down. No more blog. No more social media. In the end I decided against it. I'll still keep posting but it's one sided now. That sucks for me because I liked hearing from you guys. I learned so much from you guys, not to mention all of the great music that you guys shared with me that I posted on the blog to share with other people. 

It was a real community. But a few people with their own selfish agenda had to ruin it. 

I wonder what they got out of it.

 

I will try to re-post things but the truth is my account on MEGA is nearly topped-out. If I want to keep posting new things I have to limit any re-posts.

Not only that, but for many years I got people saying "Hey, can you re-post this one thing?" which I had no problem doing but recently I got "Hey, can you re-post this list of 32 things?". People stopped asking for one thing here and one thing there. In the end people were seriously requesting that I re-do more than half of everything that I posted on this blog in the last 13 years. It took 13 years the first time. I can't do it again. 

I would like to though. If I had the ability I would make sure that everything I have ever posted on this blog remains consistently available. That's just not realistic.

The things I posted in the past were downloaded by hundreds of people. They are available somewhere, you just have to find out where. If you're serious about collecting this music you should be part of forums and social media groups (NOT Reddit/Ska - that's a wasteland that upvotes the living shit out of a post of a checkered belt but cares very little for actual ska music). It's out there. Find it.  


Anyway, (you're still reading?....really? ...why?) I have a lot more rare ska to post. I have demo tapes from The Riffs, No Sports, and more. Lots of records from the 80s (but believe me when I say this...I have already posted the good stuff. I have lots and lots of "ska" and "reggae" records that are very rare but not necessarily very good, - don't get me wrong, I have some really good stuff too), and lots of CDs from the 90s that I can't find anywhere else online. 


In my personal and work life I am more busy now than I have ever been so the posts won't be as regular, but there is lots, lots more to come! Keep checking back. 


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


There is a very famous female singer who released several blues/soul/pop albums over the last few decades but she started out in a ska band in the early 80s. The first incarnation of the band released a full length 11-track demo tape in 1981 and every track was ska but then they changed their name and put out a 4-track demo tape in 1982 under their new name and, again, all tracks were ska. But they went on to release several singles from 1983 through 1987 and the early singles were ska/calypso but they moved more in a pop direction as the years went by. 

I have everything this band released including all demos and vinyl singles up to their last single in 1986 - but then, in 2013, they released a vinyl 7" that had one song from the second demo as the A-side and an unreleased song as the B-side. 

I do not have this single. 

I have sent messages to everybody on Discogs who said they have this single and I offered all kinds of things. Money, rarities in their wantlist, etc. but none of them got back to me.

I think I'll just post everything I have with the hopes that somebody out there will be able to mend the sore spot in this collection.

 

Can you guess what band I'm talking about? 

Sunday, July 18, 2021

The Skalatones [Sweden] - Complete Discography

 This band formed in Landskrona, Sweden in 1995 and they recorded two albums and lots of other songs that were released as EPs, singles, and compilation tracks. At one point they boasted that Charlie Anderson who played bass for The Selecter was once a part of the band. 

The band broke up in 2001.

I think this is everything they ever released. 

 

The Skalatones - Non-Album Tracks (A Tone and Wave Exclusive)

1 Ruder Than Roots

2 4 of Them Outta Jail

3 Do the Carnivala

4 Hannibal Se (Lecta)

5 Rude Skank Wank

6 House of Fun

7 Mr. Probation Officer (Remix)

8 Gold

9 Saturday

10 Going Nutty

11 On Parole (The Nutty AnDead Remix)

12 What I Really Had to Do

13 Stereotypes

14 So Alone

15 Y2Ska

16 Persuaders Dub

17 Rude Boy Ska

18 Tune In(terview) from Jamaica

  

DOWNLOAD The Skalatones - Non-Album Tracks from MEGA

 

DOWNLOAD The Skalatones - Non-Album Tracks from Zippyshare

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


 

The Skalatones - By Public Demand... (1997)

1 Start Skanking

2 Sophisticated Robbery

3 One Drop

4 (What Ever Happened) Last Night

5 4 of Them Outta Jail

6 The Geezer

7 Skalatones Theme

8 Mr. Probation Officer

9 The Key

10 Step Aside

11 Arte Bella




The Skalatones - Tune In... (1999)

1 Radio Ska

2 Common Fools 

3 Slip of the Finger

4 Casino Fatale'

5 Lipstick on my Collar

6 Prejudice

7 5 O'Clock News

8 Ayayay

9 The Spirit

10 Ska Patrol

11 A Train is Coming

12 Persuaders


DOWNLOAD both albums from MEGA

 

DOWNLOAD both albums from Zippyshare


Wednesday, July 14, 2021

Colonel Hathi [East Anglia, UK]

Colonel Hathi's Dawn Patrol - It's a Bargain! (1992)*

1 A Day in the Life of...

2 Fever

3 Sunshine

4 Una Bella

5 Hathi Beat '92

6 One Way Love

 

 

 

Colonel Hathi - 170 Not Out (1995)

1 Hathi Beat

2 Tomorrow

3 Here She Comes

4 All I Wanna Do

5 Another Story

6 Suzi

7 T.V. Girl

8 Israelites

9 Simba

10 Pineapple Pizza

11 All Grown Up

12 Una Bella

13 A Day in the Life...

14 Fever

15 One Way Love

16 Sunshine

17 Flow

 


Colonel Hathi - Turned Out Nice Again (1997)

1 Alfie

2 Simba

3 Supercalifragilisticexpialadocious

4 Falling, Crawling

5 Sally

6 T.V. Girl

7 Turned Out Nice Again!



DOWNLOAD from MEGA


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Monday, July 5, 2021

Loin Groin - Arise Sir Loin (2003) -and- Long Kick EP (1999)

I think these two releases were only sold at shows. Not positive, but our old friend Merrick stated in THIS POST that Arise Sir Loin was only given away at their final show. 

Neither of these releases are on Discogs and I do not have physical copies myself. I cannot find a cover for the EP.

Loin Groin - Arise Sir Loin (2003)

1 Chelsea Stockball

2 Melbourne Shall We Give You All The Best Years Of Our Lives

3 Time Tough

4 Bruce Lee

5 Ken Oath's Lessor

6 Aiyefel Seat Covers

7 Stockball Stick-a-Bush

8 Face the Day

9 Love Beats Me Up

10 Pub-Tab

11 Keyboard Frenzy

 

Loin Groin - Long Kick EP (1999)

1 When Monash Comes Forging On

2 Origins

3 The Professor

4 Keith D.F.C.

5 A Surprise

 

DOWNLOAD from MEGA

 

DOWNLOAD from Zippyshare


 

Sunday, June 27, 2021

Monroes - Kabimba! (1992)

 This is a German band not to be confused with the Dutch band The Monroes who did "Sunday People". 

This band is called Monroes without the "The" and they took a different approach to ska. They mix rock-n-roll and they utilize thumping doghouse bass that some might call rockabilly. No matter what you want to call it, it's a great sound. Too bad they only ever released this one album.

They were involved in a project that intended to keep vinyl alive at the dawn of CDs. It was called "Save the Vinyl" and the idea was to give out rare vinyl to attendees of live shows featuring live recordings of the bands playing. They got as far as two volumes before they called it quits. They were compilation 7"s and both of them featured two rare previously unheard tracks by Monroes. They also included the funk-metal band Cucumber Men, the rap group Scouts of Evolution, and the instrumental surf band The Looney Tunes. 

They were given out around Christmas time and the sub-title of the record series was called Single Bells.

I have included both of the Save The Vinyl/Single Bells records in this download. 


Monroes - Kabimba! (1992)


 

1 1,000 Good Reasons

2 War ina Babylon

3 Cleopatra

4 F.B.I.

5 Jamaica ain't no Paradise

6 Warning

7 Happy Monsters

8 Rhythm World

9 Theme from Rio

10 A Cowboy Meets and Indian

11 You Better Go Now

 

Single Bells Vol.1 (1992)


 

A1 - Monroes - Cut My Hair

A2 - Scouts of Evolution - Irie River Mix

B1 - Cucumber Men - Last X-Mas

B2 - Monroes - Caroline



Single Bells Vol.2 (1993)


 

A1 - The Looney Tunes - Stampede

A2 - Monroes - Marilyn

B1 - Monroes - Lula

B2 - The Looney Tunes - Swingin' Creeper

 

DOWNLOAD from MEGA


DOWNLOAD from Zippyshare


Max Staples & the Paperclips - Not Working 7" (1981)


 

This was a band from Australia and this record is probably the only thing they ever put out.

I first heard about them in an old fanzine where they pretty much said that it sucked. I have a copy of that 'zine and I was going to post the review with this post but I can't find it. So, pretty much, I suck too.

I bought this record with the expectation that I will hate it. I don't.

I'm not sure that I like it, but I certainly don't hate it. 

Here's one of the worst records ever heard by some guy who reviewed records in 1981. 

A - Not Working

B - You Make Me Cry


DOWNLOAD from MEGA


DOWNLOAD from Zippyshare

Ska Cha Cha - Secret Reagan Man (1985) -and- Galaxy of Prizes - In a Garden of Eden (1986)

 Mark Nine, also known as MK9, was a prolific musician from California who released a single in 1981 and an album in 1994 but he did several collaborations and was in a few bands. 

He started the ska band Ska Cha Cha who did the song Los(t) Angeles that was on the Planet Ska compilation but aside from that, this was their only release. A three song demo tape that the song Los(t) Angeles came from.

The following year he started another band called Galaxy of Prizes who also did a version of Los(t) Angeles but, even though this band also played ska, the new version of Los(t) Angeles was less ska than the previous recording.

I believe that the only recording Galaxy of Prizes ever released was this one demo tape.

 I have posted the Ska Cha Cha tape in the past but both tapes in this download are all new recordings from new tapes that I acquired in the last few months. Although these versions aren't perfect, they are better than any other version ever offered online to this point.

 

Ska Cha Cha - Secret Reagan Man (1985)


 

1 Los(t) Angeles

2 Cry of Revolution

3 Secret Reagan Man

 

Galaxy of Prizes - In a Garden of Eden (1986)


 

1 In A Gadda Da Vida

2 Ska Lip Soul

3 Lost Angeles

4 All Along the Watchtower

5 Times Up, Pencils Down

 

DOWNLOAD from MEGA


DOWNLOAD from Zippyshare


The Royal Kustoms - The Royal Kustoms EP (2005)


 

3rd wave style band from San Antonio, Texas. It's a little bit punk but mostly ska. They have at least one other release that I do not have.


1 She's Not for Me

2 One Way Town

3 Where I Belong

4 Lost Inside Your Room

5When You're Gone

6 untitled

7 Freak Magnet


DOWNLOAD fromMEGA


DOWNLOAD from Zippyshare

The Aquabats early show from 1994

 

Sunday, June 20, 2021

Sir Lord Erotic - No No Lola Video!!

 I have been doing this blog for thirteen years and I honestly believe that the post I recently did for Sir Lord Erotic is the most popular post in the history of Tone and Wave.

Sir Lord Erotic has taken the time to upload the only music video the band ever made because they are entertainers and, after all these years, they are still providing you some quality entertainment. 

Watch it, share it, bask in the glory:


Also, if you have the time, here's a live performance by The Amazonas who were mentioned in that post. Not ska but great music and an impressive performance.


The Anklebiters - demo tape (1996?)

 This demo tape is probably the only thing this band released. They were from Madison, Wisconsin and they describe their sound as "raging instrumental ska". 

I'm not 100% certain that it was released in 1996. 

1 Opus #4

2 Blue Skai

3 Rosebud

4 Egyptian Healer


DOWNLOAD from MEGA


DOWNLOAD from Zippyshare

Zen Baseballbat - Kneel Down to the Mothers of the Slums (1994)


 

 This is a ska band from Widnes, UK. They released two albums in the early 2000s.

This is an early release by the band before they dedicated themselves to ska. Three tracks on this EP were later re-recorded for the first album but these version were only leaning slightly toward ska and don't sound much like the sound that the band is known for.

The song Fuel-Injected Love Bug is only available on this CD and was not re-recorded as a ska song. 

If you have their other CDs or you know the band and their sound then you might appreciate this EP. If you have never heard them before then you probably don't want to download this one. It's really not ska. 

1 Brown Cows of Elocution

2 Whiplash

3 Fuel-Injected Love Bug

4 Captain Midnight

 

DOWNLOAD from MEGA

 

DOWNLOAD from Zippyshare

Crawdaddy - The 19th Annual Badger Convention (1994)

 


 

Third wave ska, pure ska - no punk, from Bakersfield, California. According to Discogs they have one other release, a demo tape that was released after this album. I have never seen nor heard this tape. 

 

1 Skasquatch

2 Crack

3 Dirty Work Version (The DeWayne Song)

4 Go Joel

5 Go Drew

6 Not Yet

7 Special Extra Secret Hidden Track

8 Boba Fett

9 Skary Josh

10 Badger

11 Crawdads for Breakfast

DOWNLOAD from MEGA


DOWNLOAD from Zippyshare

Friday, June 11, 2021

The Beans - No Boys for You 7" (1980)

British punk/reggae. There were two different covers  for this. One red and one green. Same picture though. 

This band had two other songs on a compilation called The Art of Solving Problems.

A - No Boys for You

B1 - Pressure

B2 - Ravel it Up

DOWNLOAD from MEGA

DOWNLOAD from Zippyshare
 

Sunday, June 6, 2021

va Welcome to Beatville (2000)

1 The Robustos - No Strangers Here

2 Freetown - Skaffic Jam

3 The Gangsters - Girl on the Run

4 Steady Earnest - Scrumpy

5 Yard Beat - Wild Honey

6 Bim Skala Bim - Three Legged Dub

7 Dave & Ansel Collins - That Girl

8 Tommy McCook & The Super Sonic - West Street Special

9 Eastern Standard Time - On the Trail

10 Rocket 350 - Bad Baby

11 The Robustos - Purse String Blues

12 The Graduates - March of the Drink

13 Steady Earnest - Higher Power

14 Rocket 350 - Baby Stop

15 Bim Skala Bim - Murky Water

16 Freetown - The Funnyman

17 The Graduates - Somewhere in Between

18 The Gangsters - Lead Your Own Life (Extended Version)

 

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Monday, May 31, 2021

Banana Buster - Banana Buster demo tape (1994)

Banana Buster was a third wave ska band from Morton Grove, IL that played ska, not ska punk. This is probably the only thing they ever released but it's hard to say because there's no information about them online and I had never heard of them until Matt from Talk The Ska shared it.

If you don't already listen to Talk The Ska you might want to check it out to hear some obscure rarities and to keep up on what's new in the current ska scene. 

Talk The Ska Podcast on Soundcloud

Talk The Ska Facebook

Talk The Ska Podcast on Apple Podcasts 

 

Banana Buster demo (1994)

1 Red Light Love Affair

2 There's Nothing to Fighting

3 Skana Jam

4 Comatose

 

DOWNLOAD from MEGA

 

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Too Fat to Skate - Too Fat to Skate demo tape (1995)


 Too Fat To Skate was a third wave ska band from Lexington, Kentucky who I never heard of and I know nothing about. This extremely rare demo was shared with us by your friend and mine, Matt from Talk The Ska.

I couldn't find anything online about the band other than they were on a compilation called Ace Magazine Holiday Party Volume 1 (1998) where they did a cover of The Christmas Song. 

1 Meanie Pants Song

2 Consignment

3 Stupid Little Hippies

4 Old Man

5 Drew

6 Laurels

7 Anvil

8 Slap Song

9 Rice and Means

10 Dolt

11 God

 

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Den Toffendans - De Toffee 7" (1981)


 This is a Belgian carnavalsliedje or 'carnival song' so you ska purists may not appreciate it, but the end of the song might sound familiar. 

A - De Toffee

B - De Toffee (Instrumental)


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Sunday, May 30, 2021

Colouring Lesson

Colouring Lesson
is a ska-reggae/alternative band from the Baltimore area. They released 2 albums in the 90s and I spent years (and lots of money) trying to track these CDs down. I finally found them and was getting ready to share them with you when I discovered right before making this post that the band is now making their recordings available. 

I will not be sharing downloads of the album but I will share a download link of three of my favorite songs by them.

Their first album was called Menagerie and it was released in 1996. 

Colouring Lesson - Menagerie (1996)

1 One Way

2 Black Coffee

3 Irie

4 Murder

5 Nothing New

6 Down with the Ship

7 Mea Culpa

8 Nothing New (Reprise)

9 Come Follow Me

10 (Untitled)

 More popular than this CD was the 7" record and CD single that it spawned with Mea Culpa Blues (It's My Fault) on the A-Side and Murder on the B-side of the record; Murder and Irie on the CD single.


Mea Culpa is probably their most famous song.

 In 1999 they released their second album Targets that has my favorite song of theirs Ragamuffin Sound.

 


 

Colouring Lesson - Targets (1999)

 1 Innocent Blood

2 Devil in a Paper Cup

3 Capitalism + Free Trade

4 Ragamuffin Sound

5 Some People

6 Monkey Wrench

7 My Spot

8 Don Gordon Dub

9 Amen

10 Ram Dancehall

11 Head

12 Cold Turkey

13 Some People (Reprise)

 

Their only other official release was from a single from 2001 in which they collaborated with a fellow Baltimore artist called Mary Prankster on a single titled Love Has a Rumble that is available on Bandcamp.

 

The only other CD I have by them is an unofficial live album called Live in Wilmer's Park, Brandywine, MD from 1996.


1 Shy Man

2 One Way

3 Black Coffee

4 Irie

5 Murder

6 Level

7 Zoomin'

8 Capitolism and Free Trade

9 Cornered Me in the Kitchen

10 Come Follow Me

11 Weatherman

12 Run Away

13 Light'n Up

14 Tenement Yard

16 Tenement Yard

17 Devil in a Paper Cup

18 Head

19 Nigerian Nights

20 She Blinded Me with Science

21 Shy Man

 (I don't know why there's no track 15.)

 

I selected three songs for you to sample 

1 Mea Culpa Blues - from the first album

2 Ragamuffin Sound - from the second album

3 She Blinded Me with Science - from the live CD

 

I was going to share everything but, as I mentioned, the band is making their releases available. You can buy them HERE. 

 

 DOWNLOAD the three sample tracks fromMEGA

 DOWNLOAD the three sample tracks from Zippyshare

 

Sunday, May 23, 2021

Judith Ann-Marie

Judith Ann-Marie is an American reggae artist who released two singles in 1982. 

The A-Side to her first single is called Jah Will be There and it is a cover of the Four Tops' amazing classic Reach Out, I'll be There.

Her second release had a B-side called One of the Poorest People which was a cover of the British band Caldonia's song from 1977. 
 

There was a time not so long ago when you couldn't find these records anywhere. I was lucky enough to get an unplayed copy of the second record from the producer Jeffrey Bauman himself. I still have this record. It has only ever been played once between 1982 and now and that's when I ripped it for your listening pleasure. 

 Judith Ann-Marie  and Loose Caboose - Jah Will be There 7" (1982)

A - Jah Will be There 

B -We Need to Free Our Love




Judith Ann-Marie and Loose Caboose - Out on a Limb 7" (1982)

A - Out on a Limb

B - One of the Poorest People


(The image for the 'Out on a Limb' record was taken from Discogs because my copy is in immaculate condition and I didn't want to put it in my scanner and risk scratching it. Someday I will sell it and the new owner will appreciate this decision.)




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The Smarts - Smarts Attack (1997)


 

Nineties ska from Italy. Pure 2Tone style ska with no punk or distorted guitars. This is the only thing this band ever released. 

1 Oh Yeah!

2 Agent 99

3 Once

4 When the Saints go Marching in

5 Spanish Train

6 Kingston 1959

7 La Piramide di Platino

8 Skaw Boy

9 Sahara

10 The Mosquito


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The Hinks

 

The Hinks was a German ska band that released one CD in 1994 that was mostly in English called "From the Rain in the Eaves" and then put out an EP in 1995 that was all in German. The EP was a tribute to soccer/football/futbol announcer Günther Koch, but it was also a tribute to the beautiful game itself. 

The Hinks - Vom Regen in de Trafue (From the Rain in the Eaves) (1994)

1 Killjoy

2 I Don't Like You

3 Girl from Outer Space

4 Weg Ins Gluck

5 Gangster

6 Schicksal

 


 

The Hinks - G. Koch (1995)

1  G. Koch

2 Aans Gehd Imme'Nu Nei

3 Gute Freunde

4 Glotzen

5 Des is'a Greiz

 


 And they recorded a cover of Small Faces "Lazy Sunday Afternoon" that I included in this download.


This is my favorite song of theirs "Glotzen"



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Tuesday, May 11, 2021

Skank-A-Tiers - Skank-A-Tiers (1998)

This was a ska band from California that only ever released this one CD and, I'm not sure, but I think the singer for this band is Jessica Hernandez from the Detroit, Michigan band Jessica Hernandez & the Deltas. I don't know for sure that it's the same person. I'm 50/50. I can go either way.

I posted the demo tape on Tone and Wave many years ago because my friend Justin from work had a copy of it. It was a long time ago so I won't assume anybody remembers it and I have included the demo in this download. There are 4 songs on the demo. Three were re-recorded for this album.

 

1 No More

2 Sonny the Gangster

3 Unglued

4 Why

5 Tear Drops from My Eyes

6 License to Skank

7 I Just Wanted You to Know

8 The Car Song

9 Nothing's Perfect

10 Bury Me Deep

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Skank-A-Tiers demo (1997) 

1 Sunny the Gangster

2 The Car Song

3 Unglued

4 Mousetrap


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