The Specials

Terry Hall, lead singer with The Specials, and also Fun Boy Three and The Colourfield, has died aged 63, following a short illness.

“It felt like a vindication of everything the band had set out to do,” Hall said. “Achieving a first No 1 album in our 60s restored our faith in humanity,” Hall told the Quietus. In 2008, inspired by the Pixies’ reunion in 2004, Hall announced that he would be reforming the Specials for a tour and new music, albeit without founding member Jerry Dammers, who claimed he had been forced out. Hall would form another band, the Colourfield, in 1984, which had a hit with Thinking of You. [David Bowie’s](https://www.thisisdig.com/artist/david-bowie/) 1975 album [Young Americans](https://www.thisisdig.com/feature/david-bowie-young-americans-album/) that pushed Hall towards becoming a singer, he told the Guardian in 2009. “It felt like the perfect moment to stop the Specials part one,” Hall said. “Terry was a wonderful husband and father and one of the kindest, funniest, and most genuine of souls. The band released a second, even darker album, More Specials, in 1980. So there’s always been a bit of that kicking around in the back of my mind. It remained at No 1 for three weeks, spending 10 weeks in the Top 40, and is widely considered one of the greatest pop records of all time. Jane Wiedlin of the Go-Go’s and Hall’s former partner wrote that she was “gutted”. They released their debut single, Gangsters (a reworking of Prince Buster’s Al Capone) in 1979, which reached No 6 in the UK singles chart.

The pioneering ska singer's death was announced by the band on Monday.

I grew up aligned to a party, the Labour Party, quite strongly. Terry often left the stage at the end of The Specials’ life-affirming shows with three words… “Terry was a wonderful husband and father and one of the kindest, funniest, and most genuine of souls. “He will be deeply missed by all who knew and loved him and leaves behind the gift of his remarkable music and profound humanity. His music and his performances encapsulated the very essence of life… Until Tony Blair made Noel Gallagher prime minister I knew exactly where I stood.”

London (AP) -- Musician Terry Hall, who helped create of the defining sounds of post-punk Britain as lead singer of The Specials, has died. He was 63.

Terry Hall, lead singer of British ska band The Specials, whose often politically charged hits in the late 1970s and early 1980s included "Gangsters" and ...

Hall left the band in 1981 to set up another group, Fun Boy Three, with two other former Specials members. 1 on the UK Singles Chart in 1980, and they repeated the feat in 1981 with "Ghost Town," a protest against urban decay under the government of former prime minister Margaret Thatcher. Hall joined the band in 1977 in his central English home city of Coventry.

Hits like Ghost Town, Gangsters and Too Much Too Young soundtracked British life in the late 1970s and early 80s. Tributes came from UB40, Boy George and Elvis ...

[Dexy's Midnight Runners said](https://twitter.com/DexysOfficial/status/1605027233101647873) they were "very sorry and shocked to hear the sad news about the lovely, and brilliant Terry Hall". [The Proclaimers described him](https://twitter.com/The_Proclaimers/status/1605170152840261632) as "a quite brilliant, singer, songwriter and lyricist with profound humanity". [Former Bros singer Matt Goss said](https://twitter.com/mattgoss/status/1604986163441598464) The Specials were very important because they "made you feel alive" and Ghost Town was "a masterpiece". "And [they] turned us on to a trend that was an all encompassing movement of music and fashion SKA!!... It was a horrible time to be in the city but they gave us hope. That was the thing that it was. Carole Donnelly, a friend of Hall's, told BBC Radio 5 Live: "He was kind, witty, but a very shy man. Bringing the idiosyncratic and ironic songs to life beautifully." Together with the band, he was very vocal about racism and injustice in general," he added. Take care on the steps above young man." "There was so much turmoil going on in the country at that time… [Leftfield wrote on Twitter](https://twitter.com/Leftfield/status/1604981531818213377) that Hall was "such an amazing singer", adding: "He sang about real people and real issues.

Terry Hall, lead singer of The Specials, has died. With its mix of Black and white members and Jamaica-influenced fashion style, the band became leaders of ...

Hall's bandmates said he was "a wonderful husband and father and one of the kindest, funniest, and most genuine of souls. Most of the original Specials reunited in 2008, staged a 30th-anniversary tour in 2009 and in 2019 released an album of new material, "Encore," which became the band's first U.K. Terry often left the stage at the end of The Specials' life-affirming shows with three words... Hall joined the band that would become The Specials in the English Midlands city of Coventry in the late 1970s, a time of racial tension, economic gloom and urban unrest. music charts in the summer of 1981 as Britain's cities were erupting in riots. The band announced late Monday that Hall had died after a brief illness.

The Specials frontman was the eye of the band's storm in the late 1970s, and his eclectic career led him back to where he started.

He was a defining member of one of the most beloved and influential bands of their era, but moreover, he declined to be hemmed in by their vast legacy: as you might have guessed from the figure captured at the end of Dance Craze, standing still while bedlam erupts around him, Terry Hall was very much his own man. If no one was going to rank 2019’s Encore or 2021’s Protest Songs over Specials and More Specials, they were far better than a naysayer might have suggested a Specials album would be without the input of Dammers, who after all had been the band’s architect, chief songwriter and de facto leader in their heyday. Similarly, there were few takers for Vegas, the electronic duo he formed with Dave Stewart of Eurythmics, or indeed for Hall’s 90s solo albums Home and Laugh, despite the strength of their songs – listen to Hall’s version of the Lightning Seeds’ Sense, which he co-wrote with Ian Broudie, or the glorious chiming guitars of Sonny and His Sister. Just as the global influence of The Specials became readily apparent, thanks to a wave of American ska-punk bands, Hall had never seemed further from the music they were inspired by. None of the band’s members seemed to have emerged untraumatised from the experience of their 18 months of fame, but the pressure took a particular toll on Hall, who struggled with his mental health (he was eventually diagnosed with bipolar disorder after a suicide attempt in 2004). If you wanted evidence of Hall’s catholic music taste – not always apparent in The Specials – Waiting opened with a jaunty cover of the theme music from the 1960s film adaptations of Agatha Christie’s Miss Marple mysteries. The sheer intensity of their success – within months of the release of their debut single Gangsters, they had spawned both their own genre and an entire youth movement – and a crippling workload didn’t do much to help relations within the band. He announced his departure from the band backstage at Top of the Pops, where they were due to perform Ghost Town, an eerie and eerily prescient depiction of urban decay that reached No 1 the day after cities across Britain erupted in rioting. More than the speed and ferocity with which the Specials played, more than Roddy Radiation’s stinging rock’n’roll-influenced guitar style, it was Hall who linked them to punk, or at least to Johnny Rotten. It was perfect for The Specials’ lyrics, which conjured up a spectacularly grim vision of late 70s Britain on their debut album – violence lurks around every corner, different youth cults battle it out and the National Front is on the march – and grew bleaker still on More Specials, where air crashes, ageing, drink-driving and nuclear paranoia (on the Hall co-written Man at C&A) found their way into the mix. It’s a noticeably different version of the song to the one that appears on their eponymous 1979 debut album. Dammers gleefully dives into their midst, but Hall has retreated to the rear of the stage, by the drums.

They shared that he passed away after a "brief illness" and that he would be "deeply missed" by all who knew him. A statement released on the band's ...

The Twitter account for UB40 also paid tribute to Hall, writing: "We are very sad to hear of the passing of Terry Hall the lead singer of @thespecials. Comedian Tim Vine posted: "I haven’t written a lot of fan mail in my life but I once wrote to Terry Hall. Singer Matt Goss wrote: "I’m in shock that one of my favourite singer-songwriters, Terry Hall has passed away. Meanwhile, singer Boy George tweeted: "Very sad to hear about Terry Hall! [Horace Panter](https://www.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk/news/22564450.specials-horace-panter-play-intimate-east-lancs-date/) set up the band, with Hall, Neville Staple, Roddy Byers and John Bradbury joining a year later. That honesty is heard in so many of his songs in joy and sorrow. It is with great sadness that we announce the passing, following a brief illness, of Terry, our beautiful friend, brother and one of the most brilliant singers, songwriters and lyricists this country has ever produced. “Terry was a wonderful husband and father and one of the kindest, funniest, and most genuine of souls. “He will be deeply missed by all who knew and loved him and leaves behind the gift of his remarkable music and profound humanity. We knew Terry had been unwell but didn't realise how serious until recently. His music and his performances encapsulated the very essence of life… We had only just confirmed some 2023 joint music agreements together.

Terry Hall, lead singer of The Specials, has died. With its mix of Black and white members and Jamaica-influenced fashion style, the band became leaders of ...

Hall's bandmates said he was "a wonderful husband and father and one of the kindest, funniest, and most genuine of souls. Most of the original Specials reunited in 2008, staged a 30th-anniversary tour in 2009 and in 2019 released an album of new material, "Encore," which became the band's first U.K. Terry often left the stage at the end of The Specials' life-affirming shows with three words... Hall joined the band that would become The Specials in the English Midlands city of Coventry in the late 1970s, a time of racial tension, economic gloom and urban unrest. music charts in the summer of 1981 as Britain's cities were erupting in riots. The band announced late Monday that Hall had died after a brief illness.

It has been announced that Terry Hall, frontman for the 1980s ska band The Specials, has passed away aged 63.

The band also requested that fans “respect the family’s privacy at this very sad time”. He will be deeply missed by all who knew and loved him and leaves behind the gift of his remarkable music and profound humanity.” “His music and his performances encapsulated the very essence of life…

The pioneering ska singer “encapsulated the very essence of life” with his music, the band said as they announced the news on Monday. Hall rose to fame as part ...

I grew up aligned to a party, the Labour Party, quite strongly. “Terry was a wonderful husband and father and one of the kindest, funniest, and most genuine of souls. Terry often left the stage at the end of The Specials’ life-affirming shows with three words… “He will be deeply missed by all who knew and loved him and leaves behind the gift of his remarkable music and profound humanity. His music and his performances encapsulated the very essence of life… Until Tony Blair made Noel Gallagher prime minister I knew exactly where I stood.”

Taking to social media, the ska icons confirmed that the influential singer had passed away from a “brief illness,” honouring him as “a beautiful friend, ...

[See a host of tributes to Terry Hall here](https://www.nme.com/news/music/the-specials-terry-hall-dies-aged-63-cause-tributes-3369212). Hall remained active with The Specials into this year, with their last show together at Beautiful Days. We had only just confirmed some 2023 joint music agreements together. [Christine ‘Sugary’ Staple] was called as we arrived in Egypt. “His music and his performances encapsulated the very essence of life… Mary in Devon on August 20 this year.

“It is with great sadness that we announce the passing, following a brief illness, of Terry, our beautiful friend, brother and one of the most brilliant singers ...

Hall left the band in 1981 to set up another group, Fun Boy Three, with two other former Specials members. Their song “Too Much Too Young,” a critique of teenage pregnancy, reached No. Hall joined the band in 1977 in his central English home city of Coventry.

LONDON — Terry Hall, the British musician and lead singer in the late 1970s' ska-punk band the Specials, has died at the age of 63, the group announced ...

[“Well Fancy That!,”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=5&v=IxLmxZixVXk&embeds_euri=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F&feature=emb_logo) recorded in 1983 by Fun Boy Three. It was heartbreaking, the last thing we wanted to see.” “We were playing with Madness in a university town somewhere, we walked offstage and there were casualties all over the dressing room. The trauma left him in a state of depression and addicted to Valium, which he had been prescribed. He held odd jobs, including apprentice hairdresser, before deciding to pursue music after seeing the Sex Pistols in concert. “It got really extreme,” Mr. “Our country’s in a mess, do you like my gold record? Hall performed with bands Fun Boy Three, the Colourfield and Vegas. It was a haunting soundtrack to the summer of riotous unrest that gripped the country’s inner cities one month after its release. “We were expected to get a gold disc for that record, but I found that pretty horrible. It felt like the perfect moment to stop.” Why do we need that reward?” Mr.

"The Specials" lead singer Terry Hill has died at the age of 63 after a brief illness, and the band have announced the same on their Twitter handle tonight.

Lynval Golding, and [Jerry Dammers](/topic/jerry-dammers)founded this band along with [Horace Panter](/topic/horace-panter). [Terry Hall](/topic/terry-hall)who died after a brief illness at the age of 63 years. He was the funniest, kindest and most genuine of all souls and one of the most brilliant lyricists, songwriters and singers. [Coventry](/topic/coventry)in 1977. Originally, the band was called The Automatics, and then its name changed to The [Coventry Automatics](/topic/coventry-automatics), The Special AKA and finally, The Specials. [Terry](/topic/terry)Hall, who died after suffering for a short time at 63, ‘The Specials’ said that they are announcing his demise with great sadness.

Terry Hall, lead singer of The Specials, has died. With its mix of Black and white members and Jamaica-influenced fashion style, the band became leaders of ...

Hall's bandmates said he was "a wonderful husband and father and one of the kindest, funniest, and most genuine of souls. Most of the original Specials reunited in 2008, staged a 30th-anniversary tour in 2009 and in 2019 released an album of new material, "Encore," which became the band's first U.K. Terry often left the stage at the end of The Specials' life-affirming shows with three words... Hall joined the band that would become The Specials in the English Midlands city of Coventry in the late 1970s, a time of racial tension, economic gloom and urban unrest. music charts in the summer of 1981 as Britain's cities were erupting in riots. The band announced late Monday that Hall had died after a brief illness.

Go-Gos guitarist Jane Wiedlin — who sang backing vocals on the Specials' 1980 album More Specials — paid tribute to her friend in a touching tweet. “Gutted to ...

Though The Specials formed and reformed a number of times over the years with a wide variety of lineups, Hall will be remembered for the indelible mark he left on the band’s first two albums and the long tail of influence in its music, message and style, which was carried on in spirit by everyone from Fishbone to The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, No Doubt, Blur, Sublime and Operation Ivy/Rancid. at the time, the band members made a statement in their rude boy two-tone suits and porkpie hats and blasted out of the gate on their Elvis Costello-produced self-titled debut on their 2 Tone label, which featured their signature cover of Dandy Livingstone’s 1967 single “A Message to You Rudy.” Hall then formed the group The Colourfield in 1984, releasing two albums with that project before pivoting to release an album with his trio featuring actress Blair Booth and jeweler Anouchka Grose: Terry, Blair & Anouchka. He will be deeply missed by all who knew and loved him and leaves behind the gift of his remarkable music and profound humanity.” His music and his performances encapsulated the very essence of life… “Terry was a wonderful husband and father and one of the kindest, funniest, and most genuine of souls.

The band's albums were landmarks of the interracial '2-tone' scene that swept England and beyond in the late '70s and early '80s.

“Terry was a wonderful husband and father and one of the kindest, funniest, and most genuine of souls. His music and his performances encapsulated the very essence of life… Terry Hall, frontman for the English ska-punk band the Specials, has died.

The singer's musical free spirit scored him hits with everyone from the Specials and Fun Boy Three to collaborations with the Go-Go's and Bananarama.

[the Face](https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2017/jul/11/how-we-made-the-face-nick-logan-neville-brody-magazines) and suggested they do a song together. [the Specials](https://www.theguardian.com/music/the-specials) and the 2 Tone label to the nation. It’s a lovely tune and devotional message to someone who has walked away: “If you ever think of me / I’ll be thinking of you … too much fighting on the dancefloor”), unemployment had rocketed (“Government leaving the youth on the shelf”) and decay was everywhere (“All the clubs have been closed down / This town is ’coming like a ghost town”). Hall and guitarist and vocalist Jane Wiedlin’s brief romance on that tour resulted in this supreme example of catchy 80s pop, which subsequently became a hit for both their bands. Their first single – and first hit – finds Hall using his most eerily becalmed, conversational delivery to warn that political leaders will lead us into Armageddon.

Hall died “after a brief illness,” according to The Specials. Band members remembered him as “our beautiful friend, brother and one of the most brilliant ...

Terry was a wonderful husband and father and one of the kindest, funniest, and most genuine of souls. “His music and his performances encapsulated the very essence of life… “Terrible news to hear this.” His music and his performances encapsulated the very essence of life… “Terry was a wonderful husband and father and one of the kindest, funniest, and most genuine of souls,” the group said. Hall died “after a brief illness,” according to The Specials.

The band announced late Monday that Hall had died after a brief illness. They called him “our beautiful friend, brother and one of the most brilliant singers, ...

Hall’s bandmates said he was “a wonderful husband and father and one of the kindest, funniest, and most genuine of souls. Most of the original Specials reunited in 2008, staged a 30th-anniversary tour in 2009 and in 2019 released an album of new material, “Encore,” which became the band’s first UK No. “He will be deeply missed by all who knew and loved him and leaves behind the gift of his remarkable music and profound humanity. Terry often left the stage at the end of The Specials’ life-affirming shows with three words… Hall joined the band that would become The Specials in the English Midlands city of Coventry in the late 1970s, a time of racial tension, economic gloom and urban unrest. The Specials had seven UK Top 10 hits before Hall and fellow band members Neville Staple and Lynval Golding left in 1981 to form electropop outfit Fun Boy Three.

Terry Hall, singer of the ska revival band the Specials, has died at 63, his band announced. The Specials found hits in the U.K. by bringing back ska in the ...

In 2008, he reunited the Specials with a lineup including Golding and Panter. While Hall went on to form other bands, including the Colourfield in the mid-1980s and Vegas with Eurythmics musician Dave Stewart, he also had a solo career. The band released another album, More Specials, in 1980, and had a U.K. That album featured covers of Jamaican artists like Toots and the Maytals and Dandy Livingstone, along with political messages about racism and violence, and it became a key album in the ska revival in the U.K. The band soon opened for the Clash on tour after Joe Strummer went to one of their gigs and released their self-titled debut album, produced by Elvis Costello, in 1979. After dropping out of school at 14, Hall eventually joined a band called the Coventry Automatics in his late teens.

Terry Hall, lead singer of British ska band The Specials, whose often politically charged hits in the late 1970s and early 1980s included "Gangsters" and ...

Hall left the band in 1981 to set up another group, Fun Boy Three, with two other former Specials members. Hall joined the band in 1977 in his central English home city of Coventry. 1 on the UK Singles Chart in 1980, and they repeated the feat in 1981 with "Ghost Town," a protest against urban decay under the government of former prime minister Margaret Thatcher.