Dubkasm is a UK Roots Reggae and Dub outfit from Bristol, UK. With Digistep living in Brazil and DJ Stryda running the Dubkasm ship in their hometown Bristol, the vibes have spread further and Dubkasm’s Sufferah’s Choice Recordings label has become a transatlantic operation.

In spite of the distance, the releases and dubplates have continued. Past highlights have been vinyl remixes and collaborations with bredrins Aba Shanti-I, Iration Steppas and The Disciples. Big up also to I-drins and sistren: Lidj Xylon, Levi Roots, Afrikan Simba, Ras Bandele Selassie, Brother Addis, Tena Stelin, Christine Miller, Ras Bernardo, Jeru Banto and all musicians who have contributed.

Supporting reggae greats such as the Abyssinians, Culture and Horace Andy, Stryda has also been involved in promoting reggae shows and soundsystem sessions in Bristol from the likes of Aba Shanti-I, Iration Steppas and Jah Tubby’s.

Whilst producing Dubkasm material, Digistep has also been working in Brazil as a session saxophonist and melodica player for UK producers such as Disciples, Jah Warrior/Conscious Sounds, Jonah Dan and playing on material by artists such as Mykal Rose (ex Black Uhuru), Tony Roots, Christine Miller and Lutan Fyah. He recently played live with Zion Train in Brazil (I-spec to Perch and Dub Dadda).

Today a special post for all fans of SKA music.

Original recordings from the 60s, produced by King Edwards; partially ultrarare recordings from the surrounding field of the Skatalites.



Various Artists - Ska Ba Dip - The Essential King Edwards

Label: King Edwards
Format: Vinyl, LP, Compilation
Country: UK
Genre: Reggae
Style: Ska

Credits:
Bass - Lloyd Brevett
Drums - Arkland "Drumbago" Parks , Lloyd Knibbs
Guitar - Ernest Ranglin , Jerome Haines
Harmonica - Bobby Aitken , Charlie Organaire
Mastered By - Terry Newman
Piano - Jackie Mittoo
Saxophone - Lester Sterling , Roland Alphonso , Tommy McCook , Val Bennett
Trombone - Ronald Wilson (4)
Trumpet - Baba Brooks , Percival Dillon

Notes:
All songs recorded between 1964-1966

Tracklisting:

A1 - Upsetters & The Skatalites - Scandalizing
A2 - The Baba Brooks Band - Musical Workshop
A3 - Bobby Aitken & The Skatalites - Together
A4 - Shenley Duffus & The Baba Brooks Band - Digging a Ditch
A5 - Roland Alphonso & The Baba Brooks Band - Shuffle Duck
A6 - The Charmers & The Baba Brooks Band - You Dont know
B1 - Upcomming Willows & The Skatalites - Red China
B2 - Shenley Duffus & The Baba Brooks Band - Heariso
B3 - Lloyd Briscoe & The Baba Brooks Band - Jonah
B4 - Eric Morris & The Skatalites - Ungodly People
B5 - Patrick & The Edwards Allstars - Iron Curtain

Gonna get it here


Hope you'll enjoy it !!!

Peace and
stay irie



Please note that all of the tunes here are only for personal review and other informative purposes. Always remember to support artists by purchasing their tunes like I do.

The Three Waves Of Ska

First Wave:
Ska starts in Jamaica in the late 1950s.
Ska was a popular sound in dancehall's and is Jamaicans first very own style of music.
Throughout the 1960's the ghetto areas of Jamaica were filling up with youths looking for work that did not exist. These youths felt excluded and did not share in the optimism of early ska roots. These youths drew group identity as "Rude Boys".
(A term, by the way, that originated from a much earlier period: 1940s) Being "Rude" was a means of being somebody when society was telling you were nobody.





Second Wave:
The second wave of Ska - 2Tone - combined the punk rock music energy of late 70s England with the rhythm of Jamaican Ska. Just as the 1st wave Ska music was created by combining different genres, so did the new Ska.
Bands including SPECIALS and MADNESS paid respects to the forefathers of Ska while starting a new era. 2Tone Ska incorporated both black and white musicans in the band and their fanbase. Unity was the message.

The Ska club scene were both blacks and whites who worked in factories, and both shaved their heads and wore big boots as a matter of nesessity - the original skinheads were both black and white. Rude Boys dressed up in suits to mock the higher classes.
Rude Boys and Skinheads "Skanked" ... a dance that immitated their fight against higher classes.





Third wave:
Since Americans were deprived of the joys of Ska the first time around, it was inevitable that some convert of the music would infect the US.Manny bands from the first wave (Skatelites), and from the second wave (Fishbone & The Specials) were able to make their rounds again, as new bands influenced by them added their own touch.

Some say, Ska is dead, some say it's still around in the hearts of the true fans, some of us will just have to sit tight until we can catch a ride on the next wave .....
For me Ska will never die!






Peace and
stay irie

The Black Star Line was a shipping line incorporated by Marcus Garvey, who organized the UNIA (United Negro Improvement Association).


Photo of Yarmouth, first ship in the Black Star Liner Fleet

The Black Star Line derived its name from the White Star Line, a line whose success Garvey felt he could duplicate, which would become a standard of his Back-to-Africa movement. It was one among many businesses which the UNIA originated such as the Universal Printing House, Negro Factories Corporation, and the widely distributed and highly successful Negro World newspaper. The Black Star Line and its successor, the Black Cross Navigation and Trading Company, operated between 1919 and 1922. The Black Star Line stands today as a major symbol for Garvey followers and African Americans in search of a way to get back to their homeland. The shipping line was supposed to involve the transportation of goods and eventually African Americans throughout the African global economy.

The Black Star Line started in Delaware on June 23, 1919. Having a maximum capitalization of $500,000, BSL stocks were sold at UNIA conventions at five dollars each. The company's losses were estimated to be between $630,000 and $1.25 million.



The Black Star Line did surprise all its critics when, only three months after being incorporated, the first of four ships, the SS Yarmouth was purchased with the intention of it being rechristened the "Frederick Douglass." The Yarmouth was a coal boat during the First World War, and was in poor condition when purchased by the Black Star Line. Once reconditioned, the Yarmouth proceeded to sail for three years between the U.S. and the West Indies as the first Black Star Line ship with an all-black crew and a black captain. Later Joshua Cockburn, the captain of the Yarmouth, was accused of receiving a "kick back from the purchase price".

The SS Yarmouth was not the only ship to be purchased in poor condition and to be completely oversold. Garvey spent another $200,000 for more ships. One, the SS Shadyside, sailed the "cruise to nowhere" on the Hudson River one summer and sank the next fall because of a leak many thought to be sabotage[citation needed]. Another was a steam yacht once owned by Henry Huttleston Rogers. Booker T. Washington had been an honored guest aboard the ship when it was owned by his friend and confidant, Rogers, and was known as the Kanawha. However, Rogers had died in 1909, and the once well-maintained yacht had also served in the first World War. Renamed by the Black Star Line the SS Antonio Maceo, it blew a boiler and killed a man off the Virginia coast on its first voyage from New York to Cuba, and had to be towed back to New York.

Besides oversold, poorly conditioned ships, Black Star Line was beset by corruption of management and infiltration by agents of J. Edgar Hoover's Bureau of Investigation (the forerunner to the FBI), who - according to historian Winston James - sabotaged it by throwing foreign matter into the fuel, damaging the engines. The first commission for the Yarmouth was to haul whiskey from the U.S. to Cuba before Prohibition. Although the ship made it in record time, it did not have docking arrangements, so it lost money sitting in the docks of Cuba while longshoremen had a strike. A cargo-load of coconuts rotted in the hull of a ship on another voyage because Garvey insisted on having the ships make ceremonial stops at politically important ports.

The Black Star Line ceased sailing in February 1922. It is regarded as a considerable accomplishment for African Americans of the time, despite the thievery by employees, engineers who overcharged, and the Bureau of Investigation's acts of infiltration and sabotage.

Reggae singer Fred Locks, an adherent of the Rastafari faith, re-introduced it to a Jamaican audience with his 1976 hit Black Star liners (which has been called one of "the most important songs in reggae music of the 1970s"), portraying Garvey as a Moses-like prophet: Seven miles of Black Star Liners coming in the harbour / [...] I can hear the elders saying / These are the days for which we've been praying / ... [Marcus Garvey] told us that the Black Star Liners are coming one day for us. The Black Star Line was also commemorated in song by many other reggae singers, by blues singers Hazel Meyers and Rosa Henderson,[citation needed], and by the musical group Brand Nubian (on their 1993 album In God We Trust).







Peace and
stay irie

Marcus Mosiah Garvey, Jr., National Hero of Jamaica (17 August 1887 – 10 June 1940), was a publisher, journalist, entrepreneur, Black Nationalist, Pan-Africanist, and orator. Marcus Garvey was founder of the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League (UNIA-ACL).
Prior to the twentieth century, leaders such as Prince Hall, Martin Delany, Edward Wilmot Blyden, and Henry Highland Garnet advocated the involvement of the African diaspora in African affairs. Garvey was unique in advancing a Pan-African philosophy to inspire a global mass movement focusing on Africa known as Garveyism. Promoted by the UNIA as a movement of African Redemption, Garveyism would eventually inspire others, ranging from the Nation of Islam, to the Rastafari movement (which proclaims Garvey as a prophet). The intention of the movement was for those of African ancestry to "redeem" Africa and for the European colonial powers to leave it. His essential ideas about Africa were stated in an editorial in the Negro World entitled “African Fundamentalism” where he wrote:
“Our union must know no clime, boundary, or nationality… let us hold together under all climes and in every country…”

Early years
Garvey was born in St. Ann's Bay, Jamaica, on 17 August 1887, to Marcus Mosiah Garvey, Sr., a mason, and Sarah Jane Richards, a domestic worker and farmer. Of eleven siblings, only Marcus and his sister Indiana reached maturity. Garvey's father was known to have a large library, and it was from his father that Marcus gained his love for reading. Sometime in the year 1900, Garvey entered into an apprenticeship with his uncle, Alfred Burrowes. Like Garvey Sr., Burrowes had an extensive library, of which young Garvey made good use. When he was about fourteen, Garvey left St. Ann's Bay for Kingston, where he found employment as a compositor in the printing house of P. A. Benjamin, Limited. He was a master printer and foreman at Benjamin when, in November 1907, he was elected vice-president of the Kingston Union. However, he was fired when he joined a strike by printers in late 1908. Having been blacklisted for his stance in the strike, he later found work at the Government Printing Office. In 1909, his newspaper The Watchman began publication, but it only lasted for three issues.
In 1910 Garvey left Jamaica and began traveling throughout the Central American region. He lived in Costa Rica for several months, where he worked as a time-keeper on a banana plantation. He began work as editor for a daily newspaper entitled La Nacionale in 1911. Later that year, he moved to Colón, Panama, where he edited a biweekly newspaper before returning to Jamaica in 1912.
After years of working on the Caribbean, Garvey left Jamaica to live in London from 1912 to 1914, where he attended Birkbeck College, worked for the African Times and Orient Review, published by Dusé Mohamed Ali, and sometimes spoke at Hyde Park's Speakers' Corner.

Founding and Projects of the UNIA-ACL
During his travels, Garvey became convinced that uniting Blacks was the only way to improve their condition. Towards that end, he departed England on 14 June 1914 aboard the S.S. Trent, reaching Jamaica on 15 July 1914. He founded the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) in August 1914 as a means of uniting all of Africa and its diaspora into "one grand racial hierarchy." Amy Ashwood, who would later be Garvey's first wife, was among the founders. As the group's first President-General, Garvey's goal was "to unite all people of African ancestry of the world to one great body to establish a country and absolute government of their own.
"Following much reflection the following day and night about what he learned, he named the organization the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities (Imperial) League."
After corresponding with Booker T. Washington, Garvey arrived in the U.S. on 23 March 1916 aboard the S.S. Tallac to give a lecture tour and to raise funds to establish a school in Jamaica modeled after Washington's Tuskegee Institute. Garvey visited Tuskegee, and afterward, visited with a number of Black leaders. After moving to New York, he found work as a printer by day. He was influenced by Hubert Harrison. At night he would speak on street corners, much like he did in London's Hyde Park. It was then that Garvey perceived a leadership vacuum among people of African ancestry. On 9 May 1916, he held his first public lecture in New York City at St Mark's Church in-the-Bowery and undertook a 38-state speaking tour.
In May 1917, Garvey and thirteen others formed the first UNIA division outside Jamaica and began advancing ideas to promote social, political, and economic freedom for Blacks. On 2 July, the East St. Louis riots broke out. On July 8, Garvey delivered an address, entitled "The Conspiracy of the East St. Louis Riots," at Lafayette Hall in Harlem. During the speech, he declared the riot was "one of the bloodiest outrages against mankind." By October, rancor within the UNIA had begun to set in. A split occurred in the Harlem division, with Garvey enlisted to become its leader; although he technically held the same position in Jamaica.
Garvey next set about the business of developing a program to improve the conditions of those of African ancestry "at home and abroad" under UNIA auspices. On 17 August 1918, publication of the widely distributed Negro World newspaper began. Garvey worked as an editor without pay until November 1920. By June 1919 the membership of the organization had grown to over two million.
On 27 June 1919, the Black Star Line of Delaware, was incorporated by the members of the UNIA with Garvey as President. By September, it obtained its first ship. Much fanfare surrounded the inspection of the S.S. Yarmouth and its rechristening as the S.S. Frederick Douglass on 14 September 1919. Such a rapid accomplishment garnered attention from many.
One person who noticed was Edwin P. Kilroe, Assistant District Attorney in the District Attorney's office of the County of New York. Kilroe began an investigation into the activities of the UNIA, without finding any evidence of wrongdoing or mismanagement. After being called to Kilroe's office numerous times, Garvey wrote an editorial on Kilroe's activities for the Negro World. Garvey was arrested and indicted for criminal libel in relation to the article, but charges were dismissed after Garvey published a retraction.
While in his Harlem office at 56 West 156th Street on 14 October 1919, Garvey received a visit from George Tyler, who told him that Kilroe "had sent him" to get Garvey. Tyler then pulled a .38-caliber revolver and fired four shots, wounding Garvey in the right leg and scalp. Garvey was taken to the hospital and Tyler arrested. The next day, it was let out that Tyler had committed suicide by leaping from the third tier of the Harlem jail as he was being taken to his arraignment.
By August 1920, the UNIA claimed four million members. That month, the International Convention of the UNIA was held. With delegates from all over the world in attendance, over 25,000 people filled Madison Square Garden on 1 August to hear Garvey speak.
Another of Garvey's ventures was the Negro Factories Corporation. His plan called for creating the infrastructure to manufacture every marketable commodity in every big U.S. industrial center, as well as in Central America, the West Indies, and Africa. Related endeavors included a grocery chain, restaurant, publishing house, and other businesses.
Convinced that Blacks should have a permanent homeland in Africa, Garvey sought to develop Liberia.
The Liberia program, launched in 1920, was intended to build colleges, universities, industrial plants, and railroads as part of an industrial base from which to operate. However, it was abandoned in the mid-1920s after much opposition from European powers with interests in Liberia. In response to suggestions that he wanted to take all Americans of African ancestry back to Africa, he wrote, "We do not want all the Negroes in Africa. Some are no good here, and naturally will be no good there."
Garvey has been credited with creating the biggest movement of people of African descent. This movement that took place in the 1920s is said to have had more participation from people of African descent than the Civil Rights Movement. In essence the UNIA was the largest Pan-African movement.

Charge of mail fraud
In a memorandum dated 11 October 1919, J. Edgar Hoover, special assistant to the Attorney General, and head of the General Intelligence Division (or "anti-radical division")  of The Bureau of Investigation or BOI (after 1935, the Federal Bureau of Investigation), wrote a memorandum to Special Agent Ridgely regarding Marcus Garvey. In the memo, Hoover wrote that:
“Unfortunately, however, he [Garvey] has not as yet violated any federal law whereby he could be proceeded against on the grounds of being an undesirable alien, from the point of view of deportation.”
Sometime around November 1919 an investigation by the BOI was begun into the activities of Garvey and the UNIA. Toward this end, the BOI hired James Edward Amos, Arthur Lowell Brent, Thomas Leon Jefferson, James Wormley Jones, and Earl E. Titus as its first five African-American agents. Although initial efforts by the BOI were to find grounds upon which to deport Garvey as "an undesirable alien", a charge of mail fraud was brought against Garvey in connection with stock sales of the Black Star Line after the U.S. Post Office and the Attorney General joined the investigation.
The accusation centered on the fact that the corporation had not yet purchased a ship with the name "Phyllis Wheatley". Although one was pictured with that name emblazoned on its bow on one of the company's stock brochures, it had not actually been purchased by the BSL and still had the name "Orion". The prosecution produced as evidence a single empty envelope which it claimed contained the brochure. During the trial, a man by the name of Benny Dancy testified that he didn't remember what was in the envelope, although he regularly received brochures from the Black Star Line. Another witness for the prosecution, Schuyler Cargill, perjured himself after admitting to having been told to mention certain dates in his testimony by Chief Prosecutor Maxwell S. Mattuck. Furthermore, he admitted that he could not remember the names of any coworkers in the office, including the timekeeper who punched employees' time cards. Ultimately, he acknowledged being told to lie by Postal Inspector F.E. Shea.  He said Shea told him to state that he mailed letters containing the purportedly fraudulent brochures. The Black Star Line did own and operate several ships over the course of its history and was in the process of negotiating for the disputed ship at the time the charges were brought. Assistant District Attorney, Leo H. Healy, who was, before he became a District Attorney, attorney for Harris McGill and Co., the sellers of the first ship, the S. S. Yarmouth, to the Black Star Line Inc. was also a key witness for the government during the trial.
Of the four Black Star Line officers charged in connection with the enterprise, only Garvey was found guilty of using the mail service to defraud. His supporters called the trial fraudulent. While there were serious accounting irregularities within the Black Star Line and the claims he used to sell Black Star Line stock could be considered misleading, Garvey's supporters still contest that the prosecution was a politically motivated miscarriage of justice, given the above-mentioned false statement testimony and Hoover's explicit regret that Garvey had committed no crimes.
When the trial ended on 23 June 1923, Garvey had been sentenced to five years in prison. He initially spent three months in the Tombs Jail awaiting approval of bail. While on bail, he continued to maintain his innocence, travel, speak and organize the UNIA. After numerous attempts at appeal were unsuccessful, he was taken into custody and began serving his sentence at the Atlanta Federal Penitentiary on 8 February 1925. Two days later, he penned his well known "First Message to the Negroes of the World From Atlanta Prison" wherein he makes his famous proclamation:
“Look for me in the whirlwind or the storm, look for me all around you, for, with God's grace, I shall come and bring with me countless millions of black slaves who have died in America and the West Indies and the millions in Africa to aid you in the fight for Liberty, Freedom and Life.”
Professor Judith Stein has stated, “his politics were on trial.”
Garvey's sentence was eventually commuted by President Calvin Coolidge. Upon his release in November 1927, Garvey was deported via New Orleans to Jamaica, where a large crowd met him at Orrett's Wharf in Kingston. A huge procession and band converged on UNIA headquarters.

Criticism
While W. E. B. Du Bois expressed the Black Star Line was “original and promising,” he also said: “Marcus Garvey is, without doubt, the most dangerous enemy of the Negro race in America and in the world. He is either a lunatic or a traitor.” Du Bois feared that Garvey's activities would undermine his efforts toward black rights.
Garvey suspected Du Bois was prejudiced against him because he was a Caribbean native with darker skin. Du Bois once described Marcus Garvey as "a little, fat black man; ugly, but with intelligent eyes and a big head." Garvey called Du Bois “purely and simply a white man's nigger" and "a little Dutch, a little French, a little Negro … a mulatto … a monstrosity.” This led to an acrimonious relationship between Garvey and the NAACP. Garvey accused Du Bois of paying conspirators to sabotage the Black Star Line to destroy his reputation.
Garvey recognized the influence of the Ku Klux Klan, and in early 1922, he went to Atlanta, Georgia for a conference with KKK imperial giant Edward Young Clarke.
According to Garvey, “I regard the Klan, the Anglo-Saxon clubs and White American societies, as far as the Negro is concerned, as better friends of the race than all other groups of hypocritical whites put together. I like honesty and fair play. You may call me a Klansman if you will, but, potentially, every white man is a Klansman, as far as the Negro in competition with whites socially, economically and politically is concerned, and there is no use lying.
”Leo H. Healy publicly accused Garvey of being a member of the Ku Klux Klan in his testimony during the mail fraud trial.
After Garvey's entente with the Ku Klux Klan, a number of African American leaders appealed to U.S. Attorney General Harry M. Daugherty to have Garvey incarcerated.

Later years
In 1928, Garvey travelled to Geneva to present the Petition of the Negro Race. This petition outlined the worldwide abuse of Africans to the League of Nations. In September 1929, he founded the People's Political Party (PPP), Jamaica's first modern political party, which focused on workers' rights, education, and aid to the poor.
Also in 1929, Garvey was elected councilor for the Allman Town Division of the Kingston and St. Andrew Corporation (KSAC). However, he lost his seat because of having to serve a prison sentence for contempt of court. But, in 1930, Garvey was re-elected, unopposed, along with two other PPP candidates.
In April 1931, Garvey launched the Edelweiss Amusement Company. He set the company up to help artists earn their livelihood from their craft. Several Jamaican entertainers — Kidd Harold, Ernest Cupidon, Bim & Bam, and Ranny Williams — went on to become popular after receiving initial exposure that the company gave them.
In 1935, Garvey left Jamaica for London. He lived and worked in London until his death in 1940. During these last five years, Garvey remained active and in touch with events in war-torn Ethiopia (then known as Abyssinia) and in the West Indies. In 1937, he wrote the poem Ras Nasibu Of Ogaden in honor of Ethiopian Army Commander (Ras) Nasibu Emmanual. In 1938, he gave evidence before the West Indian Royal Commission on conditions there. Also in 1938 he set up the School of African Philosophy in Toronto to train UNIA leaders. He continued to work on the magazine The Black Man.
In 1937, a group of Garvey's American supporters called the Peace Movement of Ethiopia openly collaborated with Mississippi Senator Theodore Bilbo in the promotion of a repatriation scheme introduced in the US Congress as the Greater Liberia Act. In the Senate, Bilbo was a supporter of Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal. Bilbo was an outspoken supporter of segregation and white supremacy and, attracted by the ideas of Black separatists like Garvey, Bilbo proposed an amendment to the federal work-relief bill on 6 June 1938, proposing to deport 12 million black Americans to Liberia at federal expense to relieve unemployment. He took the time to write a book titled Take Your Choice, Separation or Mongrelization, advocating the idea. Garvey praised him in return, saying that Bilbo had "done wonderfully well for the Negro".
During this period, the grandmother of the current (55th) Governor of New York, David Paterson served as his secretary.

Death
See also: List of premature obituaries
On 10 June 1940, Garvey died after two strokes, putatively after reading a mistaken, and negative, obituary of himself in the Chicago Defender which stated, in part, that Garvey died "broke, alone and unpopular". Because of travel conditions during World War II, he was interred at Kensal Green Cemetery in London. Rumours claimed that Garvey was in fact poisoned on a boat on which he was travelling and that was where and how he actually died.
In 1964, his remains were exhumed and taken to Jamaica. On 15 November 1964, the government of Jamaica, having proclaimed him Jamaica's first national hero, re-interred him at a shrine in National Heroes Park.

Personal life
Marcus Garvey was married twice: to the Jamaican Pan-African activist Amy Ashwood (married 1919, divorced 1922), who worked with him in the early years of UNIA; then to the journalist and publisher Amy Jacques (married 1922). The latter was mother to his two sons, Marcus Jr. and Julius.



Influence
The UNIA flag uses three colors: red, black and green.
Garvey's memory has been kept alive. Schools, colleges, highways, and buildings in Africa, Europe, the Caribbean, and the United States have been named in his honor. The UNIA red, black, and green flag has been adopted as the Black Liberation Flag. Since 1980, Garvey's bust has been housed in the Organization of American States' Hall of Heroes in Washington, D.C.
Malcolm X's parents, Earl and Louise Little, met at a UNIA convention in Montreal. Earl was the president of the UNIA division in Omaha, Nebraska and sold the Negro World newspaper while Louise was a contributor to the Negro World.
Kwame Nkrumah named the national shipping line of Ghana the Black Star Line in honor of Garvey and the UNIA. Nkrumah also named the national soccer team the Black Stars as well. The black star at the center of Ghana's flag is also inspired by the Black Star Line.



Flag of Ghana
During a trip to Jamaica, Martin Luther King and his wife Coretta Scott King visited the shrine of Marcus Garvey on 20 June 1965 and laid a wreath. In a speech he told the audience that Garvey "was the first man of color to lead and develop a mass movement. He was the first man on a mass scale and level to give millions of Negroes a sense of dignity and destiny. And make the Negro feel he was somebody."
King was also the posthumous recipient of the first Marcus Garvey Prize for Human Rights on 10 December 1968 issued by the Jamaican Government and presented to King's widow.
The United States of Africa first saw light in a 1924 poem by Garvey and is still discussed.
There have been pop culture references to Marcus Garvey since he first came on the international scene. Garvey is cited repeatedly in a diverse variety of books, songs and films. He is mentioned particularly frequently in blues, reggae, jazz and hip hop music.
In 2002, scholar Molefi Kete Asante listed Marcus Garvey on his list of 100 Greatest African Americans.

Rastafari and Garvey
Rastafarians consider Garvey a religious prophet, and sometimes even the reincarnation of Saint John the Baptist. This is partly because of his frequent statements uttered in speeches throughout the 1920s, usually along the lines of "Look to Africa, when a black king shall be crowned for the day of deliverance is at hand!"
His beliefs deeply influenced the Rastafari, who took his statements as a prophecy of the crowning of Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia. Early Rastas were associated with his Back-to-Africa movement in Jamaica. This early Rastafari movement was also influenced by a separate, proto-Rasta movement known as the Afro-Athlican Church that was outlined in a religious text known as the Holy Piby — where Garvey was proclaimed to be a prophet as well. Thus, the Rastafari movement can be seen as an offshoot of Garveyite philosophy. As his beliefs have greatly influenced Rastafari, he is often mentioned in reggae music.
Garvey himself never identified with the Rastafari movement, and was, in fact, raised as a Methodist who went on to become a Catholic.






Peace and
stay irie

Earl Sixteen (b. Earl Daley, 1958, Kingston, Jamaica) is a reggae singer whose career began in the mid-1970s.
Daley grew up in Waltham Park Road, Kingston, and, influenced by American soul and Jamaican artists such as Dennis Brown, began his singing career by entering local talent shows. He became the lead vocalist for the group The Flaming Phonics, playing live around Jamaica. Daley decided to drop out of school to pursue his music career, which prompted his mother to throw him out of the family home. Needing to make some money, the group tried out for producer Duke Reid, but left before finishing their recording for him due to his habit of firing live gunshots in the studio. They then worked with Herman Chin Loy, with Daley cutting his first solo track, "Hey baby". The group split up, with Daley concentrating on his solo career. Daley recorded "Malcolm X" for producer Joe Gibbs in 1975 - a track written by his school-friend Winston McAnuff, and which was later successfully covered by Dennis Brown. In 1977, he joined Boris Gardiner's group, The Boris Gardiner Happening, which brought him into contact with Lee "Scratch" Perry. In the late 1970s, after a spell with Derrick Harriott, Daley recorded four tracks at Perry's Black Ark studio, including the original recording of "White Belly Rat", also meeting Earl Morgan of The Heptones, who later produced his album, Shining Star. In the early 1980s he recorded singles for a variety of producers including Linval Thompson, Augustus Pablo, Clement Dodd, Sugar Minott, Yabby You, and Derrick Harriott, and recorded his debut album with Mikey Dread. He teamed up with Roy Cousins for two albums, Julie and Special Request. Earlier material recorded for Studio One was released as 1985's Showcase album.
In 1985, after spending time in the United States, he relocated to England, fathering a child. His child's mother knew Mad Professor, who Daley began woking with. He also worked with other British producers such as Stafford Douglas. One of his tracks from this era was a cover version of "Holding Back the Years", which had been a big hit for Simply Red. Returning to Jamaica, he worked briefly with King Jammy. In the 1990s he made guest appearances on tracks by Dreadzone and Leftfield. He signed to WEA for his major label debut, 1997's Steppin' Out album.




Malcolm X was born Malcolm Little on May 19, 1925 in Omaha, Nebraska. His mother, Louise Norton Little, was a homemaker occupied with the family's eight children. His father, Earl Little, was an outspoken Baptist minister and avid supporter of Black Nationalist leader Marcus Garvey. Earl's civil rights activism prompted death threats from the white supremacist organization Black Legion, forcing the family to relocate twice before Malcolm's fourth birthday.

"When my mother was pregnant with me, she told me later, a party of hooded Klu Klux Klan riders galloped up to our home... Brandishing their shotguns and rifles, they shouted for my father to come out."

Regardless of the Little's efforts to elude the Legion, in 1929 their Lansing, Michigan home was burned to the ground. Two years later, Earl's body was found lying across the town's trolley tracks. Police ruled both incidents as accidents, but the Little's were certain that members of the Black Legion were responsible. Louise suffered emotional breakdown several years after the death of her husband and was committed to a mental institution. Her children were split up amongst various foster homes and orphanages.

Growing up

Malcolm was a smart, focused student. He graduated from junior high at the top of his class. However, when a favorite teacher told Malcolm his dream of becoming a lawyer was "no realistic goal for a nigger," Malcolm lost interest in school. He dropped out, spent some time in Boston, Massachusetts working various odd jobs, and then traveled to Harlem, New York where he committed petty crimes. By 1942 Malcolm was coordinating various narcotics, prostitution and gambling rings.

"...Early in life, I had learned that if you want something, you had better make some noise."

Eventually Malcolm and his buddy, Malcolm "Shorty" Jarvis, moved back to Boston. In 1946 they were arrested and convicted on burglary charges, and Malcolm was sentenced to 10 years in prison. (He was paroled after serving seven years.) Recalling his days in school, he used the time to further his education. It was during this period of self-enlightenment that Malcolm's brother Reginald would visit and discuss his recent conversion to the Muslim religion. Reginald belonged to the religious organization the Nation of Islam (NOI).

Intrigued, Malcolm began to study the teachings of NOI leader Elijah Muhammad. Muhammad taught that white society actively worked to keep African-Americans from empowering themselves and achieving political, economic and social success. Among other goals, the NOI fought for a state of their own, separate from one inhabited by white people. By the time he was paroled in 1952, Malcolm was a devoted follower with the new surname "X." (He considered "Little" a slave name and chose the "X" to signify his lost tribal name.)

A born leader

Intelligent and articulate, Malcolm was appointed as a minister and national spokesman for the Nation of Islam. Elijah Muhammad also charged him with establishing new mosques in cities such as Detroit, Michigan and Harlem, New York. Malcolm utilized newspaper columns, as well as radio and television to communicate the NOI's message across the United States. His charisma, drive and conviction attracted an astounding number of new members. Malcolm was largely credited with increasing membership in the NOI from 500 in 1952 to 30,000 in 1963.

The crowds and controversy surrounding Malcolm made him a media magnet. He was featured in a week-long television special with Mike Wallace in 1959, called "The Hate That Hate Produced." The program explored the fundamentals of the NOI, and tracked Malcolm's emergence as one of its most important leaders. After the special, Malcolm was faced with the uncomfortable reality that his fame had eclipsed that of his mentor Elijah Muhammad.

Racial tensions ran increasingly high during the early 1960s. In addition to the media, Malcolm's vivid personality had captured the government's attention. As membership in the NOI continued to grow, FBI agents infiltrated the organization (one even acted as Malcolm's bodyguard) and secretly placed bugs, wiretaps, cameras and other surveillance equipment to monitor the group's activities.

A test of faith

Malcolm's faith was dealt a crushing blow at the height of the civil rights movement in 1963. He learned that his mentor and leader, Elijah Muhammad, was secretly having relations with as many as six women within the Nation of Islam organization. As if that were not enough, Malcolm found out that some of these relationships had resulted in children.

"I am not educated, nor am I an expert in any particular field... but I am sincere and my sincerity is my credential."

Since joining the NOI, Malcolm had strictly adhered to the teachings of Muhammad - which included remaining celibate until his marriage to Betty Shabazz in 1958. Malcolm refused Muhammad's request to help cover up the affairs and subsequent children. He was deeply hurt by the deception of Muhammad, whom he had considered a living prophet. Malcolm also felt guilty about the masses he had led to join the NOI, which he now felt was a fraudulent organization built on too many lies to ignore.

Shortly after his shocking discovery, Malcolm received criticism for a comment he made regarding the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. "[Kennedy] never foresaw that the chickens would come home to roost so soon," said Malcolm. After the statement, Elijah Muhammad "silenced" Malcolm for 90 days. Malcolm, however, suspected he was silenced for another reason. In March 1964 Malcolm terminated his relationship with the NOI. Unable to look past Muhammad's deception, Malcolm decided to found his own religious organization, the Muslim Mosque, Inc.

A new awakening

That same year, Malcolm went on a pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia. The trip proved life altering. For the first time, Malcolm shared his thoughts and beliefs with different cultures, and found the response to be overwhelmingly positive. When he returned, Malcolm said he had met "blonde-haired, blued-eyed men I could call my brothers." He returned to the United States with a new outlook on integration and a new hope for the future. This time when Malcolm spoke, instead of just preaching to African-Americans, he had a message for all races.

"Human rights are something you were born with. Human rights are your God-given rights. Human rights are the rights that are recognized by all nations of this earth."

After Malcolm resigned his position in the Nation of Islam and renounced Elijah Muhammad, relations between the two had become increasingly volatile. FBI informants working undercover in the NOI warned officials that Malcolm had been marked for assassination. (One undercover officer had even been ordered to help plant a bomb in Malcolm's car).

After repeated attempts on his life, Malcolm rarely traveled anywhere without bodyguards. On February 14, 1965 the home where Malcolm, Betty and their four daughters lived in East Elmhurst, New York was firebombed. Luckily, the family escaped physical injury.

The legacy of "X"

One week later, however, Malcolm's enemies were successful in their ruthless attempt. At a speaking engagement in the Manhattan's Audubon Ballroom on February 21, 1965 three gunmen rushed Malcolm onstage. They shot him 15 times at close range. The 39-year-old was pronounced dead on arrival at New York's Columbia Presbyterian Hospital.

"Power in defense of freedom is greater than power in behalf of tyranny and oppression, because power, real power, comes from our conviction which produces action, uncompromising action."

Fifteen hundred people attended Malcolm's funeral in Harlem on February 27, 1965 at the Faith Temple Church of God in Christ (now Child's Memorial Temple Church of God in Christ). After the ceremony, friends took the shovels away from the waiting gravediggers and buried Malcolm themselves.

Later that year, Betty gave birth to their twin daughters.

Malcolm's assassins, Talmadge Hayer, Norman 3X Butler and Thomas 15X Johnson were convicted of first-degree murder in March 1966. The three men were all members of the Nation of Islam.

The legacy of Malcolm X has moved through generations as the subject of numerous documentaries, books and movies. A tremendous resurgence of interest occurred in 1992 when director Spike Lee released the acclaimed movie, Malcolm X. The film received Oscar nominations for Best Actor (Denzel Washington) and Best Costume Design.

Malcolm X is buried at the Ferncliff Cemetery in Hartsdale, New York.
(from the Malcolm X Official Website)

Peace and
stay irie

Winston Rodney, (born March 1, 1948), also known as Burning Spear, is a Grammy Award winning Jamaican roots reggae singer and musician. Like many famous Jamaican reggae artists, Burning Spear is known for his Rastafari movement messages.
Rodney was born in Saint Ann's Bay, Saint Ann, Jamaica, as were Bob Marley and Marcus Garvey; who both had a great influence on Rodney's life: Garvey in his philosophy, which Burning Spear greatly took to, and Marley in directly helping Burning Spear get started in the music industry by introducing him to Clement Dodd. Burning Spear was originally Rodney's group, named after Jomo Kenyatta, the first Prime Minister and President of an independent Kenya, and initially including bass singer Rupert Willington, later expanding to include tenor Delroy Hinds. As fame took hold the name of the group gradually became synonymous with Rodney.
Burning Spear is one of the strongest proponents of Marcus Garvey's philosophy of self-determination and self-reliance for all African descendants, thus leading to several album releases in commemoration of the Jamaican activist.
In 2002, Burning Spear and his wife, Sonia Rodney who has produced a number of his albums, founded Burning Spear Records.
Burning Spear advocates messages of honesty, peace, and love, which tie in with his social and religious messages of Rastafari and black unity. Along with his musical message, the Spear continues to tour all over the world. His concerts often last 2 hours long with several bongo drum solos by Burning Spear himself.
Burning Spear was awarded the Order of Distinction in the rank of Officer on October 15, 2007.

Black Uhuru, formed by Derrick "Duckie" Simpson, is a Jamaican reggae band probably best known for their hits "Shine Eye Gal", "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner", "Sinsemilla", "Solidarity", and Grammy winner "What Is Life?". They were the first group to win a Grammy in the reggae category when it was introduced in 1985. They originally formed as "Black Sounds Uhuru". Uhuru is the Swahili word for freedom. The group was named by Stan "Roy Scientist" Palmer.
The first line-up of the group was Garth Dennis, Don Carlos, and Derrick "Duckie" Simpson. The group has undergone several lineup changes: Carlos left, replaced by Michael Rose; then Dennis left to play with the Wailing Souls, and was replaced by Errol Nelson. During this early period, the band's most famous recording is the album entitled Love Crisis, later re-released as Black Sounds Of Freedom. In 1979 the group was joined by Sandra "Puma" Jones, a social worker from South Carolina, USA. Under this lineup (Rose, Simpson and Jones), with Sly & Robbie as producers (and also permanently employed on drum and bass), they released the band's most popular albums: Sinsemilla, Red, and with some of the Compass Point All Stars, Chill Out and the Grammy-winning Anthem, as well as others. During this period, Black Uhuru became one of the most popular reggae groups in the world, regularly touring with the likes of the Clash, the Police and the Rolling Stones. Live 1984 (a concert at the Rockpalast in Germany; actually recorded on October 18, 1981) captures the band at the height of its power. In 1989, their album Red was ranked #23 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 100 greatest albums of the 1980s.
After Rose went solo in 1985, Junior Reid joined for a few records and also left; Puma Jones left in 1987 (and died of cancer three years later, in 1990). In 1990, Simpson reunited with Dennis and Carlos in the original line-up of the group. They recorded several albums and toured extensively. By the end of the 1990s, Dennis and Carlos left the band and fought a legal battle against Simpson over the name and rights of Black Uhuru. Simpson won the lawsuit and formed yet another incarnation of Black Uhuru with Andrew Bees as lead singer. Only one album, Dynasty, was released before Bees went back to pursue his solo career.
In February 2004, it was announced in the Jamaican press that Simpson and Michael Rose had reunited under the name "Black Uhuru feat. Michael Rose". Together with a female backing singer named Kay Starr, they released a single, "Dollars", and performed at several concerts including "Western Consciousness 2004" on April 28 in Jamaica, of which a live video was released shortly thereafter. A new album has been reported to be in progress. The group toured throughout Europe in 2006.
2008 has brought new life to Black Uhuru. Duckie Simpson has once again taken charge. Along with new manager Mario Lazarre of No Joke Entertainment, Black Uhuru are back in the studio recording a new album. Guest appearances of this new album include Latin superstars Aterciopelados and Jarabe De Palo. A 25th Anniversary Edition DVD of their "Live In London" concert is set for a June 2008 release on Nacional Records.

Buju Banton (born Mark Anthony Myrie, 1973, Kingston, Jamaica) is a Jamaican dancehall, ragga, and reggae musician. He has also recorded Pop and Dance songs, as well as songs dealing with political topics. Banton is politically outspoken and influenced by Marcus Garvey.

Buju Banton was born near Kingston, Jamaica in a poor neighborhood called Salt Lane. "Buju" is a nickname given to chubby children which means Breadfruit. The name is ironic in light of Mark Myrie's slim frame, but it is, nevertheless, the nickname his mother gave him as a child. "Banton" is a Jamaican word referring to someone who is a respected storyteller, and it was adopted by Myrie in tribute to the deejay Burro Banton whom Buju admired as a child. It was Burro's rough gravelly vocals that Buju emulated and ultimately made his own. Buju's mother was a higgler, or street vendor, while his father worked as a labourer at a tile factory. He was the youngest of fifteen children born into a family which was directly descended from the Maroons, a group of escaped slaves who proudly fought off the British colonialists.

Early career

As a youngster, Buju would often watch his favorite artists perform at outdoor shows and local dancehalls in Denham Town. At the age of 12 he picked up the microphone for himself and began toasting under the moniker of "Gargamel", working with the Sweet Love and Rambo Mango sound systems. In 1986, he was introduced to producer Robert French by fellow deejay Clement Irie, and his first single, "The Ruler" was released not long afterwards in 1987. This led to recording sessions with producers such as Patrick Roberts, Bunny Pee, Winston Riley, and Digital B, and in 1988, aged 15, he first recorded his most controversial song, "Boom Bye Bye," the lyrics calling for the murder of homosexuals by shooting and/or burning ("like an old tire wheel"). The song was written in response to a widely reported man/boy rape case in Jamaica.

1990s

In 1991, Buju joined Donovan Germain's Penthouse Records label and began a fruitful partnership with producer Dave Kelly who later launched his own Madhouse Records label. Buju is one of the most popular musicians in Jamaican history, having having major chart success in 1992, with "Bogle" and "Love me Browning", both massive hits in Jamaica. Controversy erupted over "Love Me Browning" which spoke of Banton's penchant for light-skinned women: "I love my car I love my house I love my money and ting, but most of all I love my browning." Some accused Banton of promoting a colonialist attitude and denigrating the beauty of black women. In response, he released "Love Black Woman" which spoke of his love for dark-skinned beauties: "Mi nuh Stop cry, fi all black women, respect all the girls dem with dark complexion". 1992 was an explosive year for Buju as he broke the great Bob Marley's record for the greatest number of number one singles in a year. Beginning with "Woman fi Sex", Buju's gruff voice dominated the Jamaican airwaves for the duration of the year. Banton's debut album, Mr. Mention, includes his greatest hits from that year. 1992 saw the unsanctioned re-release of "Boom Bye Bye", which almost destroyed his career. The song was the subject of outrage in the United States and Europe, leading to Banton being dropped from the line-up of the WOMAD festival that year. Banton subsequently issued a public apology.

Now on the major Mercury label, Banton released the hard-hitting Voice of Jamaica in 1993. The album included a number of conscious tracks. These tracks included "Deportees" a song which criticized those Jamaicans who went abroad but never sent money home, a remix of Little Roy's "Tribal War," a sharp condemnation of political violence, and "Willy, Don't Be Silly" which promoted safe sex and the use of contraceptives, particularly the condom, profits from which were donated to a charity supporting children with AIDS. He was invited to meet Jamaican Prime Minister P. J. Patterson, and won several awards that year at the Caribbean Music Awards, the Canadian Music Awards, and the Topeka ceremony.

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, embracing the Rastafari movement and growing dreadlocks. He joined "conscious" deejay Tony Rebel, Papa San, and General Degree in the Yardcore Collective. 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.

'Til Shiloh (1995) was a very influential album, using a studio band instead of synthesized music, and marking a slight shift away from dancehall towards roots reggae for Banton. Buju claimed to have sighted Rastafari and his new album reflected these beliefs. Til Shiloh successfully blended conscious lyrics with a hard-hitting dancehall vibe. The album included earlier singles such as "Murderer", and "Untold Stories". "Untold Stories" revealed an entirely different Buju Banton from the one that had stormed to dancehall stardom. It is regarded by many as some of his best work, and is a staple in the Banton performance repertoire. Reminiscent in mood and delivery to "Redemption Song" by Bob Marley, "Untold Stories" won Buju Banton many favorable comparisons to the late singer. This album had a large impact on dancehall music and proved that dancehall audiences had not forgotten the message that Roots Reggae expounded with the use of "concious" lyrics". Dancehall music did not move away from slack and violent lyrics, but the album did pave the way for a greater spirituality within the music. In the wake of Buju's transformation to Rastafari, many artists, such as Capleton, converted to the faith and started to denounce violence.

Inna Heights (1997) substantially increased Banton's international audience as Buju explored his singing ability and recorded a number of roots-tinged tracks, including the hugely popular "Destiny" and "Hills and Valleys". The album also included collaborations with artists such as Beres Hammond and the legendary Toots Hibbert. The album was well-received but had distribution problems. Also, some fans were disappointed, having hoped for another ground-breaking album like "Til Shiloh." Still, Buju's experimentation and soaring vocals impressed many fans and this album remains a highly regarded work.

In 1998, Buju met the punk band Rancid and recorded three tracks with them: "Misty Days", "Hooligans" and "Life Won't Wait." The latter became the title track of Rancid's 1998 album, Life Won't Wait.

2000s

Subsequently, Buju signed with Anti- Records, a subsidiary of Brett Gurewitz's Epitaph records, and released Unchained Spirit in 2000. The album showcases the most diverse aspects of Buju Banton, and featured guest appearances by Luciano, Morgan Heritage, Stephen Marley, and Rancid. It carried little of the roots feel heard on Til Shiloh and also virtually none of the hardcore driving sound that had brought him to public acclaim early in his career. It was a departure that many fans felt uncomfortable with. By now, however, he had been enshrined in the minds of reggae lovers as one of the most notable artists of his time, and seemed to have earned the right to some artistic freedom.

Several singles followed in the start of the new decade, mostly without the trademark spitfire delivery typical of dancehall, but displaying Banton's talent for a mellower more introspective approach. In March 2003 he released Friends for Life, which featured more sharply political songs, including "Mr. Nine," an anti-gun song that further verified his status as one of reggae's most socially aware artists. The album has a strong political message for the African diaspora and features excerpts from a speech made by Marcus Garvey. Paid Not Played is included and shows his gradual return to the themes more popular in dancehall. The album also featured some hip hop influence with the inclusion of Fat Joe.

2006 saw the release of the critically acclaimed "Too Bad," his first dancehall orientated album in over a decade. Voicing riddims produced by many of Jamaica's top producers Buju showed he still had what it took to be at the top of the dancehall game. One of the slower tracks from the album, "Driver A," was a massive hit and revived Sly & Robbie's ever-popular "Taxi" riddim.
Buju Banton performing in 2007

He performed at the Cricket World Cup 2007 Opening Ceremony with Third World and Beres Hammond.

In 2008 he did a Soca collaboration Winning Season (remix) with Machel Montano of Trinidad and Tobago on Machel's album Flame on.

On April 21, 2009, Buju released the long awaited and often delayed album, Rasta Got Soul, a return to strictly conscious lyrics. Included on the album is Magic City.