The music movement that proved to have slightly more legs than punk did was ska, which really can't be considered punk so I'm not sure why it was included in this documentary. Maybe it was because bands like the The Specials and The Selector were political statements simply by virtue of their existence. Perhaps the fact that they were both inter-racial bands playing music which had obvious reggae influences was enough for Buld to include them as part of the punk movement. For, while them both having black and white musicians in their bands may not sound like such a big deal to us, in the racially charged England of the late 1970s it was huge. In 1976 Rock Against Racism was started in response to Eric Clapton making racist, anti-black statements during one of his concerts, including chanting "Keep Britain White," the slogan of the neo-Nazi National Front Party. On top of this there were also substantial amounts of racial violence directed against both the black and the Southeast Asian communities in England.
So integrated bands like The Specials, The Selector, and a little later on The English Beat, not only created wonderful music but sent a message of tolerance that was badly needed at a time when there wasn't much to be seen anywhere else. The film makes a point of noting that neither the Specials nor The Selector were signed to major labels and both released discs on the independent Two Tone label; an obvious reference to not only the composition of their membership, but their musical influences. While ska of course had been around for a long time, and in fact predates reggae music, the type played by the bands in the late 1970s had a harder edge to it than any of the older ska I've heard. Listening and watching The Selector especially gives you a really good idea of how their music combined pop, rock, and reggae to make for a really upbeat and high energy dance music.
As a special feature on this release, another, shorter documentary by Wolfgang Buld is included, Women In Rock. Unfortunately it's pretty much as patronizing and a waste of time as you'd think it would be from the title. The only women who are at all interesting of those he's chosen to talk with or show performing are Siouxie, of Siouxie & The Banshees and the incredibly odd Nina Hagen. The clips of Siouxie and The Banshees playing in this second documentary are actually one of the high points of the whole disc musically as far as I'm concerned.
Article comments
1 - Glen Boyd
Interesting article Richard, although I think you're selling Paul Weller a bit short. For a guy who started out as a Pete Townshend wanna-be, I think Weller's growth was actually pretty impressive.
He basically went from zero to This Is The Modern World to eighties blue eyed soul man with the Style Council in about ten seconds. And although his style in the Jam was a bit derivative at times (particularly of his idols The Who), they made some pretty decent records. Anyway, just my two cents there. Carry on, then...
-Glen