Fun Boy Three was formed by Terry Hall, Lynval Golding and Nevile Staples after leaving The Specials in the Summer of 1981. Taking on a more pop sensibility, the band released their debut single, The Lunatics (Have Taken Over The Asylum), reaching number 20 in the UK charts in October 1981. The endurance of the track still resonates today and led to the reformed Specials, featuring Terry and Lynval, to re-record the track on their 2019 comeback album 'Encore'.

On their second single, they were joined by Bananarama for a a cover of the old jazz standard 'T'Ain't What You Do (It's The Way That You Do It)' which reached number 4 in the UK charts (Feb '82). A third single from the album, The Telephone Always Rings, was also a top 20 hit single, which completed a trio of hits in the bands first year.

This debut album, The Fun Boy Three, was released in March 1982, and was a top 10 hit in the UK, going on to achieve gold status.