The Complete Fun Boy Three

[Matt Appleby]

Finally got round to picking this up.

Obviously not 2 Tone per se but another excellent release: well packaged, faithful design style, interesting liner notes, extensive track list, and fantastic value for money (now £27 at Amazon .... five CDs and a live DVD!)

Couple of little oddities of interest that I didn't know or had forgotten over time about 'The Pressure of Life': originally a line about Horace in The Specials days and was one of their first demos whilst still in The Specials, although it didn't appear until 1983 (also there is a US version which, presumably, was lined up for release but can't see any details of it online?)

The package is also worth it for clean versions of the 'Why' demos (billed as 'Tell Me Why') that have knocked about for years online and usually credited to The Specials - the dub in particular is really good

Slight typo in 'The Tunnel of Love' and 'The Pressure of Life" BBC session is listed the wrong way round on disc 4 but it's a another fantatsic addition to the archive!

[Peter Walsh]

Yep Matt, it looks like a fine package from Chrysalis.

High up on my wants list.

W.

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mov: 687954312

[Paul Rodgers]

Hi Matt,

I'm one of the 'project consultants' on that reissue. 

The number of typos that were on there prior to my input was mind blowing. The number that appeared after my input even more so. Even yesterday someone pointed out another error on the back cover that all of us had missed: one the little FB3 pictorial logo, one of the maracas is missing! 

Re that Pressure of Life US remix I bought an acetate with a version of it on a few years ago and didn't play it at first. I later played it and noticed it was stunningly different. The version I have on acetate has NOT made it to this box set, being an edit of one of the other ones. Some of the lyrics on this version ended up as part of 'Take' by The Colour Field. 

Also of massive interest (to me anyway) is the inclusion of 'If Dogs Run Free'. During the process of making this reissue I was given a link to a soundcloud version of the whole audio content to help Chrysalis have a few extra views on how it sounded. My guess was that it was perhaps going to be an instrumental to to start Waiting instead of Murder She Said. I suspected, but wasn't sure it was a cover of a Dylan song of the same name. 

Well blow me down with a feather when the box set arrives fully formed having been delayed from March due to Terry's untimely death, and it has a guide vocal by David Byrne. I messaged Dermot at Chrysalis to ask him how he pulled that off. His reply was this simple: "I emailed him and he said yes!". I thought he might be difficult about it. 

If you have any questions about it, I can only say I'll try to answer them or message Dermot in case he can answer them.

What I do know is that in the first week that box set was about number 140 in the albums chart, had sold around 1,300 with Chrysalis having shipped all the copied they had manufactured. Another batch were on order already when I told him about the typos and the tracklist problem. If this new batch sells well enough they may get some made with the errors corrected. With fewer than 3k produced worldwide (in total) you would think it will eventually sell out.

Cheers,



Pledge 

[miap...@icloud.com]

Hi Pledge 

Yes I should have mentioned the David Byrne track - a great addition to the package 

I actually only noticed the tracklisting error via my OCD approach to downloading CDs to my Mac and editing the information to a format consistent with the rest of my music library! Anyway, it’s only a minor error and the rest of the product is excellent. People tend to find stuff to moan about with reissues (see the Super Deluxe Edition website comments section for examples!) but I think we’ve been really fortunate with how the 2 Tone catalogue has been handled so kudos to Dermot and people like you who have helped.

I think the one of the fascinating things listening back is that it is clearer to see what the “third” Specials LP might have been with the FB3 demos, Lunatics, Pressure of Life, and then adding in the likes of Racist Friend from In The Studio. I have always thought one of the “special” ingredients of The Specials was the diversity of what everybody bought to the table: both the FB3 work and In The Studio would have been even better if all had been involved. However, the contrast between the time to record the first FB3 album and In The Studio is a reminder why that third album was sadly never going to happen!

Farmyard Connection seemingly got released in Germany - do you know if the Pressure of Life scheduled for release in the US before they split? 

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[Paul Rodgers]

There's very little known about that Pressure of Life US version. However it is so different to the album version I wonder whether it came before Waiting. I doubt it came before the FB3 album, but it was clearly an idea according to Lynval's comments. 

I think, but can't be sure, that FB3 were working with Ian Broudie as a producer at one stage, but it is so far back in our Facebook messenger history that I'd be amazed if I could find it. Or it could be that The Colour Field worked with Broudie on more than just Things Could Be Beautiful and Frosty Mornings. It all gets confusing because of Terry's repeated recycling of lyrics and/or lyrical ideas.

I must ask Dermot to send me the instrumental demo of If Dogs Run Free. Like an idiot (or perhaps someone who wanted to retain his trust) I made no attempt to save/record/copy the Soundcloud playlist for Complete Fun Boy Three. I did, however play it relentlessly for a couple of weeks as Dermot has asked for an opinion on it sound quality wise. To be honest I was so happy to hear stuff I'd never heard before that ultimately the quality of it was the last thing on my mind. I certainly didn't hear anything jarring, like things described in the reviews for the box set on Discogs. 

My only real quibble is that despite the delayed release date for The Complete Fun Boy Three none of the sleeve notes were changed to reflect Terry's death. 

I often think that the first FB3 album has a distant descendent in The Hour Of Two Lights, the album Terry did with Mushtaq. There's definitely a feeling for me that tracks like A Tale of Woe or The Silent Wail are things Terry wanted to try on the FB3 album, building from a rhythm before anything else. If band dynamics and band/label dynamics had been different in the early 80s The Specials need not have split. The pressure to do new stuff and the increasing need Terry, Lynval and Neville had to express themselves without having to ask for Jerry's permission must have made going to work each day a chore. Pretty sure we've all been there, albeit in my case only in an office. 

Of course Jerry also had the pressure of trying to make other bands successful at the same time. 

Regarding what you said about timing, In The Studio came out less than a year before Virgins and Philistines. The Fun Boy Three had been and gone before it. I'm hoping Jerry hasn't been in the studio ever since 1984, so that when his next project is released it might be a little fresher. 

BTW I don't know if you knew Terry was supposed to be providing featured vocals on two tracks on Don Letts' forthcoming album? Apparently the album is now going to be much abridged and Terry's vocals have been removed. I am, however, hopeful that vinyl copies which were meant to have been destroyed may be leaked. Only time and the postman can answer that. 


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[Kevin Barker]

I received my copy of the Don Letts solo album, and as Pledge says - the two tracks featuring Terry have had his vocals removed. 

'The Universe Knows What You Have Done' now features John Cusack, and there is no guest artist on 'The Doorman'.

However - Bandcamp has the Album featuring Terry listed, unfortunately it doesnt let you play anything other than the first track, so I'm unable to confirm if the two tracks on bandcamp are the versions with Terry.

The bandcamp link if anyone wants to check it out: Outta Sync | Don Letts (bandcamp.com)

[Paul Rodgers]

Hi Kevin,

I am still waiting for the postman to confirm whether or not some leaked copies of the vinyl with Terry's vocals on exist. 

I bought it from eBay, but it is shipping from the States. Fingers crossed....

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[Paul Rodgers]

Hi Kevin,

The Don Letts album with Terry on DOES exist. Possibly only on green vinyl. 

I've messaged you off list. 

If anyone else wants one, please let me know. 

It looks like this is going to be rare as it was withdrawn by the label.




Pledge

On Sun, 1 Oct 2023 at 19:59, Kevin Barker <bark...@gmail.com> wrote:

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[Kevin Barker]

Hi Paul

Thanks for the offer, but unfortunately I don't have a record player these days - I do buy a few vinyls still , but only when I can buy them signed. Play all my music through CDs/ Digital these days. Got a signed copy of the Don Letts CD.

I've just checked Bandcamp again, and its since been updated to the non Terry versions so that's out of the window now :(

Kevin

[Paul Rodgers]

Hi Kevin, No worries. 

I have one of them USB turntables and it was in a right state when I got it down from the top of some shelving units where it has sat for about 2 years gathering dust. Listened to Terry's tracks a couple of times. Sound good, but I daren't play any more. 

Gonna have to buy a proper-ish record player. 

Pledge

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