The Boiler (song)
Encyclopedia
The Boiler is one of two transitional songs of the Specials
, the other one is Jungle Music, transitional because they are both released between the split of the Specials and the start of the Special AKA, it was released on 2 Tone
Records.
The Boiler was the first song The Bodysnatchers
wrote themselves; prior to this they only had played old ska covers. Jerry Dammers
wanted to produce it for the band but pressure from Chrysalis who looked after the 2Tone label caused The Bodysnatchers to record the more commercial 'Let's Do Rocksteady'. Due to musical and some personal differences the Bodysnatchers disbanded after a year , and some members went on to form the Belle Stars ,and, whilst remaining on friendly terms with the Belle Stars ,founder member and bass guitarist Nicky Summers chose to work with Rhoda . There is a live bootleg version of The Boiler from 1980,'The Bodysnatchers Live at Folkestone' and it is a rough mix . There also exists a specially recorded version from the John Peel
show, but it hasn’t been issued yet.
album went on tour with the Specials in 1981 more or less by accident first as a guest then as a permanent fixture. Not long after making the Ghost Town
promo, the Boiler got added to the set list. The Specials played the Boiler on their North American tour. There are at least two bootleg versions of The Boiler live with the Specials in 1981. These versions are slightly polished but played in a fast and intense way, so it still sounds very different then the much more laidback recorded version.
Rhoda Dakar and Jerry Dammers started working on The Boiler, but then another project caught Jerry Dammers attention, that was Dance Craze
the live concert movie of all the British ska bands, so the Boiler was again put on hold. Rhoda remembered recording her part of the song in the studio about a year before it release; it was a long and difficult process she remembers.
, John Shipley and Rhoda Dakar and some new members went on until 1984 as the Special AKA.
Not a lot of people did know the Boiler had a promo and in 2011 it premiered on you tube to the surprise of many Specials fans. It was directed by radical English graphic artist Barney Bubbles
who also had directed the promo of the number one hit Ghost Town and it was edited and produced by Liz Soden.
album, together maybe with Rico’s Jungle Music, because it’s really a track that comes to live on a album were quietly and slowly the music and the lyrics get to you like a typical album track.
The Specials
The Specials are an English 2 Tone ska revival band formed in 1977 in Coventry, England. Their music combines a "danceable ska and rocksteady beat with punk's energy and attitude", and had a "more focused and informed political and social stance" than other ska groups...
, the other one is Jungle Music, transitional because they are both released between the split of the Specials and the start of the Special AKA, it was released on 2 Tone
2 Tone
2 Tone is a music genre created in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s by fusing elements of ska, punk rock, rocksteady, reggae, and New Wave. It was called 2 Tone because most of the bands were signed to 2 Tone Records at some point. Other labels associated with the 2 Tone sound were Stiff...
Records.
Early version
The Boiler is about a girl with low self esteem (she compares herself with an old boiler) who gets raped/assaulted. It' s a discomforting song, especially the ending . In the song Rhoda Dakar references the rape of a friend some years before .The Boiler was the first song The Bodysnatchers
The Bodysnatchers (band)
The Bodysnatchers were a seven-piece all-female band involved in the British 2 Tone ska revival of the late 1970s and early 1980s.-Career:Formed in London by Nicky Summers in 1979, in the aftermath of the punk rock scene, The Bodysnatchers released two ska/rocksteady singles on 2 Tone Records...
wrote themselves; prior to this they only had played old ska covers. Jerry Dammers
Jerry Dammers
Jeremy David Hounsell "Jerry" Dammers is a British musician who is a founder and keyboard player of the Coventry, England based ska revival band The Specials, The Special A.K.A...
wanted to produce it for the band but pressure from Chrysalis who looked after the 2Tone label caused The Bodysnatchers to record the more commercial 'Let's Do Rocksteady'. Due to musical and some personal differences the Bodysnatchers disbanded after a year , and some members went on to form the Belle Stars ,and, whilst remaining on friendly terms with the Belle Stars ,founder member and bass guitarist Nicky Summers chose to work with Rhoda . There is a live bootleg version of The Boiler from 1980,'The Bodysnatchers Live at Folkestone' and it is a rough mix . There also exists a specially recorded version from the John Peel
John Peel
John Robert Parker Ravenscroft, OBE , known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey, radio presenter, record producer and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly from 1967 until his death in 2004...
show, but it hasn’t been issued yet.
Live with The Specials
Rhoda Dakar who had sung some tunes on the More SpecialsMore Specials
More Specials is an October 1980 album from the ska band The Specials. The album was the band's second, after their self-titled debut, and expanded the group's 2 tone sound to include lounge music and other influences. It includes collaborations with The Go-Go's, Rhoda Dakar from The...
album went on tour with the Specials in 1981 more or less by accident first as a guest then as a permanent fixture. Not long after making the Ghost Town
Ghost Town
"Ghost Town" is the title of a 1981 song by the British ska band, The Specials. The song spent three weeks at number one and ten weeks in the top 40 of the UK Singles Chart. Addressing themes of urban decay, deindustrialisation, unemployment and violence in inner cities, the song is remembered for...
promo, the Boiler got added to the set list. The Specials played the Boiler on their North American tour. There are at least two bootleg versions of The Boiler live with the Specials in 1981. These versions are slightly polished but played in a fast and intense way, so it still sounds very different then the much more laidback recorded version.
Rhoda Dakar and Jerry Dammers started working on The Boiler, but then another project caught Jerry Dammers attention, that was Dance Craze
Dance Craze
Dance Craze is a 1981 British documentary film about the English 2 Tone music genre.The film was directed by Joe Massot, who originally wanted to do a film only about the band Madness, who he met during their first US tour. Massot later changed his plans to include the whole 2 Tone movement...
the live concert movie of all the British ska bands, so the Boiler was again put on hold. Rhoda remembered recording her part of the song in the studio about a year before it release; it was a long and difficult process she remembers.
Split of The Specials
Prior to the split of the Specials in the summer of 1981 Jerry Dammers started working again on The Boiler, making different remixes and after the split Jerry Dammers finally produced the Boiler, this also helped to keep the outside world quiet about the future and hopefully to help heal the wounds of the split. They recorded it with Jerry Dammers on keyboard, John Bradbury on drums, John Shipley from the Swinging Cats on guitar and Dick Cuthell on brass with Nicky Summers on bass. After going on tour with Rico Rodriguez they also recorded Jungle Music this time with Horace on bass. Not long after that Horace left the Specials. Jerry Dammers, John Bradbury, Dick Cuthell Rico RodriguezRico Rodriguez
Rico Rodriguez MBE , also known as Reco or El Reco, is a ska and reggae trombonist. He has recorded with many producers, including Karl Pitterson, Prince Buster, and Lloyd 'Matador' Daley...
, John Shipley and Rhoda Dakar and some new members went on until 1984 as the Special AKA.
The release
The song was released on January the 23th of 1982 under the name of “Rhoda with the Special AKA.” There is as we know only one (live) TV performance of this song, it was on the Oxford Road show, there was no band so they used the instrumental version from the B side of the Boiler called “Theme from the Boiler”. The song with “the difficult message” wasn’t an easy listen it wasn’t played on the radio because of it subject, they thought it was to graphic, but still it managed to reach number 35 in the charts. For Jerry Dammers it was about ideals, making a statement, not making money, this song was meant to be listened once; a song about date rape isn’t easy. Of course it didn’t help to get a firmer base for the band and 2 Tone records. But that’s wasn’t something Jerry was thinking about..Not a lot of people did know the Boiler had a promo and in 2011 it premiered on you tube to the surprise of many Specials fans. It was directed by radical English graphic artist Barney Bubbles
Barney Bubbles
Colin Fulcher aka Barney Bubbles was a radical English graphic artist, whose work primarily encompassed the disciplines of graphic design, painting and music video direction. He is most renowned for his distinctive contribution to the graphic design associated with the British independent music...
who also had directed the promo of the number one hit Ghost Town and it was edited and produced by Liz Soden.
Looking back
These days the song is still discomforting, but when you listen to the song more often you realize what a small little gem it is that grows on you and how well it is produced, it’s a shame it’s not yet added to the track list of a special edition of the In the StudioIn the Studio
In the Studio is the third album from the ska band The Specials, released in 1984 - long after the break-up of the original Specials - and only just managed to get into the UK Top 35....
album, together maybe with Rico’s Jungle Music, because it’s really a track that comes to live on a album were quietly and slowly the music and the lyrics get to you like a typical album track.
External links
- http://2-tone.info 2 Tone history and discography
- http://marcoonthebass.blogspot.com/search?q=the+boiler