1. Neville Staple performed with Ranking Roger in the supergroup Special Beat.
20 Facts About Neville Staple
2.
Neville Staple left Jamaica to live in the English town of Rugby, Warwickshire at the age of five but later moved to Coventry.
3.
Neville Staple was a regular fixture at the Locarno Ballroom in Coventry, where he met the resident DJ there, Pete Waterman.
4.
Neville Staple honed his toasting skills in the sound system scene in Coventry during the 1970s, first on his cousin's "Messenger Sound" and later his own system called "Jah Baddis".
5.
Neville Staple contributed to the writing of many of their songs, but rarely received credit.
6.
The Specials were managed for a time by the Clash's manager, Bernard Rhodes, whom Neville Staple toasted in the phrase "Bernie Rhodes knows don't argue" at the beginning of the Specials' hit single "Gangsters".
7.
In 1990, Neville Staple joined Ranking Roger from the Beat to form Special Beat, a revival group playing hits from both former 2 Tone bands the Specials and the Beat.
8.
Neville Staple moved to California in the 1990s to work with many of these new American ska and punk acts, including No Doubt, Rancid and Unwritten Law.
9.
Neville Staple featured on the song "Explosive" by the Canadian ska band the Planet Smashers.
10.
Neville Staple participated in a reunion line-up of the Specials from 1993 to 2001, and again from 2009 to 2012, after which he left the band due to mostly personal reasons, as well as some health concerns.
11.
Neville Staple worked for many years in the US with various bands, including the Hitmen, the team providing the soundtrack for the 2003 movie Vampires Anonymous.
12.
Neville Staple helped to launch the career of Johnny Zee of Bollywood music fame, after managing and producing him early on.
13.
In 2004, Staple returned to the UK and formed the Neville Staple Band, releasing the critically acclaimed album The Rude Boy Returns, with contributions from Clash guitarist Mick Jones and Damned drummer Rat Scabies.
14.
Neville Staple collaborated with former BBC journalist Tony McMahon on the book and both are registered with the Blake Friedmann literary agency.
15.
In May 2014, Neville Staple released Ska Crazy with his band, which included classic ska covers and brand new material.
16.
Neville Staple has worked on various collaborations with the Mutants, including co-writing four tracks on the album Rhythm and Punk Review, as well as with the Talks Flipron, Dub Pistols and Duplex.
17.
In 2015, Neville Staple produced his wife Christine's EP Rudegirl Sounds.
18.
Neville Staple recreated his famous Judge Roughneck character, first heard as part of the "Stupid Marriage" song on the Specials' debut album on 2-Tone Records.
19.
Neville Staple toured with his band celebrating '40 Years of Ghost Town'.
20.
In January 2024, Neville Staple announced that he had been diagnosed with a serious heart defect, and was therefore cancelling all future live performances.