The Selecter - The best of

The Selecter is an English 2 tone ska revival band, formed in Coventry, England, in 1979, initially consisting of Arthur 'Gaps' Hendrickson and Pauline Black on lead vocals, Neol Davies and Compton Amanor on guitar, Desmond Brown on Hammond organ, Charley 'Aitch' Bembridge on drums, and Charley Anderson on bass. The band's name comes from the original "The Selecter" track, which appeared on the flip side of The Special AKA's "Gangsters" single in 1979, and was written by Neol Davies and John Bradbury.

The band were one of the most successful ska bands of the 2 tone era, notching up several top forty singles in the British charts. Having co-released the first 2 tone ska single with the Specials, they are considered one of the founding acts of the movement. Though highly influential, the original lineup only remained together for a year, and even with replacement players the band only continued until breaking up in 1982.

After two guest spots with Bad Manners/Buster's All Stars in 1990, and being genuinely surprised by the reception they received, Black and Davies reformed the Selecter with three members of Bad Manners in 1991, but Neol Davies left the new line-up after two years year.

From 1994 to 1996, another original member, Arthur 'Gaps' Hendrickson, performed with this line-up occasionally. They released several new albums, toured around the world and toured with No Doubt in 1997 in the USA. 1998's politically-focused Cruel Britannia was critically acclaimed. Black continued to record and perform as the Selecter up until 2006, and from 2010 to the present.