The Specials are an English 2 Tone and ska band formed in Coventry in 1977.

Three years later in 1980, the band achieved their first No. 1 hit in the UK with Too Much Too Young, the lead track on their The Special AKA Live! EP. The following year the unemployment-themed single Ghost Town also hit No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart.

The band went on to release seven consecutive UK Top 10 Singles between 1979 and 1981, but their success came to an abrupt end as three of the members left to form Fun Boy Three. The remaining line-up was revised substantially and in 1984 issued new material including the top 10 hit single Free Nelson Mandela. However, this would prove to be the end for The Specials as founder and songwriter Jerry Dammers dissolved the band later that year, going on to pursue political activism instead.

The group returned in 1993 under the name The Special AKA, and have continued to perform with varying line-ups (without Dammers).