I first heard THE LOAFERS on a brilliant compellation of European ska called LICENSED TO SKA. Their playing was so tight and polished, I assumed they must have been playing for years. When I finally managed to get my hands on THE LOAFERS COLLECTION, I learned the members of the band were actually 14-15 years old when they recorded their first tracks for the British ska label LINK RECORDS in 1988. Despite their young ages, THE LOAFERS produced some of the best British ska of the late Eighties. They were around at a time between second wave and third wave ska, so they never broke into the mainstream. Twelve of their finest songs can be found on THE LOAFERS COLLECTION.
THE LOAFERS were heavily influenced by British 2-TONE bands of the late Seventies and early Eighties, most notably THE SPECIALS. In fact, singer TONY FINN'S Cockney vocals are very similar to those of SPECIALS vocalist Terry HALL. THE LOAFERS featured many sax solos by DENISE BUTLER, one of the few female non-vocalists in the world of ska. In addition to a brilliant sax player, THE LOAFERS were also blessed with keyboardist SEAN FLOWERDEW, whose organ work is not unlike that found in Sixties So Cal surf rock. For more information on the 2-TONE sound that influenced THE LOAFERS, check out my review of THE 2-TONE COLLECTION at http://www.epinions.com/musc-review-11BA-3A7E8215-3A2FCC6B-prod3
The first track on the collection is the up-beat instrumental THE LAUGHING LOAFER, which has made its way onto one of my ska mix tapes. Next is TOO LATE RUDY, lyrically reminiscent of A MESSAGE TO YOU RUDIE, by DANDY and later covered by THE SPECIALS. CITY GIRL is one of my favourite songs on the disc. Like many ska songs, it basically is about how much the singer lusts after a particular girl, and the particular attributes he likes about her.
Like many ska bands, THE LOAFERS have their share of songs about contentious male-female relationships. FEELING'S RIGHT is an up-beat, sax heavy song, with a rock steady beat, in which singer TONY FINN implores his girlfriend to take him back after a fight. In IT'S TOO EASY, FINN pours out his heart to his girlfriend about how much he loves her and how they can work out all their problems. The haunting sax and organ work and highly emotive desperate sounding vocals make this one of my favourite ska songs of all time. In BAD NEWS, on the other hand, FINN tells his x-girlfriend what a psycho-b1tch she is, and how she brought him nothing but trouble and strife. The tone of the song is not anger, but rather the feeling of loss over a failed relationship and how this girl managed to wreck his life.
THE UNDERTAKER reminds me of MR. TROUBLE by THE TOASTERS, in which the singer essentially describes what a bad-a$$ THE UNDERTAKER is. If the song weren't so upbeat and non-intimidating, maybe The professional wrestler known as the Undertaker could use it as his theme song.
This collection features a cover of SKINHEAD by LAUREL AITKIN. Lyrics such as "when a skinhead walks down the street, every chick's heart skips a beat" are absolutely hilarious. Judging form the appearance of most skinheads' girlfriends I've seen over the years, I would tend to disagree. I picture roadies from MOTÖRHEAD with better looking girls.
Unfortunately for ska fans, THE LOAFERS came apart in late 1990 when guitarist JON DOWNER went to university, and other members of the band joined other bands. As is often the case with highly gifted musicians, bassist TREV HARDING, drummer NASS BOUZIDA and singer TONY FINN drifted towards jazz and are now playing with a highly regarded acid jazz band called SKOOBY.
One can only speculate as to what could have been had THE LOAFERS been marketed more effectively or had they stayed together long enough to capitalise on the Third Wave Ska craze of the mid-Nineties. When I first heard GREENDAY in the spring of 1991, I thought their songs were poppy and innocuous enough to be on the radio, but mainstream radio wasn't quite ready to play pop punk until after the grunge revolution paved the way later that year. A few years later, GREENDAY'S pop punk broke big, and they are now international stars. Had things gone differently, THE LOAFERS could have been the GREENDAY of ska.
Complete Track Listing
1. LAUGHING LOAFER
2. TOO LATE RUDY
3. CITY GIRL
4. MELANCHOLLY SALLY (sic)
5. LIVING IN A SUITCASE
6. FEELING'S RIGHT
7. THE UNDERTAKER
8. BAD NEWS
9. SKINHEAD
10. FOLLOW MY LEADER
11. IT'S SO EASY
12. SHE'S TOO MUCH
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