Back in the day Padraig āPeeā Flynn complained about his song The Lunatics have Taken over the Asylum stating that it was disrespectful to the mentally ill and thereby more or less proving the point of the song.
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Martin Duffy from Primal Scream and Felt. Just 55
Only saw him in June. 
Bloody hell.
Thatās fucking mentalā¦
I went to school with Martin both primary and secondary. He played in a few Irish bands around Birmingham when he was young before he made it. Lovely lad but eccentric even when young.
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Terry Hall took private agony and turned it into the pinnacle of British protest music
The bleakly humorous Specials frontman, who has died aged 63, led the 2-Tone wave and earned the admiration of the pop world and public
MUSIC CRITIC
20 December 2022 ā¢ 8:15am
Terry Hall, lead singer of The Specials, who has died aged 63 CREDIT: Samir Hussein
Terry Hall was special. Really. The deadpan frontman of The Specials has died, aged just 63, after a short illness, and it feels as though British pop has lost part of itself. It wasnāt just that Hall was widely beloved, admired by both the public and his musical colleagues; it was that he seemed to represent a part of the British pop psyche, our stoic friend, our dependable big brother, a star untouched by glamour or ego, glumly unimpressed, wryly humorous, always on the side of right.
The Specials had an explosive early career as lynchpins of the post-punk ska movement known as 2-Tone for its black-and-white chequered colour-scheme and inclusive ideology. Formed in Coventry, between 1979 and 1981 they released two Top Five albums and scored seven Top 10 singles, including two Number Ones. They caught the energy and spirit of that moment in time better than any other band, an almost literally riotous ensemble concocting a wild and joyous collision of rock, reggae and music hall, yet brought into focus by a strange, still, almost mournful figure with a monotone voice, holding the centre of the chaos, making sure the message cut through.
On stage, Hall exuded depressive cool, every note embracing the bleakness of existence with almost casual bitterness but with no hint of surrender and always a leavening of bleak humour. I once noted that Hallās spirit of glum idealism made him the most quintessentially British protest singer ever. Indeed, The Specialsā final chart-topping single, Ghost Town, is still revered as the greatest protest song in British pop history, a sinister skank through inner-city decay that presciently rose to the top of the charts just as riots were breaking out in Brixton and Liverpool in June 1981. The volatile Specials broke up in the aftermath of performing it on Top of the Pops.
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Hall went on to have an intriguing pop career, most notably with the Specials spin-off Fun Boy Three, this bandās name a joke about Hallās publicly gloomy disposition. Their first hit single, The Lunatics (Have Taken Over the Asylum), became one of Hallās theme songs, evoking laughter in the face of darkness.
Hall and his crew had hits in collaboration with their friends in Bananarama, and Hall co-wrote the Go-Goās hit Our Lips are Sealed. He effectively became a peripatetic pop star, dropping in and out of sight over the decades, much admired by his peers for the wit of his lyrics and distinctive tone of his voice, collaborating with many notable UK artists including Dave Stewart, the Lightning Seeds, Shakespears Sister, Tricky, Lily Allen and Gorillaz. I have heard mutual friends talk about Hall, and they invariably describe him in glowing terms, as a kind person, a funny man and a loyal friend.
The Specials reunited in 2008 to huge popular acclaim and quickly resumed their status as one of the most popular live bands in Britain, performing with rambunctious energy and soulful spirit, even returning to the top of the album charts with their superb Encore in 2019. Yet even that couldnāt bring a smile to Hallās face. When I interviewed him in a rehearsal studio with his bandmates last year, it was interesting to see how he could make them all laugh with his provocative wit, without ever smiling himself. āIāve never looked at [this] as a job or a career,ā he said. āItās something that I do. And I donāt walk around the house smiling, ever. So why should I walk on stage and suddenly turn into Marti Pellow?ā His bandmates guffawed, whilst Hall pressed on with his (probably not entirely serious) point. āPeople are always telling me to smile. Well, give me a reason to smile and I will. But they often donāt.ā
There was, however, a darker truth behind Hallās public disposition. In 2019, Hall revealed that he suffered from a bipolar disorder that had roots in shocking childhood abuse. At the age of 12, he had been abducted by a schoolteacher and passed around a paedophile ring in France. He went on to suffer from alcohol abuse, depression and attempted suicide before being diagnosed and, since 2014, successfully treated with medication. āThis was weighing heavy on me for a long time,ā he admitted. āIt was important for me to just get it out of my head, really, and say, āThis is what I am, I am a manic depressive.āā He was moved by the response. āI get stopped in the street by people who say, āThanks for just bearing it, because this is how I feel too.ā There are ways around it. There are cures. Itās really important to share.ā
That, I think, is the essence of what Terry Hall did. Even as a naturally reserved man, he shared himself, his pain and his idealism and his humour. The Specials made a showstopping knees-up live anthem out of a classic 1949 ditty, Enjoy Yourself (Itās Later Than You Think). To hear that extraordinary ensemble play this bleakly optimistic song with vigour and joy, to be in a crowd mashing together and singing it at the top of their voices, to see Hall at the front ā a still figure in the centre of the movement and noise, leading the singalong, conducting the chaos ā was truly special. The song embodied Hallās appeal, laughing in the darkness, unafraid of whatever life could throw at him. Even in death, you can almost imagine him singing it still, urging us to see the funny side.
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Not looking good for vialli according to news.
His 87 year old mother flew into London to be at his beside
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Thought this was a great photo.
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As someone who mainly prefers two tone everytime I throw on Spotify, Iām sickened by this. Rest In Peace Terry Hall 
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Whatās your most popular ska songs on Spotify?
Night boat to Cairo.
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Throb Young
Andy Weatherall
Denise Johnson
Martin Duffy
Four key people involved in Screamadelica, all dead.
And Mani has been brain dead for 25 years