– Fun Boy Three – In Session for Kid Jensen – BBC Radio 1 – Jan. 16, 1983 – BBC Radio 1 –
Editors Note:
In case you missed it, Terry Hall who was lead singer for The Specials, passed away earlier today from what has been described as a “short illness”. Reactions of shock have been pouring in. As promised, when I posted The Specials just a few minutes earlier, I was going to post something by Fun Boy Three as tribute. This session was done for Kid Jensen at BBC Radio 1 on January 16, 1983. Below is the post I originally ran back in 2016. Rest in Peace Terry Hall – you were amazing.
Fun Boy Three tonight. A little change of pace, even for 12 minutes. Fun Boy Three came about after Terry Hall, Lynval Golding and Neville Staple left The Specials to form their own thing. With elements of Ska, but heavily based on New Wave, Fun Boy Three had a short run; from 1981-1983, but in that short time had some six Top 20 hits and two critically acclaimed albums before splitting and going separate ways.
They did help launch the careers of Bananarama and scored a hit with their version of Our Lips Are Sealed, a year after The Go-Go’s became overnight sensations with their version. A song co-written by Terry Hall and Jane Weidlin of The Go-Go’s.
This session, done for Kid Jensen at BBC Radio 1 was done just before the release of their second (and last album), Waiting, which was produced by Talking Heads founder David Byrne. It climbed to #14 on the British album charts – and even though it was critically well received, the audience was cool towards it.
After their dissolving, Terry Hall went off to form The Colourfield and was responsible for a number of hits and two well received albums before they split up, some two years later.
If you’re familiar with The Specials, but not familiar with this incarnation, Fun Boy Three had a loyal following and this session is a good place to start. I’m not certain, but I think all their albums are still available and are well-worth seeking out.
After a number of other projects and solo albums, Hall has returned with The Specials along with Lynval Golding, beginning with a 2008 reunion and a 2009 tour to coincide with their 30th anniversary. They are still performing as of this year and there are, as always, rumors of new albums in the works.
In the meantime, crank this one up.
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