Part of the same second-wave ska movement as the Specials and the Beat, Coventry's the Selecter operated on similar principles: a biracial line-up playing dance-happy, organ-driven, politically-inspired 2-Tone music that straddled the worlds of punk and reggae. Together since 1979, the band also boasted a rare female front-person in Pauline Black, whose poised, spirited singing added a bit of je ne se quoi to a genre with fairly narrow aesthetics. The group had U.K. hits with "On My Radio" and "Three Minute Hero" from their '80 debut, but Black soon left to pursue an acting career, and the group disbanded soon after. The Selecter re-formed during the next ska revival in the '90s, releasing albums and playing live, but have been relatively quiet since the end of the '90s.

Listen to The Selecter at Finetune.

• (2004)  Selected Selections
• (1997)  The Very Best Of...

• Too Much Pressure
• James Bond
• My Collie (Not A Dog)

• The Specials
• Madness
• UB40
• The Skatalites
• The Clash
• The Mighty Mighty Bosstones
• The Jam
• Bad Manners
• Toots And The Maytals
• The English Beat
• Jimmy Cliff
• The Police
• Bob Marley & The Wailers
• Blondie
• The Toasters
• Peter Tosh
• The Slackers
• Hepcat
• Aswad
• The Stranglers

• DrSka
• m4z23
• snowy
• Apath
• fiveherb
• dharmanavy
• mac64
• Wigshen
• Arima_Karenin
• FDot
• toaothink
• chiao
• epandele
• rrob77
• paulheetebrij
• Gamatronix
• choristars