Ghost Town
Specials A.k.a. Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
All the clubs have been closed down
This place is coming like a ghost town
Bands won't play no more
Too much fighting on the dance floor
Do you remember the good old days before the ghost town?
We danced and sang and the music played in natty-boom town
This town is coming like a ghost town
Why must the youth fight against itself?
Government leaving the youth on the shelf
This place is coming like a ghost town
No job to be found in this country
Can't go on no more
The people getting angry
This town is coming like a ghost town
This town is coming like a ghost town
This town is coming like a ghost town
This town is coming like a ghost town
This town is coming like a ghost town
This town is coming like a ghost town
This town is coming like a ghost town
This town is coming like a ghost town
The lyrics to “Ghost Town” by The Specials A.k.a. use vivid imagery to describe a town that is slowly dying. The town has lost its vibrancy and life due to the closure of clubs and the lack of bands playing music. The people of the town are fighting and angry with the government for leaving them on the shelf and not providing them with job opportunities. The lyrics also touch on the youth of the town fighting each other, which suggests a lack of cohesion and unity within the community.
Despite the bleak description of the town, the lyrics also express nostalgia for the good old days before the town became a ghost town. The singer reflects on a time when “we danced and sang and the music played in natty-boom town”. This contrast between the past and present emphasizes the tragedy of the town’s decline.
Overall, the song “Ghost Town” is a powerful critique of social and economic issues affecting the working class in Britain during the 1980s. The lyrics offer a bleak but poignant commentary on the effects of government policies and social unrest on the lives of ordinary people.
Line by Line Meaning
This town is coming like a ghost town
The town is becoming empty and deserted
All the clubs have been closed down
All the nightclubs have been shut down
This place is coming like a ghost town
This location is becoming lifeless and abandoned
Bands won't play no more
Musicians are refusing to perform here anymore
Too much fighting on the dance floor
There is too much violence happening in the clubs
Do you remember the good old days before the ghost town?
Do you recall the times when this place was lively and active?
We danced and sang and the music played in natty-boom town
We enjoyed ourselves, singing and dancing to the beats of the music in this vibrant place
Why must the youth fight against itself?
Why do the younger generation have to be in conflict with each other?
Government leaving the youth on the shelf
The government is neglecting the young people
No job to be found in this country
There are no opportunities for employment in this nation
Can't go on no more
We cannot continue like this anymore
The people getting angry
The citizens are becoming more and more furious
This town is coming like a ghost town
The town is becoming empty and deserted
This town is coming like a ghost town
The town is becoming empty and deserted
This town is coming like a ghost town
The town is becoming empty and deserted
This town is coming like a ghost town
The town is becoming empty and deserted
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: Jerry Dammers
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@redrev674
RIP Terry Hall. I was 14 at comprehensive school when this came out. Loved everything Terry Hall was involved with. It was very much a track of its time but it is timeless
@davefb
About the same age.
We were leaving the uk for a family holday in france and this was the last tune we heard getting on the ferry. Just felt so 'right'.
RIP indeed. I feel broken..
@davidlester7066
RIP Terry Hall,Skinhead til i die
@Warp75
RIP Terry
@rayjr62
Agreed. One absurdly underrated singer. And admittedly even his own former band mates didn't know he was gravely ill. R.I.P..
@prbsnoop1974
Not really - it feels like we've come full circle
@LeeSparkes
Let us stand for our national anthem
@MacaqueStinx
Couldn't be any more relevant nowadays. The situation and cause may be different from back then, but the world is more of a ghost town now than ever before.
@thetopcat8946
@@MacaqueStinx Yes, I live in a very small town. This is the song I keep hearing replaying in my mind when I walk up a once busy road
@youngpotatoe6268
Father ted