By: David de Young
 Neville Staple dances with fans at Lee's on Friday - Photo by Steve Wolf - click for full size image. |
Members: Official website: http://www.nevillestaple.com |
Coventry, England bred Neville Staple and his band of Californian's took the stage at Lee's Liquor Lounge in Minneapolis around 11:30 Friday night. Sadly, the club had not been flooded with eager fans between 10 and 11 p.m. as I'd not only hoped, but expected. Was $10 really too much to see the man who helped found 2 Tone records, which spawned bands like the Specials, Selector and Madness, and the man who after his stint with the Specials went on to form Fun Boy 3, and 20 years later is still selling out shows around the world?
Staple started out the set with co-Specials founder, Roddy Radiation's "Concrete Jungle," looking nothing short of terrific for his age (good god, he has grandchildren!.) "Thanks for coming, those of you who are here," Staple said. " Let's have a party, alright?"
Even Staple's newer stuff like "Microchip" from his 2002 Solo Album was giving me a serious urge to dance, and dancing is not something I do. (If it were, I would have jumped at the chance to take on the City Page's Melissa Maerz and Lost Cause's Mark Baumgarten in the local rock-critic dance-off Maerz proposed a few weeks back.) But when the strains of "Rudi, A Message to You" filled the room, I was given no choice and hit the floor as did at least half the audience. Sure it was the old ones that got us crazy, songs like Rat Race" and "Gangsters." But at one point when Staple said "here's an old one for you," an audience member yelled out "We love the new ones too!" Staple's new songs were no less strong. And fun stuff like the 1948 standard "Enjoy Yourself (It's Later Than You Think)" by Carl Sigman and Herb Magidson was ironically played right after Staple noticed the time. I yelled out to him that the Lee's clock runs 10 minutes fast.
"Ghost Town" had me dancing again. (I was living in London in 1981 when news of club riots was rampant and that song was #1 on the singles charts.) Then came the oddly fun "Drive By Shooting," also from his recent solo album. And a song featuring the lyric "I won't dance in a club like this." As the show came to an end the friendly band mingled with audience members and chatted amiably with all. Neville was mobbed by fans at the merch booth. Again, despite a small audience, a rather large line formed to by CD's, shirts and have things signed. Even your humble writer was in line to have Mr. Staple sign my 1991 The Specials Singles Collection CD and for a photo opp.
(Me and Neville Staple of the Specials. First time a picture of me has appeared on this site. Photo credit Andrew Haas.)
You missed a great show folks.
Location Info:
Lee's Liquor Lounge
Artist Info: Neville Staple
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