The English Beat delivers dance-worthy escape to sold-out Belly Up

On the first of two sold-out nights at Belly Up, The English Beat’s Dave Wakeling invited the crowd to forget the worries of the world for a while. It took all of one song to open those gates. As the band launched into the opening “Rough Rider,” the packed dance floor bounced and skanked to the sax-fueled Prince Buster cover. 

The seven-piece, bolstered by two keyboardists, kept the vibe going with the brisk “Twist & Crawl” and an extended take on “Hands Off…She’s Mine,” which gave saxophonist Matt Morrish ample room to shine. His bright, punchy lines became a recurring theme throughout the night, cutting cleanly through the groove-heavy arrangements.

An affable frontman with a knack for storytelling and permanent boyish grin, Wakeling, 69, peppered the 90-minute set on Dec. 12 with his dry British wit. After running through “Twist & Crawl,” he shared how challenging it is to sing the wordy song, then revealed that co-writer Dick Bradsell, a British bartender, went on to invent the Espresso Martini in the 1980s.

When haphazard dancing led to a scuffle in the audience, Wakeling diffused the moment with a perfectly timed quip: “There’s a fine line between being excited and being an asshole. We’ve all been there.” Laughter rippled through the room, and the party carried on.

Then, during the crowd-pleasing singalong “Can’t Get Used to Losing You” — dedicated to original bandmates who have passed, including Ranking Roger, who died in 2019 after a battle with cancer — Wakeling punctuated the Andy Williams cover with a pitch-perfect whistle, then joked, “When is the last time you saw Sting or Bono do their own whistling?”

Filling Roger’s formidable role stage left, toaster Antonee First Class proved to be far more than a rapper and rhymester. He doubled as Wakeling’s hype man and rallied the “rude boys and rude girls” in the audience to keep the energy level high.

Early on, he let the crowd know they were getting two for one tonight, explaining that the General Public band was backing Wakeling’s English Beat. They even proved it by playing their concert staple, “Tenderness,” with Wakeling rhetorically asking, “Where do you find tenderness? Right here in Solana Beach!”

While other General Public favorites like “Never You Done That” and “Hot You’re Cool” were left off the set list, they did deliver its rousing 1994 cover of The Staples Singers’ “I’ll Take You There,” which became the group’s only No. 1 hit. 

Wakeling and company also skipped some popular English Beat songs, like “I Confess” and the Smokey Robinson & The Miracles cover “The Tears of a Clown.” Instead, they opted for deeper cuts such as the politically charged “Stand Down Margaret,” which was warmly received, “Too Nice to Talk To” and “Ranking Full Stop,” released as a B-side in 1979.

The Beat (known as the English Beat in the U.S.) formed in Birmingham, England, in 1978. Blending ska, soul, reggae, pop and punk, the band released three studio albums and numerous singles between 1980 and 1982. When they split in 1983, Wakeling and Roger teamed with members of The Clash, The Specials, and Dexys Midnight Runners to form General Public, releasing two albums in the mid-‘80s. After several years of solo projects, the duo reunited one final time for 1995’s Rub it Better. 

Rotating through his trademark left-handed Vox Teardrop guitars, Wakeling was in strong voice throughout the night, particularly on reimagined versions of “Save It for Later” and “Mirror in the Bathroom.” 

As he exited the stage to rolling applause, his bandmates worked through introductions, brief solos, and a playful, Belly Up-inspired freestyle call-and-response that transformed the cozy Solana Beach club into a communal release valve, fully realizing Wakeling’s invitation at the top of the show. 

Donovan Roche is a regular music and culture contributor to Times of San Diego.