In the early 1980s, I heard a song that I absolutely loved, called “Do The Dog” by the band The Specials. Along with “Girl From Baltimore” by The Fleshtones, “Cheeseburger” by Gang of Four, “Tell The Coach” by The Bus Boys, and “Controversy” by Prince, it helped form my musical taste. As a result, I became a fan of The Specials.
Shortly after that, I became a fan of The English Beat and had cassettes of their first three albums (“I Just Can’t Stop It“, “Wha’ppe n“, and “Special Beat Service“) in regular rotation for several months straight.
Therefore, when I found out that members from The English Beat and The Specials formed General Public, I was ecstatic. The first album “…All The Rage” contained “Tenderness“, their biggest hit, but I listened to their second album “Hand To Mouth” a lot more. “Faults and All“, “Forward As One“, and “Love Without the Fun” are STILL in regular rotation for me.
That’s why I was surprised… No, shocked and amazed… to find out that Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Mick Jones (from The Clash and Big Audio Dynamite) was a founding member of General Public. I remember seeing the name in the liner notes of “… All the Rage” as a band member but thought it was another guy.
Wow. The things you find out when you actually start paying attention.
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