Special Beat Service
Studio album by
the Beat
Released1 October 1982 (1982-10-01)[1]
StudioRoundhouse Studios (London)
Genre
Length39:52
Label
ProducerBob Sargeant
Ranking Roger and Mike Hedges (only "Pato and Roger a Go Talk")
The Beat chronology
Wha'ppen?
(1981)		 Special Beat Service
(1982)		 What Is Beat?
(1983)
Singles from Special Beat Service
  1. "Save It for Later"
    Released: 2 April 1982
  2. "Jeanette"
    Released: 3 September 1982
  3. "I Confess"
    Released: 26 November 1982

Special Beat Service is the third studio album by the British ska band the Beat, released on 1 October 1982 by Go-Feet Records. Like the rest of their material, it was released in the US under the name "the English Beat". It peaked at No. 39 on the Billboard 200 album chart in 1983 on the strength of two singles, "I Confess" and "Save It for Later," the music videos for which received modest airplay on the fledgling MTV video network.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
Christgau's Record GuideA−[3]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[4]
Record Mirror[5]
Rolling Stone[6]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[7]
Smash Hits9/10[8]
Spin Alternative Record Guide8/10[9]

The Spin Alternative Record Guide wrote that "'Save It for Later' and 'End of the Party' are romantic, piano-driven pop gems."[9] Rolling Stone said that "'Special Beat Service' sparkles with surprising touches"

Track listing

All tracks are written by the Beat (as per ASCAP: Roger Charlery, Andy Cox, Everett Morton, David Steele and Dave Wakeling), except where noted.[10]

Side one
No.TitleLength
1."I Confess"4:34
2."Jeanette"2:46
3."Sorry"2:33
4."Sole Salvation"3:05
5."Spar Wid Me"4:32
6."Rotating Head"3:24
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
7."Save It for Later" 3:34
8."She's Going" 2:10
9."Pato and Roger Ago Talk"
3:19
10."Sugar and Stress"
  • Charlery
  • Cox
  • Morton
  • Steele
  • Wakeling
  • Wesley Magoogan
2:57
11."End of the Party" 3:32
12."Ackee 1-2-3" 3:12
Total length:39:52
2012 reissue bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
13."What's Your Best Thing" 3:47
14."March of the Swivel Heads" 3:31
15."Cool Entertainer" 3:32
16."Ago Talk" (Tappy-Luppy Dub)
  • Banton
  • Charlery
  • Cox
  • Morton
  • Steele
  • Wakeling
8:38

Personnel

Credits are adapted from the Special Beat Service liner notes.[11]

The Beat

Additional musicians

Production and artwork

  • Bob Sargeant – producer
  • Trevor Hallesy – engineer
  • Mark Dearnley – engineer
  • Brian Gaylor – engineer
  • Ian Cooper – cutting engineer
  • Mike Hedges – producer ("Pato and Roger a Go Talk")
  • Ranking Roger – producer ("Pato and Roger a Go Talk")
  • Martyn Atkins – art direction
  • Nick Rogers – supervisor

Charts

Chart (1982) Peak
position
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[12] 50
UK Albums (OCC)[13] 21
US Billboard 200[14] 39

References

  1. ↑ "News". Record Mirror: 7. 28 August 1982. Retrieved 8 February 2021 – via flickr.com.
  2. ↑ Greene, Jo-Ann. "Special Beat Service – The English Beat". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 April 2006.
  3. ↑ Christgau, Robert (1990). "The English Beat: Special Beat Service". Christgau's Record Guide: The '80s. Pantheon Books. ISBN 0-679-73015-X. Retrieved 18 March 2010.
  4. ↑ Larkin, Colin (2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th concise ed.). Omnibus Press.
  5. ↑ "Albums" (PDF). Record Mirror. 2 October 1982. p. 26. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
  6. ↑ Schaffner, Nicholas (11 November 1982). "The English Beat: Special Beat Service". Rolling Stone. No. 382. Archived from the original on 23 June 2008. Retrieved 19 April 2006.
  7. ↑ Considine, J. D. (2004). "English Beat". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). London: Fireside Books. pp. 277–278. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8. Retrieved 18 March 2010.
  8. ↑ "Albums". Smash Hits. 30 September – 14 October 1982. p. 25. Retrieved 14 March 2022 – via flickr.com.
  9. 1 2 Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. 1995. p. 127.
  10. ↑ "ACE Repetory - English Beat". ASCAP.
  11. ↑ Special Beat Service (liner). The Beat. Go-Feet Records. 1982. BEAT 5.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  12. ↑ "Charts.nz – The Beat – Special Beat Service". Hung Medien. Retrieved 13 March 2022.
  13. ↑ "Beat | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart.
  14. ↑ "The English Beat Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 13 March 2022.
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