Are the 2 Tone Records re-releases over?

[DavidBlunt]

It seems the flood of new 2 Tone releases has pretty much stopped. I believe the last offering was an RSD release about 2 years ago. Their official Instagram is still up and updated sporadically but it feels like they've lost a lot of steam. Anyone have any info on this. Is the interest in capitalizing on the 2 Tone brand over? Or did they run out of things to release?
Thanks!
David

[Paul Rodgers]

In a word: No.

There is a Rough Trade at 50 version of Specials being announced today. It come with new sleeve notes, including stuff from Jerry AND an exclusive 7" single which features the versions of Gangsters and Message To You Rudy as re-recorded for Top Of The Pops. https://www.roughtrade.com/about/rough-trade-50

There is also likely to be more to come later in the year in an attempt to head off manufacturers and shops that sell piss poor quality bootlegs. 


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[JUKESKA]

If they're gonna continuously re-release the same stuff over and over, they should in my opinion do something a bit different than what they've done. They could release double AA 7" singles of say Monkey Man/Stupid Marriage, Little Bitch/Dawning of a New Era or Murder/Street Feeling etc. With enough press they could even chart. I'm sick of them exploiting fans, and resent spending a fortune on the same old stuff, however I would be more than happy with 7" releases as I've suggested.

[Jon Russell]

Is the 7 Single a Two Tone release with a TT catalogue number - ie TT36?

[Wally]

I'm with you 100% Jukeska "They could release double AA 7" singles of say Monkey Man/Stupid Marriage, Little Bitch/Dawning of a New Era or Murder/Street Feeling etc." The Singles boxset a few years ago was a missed opportunity. We suggested to Chrysalis to do exactly as you said, match up new tracks to make original singles, something that would really have got many fans and collectors excited, but Jerry had the final call and he went with rehashing already released singles. Pity. 

I don't see many more re-releases from Two Tone, Dance Craze was the big one, the one we all wanted. After that, everyting else has already been fairly well excavated for any novelty.

Wally.

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[Paul Rodgers]

Well Jerry backed this one. and it was at the request of Rough Trade AND we are getting two genuinely new tracks on a 7" and I think Jerry has contributed to the design of the package. 

So it isn't the same stuff over and over. 

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[Paul Rodgers]

Shouldn't be as it is part of the album, but who knows until it arrives? 

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[Wally]

"Well Jerry backed this one. and it was at the request of Rough Trade AND we are getting two genuinely new tracks on a 7" and I think Jerry has contributed to the design of the package. 

So it isn't the same stuff over and over. "

Cool! That sounds interesting!

W.

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[Paul Rodgers]

Wally further to that Dermot at Chrysalis was very negative about anything I suggested to him in terms of singles or EPs. Even down to my suggestion of trying out some stuff that might have sent some albeit tiny in the scheme of things royalties in the direction of The Swinging Cats or the Bodysnatchers. 

Let's face it and I can never remember the order but is it 33 or 37 years since the Compact 2Tone Story? 

There is still more planned for Dance Craze, albeit mainly relating to trying to make it available in the US. I doubt many people know that the DVD got a very limited edition Japanese release a couple of years ago. 

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[Paul Rodgers]

Wally

You know that old rigmarole where the musicians' union used to insist that the bands had to re-record the songs to then mime to on Top Of The Pops? Allegedly most bands would then switch tapes and try to give TOTP copies of the original masters. Well the 7" in this package is the versions of Gangsters and Message To You Rudy as recorded for TOTP. They are meant to be unreleased, but who knows? Maybe the Gangsters one is the fade version that turned up on some of the single varieties of Gangsters? 

The Specials - The Specials on Vinyl LP | Rough Trade - (LP + 7" - Rough Trade 50th Anniversary Edition) | Rough Trade

The inner sleeve is a track by track commentary with Jerry from December 2025.  I can't remember is there has ever been such a thing? 

This is Rough trade wanting to release one album for each of the 50 years since the record shop first opened, so welcome to 1979. 
Can't work out if the 7"  has its own cat number, but the album is CDLRT 5001.

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[miap...@icloud.com]

On the subject of new releases, I’ve always thought a Specials  “In Dub” album would be a great RSD release

I have a curated playlist that collates all the “dub” tracks, either explicitly listed as a dub version (eg Rat Race), or where it features a distinctive dub part two (eg Ghost Town 12)

On 11 Feb 2026, at 09:27, Paul Rodgers <medod...@gmail.com> wrote:



Wally

You know that old rigmarole where the musicians' union used to insist that the bands had to re-record the songs to then mime to on Top Of The Pops? Allegedly most bands would then switch tapes and try to give TOTP copies of the original masters. Well the 7" in this package is the versions of Gangsters and Message To You Rudy as recorded for TOTP. They are meant to be unreleased, but who knows? Maybe the Gangsters one is the fade version that turned up on some of the single varieties of Gangsters? 

The Specials - The Specials on Vinyl LP | Rough Trade - (LP + 7" - Rough Trade 50th Anniversary Edition) | Rough Trade

The inner sleeve is a track by track commentary with Jerry from December 2025.  I can't remember is there has ever been such a thing? 

This is Rough trade wanting to release one album for each of the 50 years since the record shop first opened, so welcome to 1979. 
Can't work out if the 7"  has its own cat number, but the album is CDLRT 5001.

<TheSpecials_50_R8466-0335.jpg>

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[Wally]

Well, the single and alternate versions makes that Rough Trade a very nice new release along with Jerry's liner notes. Sound like it could be worth a punt.

Yeah, Mia, A DUB release would be great! 

I made instrumental versions of a couple of albums with one of those AI tools a couple of years ago, and they sound great! 

A proper DUB would be eevn better.

W.

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[Simon]

Oh yes a Dub album of The Specials would be ace.

The Wrong Tom would be the man to do it.

Simon

[Paul Rodgers]

Wally, 

What I need to do when my back is a bit better and I've decluttered is to set up my latest USB turntable so I can actually get to here some of the recent reissues, especially the dreaded RSD ones. 

I haven't bought the records planning to never play them, but I've had no choice so far. 

I'd love it if The Specials original output could be reissued in a form like some of the Brian Wilson/Beach Boys box sets, whereby you can hear isolated vocals, instrumentals, different takes. This stuff must exist somewhere. Demo versions would be good too, and not just the dreadful Automatics ones. 

This would obviously be a premium project so it would be a case of do it once, do it properly. 


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[Wally]

"I'd love it if The Specials original output could be reissued in a form like some of the Brian Wilson/Beach Boys box sets, whereby you can hear isolated vocals, instrumentals, different takes. This stuff must exist somewhere. Demo versions would be good too, and not just the dreadful Automatics ones. "

Yeah, that would be nice alright!

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[miap...@icloud.com]

Wally, are those instrumental versions available anywhere online? Somebody did the same for XTC’s “English Settlement” and shared them on You Tube and they are fantastic.

The instrumentals on the 'In The Studio' deluxe were excellent. I actually prefer the instrumentals of Racist Friend and Bright Lights to the versions with lyrics.

Matt

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[Wally]

Hi Matt,

No, they're not online. I made them from the LALAL.ai website. You can kick them round quite a bit.

W.

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[DavidBlunt]

I would be curious who they feel the market for this is; hardcore 2-Tone collectors or bringing in new folks? Some of the suggestions here seem a little on the side of the former. Curious how the decision makers see this. 

[Wally]

"I would be curious who they feel the market for this is; hardcore 2-Tone collectors or bringing in new folks? Some of the suggestions here seem a little on the side of the former. Curious how the decision makers see this. 

" 

Yes, it's a good point David. I think these releases are probably more focused on existing fans/collectors with the slight hope of attracting some new ears. 2 Tone is curious in the sense that it has somehow retained a quite passionate and loyal following. For many of us, it's part of our identity and we've never let it go. The closest equivalent I can think of is that of a life-long football fan, who through highs and lows stays faithful to the crest. Think of most other bands from punk to new wave to indie, and I'm not sure that many still retain the loyalty that the 2 Tone bands can boast of. 

We are devotees of a limited pool of recorded music, so mining ever deeper is the only place to go for us. 

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[Paul Rodgers]

Ha! 

I got into several things in 1979/80. Not least Madness, The Specials, 2Tone and Gillingham Football Club.

Madness are still my favourite band. That's favourite. I am not under any illusion that they are the best. They weren't even the best band signed to 2Tone. Nor were the Specials for that matter. 2016 my 36 year love affair with Gillingham FC ended (not for the usual reasons). In 2017 I started watching my hometown team Chatham Town, which I had previously only seen once or twice a season. I am now a diehard Chatham Town fan. Still love The Specials, but followed Terry Hall's career much more fervently in the years between the split and him getting them back together. Not so bothered about 2Tone now and am increasingly finding that being skint means I need to sell some of the rarer bits of it that Terry is not on to pay the rent. That said I would love to see more vault raiding and variety in reissue campaigns, but certain people block this. 

Regards the demand, the Ghost Town 12" and 7" reissues were the top selling vinyl single release of 2022 and they currently have been in the top 100 of the physical singles chart for 195 weeks. The work in progress versions featuring Friday Night Saturday Morning has another 23 weeks on that chart and Jerry Dammers at the home organ version of Ghost Town has another 24. I think it is safe to conclude that it isn't just us diehards that have kept those two tracks from the original Ghost Town EP so popular for 242 weeks. I would say it is even safer to assume that we bought them the weeks they peaked in the charts. 

There had to be new blood out there and plenty of them would be interested in well considered 2Tone reissues. Hell, as I type there is a new and vastly different Irish cover of Ghost Town in that same chart. It debuted at number 3 last week and was the second best selling vinyl single. Lankum Ghost Town video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLLnF4vxaeY and a video about why Ghost Town is still so important 45 years on https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=baGHGzXDGYY

Some things change and others stay the same. 



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