Lee Thompson's Ska Orchestra

Thirty five years ago, Lee Thompson introduced an entire generation to Ska music when Madness exploded from nowhere.

Now, along with founder-member Mark Bedford, the two are moonlighting to introduce those authentic Ska and Reggae rhythms that burst out of Jamaica in the mid to late 1960s to a whole new audience. Recorded at The Ironworks Studio in Brighton and co-produced by Mike Pelanconi aka Prince Fatty (A Tribe Called Quest, Kula Shaker, Graham Coxon), the finished record is a tribute to the long-lasting legacy of the music that inspired them as teenagers. Mike Pelanconis production perfectly re-creates the live Caribbean vibe on tracks inspired by the likes of Desmond Dekker and John Holt, alongside impressive versions of King Curtis Soul Serenade and Lalo Schifrins Mission Impossible theme.

The album also benefits from the guidance of Dave Robinson, co-founder of Stiff Records (Madness, Elvis Costello, Ian Dury) and a man with a cast-iron connection to Lee Thompson and Madness. The lead single from the album is a clever and fitting cover of Dekkers mighty, mystical Fu Man Chu, which is given a vocal transfusion from reggae hitmaker Bitty Mclean.

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