In Defense of Ska Ep 123: Rhoda Dakar (The Bodysnatchers)

Only a handful of bands made up the 2 Tone era of ska in late 70s England. Today, we bring on Rhoda Dakar, the singer of The Bodysnatchers, an all-female ska band that released 2 singles on the 2 Tone record label before breaking up. The band also recorded a few Peel Sessions and were featured on Dance Craze. Though short-lived, The Bodysnatchers were an important band and are still loved by many to this day.

Rhoda also sang on the Specials' song "I Can't Stand It" (A really cool duet with Terry Hall), and was part of Jerry Dammers' Special AKA project. Their In The Studio record took 2 years to record. Rhoda tells us about "I Can't Stand It" and what it was like to work on In The Studio. (It was no fun!) 

We also talk about Rhoda's pre-Bodysnatchers years of being a punk kid and seeing Iggy Pop and Lou Reed, becoming friends with The Sex Pistols' Paul Cook and Steve Jones, and how she tried (and failed) to sneak into a Roxy Music concert in 1973. She tells us what it was like to work with The Interrupters on their most recent record, how she finally got to perform at the Brixton Academy Theater and the role that The Pogues' Shane MacGowan had in her joining The Bodysnatchers. 

She talks about writing "Ruder than You" with scenester Gaz Mayall (son of British blues legend John Mayall), playing on the Seaside Tour with The Specials and the Go Go's, and we talk about the legacy of her song The Boiler. 

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If you like our theme song, go download the EP Lives by Slow Gherkin. They wrote the opening and closing songs for our podcast. You can get both tunes from their Lives EP. Also, check out Dan P and the Bricks two LPs. They provided the mid-roll ad transition music. 

Support the In Defense host Aaron Carnes by purchasing a copy of his book, In Defense of Ska. The 2nd, expanded edition of In Defense of Ska will release in Oct 2024. 

Co-host Adam Davis has a band called Omnigone. Their latest record, Against The Rest released on March 31, 2023. 

The In Defense of Ska editor Chris Reeves runs a record label called Ska Punk International. They have new releases coming out all the time.

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