ONE of the country's best-loved ska bands will play at the Marine Theatre in Lyme Regis on Friday, November 22.

The Simmertones is formed of nine musicians from the south west, and the band have played at festivals and venues across the UK for the last 11 years. The group is fronted by lead vocalist Glyn Wilcox, with members of the band playing instruments including the trombone, trumpet, bass guitar, and tenor saxophone.

The Simmertones will be touring their brand new album, 10 Feet Tall, released by Windrush Recordings in August 2019.

Over the last decade the band have performed gigs at The London International Ska Festival, Bestival, Camp Bestival and The Looe Musical Festival. In 2018, The Simmertones were selected by Madness to open at their House of Fun Weekender, where they played to a crowd of 6,000.

The band's 2013 album Something for the Weekend? won best album at the South West Music Awards that year, receiving worldwide airplay and rave reviews from both critics and fans. Their cover version of the well-known classic Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps became the band's biggest hit to date. Other popular songs include Run For Your Life, Bring Your Love to Me and Dr Who, which are played frequently on BBC Radio 2 and BBC 6 Music.

Ska is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the later 1950s. It is seen as the precursor to rocksteady and reggae, combining elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues.

The Simmertones will be supported by DJ Ska Au Go Go. The bar opens at 7pm and the show starts at 8pm.

Tickets are £8 in advance, available from the Lyme Regis and Bridport Tourist Information Centres, or £10 on the door. For more information, visit www.thesimmertones.co.uk or www.marinetheatre.com