Ska Week.

Doing a lot of driving = lots of classic-era ska. It's all got a steady beat that you can cruise to, but not in a lame techno way. This week on Society's Fault (the proto-punk, punk, and post-punk program) we're doing proto-ska, ska, and post-ska. Which isn't really very accurate, but it's easier than saying 'classic Jamaican ska, two-tone, and third-wave ska and/or ska punk.' So. Because of all that, here are some very good classic ska things.

First up, 'The Original Rude Boy,' a best-of collection by Desmond Dekker. This dude doesn't have a bad song, really, but there are a lot of really good ones here. Definitely my favorite of this stuff.

Tracklist:

1. King of Ska

2. Honour Your Father and Mother

3. Get Up Edina

4. Rude Boy Train

5. 007 (Shanty Town)

6. Israelites

7. Mother's Young Girl

8. Music Like Dirt

9. It Mek

10. Pickney Gal

11. You Can Get it if You Really Want

12. Hippopotamus

13. Big Headed (Dub Mix)

14. Young Generation

15. Carry Go Bring Come

16. King of Ska '93

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Next up, the compilation 'Studio One Ska,' released in 2004. This is a bunch of stuff from one of the first studios to produce ska recordings in the early '60's. About h

alf-and-half kickin' instrumentals and vocal cuts. All good.

Tracklist:

1. Jackie Mittoo - El Bang Bang

2. Ken Boothe and Stranger Cole - Artie Bella

3. The Wailers - (I'm Gonna) Put it On

4. The Skatalites - Addis Ababa

5. Roland Alphonso - President Kennedy

6. Joe Higgs - (I'm the) Song My Enemies Sing

7. The Skatalites - Beardsman Ska

8. Delroy Wilson - I Want Justice

9. Tommy McCook's Orchestra - Sampson

10. The Ethiopians - I'm Gonna Take Over Now

11. Tommy McCook - Freedom Sounds

12. The Maytals - Marching On

13. The Skatalites - Exodus

14. Roland Alphonso - Look Away Ska

15. Don Drummond - Don Cosmic

16. Roland Alphonso - Scambalena

17. Andy and Joey - You're Wondering Now

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Lastly, here's an odd, semi-exploito release. I guess(?) this is long out-of-print, but apparently Epic records sent Curtis Mayfield to Jamaica in order to compile a CD of, as the title says, 'Real Jamaican Ska.' This was to capitalize on the minor Caribbean music craze in the states during 1964 apparently. It's got some early Bob Marley tunes and some awesome Jimmy Cliff songs.

Tracklist:

1. Lord Creator - Don't Stay Out Late

2. Lord Creator - Little Miss Princess

3. Jimmy Cliff - Ska All Over the World

4. Jimmy Cliff - Trust No Man

5. Winston Samuels - You are the One

6. The Techniques - No One

7. Lord Creator - Golden Love

8. Lord Creator - Man to Man

9. Lord Creator - Angela

10. The Charmers - Time After Time

11. The Techniques - Remember I Told You

12. The Charmers - Misery

13. Bob Marley - Simmer Down

14. Bob Marley - I Am Going Home

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V.A. - 'Girls and Boys - Helge's '87'

Remember a while back when I played a bunch of 1980's kid-metal on the Obscuro radio program?

Well, now you can have the whole thing. I realized that, 2 years later, STILL nobody has this shit up on the internet really. I had to dig through Soulseek to find my copy. I'm making it easier on you. The teenage stuff on the second side really isn't that great...just your run-of-the-mill high school speed metal/punk stuff that was probably everywhere in '87...but god damn are all the kid bands great. The Pink Babycats and Secret Metal tracks are both standouts, but really the whole first side is awesome.

Basically, it sounds like a bunch of 'cool' metal dads forced their kids into writing 'tough' sounding music (which is honestly probably how it went down for this record...it's apparently a benefit record for some youth club called Helge's) but the toughest stuff these kids probably know about are boogers and snakes. At the very least, it's a must-have in any 'outsider' metal collection, if anybody's got one of those (besides me.)

Oh yeah, it's Finnish, so expect a lot of broken English and lyrical weirdness. Also, a few songs are entirely in Finnish.

Tracklist:

1. Galaxy - Se Pa Mig

2. Pink Babycats - The Hunting

3. Boyhunters - Boys

4. Zero Zone - Good

5. Mix Music - Let's Go

6. Minimax - Disconight

7. Atomic - Windrider

8. Herins - Once Upon a Time

9. Our Metal - Let's Kill

10. Secret Metal - The Cop

11. Dross - Radioaktiv

12. Wilderness - The End of Mystery

13. Candy Girls - Together

14. Teffenet - Letar

15. Red'n'Black Viper - Nighttime

16. Manitou - Tribal War

17. TB Line - Don't Listen

18. Ozark - Fight for Your Rights

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***RE-UPED 6/28/14***

Red Hot Chili Peppers - 'Out in L.A.'

Most people that have heard my radio programs know I have a weak spot for the old funk-metal of the Chili Peppers. I can take or leave most of their newer stuff, but from about '83 to '90 they put out some of my favorite records. The best of these is definitely 'The Uplift Mofo Party Plan,' released in 1987 with the four founding members finally playing together on record for the first time, but, I'm givin' you the less-common 'Out in L.A.' compilation.

This has got pretty much all the b-sides from the first 3 Chili Peppers records (there weren't that many) and some live cuts/remixes. It's okay, but it's an interesting document at least. One of the songs ('Blues for Meister') features Flea on vocals I think? There's also a really lame version of 'Deck the Halls.' Oh well. If you're into 'golden age' funk metal, you'll dig this.

Tracklist:

1. Higher Ground (12" Vocal Mix)
2. Hollywood (Africa) (Extended Dance Mix)
3. If You Want Me to Stay (Pink Mustang Mix)
4. Behind the Sun (Ben Grosse Remix)
5. Castles Made of Sand (Live)
6. Special Secret Song Inside (Live)
7. F.U. (Live)
8. Get Up and Jump (Demo Version)
9. Out in L.A. (Demo Version)
10. Green Heaven (Demo Version)
11. Police Helicopter (Demo Version)
12. Nevermind (Demo Version)
13. Sex Rap (Demo Version)
14. Blues for Meister
15. You Always Sing the Same (Demo Version)
16. Stranded
17. Flea Fly
18. What it is
19. Deck the Halls

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