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Re: Whats Everyone Listening To?

PostPosted: Sat Jul 12, 2014 1:46 pm
by ledbud

nice old song
:cool: :cool: :cool: :cool: :cool:

Re: Whats Everyone Listening To?

PostPosted: Sat Jul 12, 2014 2:10 pm
by ledbud

African reggae star Majek Fashek (born: Majekodunmi Fasheke) attracted international attention, in 1987, when his self-penned tune, "Send Down The Rain," seemed to coax a rain storm that ended one of the worst draughts in Nigeria' s history. Labled a "prophet", Fashek went on to become one of Africa's greatest reggae-influenced performers. His debut solo album, Prisoner Of Conscience, released in 1988, sold more than 200,000 copies in Nigeria alone.

Born in Benin City, once the center of the ancient Sini kingdom, Fashek inherited his love of music from his mother, an Edo woman who raised him following the death of his father when he was eleven years old. A businesswoman, who supplied concrete to road contractors, she inspired him through her participation in traditional religious ceremonies where the Olokun rhythms were used to accompany worship of the river goddess. As a youngster, Fashek played maracas during the ceremonies.

While he developed an early interest in the music of Jamaica, Fashek was equally drawn to the music of Indian cinema. Learning to play guitar while in secondary school, Fashek joined a band, Jah Stix, and began playing in clubs in the capitol city of Lagos.

Fashek, whose name means "power of miracles, the high priest does not live", had a very close involvement with the late Nigerian drummer and bandleader Fela Anikulapo Kuti.

:cool: :cool: :cool:

Re: Whats Everyone Listening To?

PostPosted: Sat Jul 12, 2014 2:15 pm
by ledbud
steel pulse live in Paris intro



Steel Pulse were one of Britain's greatest reggae bands, rivaled only by Aswad in terms of creative and commercial success. Generally a protest-minded Rastafarian outfit, Steel Pulse started out playing authentic roots reggae with touches of jazz and Latin music, and earned a substantial audience among white U.K. punks as well. Their 1978 debut, Handsworth Revolution, is still regarded by many critics as a landmark and a high point of British reggae. As the '80s wore on, slick synthesizers and elements of dance and urban R&B gradually crept into their sound, even as their subject matter stayed on the militant side. By the late '80s, Steel Pulse had won a Grammy and were working full-fledged crossover territory, but never reached the same degree of commercial acceptance as Aswad or Inner Circle. They subsequently returned to a tough-minded, rootsy sound that nonetheless made concessions to contemporary trends with touches of dancehall and hip-hop.

Steel Pulse were formed in 1975 in Birmingham, England, specifically the ghetto area of Handsworth. The founding members were schoolmates David Hinds (the primary songwriter as well as the lead singer and guitarist), Basil Gabbidon (guitar), and Ronnie "Stepper" McQueen (bass). All of them came from poor West Indian immigrant families, and none had much musical experience. They took some time to improve their technical proficiency, often on Rasta-slanted material by Bob Marley and Burning Spear. McQueen suggested the group name, after a racehorse, and they soon fleshed out the lineup with drummer Steve "Grizzly" Nisbett, keyboardist/vocalist Selwyn "Bumbo" Brown, percussionist/vocalist Alphonso "Fonso" Martin, and vocalist Michael Riley.

Steel Pulse initially had difficulty finding live gigs, as club owners were reluctant to give them a platform for their "subversive" Rastafarian politics. Luckily, the punk movement was opening up new avenues for music all over Britain, and also finding a spiritual kinship with protest reggae. Thus, the group wound up as an opening act for punk and new wave bands like the Clash, the Stranglers, Generation X, the Police, and XTC, and built a broad-based audience in the process. In keeping with the spirit of the times, Steel Pulse developed a theatrical stage show that leavened their social commentary with satirical humor; many of the members dressed in costumes that mocked traditional British archetypes (Riley was a vicar, McQueen a bowler-wearing aristocrat, Martin a coach footman, etc.). The band issued two singles -- "Kibudu, Mansetta and Abuku" and "Nyah Love" -- on small independent labels, then came to the attention of Island Records after opening for Burning Spear.




Tribute to the Martyrs
Steel Pulse's first single for Island was the classic "Ku Klux Klan," which happened to lend itself well to the band's highly visual, costume-heavy concerts. It appeared on their 1978 debut album, Handsworth Revolution, which was soon hailed as a classic of British reggae by many fans and critics, thanks to songs like the title track, "Macka Splaff," "Prodigal Son," and "Soldiers." Riley departed before the follow-up, 1979's Tribute to the Martyrs, which featured other key early singles in "Sound System" and "Babylon Makes the Rules," and solidified the band's reputation for uncompromising political ferocity. That reputation went out the window on 1980's Caught You, a more pop-oriented set devoted to dance tracks and lovers rock. By that point, Steel Pulse were keen on trying to crack the American market, and went on tour over Island's objections. Caught You was issued in the States as Reggae Fever, but failed to break the group, and they soon parted ways with Island.




True Democracy
Steel Pulse moved on to Elektra/Asylum, which released an LP version of their headlining set at the 1981 Reggae Sunsplash Festival. Their studio debut was 1982's True Democracy, a generally acclaimed set that balanced bright, accessible production with a return to social consciousness. It became their first charting LP in America, making both the pop and R&B listings. The slicker follow-up, Earth Crisis, was released in 1984 and featured producer Jimmy "Senyah" Haynes subbing on guitar and bass for founding members Gabbidon and McQueen, both of whom were gone by the end of the recording sessions. They were replaced by guitarist Carlton Bryan and bassist Alvin Ewen for 1986's Babylon the Bandit, another Haynes-produced effort that ranked as the group's most polished, synth-centered record to date. Although it featured the powerful "Not King James Version" and won a Grammy for Best Reggae Album, it sold poorly and alienated some of the band's older fans; as a result, Elektra soon dropped them.




State of Emergency
Steel Pulse resurfaced on MCA in 1988 with State of Emergency, their most explicitly crossover-oriented album yet. They also contributed the track "Can't Stand It" to the soundtrack of Spike Lee's classic Do the Right Thing. In 1991, they released another heavily commercial album, the Grammy-nominated Victims, which featured the single "Taxi Driver." Backing up the song's views, Steel Pulse filed a class-action lawsuit against the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission, charging that drivers discriminated against blacks and particularly Rastafarians. Founding member Fonso Martin left that year, reducing Steel Pulse to a core trio of Hinds, Nisbett, and Brown. Their backing band still featured Ewen and was elsewhere anchored by guitarist Clifford "Moonie" Pusey, keyboardist Sidney Mills, and drummer/percussionist Conrad Kelly.




Rastafari Centennial: Live in Paris - Elysee Montmartre
The 1992 live album Rastafari Centennial marked the beginning of a return to the group's musical roots, and earned another Grammy nomination. The following year, they performed at Bill Clinton's inaugural celebration, the first reggae band to appear at such an event. 1994's studio album Vex completed Steel Pulse's re-embrace of classic roots reggae, though it also nodded to contemporary dancehall with several guest toasters and a digital-flavored production. 1997's Rage and Fury continued in a similar vein, and was nominated for a Grammy. In 1999, the group released another collection of live performances, Living Legacy.

Re: Whats Everyone Listening To?

PostPosted: Sat Jul 12, 2014 2:29 pm
by ledbud







Re: Whats Everyone Listening To?

PostPosted: Sat Jul 12, 2014 2:56 pm
by ledbud

Re: Whats Everyone Listening To?

PostPosted: Sat Jul 12, 2014 3:08 pm
by ledbud

Sugar Minott

Few artists had the impact on Jamaica's dancehall scene as Sugar Minott. His releases provided the blueprints for the rise of the contemporary dancehall style, he was also equally influential as a producer, and his extraordinarily popular sound system helped launch numerous new DJs into the limelight.

Lincoln Barrington Minott was born in Kingston, Jamaica, on May 25, 1956. He began his career in the sound systems while still a child, working as a selector for the Sound of Silence Keystone outfit, before launching his own Gathering of Youth sound system just as he hit his teens. There, too, he carried on merely as the selector. However, in 1969, Minott decided to take the mike himself, not as a DJ, but as a singer, one third of the African Brothers roots trio, alongside Tony Tuff and Derrick Howard. The group initially made its way around the amateur talent show circuit, but eventually linked up with the Micron label. African Brothers released a number of singles over the next few years, including "Party Night," "Gimme Gimme African Love," and "A Di System" cut with producer Jah Bunny. The trio also began self-producing (its first attempt was "Torturing"), and then launched its own Ital label. By this time, the trio's Abyssinians influence was becoming prominent, as can be heard on "Righteous Kingdom," "Youths of Today," and "Lead Us Father."

In 1974, African Brothers cut "Mysterious Nature" with producer Rupie Edwards, which brought them to the attention of Studio One. Their debut song for that label, "No Cup No Broke, was also their last, and the trio split to pursue solo careers. (Tony Tuff would continue his cultural career before switching with great success to dancehall.) In 1987, the Uptempo label gathered up the African Brothers singles for the compilation album Collectors Item, crediting it to Sugar Minott & the African Brothers. Coxsone Dodd was keen to keep Minott, whose talents extended beyond vocals and into session work as both a guitarist and drummer. However, the artist had an even more innovative talent tucked away -- an extraordinary ability to compose new lyrics to old songs.




Showcase
In a scene split between toasters and deep roots, Minott had invented an entirely new style and Dodd was quick to take advantage. It was pure serendipity, or incredible forethought, that the rhythms the pair used were ones that would soon be tearing up the dancehalls. It took a few releases for the Jamaican public to catch on, but by 1978, Minott had his first hit with the single "Vanity." More quickly followed and before the year was out, he released his debut album, Live Loving, which many credit as the first true dancehall album. It would revolutionize the entire Jamaican musical scene. Minott's follow-up album, 1979's Showcase, was equally revolutionary and included not just dub versions, but featured the hip new syndrums that would soon rule the dancehalls. Both albums also doubled as hits collections, and included such smashes as "Wrong Doers," "Oh Mr. DC," "House Is Not a Home," and such Niney Holness-produced chart-busters as "No Vacancy," "Give Thanks and Praise," and "Babylon."




Ghetto-Ology + Dub
In 1983, the Hitbound label gathered up a batch of the Holness-produced hits on With Lots of Extra, making up the numbers with extra songs that were equally good. The singer scored another major hit with "Never Too Young," produced by Prince Jammy, who also oversaw Minott's third album, 1979's Bitter Sweet. But that did little to prepare listeners for Minott's third full-length release that year, the phenomenal Ghetto-ology, a deeply roots album featuring such tracks as "Dreader Than Dread," "Never Gonna Give Jah Up," and "Africa Is the Black Man's Home." A superb dub companion remixed by King Tubby in one of his final projects accompanied the album, and in 2000 the Easy Star label appended this to Ghetto-ology's CD reissue. The album was the beginning of Minott's move into a dread sound. Black Roots, its follow-up, picked up precisely where its predecessor left off and continued down the deep roots path. However, Roots Lovers, also released in 1980, showed a seismic shift in direction as Minott moved strongly into the lovers rock arena, while still maintaining a roots approach. Minott's energy and enthusiasm seemed boundless and this year also saw the launch of his own labels, Youth Promotion and Black Roots. He debuted his new labels with the self-produced "Man Hungry" and followed it up with "Hard Time Pressure." That latter single was Minott's British debut and went down a storm. That, coupled with the success of Roots Lovers in a U.K. in the feverish grip of lovers rock frenzy, prompted the singer to relocate to London after he played Reggae Sunsplash that same year.




We Got a Good Thing Going
Minott may have been on the other side of the Atlantic but this did not put a dent in his release schedule, and new singles continued to appear with amazing regularity. Alvin Ranglin oversaw "Not for Sale," there was a clutch cut with Linval Thompson including "Run Come" and "Hold On," while Ranking Dread oversaw "African Girl," the title track from Minott's new album. It was Donovan Germain, however, who helped Minott achieve his first U.K. hit with a cover of Michael Jackson's "Good Thing Going." This brought a distribution deal with the RCA label for the smash hit follow-up album Good Thing Going. One of the masterpieces of the lovers rock era, Good Thing was to be Minott's last new album for two years, given that the market was now being glutted by compilations of older material. In the meantime, the singer released a string of seminal singles, "Lover's Rock," a cover of David Gates' "Make It with You" (a duet with Carroll Thompson), "In a Dis Ya Time," "Africa," and many more.

Re: Whats Everyone Listening To?

PostPosted: Sat Jul 19, 2014 11:39 am
by belfiore
ledbud wrote:







i never no this band, good music.
i like it. thanks ledbud bro.
:-P

Re: Whats Everyone Listening To?

PostPosted: Sat Aug 09, 2014 11:41 am
by AlphaOmega
Yo all, a few contributions from me :grin::::: .

First one is very apt I think for the times we live in now.



Re: Whats Everyone Listening To?

PostPosted: Sat Aug 09, 2014 11:49 am
by AlphaOmega
And now for something else.




Re: Whats Everyone Listening To?

PostPosted: Sat Aug 09, 2014 12:00 pm
by AlphaOmega