Introduction
They had the look, smart and fashionable suits, trilbies on point and SKA music that attracted a legion of fans. In an era when Madness and UB40 ruled the airwaves, The Selecter broke out into the British music scene in 1979. An era when strikes and the three-day week dominated the headlines. A band that had a diverse makeup of race and gender. With an original membership of Arthur ‘Gaps’ Hendrickson and Pauline Black on lead vocals, Neol Davies and Compton Amanor on guitar, Desmond Brown on Hammond organ, Charlie ‘Aitch’ Bembridge on drums and Charley Anderson on bass.
On Point
Part of the 2 tone era, this band was considered to be the most successful of this music genre. Although the original lineup only lasted for a year, it stayed together with a multitude of different members until 1982. A band that had several top-forty singles including the infectious “Too Much Pressure”, “On My Radio”, “Three Minute Radio” and “Missing Words”. All local to the Coventry music scene, the members hailed from bands such as The Ray King Soul Band and Hard Top 22. With catchy albums like Too Much Pressure and Celebrate the Bullet, the group appeared on the first day of MTV in 1981.
After the band split, many shed a tear with the members going in separate directions in the music scene. It wasn’t until the end of the 1980s that Davies and Black appeared as a duo on a Jools Holland show. The reception was electric and in 1990 the two had a guest spot with Bad Manners. As a result, they reformed The Selecter with three members of Bad Manners, Martin Stewart, Nick Welsh and Perry Melius in 1991. Davies departed the band in 1993 and Arthur Hendrickson appeared occasionally. They produced several new albums and toured with No Doubt in 1997. They also produced the critically acclaimed “Cruel Britannia”. Black continued to perform in the band until 2006 and then from 2010 to the present.
Pauline Black and Arthur Hendrickson reformed for the 30th anniversary of the album “Too Much Pressure”, first released in 1980 in 2010 at the Sinners Day Festival in Hasselt, Belgium. They also performed at the Bloomsbury Ballroom in London. They also did an extensive tour in 2014, travelling to Belfast, the UK, Europe, New Zealand and Australia. They released a new album called Subculture in 2015 and did a UK tour with a number of dates with Jools Holland’s Rhythm and Blues Orchestra at the Albert Hall. They also did a tour showcasing their second album “Celebrate the Bullet” from 1981.
After a 2022 interview with the surviving members, they reunited in Coventry at the 2 Tone village. An in-depth article in the 2023 edition of the fanzine. An article that the band credited with giving them a new lease of life. Their latest album is “Human Algebra”. Sadly Arthur Hendrickson died after a short illness during the writing of this article.
