The Specials: Glastonbury Festival - Pyramid Stage

Saturday 27th June 2009

This is a Crackerjack review of The Specials. Do you agree? Rate and review this event.

Crackerjack rating: 9 / 10.

“It's taken us 28 years to play Glastonbury”, explains besuited Specials frontman Terry Hall. “When we started there was the National Front, now it’s the BNP.” Cue an emotion-packed version of A Message To You Rudy in a set which totally vindicated the band’s reformation.

There is, of course, something of an elephant in the room with this comeback as their leader and songwriter Jerry Dammers hasn’t been invited to the party.

If it bothered some of their hardcore fans, it didn’t seem to affect the band one little bit as they hurtled on stage with all the intensity and attack of their younger selves 30 years ago.

They spat out a splenetic version of Do the Dog to kick the set off and the opening few bars of Gangsters sent the crowd into a frenzy.

Vocalist Neville Staples looked as fit as a butcher’s dog and a mile-wide grin never left his face for the full hour that they were on stage.

Frontman Terry Hall almost broke into a smile, too, at several points. Remarkable scenes.

By Monkey Man, the tens of thousands in the crowd were ska dancing for all they’re worth.

There was a sleek gear change for Blank Expression and Too Hot before Concrete Jungle kicked in complete with Staples careering around the stage like a kiddie after too many glasses of orange squash.

Hall returned for the dubby Friday Night, Saturday Morning and they added a classy brass section to Man at C&A.

Too Much Too Young was simply stunning but they managed to top it with a performance at sunset of Ghost Town which sent shivers down your spine.

One of Britain’s most important bands are back – and it couldn’t have been better timed,

STEVE HARNELL

This is a Crackerjack review of The Specials. Do you agree? Rate and review this event.