Category Archives: Scientist

Larry Mac, Jahmai, Ani, + Ridim live; Bay Area Reggae Musicians Special, May 19th 1980 Midnight Dread #20 -complete show-

by

0

2_4_80MD8MxcldSS

Nor Cal legends Ridim play three live tracks from The Catalyst & Keystone Berkeley in MD #20 Parts 1 & 2. Two of Ridim’s principals, yardies Larry MacDonald & Jahmai, speak along with Virgin Islander Ani on the history of roots reggae & Jamaican musicians living in the San Francisco Bay Area in the 1970s. Another 33 years ahead Midnight Dread goes deep & comes up with full coffers. The week’s Reggae Calendar includes a double bill of Toots & Third World live at The Old Waldorf in San Francisco & Zellerbach Auditorium across the bay on the campus at UC Berkeley. Discs, Wheels & Sports is moving their reggae wares to a new location near Lake Merritt. M Al’s reggae sound studio is open for biz nearby downtown Oakland. Listen to the ripples of reggaemylitis’ invasion into the bay music scene. Amazing advance vinyl pressings from Black Uhuru & Pablo Moses round out this well-charged radio program.

SettleVibes

JahmaiUmoja

NattyRebelNow.JPG

Larry McDonald plays three key Ridim tracks from an upcoming limited edition vinyl release and goes into great detail on the musicians. Mac also talks at length about the just closed Broadway musical REGGAE, Michael Butler’s followup to HAIR starring Phillip Michael Thomas with music by Max Romeo & Ras Karbi who also appears in the ambitious stage play. Michael Kamen, producer of The Wall by Pink Floyd who went on to produce Jah Malla’s first album for Atlantic around this time, was Music Director for REGGAE. Key times for reggae & culture. Sans the wonderful live Ridim “Wadasowa (Love)” selection from end of Part One, here’s the entire Larry Mac interview:

2_4_80MD8MxcldSS

MardiGrasCarnivalBacchanal

“The medal on my neck was won in the 1970 Festival competition. I came to US in 73. It was in the Daily Gleaner so my guess is that they own the copyright. Their morgue would have quite a bit of stuff on me.”-Larry McDonald:
LarryMac

Dreadcasting & streaming liquid musical jewels with daily 21st Century Midnight Dread programs at 12am including deja views often heard in Wendt’s Best of All Worlds slot when noon is high. Become conscious with the indigenous sounds of Native Son Rising curated by Doug everyday at 6am (all Pacific Times). Explore more Midnight Dreadness here.

Roots Radics Meet Barrington Levy At Channel One Vol. 1 (Vocals & Dubs)

by

0

So once you’ve thoroughly vetted all of the various roots artists, and with a pretty solid knowlesdge of the foundation deejays, I would recommend diving straight into the period from about 1979/80-1984, a period where the Roots Radics, “Junjo” Lawes, and a young and ambitious engineer named Hopeton Overton Brown AKA “Scientist” were busy transforming the sound and vibe of reggae.  As described by Pekka Vuorinen in his recent interview with Midnight Raver, there were also a handful of immensely talented and hungry “sing-jays” who were doing things with the mic that nobody had ever heard before or imagined.

It all started with Henry “Junjo” Lawes’ Volcano Sound System.  With Radics riddims, tune selections by Danny Dread, and agile deejays like deejays Buro, Shadowman, Toyan, and El Fego Barker rockin’ the mic, Volcano was certainly “mashin’ up de dance” allover the island.  Eventually, Lawes brings a whole host of talented deejays and “sing-jays” to Channel One studio on Maxfield Avenue to test them proper.  One of these young talents was a skinny kid from Clarendon with a love of kung fu and the voice of a champion.  Already becoming a familiar face in the dancehalls, Junjo grabbed young Levy at the age of 16 and brought him to Channel One to record him.  A testament to just how prolific Levy was as a singer in those days, while most artists struggled to put together an album of songs that would sell meagerly in the local shops, Barrington Levy releases three debut albums at the same time!  Bounty Hunter is released in New York, Shine Eye Girl in London, and Shaolin Temple in Jamaica.

Levy went on to become the most well-known sing-jay, with a long stream of heavy hitting singles from 1980-1984.  His performances at Sunsplash are legendary.  The formula of “Junjo”/Roots Radics/Barrington/Scientist was the perfect blend that produced a new sound in the dancehalls, a sound that dominates the scene until the digital revolution, led by former Radics’ keyboardist “Steely” Johnson killed the sound and vibe of the music in 1987.  It has never been the same since.

I absolutely love Barrington Levy singing over a heavy, stylistic riddim played by Flabba and Style Scott.  There is simply no comparison for this sound.  Here is a mix of some of my absolute essentials from this team.  Included here is the first in a series of mixes featuring the deadly riddims of the Roots Radics with the stylistic vocals of young Barrington Levy.  I anticipate a 4-volume set, which speaks to just how prolific this team was in the late 1970s and early 1980s.  Tracks selected primarily from three must-own Barrington Levy albums: Poor Man Style, Run Come Ya, and Teach Me Culture.

Untitled

Cover: Barrington Levy (top), Henry “Junjo” Lawes (bottom)

1. Barrington Levy – Don’t Pretend/When You’re Feeling Hungry
2. Barrington Levy – I Am Not In Love
3. Barrington Levy – You’re Trying To Ruin My Life
4. Barrington Levy – Hammer (Extended Version)
5. Barrington Levy – She Is The Best Girl
6. Barrington Levy – I Gave You Everything
7. Barrington Levy – One Foot Jo Jo
8. Barrington Levy – Why Did You Leave Me?
9. Barrington Levy – One-Two
10. Barrington Levy – Jah Help Us
11. Barrington Levy – Time Hard
12. Barrington Levy – Full Understanding
13. Barrington Levy – I Hold The Handle
14. Barrington Levy – Making Tracks
15. Barrington Levy – When You’re Young and In Love

Scientist Meets Ted Sirota’s Heavyweight Dub in Chicago?

by

0

Introducing Ted Sirota’s Heavyweight Dub

Chicago based drummer Ted Sirota, a twenty-five year veteran of the Chicago jazz scene, has fulfilled a life long dream and formed a dub reggae band called Ted Sirota’s Heavyweight Dub.

Inspired by the the great Jamaican backing bands of the era, Roots Radics, The Upsetters, The Aggrovators, Ted’s goal is to create a dub band that recreates this sound with as much authenticity as possible. To this end he’s rounded up a amazing group of Chicago musicians that includes Matt Lux (Iron and Wine, Isotope 217, Rob Mazurek) Dan Bitney (Tortoise), Dave Miller, and others.

Enter SCIENTIST

To find Mr. Brown Ted bravely navigated the word of dub on the internet, a formidable task in itself. Finding many half finished and outdated websites, dead ends, and far too many custom automotive accessory sites, Ted found a Dub mp3 site he believed was somehow affiliated with The Scientist. An inquiry though the most generic, “did-this-even-work?” contact form was sent and nothing happened for two months. Then he got a phone message, “This is Scientist. You can reach me at this number.” Ted called and a skeptical Scientist said ,”You send me some tracks. We’ll see….” Not 10 Minutes later Scientist called back, “Ted this music is GREAT.”

What’s transpired since has been nothing but a whirlwind of phone meetings, rehearsals, getting the Kickstarter going and on and on. So far we’ve raised 6k in two days. Currently, it’s the number one staff pick in the music category on the Kickstarter site itself. All of this energy is feeding back into the project, Scientist is getting inspired. Even as we speak developments are unfolding, contacts being made that could make this project even more special…updates to come.

The Kickstarter Project

Scientist:
Dance of the Vampires
Blood on his Lips
 
Scientist Rids The World of the Evil Curse of the Vampires:
 
Ted Sirota Heavy Weight Dub Live show.
(NOTE: this is a live show not the finished recording)
Capture

“Jah DJs DJ Jah” – DAT Master DW Archive XCI – Give Praises

by

0

DreadSelassieCU

DWdatXCI

2_4_80MD8MxcldSS

The first DAT compendium from the Doug Wendt archive to be posted anywhere arrives exclusively through Midnight Raver. Curated, mastered, and sequenced onto Digital Audio Tape in the mid-1990s from original long playing & fairly clean album vinyl sources. Rise and meet Jah. So Jah Jah say. I and I know. The DJs say Amen. Walk with Jah Love. Love Jah with all my heart. Jah me right. Live-icated to Jah.

Midnight Raver’s Midnight Dread page: http://midnightraverblog.com/midnight-dread/ Broadcast regularly from San Francisco’s KUSF & KFOG into the 1990s, Doug airs new shows daily: http://worldOneradio.org/ 6am, 12pm, & 12am Pacific Time

Hugh Mundell “Rasta Have The Handle” (Jah Guidance) 10″ vinyl

by

1

Hugh Mundell’s deadly “Rasta Have The Handle” was just reissued by the Jah Guidance label as the B-side to “Red, Gold, and Green.”  The dub version on this extended mix is the hardest thing I’ve ever heard from the radics.  Three things to really concentrate on when listening:  Flabba’s bass line, Style Scott’s drums, and Headly’s sax.  This tune is too wicked for words!
“The Roots Radics were at their most incendiary and Hugh Mundell at the height of his young power on this masterful 7″ single from 1982. The riddim is one of the Radics’ most dread, a big, booming backing driven by drummer Lincoln “Style” Scott and bassist Earl “Flabba” Holt, with Winston “Bo Peep” Bowen’s lead guitar flicking like flames across the piece.  Overhead, Felix “Deadly Headly” Bennett’s saxophone soars and wails in jazzy, melancholy reply to Mundell’s vocals, emphasizing his words here, heightening the mood he’s creating elsewhere. Mundell himself is fabulous, his soulful performance accentuating his Rasta conquer all theme. One of Mundell’s best cuts for producer Henry “Junjo” Lawes, this powerful number kicked off the singer’s Mundell album, which was released that same year.”
                                                                         -Jo-Anne Greene, AllMusic

ZLMB68374W595