Hello all,
To my great joy I’ve recently discovered the Dance Hall Crashers. A friend mentioned to me that this type of music is called Ska.
Here’s where I need your help, Ska fans. Give me some suggestions on what to listen to next. I’d really like to hear more from bands like DHC.
Thanks!
How about Area 7 or the Porkers (sorry Australian)? Madness are probably one of the most famous ska groups and you should be able to find them everywhere. But they are early 80’s.
My working definition of Ska - punk with wind instruments.
Hehe. Punk with wind instruments. Since DHC is my only reference, my definition would be “Punk Lite.” Come to think of it, there is some brass in there.
Thanks for the suggestions. I’ll look into it.
My humble ska band suggestions;
These are some great ones but there is a lot out there. I placed a * next to ska bands considered “classic ska”. The other bands are a little harder and more punk. You will find that the classic stuff if MUCH closer to ska’s caribbean roots and not as pop-ish. The bands I boldfaced are the two that I think best represent both sides of ska. ENJOY!
[my two cents]
the Toasters
the Toyes
some of Sublime’s stuff
Less Than Jake’s OLD stuff (Pezcore, Losing Streak)
the Mighty Mighty Bosstones
the Pietasters
Rancid’s Out come the wolves
some of the Assorted Jelly Bean’s stuff
the AQUABATS (how could you forget the ‘bats, pezpunk?)
any band who puts "skankin’" in a album title
[/my two cents]
punk snot dead,
broccoli!
Check out The Voodoo Glow Skulls. Much harder edge stuff.
HAHAHAHA Good rule of Thumb!!!
SKANKIN’ PICKLE!
The ska of the late 70’s and early 80’s (pezpunk’s *'s and others) was known at the time as “ska revival” or “mod ska” and was primarily out of England. Some of them had a more traditional sound (like The Specials and The Untouchables) and others were more ska-influenced pop dance music (Madness, English Beat, Bad Manners).
Ska started in the late 50’s as a Caribbean take on R&B and started floating out of Jamaica in the early 60’s. Look for The Skatellites, Desmond Decker, or Toots and the Maytalls if you’re interested in seminal ska.
What timing, Voodoo Glow Skulls came on Radio Epitaph as I opened this. 
My vote also goes to VGS and Operation Ivy. And some Suicide Machines.
Sorry to hijack the thread, but has there been a ska song that got radio airplay? I see Madness listed as a ska band, was “Our House” a ska song?
Like the OP I would like to listen to ska but am not sure what it is.
Mighty Mighty Bosstones maybe. Pop-Ska. Most of the stuff listed here is Punk-Ska.
“Our House” was probably one of their less ska-ish songs.
What I look for to declare a song ska is what’s sometimes called the “one drop rhythm” – kind of like quick reggae.
I’d always sort of assumed that ska developed from reggae, but I recently was told that it was actually the other way around; ska came first. Experts know the straight dope on this?
deep dark secret: I love ska, but find reggae, well, pretty damn boring. Anyone else?
As far as recommendations, I really don’t have any bands that haven’t already been mentioned to add. But I would like to second some of my favorites:
The Specials
Madness
The Toasters
Mighty Mighty Bosstones
The Specials first LP would be an excellent starting point. The Selecter’s Too Much Pressure is also recommended.
I’m not too up on the more recent stuff (and don’t care for much of what I’ve heard), but I like Bim Skala Bim. The Now were a cool DC-based ska band in the eighties, but good luck finding any of their stuff.
I love Toots and the Maytals – The Best of Toots and the Maytals is a great compilation. Toots occupied a middle ground between ska and reggae.
Anamorphic: Ska came first. In fact Bob Marley first gained fame as a ska musician.
Mighty Mighty Bosstones
Mustardplug
Buck O Nine
Five Iron Frenzy
Sublime
Cool.
Thanks for all the suggestions. I’m going to have check in to these.
WTF?!!? A thread on ska, and only one person has mentioned Desmond Decker or the Skatalites yet? Ok. I can tell you right now, ignore everyone elses’s advice. 
Skatalites, Desmond Decker, Specials, Bob MArley (early stuff), Selecter, HepCat (for modern classic ska, one of the best really).
If you can get your hand on it the following is about as ska as you can get
Max Romeo - Wet Dream
This is a little bit naughty
Judge Dread was well known for his saucy material but it was also very ska.
You could try hunt down Linton Kwezi Johnson.
Another to try is Prince Buster he did the original version of Al Capone - actually you can also see how rap music started in its infancy from this fella.
Just get a ska sampler CD. There are a ton of them. I recommend “American Ska-thic”, but pretty much any of them are good.
As vd mentioned, “Our House” is closer to straight pop then it is to ska. Madness had a radio hit earlier with “One Step Beyond”, which definitely had a ska beat.