The Specials

His distinctively dour voice can be heard on hits like Ghost Town, Gangsters and Too Much, Too Young.

I spent the time trying to figure out how not to die." I wasn't comfortable with any of them so I became the singer." "He worked in a stamp shop" the musician told Mojo magazine. "I was abducted, taken to France and sexually abused for four days," he told The Spectator in 2019. "They didn't seem like they could play very well either, so the thing was to form a band then work it out. "When we picked up a gold disc for Ghost Town, I felt really bad about it," he said. "His music and his performances encapsulated the very essence of life… "I spent around three months trying to figure out what was going on. If you have a story suggestion email [[email protected]](mailto:[email protected]). "We fronted The Specials and Fun Boy Three together, making history. I just sat on my bed rocking for eight months." "And then punched in the face and left on the roadside."

Hall, described as "one of the most brilliant singers, songwriters and lyricists this country has ever produced", died after a short illness, the band has ...

"His music and his performances encapsulated the very essence of life… I grew up aligned to a party, the Labour Party, quite strongly. "It's pretty sad. Rest easy Terry Hall." "Terry was a wonderful husband and father and one of the kindest, funniest, and most genuine of souls. Hall, described as "one of the most brilliant singers, songwriters and lyricists this country has ever produced", died after a short illness, the band has announced on Twitter.

Terry Hall, the lead singer of ska-punk band the Specials, has died after a "brief illness" at age 63.

“Gutted to hear of the passing of #terryhall. “The Special’s third album — 38 years since the last one, More Specials — is well timed,” the review states. “His music and his performances encapsulated the very essence of life… He formed Fun Boy Three with Neville Staple of the Specials and The Go-Gos’ Jane Wiedlin after their departure from Specials in 1981. “Terry was a wonderful husband and father and one of the kindest, funniest, and most genuine of souls,” the note continued. On Monday, the band released a statement on social media informing fans that the musician had died after a “brief illness,” though more details were not made available.

Terry Hall, lead singer of the English 2 tone and ska revival band The Specials, has died.

The band, also known for its staunch opposition of racial injustice, frequently commented on politics and social reform in England and beyond. The Specials are known for tracks including “Gangsters” and “Ghost Town,” the latter of which remained at No. The post called Hall “our beautiful friend, brother and one of the most brilliant singers, songwriters and lyricists this country has ever produced,” going on to say that “his music and his performances encapsulated the very essence of life…

Terry Hall, the lead singer of the Specials, died at the age of 63 following a brief illness, according to the band's social media posts.

“’Love Love Love’,” the band’s statement concluded. The band’s final record with Hall, “Protest Songs 1924-2012,” was released in 2021. Their other notable songs included the cover “A Message to You, Rudy” and “Doesn’t Make it Alright.”

Neville Staple has led tributes to his The Specials bandmate Terry Hall following Hall's death at the age of 63.

"The Specials were one of the most important bands for me as a kid. The Specials were one of the most important bands for me as a kid. That honesty is heard in so many of his songs in joy and sorrow. Terry’s voice was the perfect instrument for the true and necessary songs on "The Specials". Very sad to hear about Terry Hall! RIP Terry Hall." Absolutely loved him as an artist." Terrible news to hear this." Just heard the news about Terry Hall. Rest easy Terry Hall." "God damnit. What an absolute sadness," he said.

The band confirmed the news in a statement on its social media on Monday night (19 December) in which they said Hall passed away following "a brief illness".

Hope you find peace now mate. Rest In Peace Terry Hall. Terry Hall was a massive influence growing up for me. Deeply saddened by the news of Terry Hall’s passing. Very sorry and shocked, to hear the sad news about the lovely, and brilliant Terry Hall. Thoughts with family and friends. Goes without saying but thanks Terry Hall for all the music, inspiration, and being kind to us when we were starting out. Sad day! Very sad to hear about Terry Hall! My condolences to his family and friends," he added. RIP Terry Hall." "His music and his performances encapsulated the very essence of life…

The Specials were formed by Jerry Dammers, Lynval Golding and Horace Panter in 1977.

I grew up aligned to a party, the Labour Party, quite strongly. "His music and his performances encapsulated the very essence of life… That honesty is heard in so many of his songs in joy and sorrow. Very sad to hear about Terry Hall! Terry’s voice was the perfect instrument for the true and necessary songs on “The Specials”. Rest easy Terry Hall."

The singer-songwriter rose to fame as part of the band, who were pioneers of the ska scene in the UK. Hall's death was announced via the band's official Twitter ...

“The Specials were one of the most important bands for me as a kid. That honesty is heard in so many of his songs in joy and sorrow. Absolutely loved him as an artist.” Rest easy Terry Hall.” Taught me many things I needed to know. We had only just confirmed some 2023 joint music agreements together.

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.

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.

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.

The English singer-songwriter rose to fame as part of The Specials, who were pioneers of the UK's ska scene.

You could imagine him on the bus, smart-arsing at the back of class, in the pub. Thanks for the songs and for singing them the way you did. [@thespecials]- the first band I went to see - at The Mayfair in Newcastle. Thank you for the music, thank you for the friendship, I love you mate. I wasn't comfortable with any of them so I became the singer." "They didn't seem like they could play very well either, so the thing was to form a band then work it out. "I was abducted, taken to France and sexually abused for four days," he told The Spectator in 2019. The Specials were one of the most important bands for me as a kid. "The Specials were one of the most important bands for me as a kid. "We are very sad to hear of the passing of Terry Hall the lead singer of The Specials. Sleaford Mods, reggae band UB40 and Andy Bell added their voices to the tributes, with the former tweeting: "Rest In Peace Terry Hall. Rest in power Terry Hall."

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.