Buster Bloodvessel From Bad Manners

In the early eighties Bad Manners regularly appeared in the singles chart and whilst many of their contemporaries in the Ska and Reggae movement were seen to be more serious and credible, Bad Manners still provided the soundtrack for a generation with a brand of music that was influenced by touches of jazz and even old-style music hall.

Were Bad Manners an overnight success?

Many people think we were – but that was not the case. We started in 1975 with a different name, then after establishing ourselves as Bad Manners the whole Two-Tone movement started and Ska music became popular – everyone thought we were jumping on the band wagon but we weren’t – we had been playing Ska for years before it came back into fashion.

Did the disrespect you received from the Ska movement at the time upset you?

Yes, because everyone thought we were just copycats or just a second-rate version of The Specials.

Do you have good memories of appearing on Top of the Pops?

It was a great show and became at one point the Bad Manners show because we were on it so much. It helped sell a lot of records and they were fun times.

Does your dog still go on tour with you?

No, he died last year but I do have another dog now who is actually in Bulgaria at the moment where I live now – the cost of living is far cheaper than in Britain.

Have you ever thought of retiring?

Never! I love what I do. It nearly killed me when I could not perform when the pandemic was on.

Why do you think that Bad Manners continue to be so successful?

We give people who come to our gigs a really good, fun time - no one goes away unhappy from one of our concerts.