Roddy Radiation
| Roddy Radiation | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Roderick James Byers |
| Born |
5 May 1955 Keresley, England |
| Genres | Rockabilly, ska, punk rock, reggae rock, 2-Tone |
| Occupation(s) | Musician |
| Instruments | Lead guitar, Lead singer |
| Years active | 1975–present |
| Associated acts | The Specials, The Tearjerkers, The Bonediggers, The Skabilly Rebels |
| Website | www |
| Notable instruments | |
| Vox AC30 | |
Roddy Radiation (born Roderick James Byers, 5 May 1955 in Keresley, England) is an English musician who played lead guitar for The Specials, as well as many rockabilly bands such as the Bonediggers and the Tearjerkers. He wrote the Specials favourites "Concrete Jungle", "Rat Race" and "Hey, Little Rich Girl", later covered by Amy Winehouse. Currently, Byers leads The Skabilly Rebels, a band that mixes ska rhythms with rockabilly.
Byers' first real band was formed in Coventry in 1975 and were called The Wild Boys. It was in The Wild Boys that he started songwriting. His first was "1980's Teddy Boy", and later came "Concrete Jungle" which was recorded by The Specials for their debut album, Specials (1979).
Byers joined The Specials when the band was called The Coventry Automatics and wrote several songs for the band. The most successful was "Rat Race", which peaked at number five in the UK Singles Chart in May 1980. Byers also wrote "Hey Little Rich Girl", which appeared on The Specials second album, More Specials (1980). "Hey Little Rich Girl" was released as a single in Japan by Chrysalis in 1980, and covered by Amy Winehouse on her successful album Back To Black. Byers sang the lead vocal on "Concrete Jungle" and the track "Braggin' and Tryin' Not to Lie" which was released as a free single with initial copies of More Specials. "Braggin' and Tryin' Not to Lie" was credited to Roddy Radiation & The Specials.
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