The Specials band members announced the death of their friend Terry Hall to their fans. / Terry Hall dies
The group shared the following words in a statement on Twitter: “It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our beautiful friend, brother and one of the brightest singers and songwriters this country has ever produced, Terry, who passed away after illness. Terry was a wonderful husband and father, and one of the kindest, funniest and most sincere of souls. His music and performances encompassed the essence of life… Joy, pain, humor, the struggle for justice, but most of all, love.”
The group also asked that the privacy of Hall’s family be respected.
Neville Staple, Hall’s bandmate on Specials and Fun Boy Three, expressed regret at the news: “We knew Terry was sick, but we didn’t realize how serious he was until recently. We had just confirmed the 2023 joint music deals together. This has hit me hard and it must have been extremely difficult for Terry’s wife and family.”
Hall was born on March 19, 1959, in Coventry, into a family that predominantly worked in the automobile industry. He was an academically gifted boy and also a well-known football player who was invited to try for West Bromwich Albion, but his parents did not want this career.
After what happened to him during his childhood years, Hall had to take drugs throughout his teenage years and live with depression and manic depression. As he told comedian Richard Herring in 2019; At the age of 12, he was kidnapped by a pedophile gang in France. Hall kept this a secret and did not tell his family.
He joined the punk band Squad, his first band inspired by Clash and the Sex Pistols. While his older sister and mentor Teresa introduced him to Trojan Records, it was David Bowie’s 1975 album Young Americans that propelled Hall to become a singer. Hall joined the Specials shortly after the founding of the Coventry band, which replaced vocalist Tim Strickland in 1977. They released their first single, Gangsters, in 1979 and peaked at #6 on the UK singles chart. They dominated the Top 10 over the next two years and peaked in 1981 with their second #1 single, Ghost Town.
Hall formed Fun Boy Three with Specials bandmates Staple and Lynval Golding. They’ve also enjoyed chart success for several years. Hall formed another band called Colourfield, which had a hit with Thinking of You in 1984.
Hall was still struggling with his mental health during all this time. Hall is survived by his wife, director Lindy Heymann. They had a son; Hall also has two sons with his ex-wife, Jeanette Hall.
Hall told Uncut magazine in 2019 that she was enjoying her 60s: “I feel lucky to have gotten this far. A lot of people think that 60 is part of the downward spiral, which it is if you let it be, but you can fight it and say it’s not; it’s just part of that story.”
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