Headlining the Arrow Stage Sunday, it’s The Beat!
With each band member bringing a taste of soul, reggae, pop and punk, they collectively pulled these disparate pieces together and created infectious dance rhythms in their music. In 1979 The Beat were riding high in the UK charts with their first single, a smoking remake of the classic Smokey Robinson tune ‘Tears of a Clown’. They became an overnight sensation and one of the most popular and influential bands of the British Ska movement.
Over the course of the next five years The Beat toured relentlessly and released three studio albums: “I Just Can’t Stop It”, “Wh’appen”, both reaching number 3 in The UK album charts and “Special Beat Service”.
BBC1 recently launched their new 6-part series ‘This Town’ about the rise of Ska. Ranking Jnr features in the series talking about Rankin Rogers input in the Ska and Two Tone movement.
The Beat featuring Ranking Jnr continue to perform all the classic hits in their dynamic live shows. Catch them on the Arrow Stage Sunday night for a Ska, Reggae and Punk Rock party!