Artist: The Specials
Track: 
Hey, Little Rich Girl
Album: More Specials 1980
Tags: ska, mod revival, mod, 80s, british, two-tone, 2 tone, beat, post-punk, punk rock, my gang rotw
YouTube: The Specials, live, 1980
I am really enjoying the ska tracks in Amy Winehouse‘s current album, Back To Black (Deluxe Edition). One of the songs she covers is Hey, Little Rich Girl, originally by The Specials.
The Specials were part of the short-lived ska revival at the end of the 70s / early 80s. I always saw Terry Hall as the Damon Albarn of the day: clever, witty and incredibly talented. I’ve watched his career with fascination – Fun Boy Three, The Colourfield, collaborations with The Lightning Seeds, Stephen Duffy, Dub Pistols, Gorillaz and Tricky. I am over to the moon to find he announced earlier this year that The Specials will be reforming for tour dates this autumn, and possibly for some recording. Another ska revival? I hope so!
Here’s Amy Winehouse’s cover of the same song. Hey Little Rich Girl .feat Zalon & Ade. Her singing style has evolved to the kind of slurry jazz of the greats. Usually, you hear it in the voices of singers who have been around for a couple of decades or more and have developed their craft to such a degree, they have the confidence to play around and not try so hard. Amy Winehouse has been singing for just over a decade and has reached that stage already, only in her case, her talent is burning so brightly it’s taking her with it. I listen to her now with a mixture of admiration and sadness. She’s not long for this world, is she?
YouTube: Amy Winehouse – Hey Little Rich Girl (Glastonbury 2007)
Babs My Gang
The Specials – Official Site
MySpace
Wikipedia
Allmusic
Terry Hall – Official Site
Wikipedia
Admin – Stats as of today:
Video:
Date Added to YouTube: July 02, 2006
Views: 119,488, Ratings: 257, Responses: 0, Comments: 154, Favorited: 782 times
Last.fm listeners of this track – 5,268 (fully streamable)
No. of plays scrobbled in Last.fm – 14,901
Position in Last 7 Days: 38 / 74
Position in Last 6 Months: 37 / 1,439
Stats after 7 days:
Video:
Views: 122,080, Ratings: 264, Responses: 0, Comments: 161, Favorited: 797 times
Last.fm listeners of this track – 5,308 (fully streamable)
No. of plays scrobbled in Last.fm – 14,952
Position in Last 7 Days: 32 / 96
Position in Last 6 Months: 37 / 1,439
