Dave Wakeling (The English Beat)

The English Beat—or, if you live in England, the Beat—was one of the key bands of the late ‘70s/ early ‘80s British ska-punk scene. Guitarist/songwriter Dave Wakeling sang most of this interracial, socially conscious group’s songs, with Ranking Roger toasting, and he takes us inside the making of the band’s brilliant debut album, I Just Can’t Stop It (out in an expanded edition for Record Store Day Black Friday). Wakeling tells how the bass-driven “Mirror in the Bathroom” came together and digs into the band's relationship with Specials, the Beat's breakup, and songs such as “Save It for Later” and “Tenderness,” the latter from Wakeling’s and Ranking Roger’s subsequent band, General Public. Was there a rivalry between General Public and Fine Young Cannibals, the other Beat spinoff band? How did Wakeling and Roger wind up fronting their own versions of the Beat on either side of the Atlantic? (Photo by Bryan Kremkau.)