"Special Brew" is a song by British 2-tone and

ska Ska (; ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a walki ...

band Bad Manners, released in September 1980 and was the third single from their first album ''

Ska 'n' B ''Ska'n'B'' is the first album by British 2 Tone and ska band Bad Manners from the year 1980. It reached number 34 on the UK album chart. Track listing *All songs by Bad Manners unless noted. # " Ne-Ne Na-Na Na-Na Nu-Nu" (Eddie Dean, Al Dredic ...

''. It was the band's joint biggest hit in the UK, reaching number 3 in the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

, where it stayed for two weeks. The song takes its inspiration from the Carlsberg lager

Special Brew Carlsberg A/S (; ) is a Danish multinational brewer. Founded in 1847 by J. C. Jacobsen, the company's headquarters is in Copenhagen, Denmark. Since Jacobsen's death in 1887, the majority owner of the company has been the Carlsberg Foundation. T ...

and is about someone who loves it like a significant other. After the success of " Ne-Ne Na-Na Na-Na Nu-Nu", the band realised they needed to write more songs and so went to the local

off-licence A liquor store is a retail shop that predominantly sells prepackaged liquors – typically in bottles – usually intended to be consumed off the store's premises. Depending on region and local idiom, they may also be called an off-licence (i ...

for inspiration. One of the ideas sounded "a bit soppy... a bit of a long song" to Buster Bloodvessel, which was not their style, so he picked up his beer and sang "I love you, yes i do 'cause i know that you're my special brew" and the song was then written in a matter of minutes. The B-side song "Ivor The Engine" is named after the eponymous television series and was included on their second album ''

Loonee Tunes! ''Loonee Tunes!'' is the second album by British 2 Tone and ska band Bad Manners, from the year 1980. In keeping with the format of their first album, the first track is an instrumental. It reached number 36 on the UK album chart. The album op ...

'', titled "The Undersea Adventures of Ivor the Engine". A limited-edition

picture disc Picture discs are gramophone (phonograph) records that show images on their playing surface, rather than being of plain black or colored vinyl. Collectors traditionally reserve the term picture disc for records with graphics that extend at lea ...

was also issued, with a picture of Bloodvessel licking his lips at a

pint The pint (, ; symbol pt, sometimes abbreviated as ''p'') is a unit of volume or capacity in both the imperial and United States customary measurement systems. In both of those systems it is traditionally one eighth of a gallon. The British impe ...

of Special Brew.

Track listing

7" # "Special Brew" – 3:20 # "Ivor The Engine" – 2:25

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

{{Bad Manners 1980 singles 1980 songs Magnet Records singles Songs about alcohol Bad Manners songs