The Selecter

The Selecter is an English 2 tone ska revival band, formed in Coventry, England, in 1979.

The Selecter featured a diverse line-up, both in terms of race and gender, initially consisting of Arthur ‘Gaps’ Hendrickson and Pauline Black on lead vocals, Neol Davies and Compton Amanor on guitar, Desmond Brown on Hammond organ, Charley ‘Aitch’ Bembridge on drums, and Charley Anderson on bass. The band’s name comes from the original “The Selecter” track, which appeared on the flip side of The Special AKA’s “Gangsters” single in 1979, and was written by Neol Davies and John Bradbury, produced by Roger Lomas and featured Barry Jones on trombone.

The band were one of the most successful ska bands of the 2 tone era, notching up several top forty singles in the British charts. Having co-released the first 2 tone ska single with the Specials, they were one of the founding acts of the movement. Though highly influential, the original lineup only remained together for a year, and even with replacement players the band only continued until breaking up in 1982.

The Selecter reformed in 1991 with original members Neol Davies and Pauline Black along with Bad Manners members Martin Stewart, Nick Welsh and Perry Melius. Davies left the band in 1993, but lead vocalist Black continued to perform and release music under the Selecter name until 2006.

By 2011, another version of the band featuring Neol Davies was touring separately. In June 2011 Black applied for, and won, the Selecter trademark and the right to use the name herself. The reformed, Pauline Black-led line-up still tours and releases albums under the Selecter name, most recently releasing Human Algebra, the band’s sixteenth studio album, in 2022.

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