THE SPECIALS LTD international tour dates
London
100 Club
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London
100 Club
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Liverpool
Hangar34
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Kent
GlassBox Theatre
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Leamington Spa
The Assembly
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Cardiff
The Globe
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Maidstone
The Stag Sevenoaks
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Sheffield
The Leadmill
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London
229 The Venue
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Edinburgh
La Belle Angele
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Glasgow
Slay Glasgow
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About THE SPECIALS LTD
The Specials, also known as The Special AKA, are an English 2 Tone and ska revival band formed in 1977 in Coventry. After some early chances, the first stable lineup of the group consisted of Terry Hall and Neville Staple on vocals, Lynval Golding and Roddy Radiation on guitars, Horace Panter on bass, Jerry Dammers on keyboards, John Bradbury on drums, and Dick Cuthell and Rico Rodriguez on the horn. Their music combines a "danceable ska and rocksteady beat with punk's energy and attitude". Lyrically, they present a "more focused and informed political and social stance".
The band wore mod-style "1960s period rude boy outfits (pork pie hats, tonic and mohair suits and loafers)". In 1980, the song "Too Much Too Young", the lead track on their The Special AKA Live! EP reached No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart. In 1981, the recession-themed single "Ghost Town" also hit No. 1 in the UK.
After seven consecutive UK Top 10 singles between 1979 and 1981, main lead vocalists Hall and Staple, along with guitarist Golding, left to form Fun Boy Three. Continuing as "The Special AKA" (a name they used frequently on earlier Specials releases), a substantially revised Specials line-up issued new material until 1984, including the top 10 UK hit single "Free Nelson Mandela". After this, founder and songwriter Jerry Dammers dissolved the band and pursued political activism.
The group re-formed in 1993, and have continued to perform and record with varying line-ups, none of them involving Dammers.
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- The Specials Ltd 'Too Much Too Young', Maidstone on the 14th March 2025
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- THE SPECIALS LTD, London on the 12th April 2025
- THE SPECIALS LTD, Edinburgh on the 25th April 2025
- THE SPECIALS LTD, Glasgow on the 26th April 2025
- 100 Club, London on the 24th January 2025
- 100 Club, London on the 25th January 2025
- Hangar34, Liverpool on the 1st February 2025
- GlassBox Theatre, Kent on the 7th February 2025
- The Assembly, Leamington Spa on the 1st March 2025
- The Globe, Cardiff on the 8th March 2025
- The Stag Sevenoaks, Maidstone on the 14th March 2025
- The Leadmill, Sheffield on the 11th April 2025
- 229 The Venue, London on the 12th April 2025
- La Belle Angele, Edinburgh on the 25th April 2025
- Slay Glasgow, Glasgow on the 26th April 2025