Toppa Top 10: Ten Reggae Tunes That Influenced Punk Rock (Selected by Earl Gateshead)

Words by Earl Gateshead—

Earl Gateshead and Dr. Alimantado

Along with people like Don Letts, Earl Gateshead was one of the figures responsible for making reggae a vital component of the burgeoning punk rock movement in 1970s London. His career as a selector began accidentally when, while promoting punk shows at The New Queens Head in Brixton, he was unable to find a DJ to support the acts, taking over the duties himself with reggae selections. He would eventually link with South London’s Armoury 89 soundsystem, and became Big Youth’s and Dr.Alimantado’s tour DJ. Still active on the London scene, where he runs Trojan Soundsystem and is a regular guest at nightclubs like Fabric, Earl makes his NYC debut on Friday (6/29) at Drom in Manhattan alongside Subatomic Sound System, Deadly Dragon’s Scratch Famous and Top Shotta Band. We asked him to select the 10 reggae tunes that had the greatest impact on punk’s first wave.

10) Bob Marley And The Wailers, “Punky Reggae Party”

Bob Marley Punky Reggae Party by moncra93

I had to put this in …Like Big Youth, once Bob worked out that punk was a rebel thing, he was right behind it and even wrote a song of support!

9) The Mighty Diamonds, “Right Time”

The punks were very conscious of the date they lived in, they didn’t care about the past they cared about NOW. The right time for the punks was always now.

8) Black Slate, “Sticksman”

A British tune confronting the the terrible mugging epidemic we had in London in the late seventies, asking the question, why?

7) Culture, “Two Sevens Clash”

It sounds weird now, but the two sevens of this tune were the two sevens in 1977. We all thought, as Culture predicted in this tune, that the world was going to change radically in 1977. Who knows? maybe it did.

6) Big Youth, “Jim Screechy”

Big Youth told me loved the punk ethos, once he had worked it out. This hard rhythm with its scary lyric was another big Brixton favourite.

5) Errol Dunkley, “A Little Way Different”

The early punks were very cool people. They had no uniform. Everyone invented their own style and way of living. A philosophy reflected in this classic Dennis Bovell produced song.

4) U Roy, “Natty Rebel”

An anthem at punk dances, an anthem for all rebels. I played this every week at The New Queens Head in Brixton. It might be Lee Perry’s best work.

3) Dillinger, “Cocaine”

The sleazy, dangerous, outsider attitude in this appealed to the punks…

2) Junior Murvin, “Police and Thieves”

Junior Murvin – Police And Thieves -1977 by LostPirate77

The Clash famously covered this. Junior Murvin equally famously said they had “Ruined Jah Work!”

1) Dr Alimantado, “Born for A Purpose”

Johnny Rotten loved this tune… He still does. Dr Alimantado told me that when he met Rotten recently. The ex-Sex Pistol told him that the whole ethos of the Pistols was encapsulated in this lyric: “If you feel that you have no reason for living, don’t determine my life.”