Notes, dates and cultural, social and historical

• ghost town by the specials was released in June 1981
• Spent 3 weeks at number 1 in the official charts
• In 1981 unemployment rates in the UK were at the high with almost 3 million unemployed. This caused riots and inspired the theme of a ‘Ghost town’
• The unusual diminished chords and weird sounds within the song, represent the strange times of the people.
• the music video conveys meaning as the band are the only people present so they are inside a ‘ghost town’
• In 2002 Jerry Dammers (a member of the band) told the guardian newspaper: “You travelled from town to town and what was happening was terrible. In Liverpool, all the shops were shuttered up, everything was closing down … We could actually see it by touring around. You could see that frustration and anger in the audience. In Glasgow, there were these little old ladies on the streets selling all their household goods, their cups and saucers. It was unbelievable. It was clear that something was very, very wrong.”
• The music video reflects the depressing scenes around the country that the band witnessed on tour.