Ranking Full Stop: The English Beat in Concert

Last Friday, I went with my girls to see The English Beat in concert at Belly Up in Solana Beach.  For $20, it was a steal to see Dave Wakeling’s version of the band (basically, the US version), so we made it a girl’s night out by starting the evening out with dinner, then ending with the concert.  We arrived during the end of the opener, 2 Tone Sounds, and waited patiently for The English Beat to take the stage.  I’m glad we decided to go to the Friday show because the Saturday show sold out!   The Belly Up tavern is a great venue because any show feels completely intimate.  The only issue I had that night was some of the rambunctious crowd members who seemed to think it was cool to pick a fight every 15 minutes.  Can’t we all just get along and enjoy the music?  While Rholnna and Janice got fed up with being shoved around, Regi and I braved the crowd and stayed on the floor.  Eventually, the crowd started to disperse and we had enough personal space around us to dance.

I loved hearing songs like “Save It For Later”, “I Confess”, “Best Friend” and “Mirror in the Bathroom” because those were standards that I heard on 91X when I was a teen and I remember the videos like it was yesterday.  I was then very pleasantly surprised when I heard “Can’t Get Used to Losing You” because that was something that I didn’t hear on the radio at all and came to know it because I played it over and over on my cassette player.  But I was even more surprised to hear General Public songs, including my favorite “Never You Done That” and every 80’s radio staple, “Tenderness”.   I know that Ranking Roger heads up the UK version of The Beat, but I think I like Dave Wakeling’s version because when I close my eyes, I can imagine feeling what it was like to see them back then, and Dave sounds just as fantastic as ever.

I couldn’t recall song order, but here is a rough estimate from my memory.  I’m sure I’m missing a song or two:

1. Rough Rider
2. The Tears of a Clown
3. Hands Off…She’s Mine
4. Twist and Crawl
5. I’ll Take You There
6. I Confess
7. Click Click
8. Save It for Later
9. Can’t Get Used to Losing You
10. Whine and Grine/Stand Down Margaret
11. Never You Done That
12. Tenderness
13. Ranking Full Stop
14. Mirror in the Bathroom

It was quite a fun night, and even more fun to people watch when you are completely stone (freezing) cold sober.  Janice and I are at the start of our Whole30 for the New Year, Regi had a long drive that night and Rholnna doesn’t drink, so it was waters all around for us.  There were lots of ladies jumping the stage, drunkenly shaking their groove things, and we all just happily chuckled from the crowd.  Even with the gratuitous stage grinding and near scuffles, I will definitely catch The English Beat when they come back in town to have a ranking good time, full stop!