Words by Edward Seaga, Daddy Lion Chandell, Donald Clive Davidson and Roy Black—
Whatever your views of Edward Seaga‘s politics, his contributions to Jamaica’s dynamic music industry are indisputable. Jamaica’s fifth prime minister founded one of the country’s first homegrown record labels, West India Records Limited (WIRL), releasing records by Slim Smith, Joe Higgs and Byron Lee (who would later buy and re-brand WIRL as Dynamic Sounds) before entering politics. While serving in Jamaica’s parliament in 1964, Seaga helped pave the way for ska’s international crossover, arranging for Prince Buster, Derrick Morgan, Desmond Dekker, Jimmy Cliff, Byron Lee and others to perform at the New York World’s Fair. His fondness for the music even earned him the nickname “Ska-aga.”
The VP Records release Reggae Golden Jubilee—Origins of Jamaican Music, out today, celebrates 50 years of Jamaican independence by gathering 100 of the most significant songs released in that time, as selected by the former PM. We asked Selector Seaga to choose the 10 most significant Jamaican songs from that period included on the discs. Finding that he simply couldn’t narrow things down to an even 10, he gave us 15 of his top picks, included here along with the liner notes that appear in the CD booklet, co-written by Seaga with Daddy Lion Chandell, Donald Clive Davidson and Roy Black.
We have to say that we are a bit surprised by some of the choices for the Toppa Top picks: Who knew Seaga rated Buju and Beenie so highly, or followed reggae right up through Tarrus Riley’s “She’s Royal” and Etana’s “Roots”? Read on for Seaga’s Top 15 (and check the full tracklist here.)
*NOTE: The selections in the countdown reflect the views of Edward Seaga, and not LargeUp. This list was compiled from among the songs licensed for the Reggae Golden Jubilee compilation. Though many of Jamaica’s most notable tunes are included on the album, some were unavailable for licensing.
1. Prince Buster, “Wash Wash” (1963)
That Lucky Old Sun is a spiritual of sorts that dates all the way back to 1949 from its first recording by Frankie Laine, and became a standard in its own right after being covered throughout the years. It’s been known by many names, such as “Walk Around Heaven All Day and Wash All My Troubles Away,” and, in the case of Prince Buster, it was released as “Wash All Your Troubles Away” and most commonly known as “Wash Wash” for his swinging ska rendition recorded in 1963. Recorded in England, “Wash Wash” – which featured Millie Small as a prominent backing vocalis,t not too long before she recorded “My Boy Lollipop” – was so powerful with its crisp, organ-laced boogie shuffle arrangement, that it became one of the first of the few Jamaican ska recordings to be released in North America by a major U.S. label.
2. Desmond Dekker & The Aces, “Israelites” (a.k.a. Poor Me Israelites) (1968)
In 1968, after an immensely successful string of rocksteady hits galore, Desmond Dekker & The Aces transitioned into the reggae sound. Originally titled “Poor Me Israelites,” Dekker was deeply inspired by the suffering of Jamaican peasants and likened them symbolically to the Israelites, who according to the Bible, suffered in enslavement under the harsh rule of the Egyptian Pharaoh. To this day, most people never knew or realized the direction Dekker meant to take this tune with its context, nevertheless, it became a smash hit in Jamaica and England. The song was the very first reggae song to hit No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart and also the very first reggae hit in America, an achievement which never really happened again. “Israelites” barely made the Top 10 on the Billboard charts in America, peaking at number 9. Seaga attributes much of the success of Israelites in America to those of Judaism faith who incidentally also compared the song to the biblical history of the suffering of the Israelite people.
Whether or not one understands the meaning behind the creation of the song, the impact of the tune and its legacy is still felt throughout the world, even long after Dekker’s untimely death from a heart attack on May, 25, 2006 at the age of 64. It was Reggae’s first transatlantic hit!
3. The Maytals, “Sweet And Dandy” (1969)
This was one of the Maytals’ winning festival songs in 1969. It was a time to celebrate for the guests prior to the wedding day, who were more than ready to consume the wine and wedding cake. And I quote Frederick “Toots” Hibbert: “My mom used to talk about this wedding in her family and the story would be carried on by my siblings and it encouraged me to write this song for the festival.”
4. U-Roy & The Paragons, “Wear You To The Ball”(1970)
While The Paragons were becoming the superstar group of the rocksteady genre, a former deejay from Coxsone Dodd’s Down Beat sound system was planting fertile seed in the foundation of what would eventually be known as deejay music. In 1971, Ewart Beckford, who came to be known as Hugh Roy (later on to be spelled U-Roy), was on a hot streak of hits–very special hits… deejay hits which toast over the music with greetings, nursery rhymes, and bragging.
While toasting was in vogue almost since the beginning of the Jamaican sound system, and although there were already a number of pioneers who just barely preceded U-Roy on record (namely King Stitt and the late, great Count Matchuki), U-Roy was the first one to hit the charts and gain popularity and prominence from toasting on record, when he started recording for Duke Reid’s Treasure Isle label. (Particularly with “Wake The Town,” in which he spoke over Alton Ellis’ “Girl I’ve Got A Date.”)
Early in his career, U-Roy (who would later join dub pioneer King Tubby’s sound system) had hits ranked in the first three positions on the charts, a feat never before and never since repeated. It was for this particular feat alone that he became known as the Originator, because soon after this, many more toasters came out of the woodwork to address the microphone with their own respective brands of wit. Some were Dennis Alcapone, I-Roy, Dillinger, Big Youth and, yes, U-Roy Junior! A few notable producers began to get into the act for a while, such as Herman Chin-Loy of Aquarius Records and Clive Chin of Randy’s Records.
U-Roy’s toast over The Paragons’ “Wear You to the Ball” was his third recording for Treasure Isle and also his third hit following “Rule The Nation” and “Wake The Town,” both hits best known for their famous opening lines. “Wear You to the Ball” however, is one of U-Roy’s only tracks over a Paragons tune, in which they were credited alongside his name (although only John Holt’s name was mentioned on the UK release). Nonetheless a new style of music dub and deejay was born which, although short lived in Jamaica, was instrumental in the creation of rap and hip-hop, the international music genre of North America. This was a monumental feat.
5. Bob Marley & The Wailers, “Trenchtown Rock” (1971)
Some of the memorable songs of the Wailers were recorded with Lee “Scratch” Perry and his studio band, The Upsetters. During the early 1970s, The Upsetters members Aston “Family Man” Barrett and his brother, Carlton (Carlie) Barrett, formed the Wailers Band, providing instrumental backing for The Wailers. “Trench Town Rock” was one of the many songs that were included in those sessions. It became one of the most popular early reggae hits that Bob wrote and produced. The Wailers disbanded in 1974 due to Tosh and Livingston’s refusal to tour. Bob Marley formed Bob Marley & The Wailers with Bob Marley himself as guitarist, songwriter and main singer, the Wailers Band as the backing band (with Junior Marvin and Al Anderson playing lead guitar, Tyrone Downine and Earl “Wya” Lindo playing keyboards and Alvin “Seeco” Patterson, as percussionist) and the I-Threes, consisting of Rita Marley, Judy Mowatt and Marcia Griffiths, as backup vocalists.
6. Jimmy Cliff, “The Harder They Come” (1973)
It may have been hard for people outside of Jamaica to get their hands on the actual movie that ultimately made reggae famous around the world, but they certainly were able to get their hands on the very first all-reggae soundtrack album for the very first Jamaican film, The Harder They Come.
Written by iconic playwright Trevor D. Rhone and directed by Perry Henzell, The Harder They Come tells the story of Ivanhoe Martin, a young countryman with aspirations of becoming a star in music — but who instead meets the hardcore realities of city life, the corruption of the music industry, and eventually turns to a life of crime, with successful results for a while. The story of Ivanhoe Martin was, in fact, a modern-day adaptation, loosely based on the life of the infamous Jamaican outlaw Vincent Ivanhoe “Rhygin” Martin (a.k.a. “The Two Gun Killer”) who was regarded by some as a Robin Hood-type, but considered by law enforcement as a public enemy number one after escaping a maximum security prison. Rhygin, also a country boy who moved to Kingston, was gunned down at the young age of 24 in a “final showdown” of sorts with police on October 9, 1948.
The Harder They Come was the film debut of reggae superstar Jimmy Cliff (who landed the lead role of “Ivan”); along with veteran intuitive artist Ras Daniel Hartman, and the undisputed King of Jamaican cinema, film legend Carl Bradshaw. Bradshaw would land key roles in Trevor Rhone’s Smile Orange and One Love, as well as The Lunatic, Third World Cop, and the American film The Mighty Quinn with Denzel Washington.
The soundtrack album, which naturally featured Jimmy Cliff as the main artist, was released by Island Records (in the U.S. through its new division called Mango). The recording was a seminal force in introducing reggae (as well as rocksteady) to the world abroad, and to this day continues to introduce new generations of people to reggae, holding its position as one of the top-selling legendary reggae albums of all time. The song ultimately gave recognition to Toots & The Maytals as well as hit songs that were mere 7″ singles restricted to Jamaica and England, including Desmond Dekker and The Aces’ “007 (Shanty Town),” and The Melodians’ landmark tune “Rivers of Babylon,” later covered by the German–based Caribbean disco-pop group Boney M. It became a spiritual anthem among many of the Rastafarian faith.
The song itself –there were two versions recorded and featured on the album– is one of the most inspiring musical declarations of defiance against the seemingly impossible obstacles of life and the “big fish” of the world, who tend to create these obstacles for the have-nots. The country music legend Willie Nelson even covered “The Harder They Come” acoustically for his experimental reggae album, Countryman, in 2005.
Trevor Rhone, who would later write the 1974 play “Smile Orange” for which he would direct its companion film in 1975—and the 2003 romance flick “One Love” with Ky-Mani Marley and Cherine Anderson—died of a heart attack on 15 September 2009 at the age of 69. Director Perry Henzell, who made a cameo appearance in Willie Nelson’s video for “The Harder They Come,” died of cancer on 30 November 2006. Up until the 1990s, the movie’s availability was extremely scarce, but since then, The Harder They Come has become even more of a classic over the last two decades than ever before. And “just as sure as the sun will shine”, you will find Jimmy Cliff continuing to rouse masses of people to sing along with those famous 11 words “The Harder They Come … the harder they fall, one and all.”
7. Michigan & Smiley, “Rub-a-Dub Style”(1978)
In the late 1970s, reggae music was the hottest sensation. Everywhere there was either a new release in your local record shop, a major concert in a foreign country or a sound system dancehall event where deejays were displaying rhythmically lyrical prowess for one and all to hear. Such was the case for Papa Michigan & General Smiley, the first official deejay duo.
The two made their recording debut in 1978 at Studio One with Rub-A-Dub Style, a call-and-response tune laid over a drum and percussion over an update of Alton Ellis’ I’m Just A Guy rhythm. It won the people over with its sense of style and class. Papa and the General made albums with “Sir Coxsone” Dodd (where they also had a hit with “Nice Up The Dance”), Jo Jo Hookim of Channel One, Henry “Junjo” Lawes (who produced their trademark tune, “Diseases” in 1981), and RAS Records in the U.S all before taking a sabbatical. While they did not have a major hit since “Diseases,” the name Michigan & Smiley is a still a name people enthusiastically remember.
8. June “J.C.” Lodge, “Someone Loves You Honey” (1980)
Another fine example of how American tunes can get ultimately overshadowed by prominent reggae covers is a little more identifiable this time around. In 1978 Charley Pride, the first African-American artist to achieve legendary status in country music, had a No. 1 hit with “Someone Loves You Honey.” And so when June C. Lodge, a UK-born Jamaican, was just starting her career in music, she was asked by the Joe Gibbs team to record that particular song, at a particular time when Joe Gibbs was branching out into American territory.
The timing could not be more perfect. After it was recorded in 1980, it was released in Jamaica on the Belmont subsidiary of Joe Gibbs music, and a few months later, in 1981, on a US release as a disco mix with the deejay cut by singer George Nooks. This ultimately became one of the best selling reggae 12-inch records in America. Aside from making an attempt to mirror the success of “Someone Loves You Honey” for Joe Gibbs with a cover of Leo Sayers’ “More Than I Can Say” which was a minor hit J.C. Lodge went on to become even more successful as a singer, although the extent of the success would not be seen until 1988 when she recorded her next biggest hit, “Telephone Love,” with Augustus “Gussie” Clarke.
9. Yellowman, “Over Me” (1981)
It is commonly said that “only the strong survive,” and even in a land that was now becoming known just as much for its politics, poverty, and pestilence, as it was for parties, patties, and “positive vibes,” the most unassuming of characters can step out of the crowd and make something happen, as if by magic. One such character was Winston “Yellowman” Foster, a young albino orphan, who stepped out on the scene in the 1980s and became not only the world’s first international deejay, but perhaps the most loved and respected toaster currently active.
Yellowman is the first Jamaican artist to amass a record thirteen albums released in one year, a lot of talent for someone who was otherwise considered an outcast because of his rare skin condition. That alone was a testament that proved above all that the demand was for Yellowman. He was also the first deejay to be signed to a major international corporate label (CBS Records), the first deejay to make a prominent appearance with a major hip-hop act (RUN-DMC) and is still the most talked-about Jamaican deejay in America to this day.
Yellow Man is best known for his distinctive voice, his braggadocious swagger and his love for the ladies.
10. Dennis Brown, “Love Has Found Its Way”(1982)
As the times were changing, so was the image and the sound of Jamaican music. More importantly, Jamaica still had superstars for the world after the passing of Bob Marley. Dennis Brown was clearly one of them. His album in 1982 took on a slightly new direction, however. Love Has Found Its Way explored more of the R&B side of Dennis Brown, a reasonable move considering the dynamic range of his consistent and soulful voice.
The vast majority of the album was a major change to many because of the impact it had in the musical context. But aside from a number of favorites, such as “Why Baby Why,” it was the title track “Love Has Found Its Way,” a sweet, uptempo disco-flavored R&B love jam that captivated the minds, the hearts, and souls of lovers, club goers, and reggae fans everywhere. “Love Has Found Its Way” was D. Brown’s greatest triumph with the African American audience for the time.
Dennis bounced back to win the hearts of his core reggae-listening audience from all over the world once again with his hits like “Revolution” and “Promised Land” (which made great use of the harmony group Aswad and their timeless 1982 classic “Love Fire.”) Dennis Brown had come to be known as the “Crown Prince of Reggae” and he was already an international reggae icon where it counted most. Even after his death on July 1, 1999 at the age of 42, Dennis Brown remains an international reggae icon, especially with the younger generation. And if you ever step into a discotheque, club, a dancehall, or an outdoor party, the jury of the audience will rule an inevitable verdict – That D. Brown will remain that way.
11. Shabba Ranks & Krystal, “Twice My Age” (1989)
It was Shabba Ranks, Rexton Gordon, who best portrayed the exaggerations of dancehall in dress, rhythm, music and a strong coarse macho voice. One of the best sellers of dancehall was the duet of Shabba Ranks and Krystal, whose soft female voice produced a beautiful contrasting ballad, interrupted on alternate verses by a coarse, forceful response by Shabba on a classical deejay rhythm. This knockout song was “Twice My Age,” a lament by Krystal of the advanced age of her partner, with whom she is in love.
12. Buju Banton, “Murderer” (1994)
Buju Banton’s lyrics often dealt with violence, which he explained as reflecting the images that young Jamaicans were presented with by the news media, but the reality of Kingston’s violence was brought home in 1993 by the murders in separate incidents of two of his friends and fellow recording artists, the deejays Pan Head and Dirtsman. His response was the single “Murderer,” which condemned gun violence, going against the flow of the prevailing lyrical content in dancehall. The song inspired several clubs to stop playing songs with excessively violent subject matter. Late in 1994, Buju was also affected by the death of his friend Garnett Silk. Buju’s transformation continued as he embraced the Rastafarian movement and grew his dreadlocks. He joined “conscious” deejay Tony Rebel, Papa San, and General Degree in the Yardcore Collective as his performances and musical releases took on a more spiritual tone. Banton toured Europe and Japan, playing sold out shows, and performed before 20,000 in Trinidad and Tobago.
13. Beenie Man, “Who Am I” (Sim Simma) (1997)
Moving closer to the end of the decade another giant deejay emerged: Beenie Man. Moses Davis was considered the “boy wonder” of dancehall, launching his career at the age of 13. During his sojourn as the headline artist of the Shocking Vibes label, Beenie Man became a dancehall sensation after releasing the Blessed album in 1995 as well as countless hit singles from the album and beyond. Beenie was also one of the fastest rising and most talked-about dancehall artistes of the time. But in 1997, when a newcomer to the production scene, Jeremy Harding, (the founder of 2 Hard Recordings) put together a hot new rhythm called Playground, history was made yet again.
What ultimately made “Who Am I” exciting was not merely the rhythm but particularly the catchy chorus line “Sim Simma, who got the keys to my Bimma” (BMW), which Beenie adopted from the first line of the second verse of Missy Elliot’s “Supa Dupa Fly (The Rain).” Making waves well into 1998, “Who Am I” broke new ground, not only for bringing even more international recognition to Beenie Man, but also for VP Records, as it was the very first record ever for the label to receive a Recording Industry Association of America-certified sales award. The popularity of “Who Am I” was so great that it sold over 500,000 copies in the U.S. alone, making it a Gold certified success. Beenie Man went on to be the Grammy Award winner for the Reggae category in 2001.
14. Tarrus Riley, “She’s Royal”
The next generation of Reggae royalty is well received by audiences of today. However, with the exception of the Marley family, the fact that they are Reggae royalty is lost upon today’s audience. No one outside of the hardcore purist and journalistic reggae community recognizes the history or the lineage that precedes a currently well-known artiste such as Tarrus Riley, the son of Jimmy Riley, the Yes Records founder and former Taxi recording artist famous for the 1981 lover’s rock hit classic “Love and Devotion.” Fast forward 25 years later to 2006 in attention, Tarrus teamed up with Jamaica’s number one sax player, Dean Fraser, and hit the jackpot with
the release of “She’s Royal,” an ode to the loving virtuous woman. This is one of the most beautiful Jamaican songs ever written.
15. Etana, “Roots”
Strongly influenced by R&B, Shauna McKenzie was once a member of an R&B girl group called Gift, based in America (where she lived for a long time) and created by Universal Music. This period of time, in the early 2000s, would be extremely short-lived as she would soon quit the group. From that point, she moved back to Jamaica from Miami.
Later, in 2005, a meeting had been set up for Shauna by a friend at Fifth Element Records, a modern roots-oriented label which after four years of existence was now successful with a string of hits for Richie Spice and Chuck Fender. After some pulling and prodding, she reluctantly started working with them, recording music, singing background, touring with Richie Spice for a year and getting noticed for her vocals. However, after Fifth Element was shut down, Shauna pressed on and started her own label and management company, Free Mind Music. She had now taken on the Swahili name Etana, meaning ‘the strong one,’ and began working with various producers to launch her solo career.
Etana traveled the Caribbean circuit as well as America and even Africa (where she got her greatest reception) to promote her music. In time, she managed to amass number one hit songs on the reggae charts of the UK, the US, and throughout the Caribbean, all at the same time. Among the hits that were now part of her 2008 debut album The Strong One, was “Roots,” a defiant, conscious blast against the wickedness and evil of the world. “Roots,” produced by veteran producer and former Tom Tom Club member Steven Stanley and released on Free Mind Music, served as a source of inspiration for Jamaicans of all generations, and came at a time when it would appear to be needed most.
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