Growing up in Austria my teenage I listen to a lot of new wave, punk and ska. While there were German singing bands aplenty a lot of their influences came from the UK. So when I saw that one of the legendary Bands of that time, The English Beat (as they are now known in the US) was coming to the Dakota Jazz Club, we had to cover them. While only together in its original lineup for 5 years The Beat as they were originally known spawned Fine Young Cannibals and General Public. After briefly reuniting in 2003 there are now 2 Beat lineups – The English Beat featuring Dave Wakeling in the US and The Beat with Ranking Roger in the UK.
The Dakota Jazz Club may not be your traditional ska venue but it worked quite well. Having some very well prepared scallops while covering a show was a first for me, but I certainly could get used to that. King Schascha told the crowd that nobody would get thrown out for dancing and some in the audience certainly followed that encouragement finding spots where they would not knock over tables. Songs were introduced with the title woven into a little comment. The Beat was a politically active band and a few comments found their way into the set but were lighthearted and well received. Whoever candidate may win in November, the audience was asked to request The English Beat for the inauguration. The band was tight and seemed to have fun on stage. The mix of The Beat hits, song covers and General Public material was high energy and I observed several of the wait staff semi-dancing through the venue with trays in their hands. All in all I really enjoyed the show and judging by the cheers, the fans agreed.
Set List: Rough Rider / The Tears of a Clown / Twist and Crawl / Hands Off…She’s Mine / Children of the Moon Tide / Rude Boy Skank / I’ll Take You There / I Confess / Save It For Later / Alright Now / Whine & Grine/Stand Down Margaret / Too Nice to Talk To / Can’t Get Used to Losing You / The Love You Give Lasts Forever / Tenderness / Ranking Full Stop / Mirror in the Bathroom / Jamaica Farewell