Tony Beet

Tony Beet (born November 24, 1962) is an English musician best known for being the lead singer of The International Beat (1988–1993).The band included members of The Beat (Saxa, Everett Morton) and General Public and Dexys Midnight Runners (Mickey Billingham), and poet Louie Campbell. Their The Hitting Line album was produced by Ranking Roger and Mickey Billingham. Beet wrote and co-wrote many songs for The International Beat.They performed live around the world, including tours in the U.S. and Europe, alongside Bad Manners, The Selecter, The Toasters, and original English Beat members Dave Wakeling and Ranking Roger, among others. Beet was born in Birmingham, England.He started playing the guitar at the age of fourteen and soon fell in love with the sound and dynamics of an acoustic guitar, on which all of his songs are written.His roots are in ska and rocksteady, which are reflected in his songs; they are a blend of ska/reggae and rocksteady/soul sound mixed with urban folk.Beet is a singer, songwriter and soprano saxophone player, which is what he was playing when he met Saxa in 1984. He currently plays with The Acoustic Theatre playing ska and rocksteady songs with acoustic instruments.