Buju takes ‘Driver’s’ seat at Rebel Salute Buju Banton was at his best on Saturday night at the 2007 Tru-Juice Rebel Salute, as he stole the spotlight at the Port Kaiser venue in St. Elizabeth. While almost everyone played second fiddle to the nimble star, acts such as deejay Assassin, songbird Diana King, veteran singer [...]
Reggae vibe reaches all the way into Arkansas Joseph Israel recorded his first album in Kingston, Jamaica, a place that not only represents to him the artists who recorded there before, but also a part of his own upbringing. He cites his source of musical inspiration as the same as that which “causes the rain [...]
Deep discounts are afloat for Caribbean itineraries Always dreamed of a Caribbean cruise? This is the year. Cruise lines have slashed prices for 2007 voyages to rarely seen levels, as low as $399 a week for February sailings, in an aggressive effort to jump-start sagging sales as the busiest booking period of the year begins. [...]
UB40 – From welfare to Grammy nomination For almost 30 years, British reggae band, UB40 has been an unconventional face of reggae. They have become arguably the number one reggae act of all-time in terms of record sales, chart positions and touring schedule. Now, with approximately 25 albums under their belt, they stand the chance [...]
‘Wet Dream’ still banned Sunday Gleaner: Why do they call you the ‘original rude boy of reggae’? Max Romeo: I started this whole sex revolution with lewd images. I recorded this song Wet Dream; it’s all about sex. It played twice on BBC, some Jamaicans called and reported it. It hit the top, stayed on [...]
A ‘Romeo’ in life and on stage Romancing the girls with his risqué lyrics, Max Romeo introduced Britain to a sex revolution. The overly-suggestive Wet Dream reached number 10 on the United Kingdom (U.K.) charts signalling the start of what should have been a huge career. Although he had a number of very popular songs, [...]
Where is Brick & Lace? They burst onto the dancehall-pop scene as Jamaica’s answer to international supergroup Destiny’s Child. Tasha, Nyanda and Nailah Thorbourne. the sexy, sultry sisters who called themselves Brick & Lace, blazed the airwaves and then disappeared. What happened to them?
The cool ruler of reggae makes a comeback Gregory Isaacs, one of Jamaica’s greatest musical exports, was recently honoured with a special reception at the island’s High Commission in London. In Britain, Isaacs is best known for the classic, Night Nurse, recently given new life on an advert for cough syrup. However, anyone who has [...]
Reggae grows another Jewish branch One of the most meaningful Jewish gifts would have to be the planting of an elan, Hebrew for tree, in Israel in one’s honor. And in the case of Los Angeles-born musician Elan, no other name would suit him quite as well. His reggae and dancehall-inspired music has firmly planted [...]
Beres Hammond & Marcia Griffiths Reggae superstars Beres Hammond and Marcia Griffiths mix it up. It was one of those moments in Montreal reggae history that stained this city’s reputation: an all-out brawl on the dance floor of the Medley in October 1999, the night old-school reggae icon Beres Hammond co-headlined that year’s biggest reggae [...]