Yes, it’s true: One of the many Jamaican singles the early Bob Marley and The Wailers released was a cover of the 60s novelty bubble-gum hit “Sugar Sugar,” by the fictional band The Archies. The sheer unlikelihood makes it hilarious, but The Wailers actually make a pretty great groove out of it.
Tag Archives: Reggae
4Ever Songs: Bob Marley ‘Could You Be Loved’
Could You Be Loved is one of reggae legend Bob Marley‘s most popular and misunderstood songs. Over the years, there have been several interpretations of the song. One of the most common interpretations is that Marley wrote the song on an airplane while he was leaving Brazil to show appreciation to the Brazilian people for the immense love and hospitality they showed him when he visited the country for a concert. Another very common interpretation is that the song encourages Rastafarians to be strong and they shall overcome all the hurdles that ‘Babylon’ puts in their way to bring them down. It is noteworthy that according to Rastafarians, the term ‘Babylon’ refers to the oppressive aspects of the white culture.
4Ever Songs: Dillinger “Cocaine in My Brain”
There exists a rich musical history of recorded songs about cocaine use dating at least as far back as Victoria Spivey and Lonnie Johnson’s 1927 “Dopehead Blues,” or Dick Justice’s 1928 “Cocaine.” On one end of the spectrum are commendably classic tunes about nose-candy such as Johnny Cash’s “Cocaine Blues,” or J.J. Cale’s (later made shitty by Eric Clapton) “Cocaine,”
Perhaps the greatest (or at least weirdest) joy-powder paean comes to us via Jamaican artist, Dillinger. 1976’s “Cokane in My Brain” from his CB 200 album is a funky slice of reggae/proto-rap, clearly recorded under the influence of—I don’t know—let’s say a kilo of the white stuff. The song’s “riddim” is based on the Gamble and Huff-produced Philly soul classic “Do It Any Way You Wanna” by People’s Choice.
The muses of La Musa: Hempress Sativa
Hempress Sativa is one of the most dynamic and talented performers – male or woman – in reggae music today. Currently at work on her sophomore album following her extremely impressive debut “Unconquerebel” – and its dub version with legendary sound engineer Scientist (“Scientist Meets Hempress Sativa in Dub”) – Hempress Sativa is a spiritual, powerful, deeply conscious Rastafari singer. Born into a musical family, she grew up surrounded and nurtured by some of the biggest names in Jamaican music.
Music by Bergman: Kid Francescoli
Born in Paris but raised in Marseille, which he still considers his hometown, Mathieu Hocine has been writing songs since he was a kid. When he decided to publically unveil his project in the early 2000’s, he chose the nickname Kid Francescoli, as a tribute to Enzo Francescoli, one of the stars of his beloved Olympique de Marseille football club. In the past decades, his city has had a strong influence on the development of rap music in France, but things are changing and Kid Francescoli is the perfect example. His music has a lot more to do with pop, electro, the French Touch movement, dream-pop and film soundtracks (especially Ennio Morricone’s works).
In 2009, when he was staying in New York for a while, he met an American singer, Julia Minkin. They fell in love and started playing music together as a duo, which led to the creation of Kid Francescoli’s third album, called With Julia (2014). Even though they have broken up, Julia remains his muse and their relationship has evolved into a creative friendship.
In 2017, Kid Francescoli released Play Me Again, a new album documenting the end of a love story and exploring interesting territories (hip-hop beats, reggae, R&B, lyrics in French…). Love affairs don’t always end badly. Two years after the success of Play Me Again he releases Lovers, his brand new album.
Le Classique: UB40 “Kingston Town”
El Mariscal Mauro aprofitant la vinantesa del concert que la banda britànica oferirà avui diumenge ha triat com a “Le Classique” d’aquesta setmana la cançó “Kingston Town”.
Després d’haver hagut de cancel·lar el concert previst ara fa un mes per lesió d’un dels seus membres avui sí seran definitivament a la sala Razzmatazz. Tot i que són de Birmingham, UB40 es va donar a conèixer amb els seus temes d’aires jamaicans que tant han triomfat en emissores comercials de tot el món. En més trenta anys d’història, han venut 70 milions de discos gràcies a versions de clàssics com ‘(I Can’t Help) Falling in Love With You’, que recuperaran en el seu retorn a Barcelona. De totes formes, la grandesa dels UB40 rau en els seus primers discz com ara aquell àlbum de debut “Singing Off”.
Le Classique: Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry “Disco Devil”
El Mariscal Mauro està preparat per assistir aquesta nit a la sala Apolo per veure en directe el concert d’un dels pioners del reggae i responsable de Le Classique d’aquesta setmana “Disco Devil”.
Amb una alta consideració en el món de la música, Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry està considerat un dels productors i artistes de reggae més perdurables i originals del globus. Des dels seus primers dies a la dècada de 1960 com a cantant i enginyer d’estudi de Coxsone Dodd One a Kingston, a través de la seva producció d’obres clàssiques dels Wailers com ‘African Herbsman’ i ‘Soul Revolution’. L’estil innovador de Perry el defineix com un dels tresors més originals del panorama reggae. El seu geni creatiu segueix sent evident en els seus propis àlbums en solitari de la dècada de 1970, així com a través del seu flux constant de llançaments discogràfics al·lucinants de la dècada de 1980.
Llunàtic per uns i a l’altura d’un profeta per a molts altres, el seu estil únic al dubbing és infecciós. En la seva prolífica quantitat de material més recent el pare del dub mostra els seus temes favorits: els extraterrestres, el judici, la justícia, la corrupció, la carnalitat i l’auto proclamació, tot això amb ritmes ben contundents. Sempre disposat a seguir el ritme de les seves propies bateries, el geni excèntric de Perry, que farà 80 anys (!!) el dia després del seu concert a l’Apolo, continua obrint nous camins amb les melodies rasta més dures i rebels i els dubs instrumentals més imprevisibles.
Ville à Dômat 