The Selecter

, formed in the late 1970s.

Like many other bands in the ska revival movement, The Selecter featured a racially mixed line-up. Their lyrics featured themes such as violence, politics and marijuana, set to strong melodies and a danceable beat. What set The Selecter apart from the other 2 Tone bands at the time was the songs of Neol Davies, the voice of Pauline Black and the pumping rhythms of Desmond Brown on the Hammond organ. The band's name is based on the term "selector", which is a Jamaican word for disc jockey.

The lineup of The Selecter was, at first, just Davies and John Bradbury (who later became the drummer of The Specials). The band name was also the title of their seminal instrumental, released as the B-side of the first 2 Tone Records single, "Gangsters vs. The Selecter", which was released in July 1979. Pauline Black has been the lead singer of The Selecter since its formation as a band in August 1979, when the band released the singles "Three Minute Hero", "The Whisper", "Missing Words" and "On My Radio". The Selecter's debut album "Too Much Pressure" was recorded at the end of 1979 and beginning of 1980, and was released by 2 Tone Records and Chrysalis Records. Their second album, "Celebrate the Bullet", was issued in 1981. The Selecter were featured in the 2 Tone documentary "Dance Craze".

After the band split in 1982, Black developed an acting career in television and theatre, appearing in dramas such as "The Vice", "The Bill", "Hearts and Minds" and "2000 Acres of Sky". She won the 1991 Time Out award for Best Actress, for her portrayal of Billie Holiday in the play "All or Nothing At All". She starred next to Christopher Lee in the horror film "The Funny Man". Black and Davies reformed The Selecter in 1991, and were joined by Arthur 'Gaps' Hendrickson. They have released several new albums and have toured around the world. Davies left the band in the mid 1990s to record two solo albums, "Box Of Blues" and "Future Swamp". Black continued to record and perform with The Selecter until 2006.

Discography

Albums

the original line up
*"Too Much Pressure" (Feb 1980) UK # 5
*"Celebrate the Bullet" (Feb 1981) UK # 41
*"The Happy Album" (Jul 1994)
*"Pucker!" (Aug 1995)
*"Cruel Britannia" (Nov 1998)
*"The Trojan Songbook" (1999)
*"The Trojan Songbook - Vol 2" (2000)
*"The Trojan Songbook - Vol 3" (2001)
*"Real to Reel" (2003)

ingles and EPs

* "Gangsters" (The Special A.K.A.) vs. "The Selecter" (The Selecter) (Jul 1979, 2 Tone, TT1/TT2) UK # 6
*"On My Radio" (Oct 1979, CHSTT 4) UK # 8
*"Three Minute Hero" (Feb 1980, CHSTT 8) UK # 16
*"Missing Words" (March 1980, CHSTT 10) UK # 23
*"The Whisper" (August 1980, CHSS 1) UK # 36
* "Celebrate The Bullet" (Nov 1980, CHSS 2)
* "On My Radio 91" (1991)
* "Madness" ( The Selecter Featuring Prince Buster ) ( 1992 )
* "Hairspray" EP (1995)

Members

Original Line-up

*Pauline Black : Vocals
*Compton Amanor: guitar
*Charley Anderson: bass guitar
*Charley 'H' Bembridge: drums
*Desmond Brown: Hammond keyboard
*Neol Davies: guitar
*Arthur 'Gaps' Hendrickson: Vocals

Reformed line-up: 1991

*Pauline Black: Vocals
*Neol Davies: Guitar
*Arthur 'Gaps' Hendrickson - Vocals
*Martin Stewart: Keyboards
*Nicky Welsh: Bass
*Perry Melius: Drums

References

* Guinness Book of British Hit Singles - 16th Edition - ISBN 0-85112-190-X
* Guinness Book of British Hit Albums - 7th Edition - ISBN 0-85112-619-7
* The Great Rock Discography - 5th Edition - ISBN 0-84195-079-3

External links

* [http://www.theselecter.net/ Official site]
* [http://www.paulineblack.co.uk/ Official Pauline Black site]
* [http://www.myspace.com/paulineblack Official Pauline Black Myspace profile]
* [http://2-tone.info/artists/the_selecter.html Biography from 2-tone.info]
* [http://www.neoldavies.net/ Official Neol Davies site]
*