I Just Can’t Stop It

Although billed as a ska band and nurtured in the bosom of the 2 Tone stable, the Beat’s sound was complicated from the start. On I Just Can’t Stop you can hear them veering from edgy new wave popcraft (“Mirror in the Bathroom,” “Two Swords”) to vintage rock steady (“Rough Rider”) to new-school ska (“Ranking Full Stop”), with Dave Wakeling’s sly and allusive lyrics regularly interrupted by Ranking Roger’s Jamaican patois toasts and interjections. This is one of the most interesting and exciting albums to emerge from the 2 Tone scene.