The Duff Guide to Ska Record Store Day 2015 Ska Round-Up

Legions of (mostly) older music fans will be lining-up outside of your local mom and pop record shop this Saturday morning (April 18, 2015) to partake in the twice-yearly celebration of indie record stores and vinyl known throughout the USA, UK, Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, France, Mexico, Italy, and Spain as Record Store Day.

While I may grouse a bit about the pricey-ness of these limited-edition RSD releases (and how the UK RSD releases are consistently better than those available in the USA), each year you can find me in a record store or two (or three) on this day, hoping to pick up a few of that year's crop (usually new wave or post-punk related releases) that caught my attention.

So, while I'm more likely to be able to find some of the non-ska releases on my list this year (I'd like the Johnny Marr, Kate Pierson, and Buzzcocks singles; The Pop Group EP, and Replacements 10"), I'm sharing this recap of the some of the ska RSD releases that I'd be lucky to get my mitts on (and you would be, too):

1) For their first-ever Record Store Day release, Soul Jazz Records is issuing the Down Beat Special Studio One five x 7" box set, featuring the following killer singles (this is a UK-only release, limited to 500 copies--though, I suspect import copies will be available in the USA for a pretty penny):

• Willie Williams "Armagideon Time" b/w Marcia Griffiths "Feel Like Jumping"

• The Skatalites "Addis Ababa" b/w The Eternals "Queen of the Minstrels"

• Dawn Penn "No No No" b/w Dub Specialist "Hooligan (Dub)"

• The Mad Lads "Ten to One" b/w Jackie Mittoo "Totally Together"

• Michigan and Smiley "Nice Up the Dance" b/w "The Wailers "Simmer Down"

2) Demon Music Group is issuing The Beat's The 7" Singles Collection. This box set contains thirteen Beat vinyl 45s, from their 2 Tone debut, "Tears of a Clown," to their last Special Beat Service single, "Ackee 1-2-3"--and everything in between: "Mirror In The Bathroom," "Hands Off... She’s Mine," "Best Friend," "Too Nice To Talk To," "Doors of Your Heart," "All Out To Get You," "Hit It," "Save It For Later," "Jeanette," "I Confess," and "Can’t Get To Losing You." A 16-page booklet is included, presumably about the band and each single. Only 1,000 copies of this set are being pressed and it's a UK-only release.

3) Salvo is issuing Madness' "Lovestruck" (from 1999's Wonderful) b/w"Le Grand Pantalon" (a fantastic, reflective version of "Baggy Trousers" that was used in a 2011 Kronenbourg 1664 beer ad and was included on the 2013 A Guided Tour of Madness box set). Neither track has been available on vinyl before. Only 1,000 copies of this single will be for sale in the UK.

4) Trojan Records will be releasing a 60s ska/reggae compilation with cuts from Desmond Dekker and The Aces, The Upsetters, and the like. Titled Rude Boy Rumble, this 12-track LP will feature cuts chosen by Tom "Papa" Ray AKA The Soul Selector (also the owner of Vintage Vinyl in St. Louis, MO). This release will be available in the USA.

Happy record hunting this Saturday!