Fun Boy Three

They only survived for two years but the Fun Boy Three nevertheless made a big impact on the Eighties British pop world with their feel-good post-punk take on ska and are still remembered fondly. Formed by Terry Hall, Lynval Golding and Neville Staple as a much lighter and more pop-orientated splinter group from their previous band The Specials, their quietly infectious sub-reggae grooves resulted in a string of major hits between 1981-1983, including The Lunatics (Have Taken Over The Asylum), Tunnel Of Love and Our Lips Are Sealed. They also released two UK Top 20 albums, Fun Boy Three (1982) and Waiting (1983), while also helping to launch the career of the hottest British girl group of the day, Bananarama, when they collaborated on a radical hit re-make of an old jazz standard T'ain't What You Do (It's The Way That You Do It). Co-written by Terry Hall and Jane Wiedlin (of the Go-Gos), Our Lips Are Sealed was successfully covered by the Go-Gos and helped make their name in America. In 1983 Fun Boy Three undertook a major tour of the US but split at the end of it, all three going on to explore different opportunities with other bands.