The Special Guests feat. Willie Ocean

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The Special Guests feat. Willie Ocean
General information
origin Berlin , Germany
Genre (s) Ska
founding 1994
resolution 2009
Website www.thespecialguests.de
Last occupation
Marko "Felge" Felgenhauer
Hans-Henning Raven
David Ackermann
Daniel Sauerborn
Sebastian Blottner
Christoph Becker
Florian Brückner
Lukas Leonhardt
Willie Ocean
former members
Leon Ilsen (until 2005)
Thomas Haberland (until 2002)
Kristof Wagner (until 2001)
Robert lamp (until 2000)
Sebastian Kauer (1999-2000)
Klaus Biergans (until 1999)

The Special Guests feat. Willie Ocean was a ska band from Berlin . Founded in 1994, the combo around front man Willie Ocean is one of the most established bands of the genre in Germany. Stylistically, the nine musicians are very close to the traditional Jamaican roots of Ska music.

history

The Special Guests were founded in the fall of 1994 in the Berlin district of Prenzlauer Berg . Since the first LP Specialized was released in 1998, there has been a maximum of two years between the individual record releases. The youngest album of the nine Berlin Beetroot was released in May 2007. On March 20, 2009 the band gave their last concert in the Kesselhaus in the Kulturbrauerei in Prenzlauer Berg.

The basic line-up of The Special Guests has remained relatively unchanged over the years. The greatest musical challenge was the departure of front man Leon Ilsen in 2005.

The Special Guests toured Spain, France, Austria, Switzerland, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Sweden, the Netherlands, Belgium, Poland and have given over 200 concerts in Germany so far. They stood u. a. together with The Skatalites , The Pioneers and Desmond Dekker on stage.

The special mix of the band was also liked by the creative department of the Franco-German cultural broadcaster Arte : Director Paul Ouazan brought the band to Paris in 2006 for a video shoot. Several clips were created in the ARTE studios in the alienating video aesthetics typical of the avant-garde filmmaker.

Influences

At the end of the 20th century, many East German young people from Berlin came through bands such as Yebo (Europe's longest-serving ska band), Blechreiz (toured as the first ska band from the West through the still existing GDR) or Mother's Pride with traditional Jamaican pop music in the form of ska , Reggae or rocksteady of the early 60s . The music of the so-called rude boys gave expression to the young people's urge for freedom, tolerance and political and social creative drive. In addition, corresponding dance events were sometimes the only way to escape the gray everyday life for a moment. The musicians of The Special Guests were recruited from this milieu.

In particular the music of The Skatalites, Desmond Dekker, Laurel Aitken , Bob Marley and The Wailers , The Gaylads , Ken Boothe as well as songs by Ska bands that were in the tradition of the Jamaican Ska greats ( The Slackers , New York Ska-Jazz Ensemble and others), formed the basis for the stylistic diversity of The Special Guests feat. Willie Ocean. Like their Jamaican role models, they were also influenced by neighboring genres and their stars such as Jive ( Louis Jordan ), Soul ( Sam Cooke ), Calypso ( Harry Belafonte ), Rhythm and Blues ( Fats Domino ) or jazz and mento music. Modern pop music was also used, such as electronic rhythm elements from dancehall combos such as Seeed . However, the offbeat always remained the style-defining element.

Discography

Own publications

  • 1997: Strength to Leave (7 ")
  • 1998: Specialized (CD / doLP)
  • 2000: Can't Stand Sitting (CD / LP)
  • 2001: If the Kids Are United (Maxi-CD / -LP)
  • 2002: Toxic Sweet Love (CD / LP)
  • 2003: Brothers In Style (EP)
  • 2005: Suspicious Delicious (CD / LP)
  • 2007: Talkin 'bout a Revolution (single)
  • 2007: Beetroot (CD)

Sampler contributions:

  • 1998: Ska attack
  • 1998: BRD, PUNK, TERROR VOL: 3
  • 1999: FORCE ATTACK
  • 2001: Global Ska (spain)
  • 2001: International Reggaemartxaska (france)
  • 2001: Global Ska (spain)
  • 2002: Skannibal Party Vol. 2
  • 2002: Triebwerk (Austria)
  • 2002: Just! Strike Again (bulgaria)
  • 2002: This is Ska!
  • 2003: Riddim # 07
  • 2003: blue beat in my soul - the second step
  • 2003: Clarino Vol. 2
  • 2004: Reggae Master Blaster Vol. 1
  • 2004: Capital SKA Vol. 1
  • 2007: Riddim # 02/07
  • 2007: Capital SKA Vol. 2
  • 2007: Skanking Night Vol. 1 (austria)
  • 2007: Reggae Master Blaster Vol. 4

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Video recording of the song "Liza" by The Special Guests feat. Willie Ocean, aired December 30, 2006 on arte. Retrieved August 24, 2015 .