JOVM’s William Ruben Helms celebrates Black History Month — and the 79th anniversary of the birth of Bob Marley.
Tag: reggae
Throwback: R.I.P. Aston “Family Man” Barrett
JOVM’s William Ruben Helms pays tribute to the music and life of Ashton “Family Man” Barrett.
New Video: Heartafiya Shares Sleek and Yearning “Don’t Leave Me”
Barbadian-born California-based reggae artist Heartafiya is well known within the global reggae scene for pairing thoughtful, earnest lyrics with soulful music. His latest single, the dance floor and lounge friendly “Don’t Leave Me” features a sleek, percussive Afrobeats-influenced riddim paired with Heartafiya’s yearning delivery and a remarkably catchy chorus.
The California-based reggae artist’s latest single reveals a songwriter, whose songwriting seems rooted in lived-in, personal experiences with the song exploring the depths of love while baring the raw feelings of fear of loss, despair and hope.
The accompanying video features a collection of gorgeous sisters wining and grooving to the remarkably catchy, hook-driven bop.
Lyric Video: JOVM Mainstay Mariaa Siga Shares Breezy Ni Mama”
Over the past couple of years, I’ve spilled quite a bit of virtual ink covering Senegalese-born and-based singer/songwriter, musician and JOVM mainstay Mariaa Siga. As you might remember, Siga started off 2023 with “Le murmure des anges,” a track that saw her collaborating with Artikal Band, who contribute a shuffling and buoyant reggae riddim paired with a slow-burning and soulful guitar solo and the Senegalese-born and-based artist’s expressive delivery. “Le murmure des angels” is a song that does two things — give thanks to the enteral while reminding listeners that they should listen to the little voice inside of us, which arms us with much-needed confidence; that voice that frequently says “You know, you got this. You know you’re dope.”
Siga’s latest single “Ni Mama,” which in her native Diola means “I’m Leaving” sees the JOVM mainstay continuing her ongoing collaboration with Artikal Band, who contribute a shuffling and breezily upbeat reggae riddim paired with wah wah pedalled guitar, shimmering keys serving as a supple bed for the Senegalese artist’s effortlessly soulful and earnest vocal. “Ni Mama” features lyrics in both her native Diola and in French that discuss a familiar sensation for many of us — the need to escape things when daily pressure and stress becomes overwhelming.
New Video: Easy Star All-Stars Team Up with Macy Gray on Swooning Rendition of Bowie’s “Rock ‘n’ Roll Suicide”
Founded and led by producer, arranger, multi-instrumentalist and bandleader Michael Goldwasser, Easy Star All-Stars have established themselves as one of the top reggae acts on the international scene for the better part of the past two decades. During that period, they’ve managed to tour in over 30 countries on six continents while bringing together fans of reggae, classic rock, dub, indie rock and pop into one big family through their collection of critically acclaimed reggae tribute albums that includes 2003’s Dub Side of the Moon, 2006’s Radiodread, 2009’s Easy Star’s Lonely Hearts Dub Band and 2012’s Easy Star’s Thrillah — and 2010’s remix album, Dubber Side of the Moon. And before you go off and think that they’re just a tribute band, they’re not; they’ve also released two efforts of original material, 2008’s Until That Day EP and 2011’s First Light.
Continuing their run of reggae tribute albums across classic rock, dub, indie rock and pop, the acclaimed local reggae outfit will tackle David Bowie‘s beloved classic, 1972’s The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders From Mars. Slated for an April 21, 2023 release through their own Easy Star Records, Ziggy Stardub is a reggae re-imagining of the beloved album, featuring guest spots from Macy Gray, Steel Pulse, Maxi Priest, Fishbone, Living Colour‘s Vernon Reid, The Skints, Mortimer, The Expanders, Samory I, and a lengthy list of others.
Pre-order packages of the album are available here, including royal blue colored vinyl along with CD and exclusive t-shirt offerings.
In the lead-up to Ziggy Stardub‘s release on Thursday, I’ve written about three of the album’s previously released singles:
- “Starman,” featuring Maxi Preist. The Easy Star All-Star rendition is a warm and soulful dub take on the original that retains the rousingly anthemic hook everyone and their grandmother knows but places it within a shuffling, reggae riddim paired with warm blasts of Rhodes, some cinematic strings and Maxi Priest’s effortlessly soulful delivery.
- “Moonage Daydream,” featuring Naomi Cowan and the legendary Alex Lifeson. The Easy Star All-Star rendition “Moonage Daydream” is a hazy dub-leaning take that makes loving nods to the original, with a full string seciton and a flute solo from Jenny Hill, that takes the place of Bowie’s recorder solo from the original. Cowan contributes a soulful, rock goddess vocal that I’d argue would make both Bowie and Tina Turner very proud. The song closes out with a trippy and inspired David Gilmour-like guitar solo from the legendary Lifeson.
- “Five Years” featuring the legendary Steel Pulse. Rooted in a soulful and slow-burning reggae riddim, the Easy Star All-Stars rendition lovingly retains the soaring string-driven hooks and choruses, and the weary, apocalyptic sigh-like vibe of the original.
Ziggy Stardub‘s fourth and final pre-release single “Rock ‘n’ Roll Suicide” features the acclaimed, multi-award-winning singer/songwriter, musician and producer Macy Gray. Pairing a deceptively laid-back vibe with strutting riddims and a coolly swaggering horn line with Macy Gray’s imitable and deeply sensitive delivery, the Easy Star All-Star rendition manages to retain the swooning and empathetic commiseration of the origin. Oh, how much all of us at one point or another, just needs to hear “Oh, no you’re not alone!”
“The main key was finding an emotive and groundbreaking vocalist, and we did just that with Macy Gray, who is truly inimitable in every song that she sings, including this one,” Easy Star All-Stars’ Goldwasser explains in press notes.
The Five Guys burger chain recently named Easy Star All-Stars as their Featured Artist of May. The chain will be playing an Easy Star track every hour in every store for the entire month.
Directed by Stefano Bertelli, the accompanying stop-animation video for “Rock ‘n’ Roll Suicide” follows two stray street cats on a journey through a sleepy evening in an intricately made paper town.
New Video: Easy Star All-Stars Team up with Steel Pulse on a Soulful Rendition of Bowie’s “Five Years”
Continuing their run of reggae tribute albums across classic rock, dub, indie rock and pop, the acclaimed local reggae outfit will tackle David Bowie‘s beloved classic, 1972’s The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders From Mars. Slated for an April 21, 2023 release through their own Easy Star Records, Ziggy Stardub is a reggae re-imagining of the beloved album, featuring guest spots from Macy Gray, Steel Pulse, Maxi Priest, Fishbone, Living Colour‘s Vernon Reid, The Skints, Mortimer, The Expanders, Samory I, and a lengthy list of others.
Pre-order packages of the album are available here, including royal blue colored vinyl along with CD and exclusive t-shirt offerings.
Earlier this month, I wrote about two of the album’s previously released singles:
- “Starman,” featuring Maxi Preist. The Easy Star All-Star rendition is a warm and soulful dub take on the original that retains the rousingly anthemic hook everyone and their grandmother knows but places it within a shuffling, reggae riddim paired with warm blasts of Rhodes, some cinematic strings and Maxi Priest’s effortlessly soulful delivery.
- “Moonage Daydream,” featuring Naomi Cowan and the legendary Alex Lifeson. The Easy Star All-Star rendition “Moonage Daydream” is a hazy dub-leaning take that makes loving nods to the original, with a full string seciton and a flute solo from Jenny Hill, that takes the place of Bowie’s recorder solo from the original. Cowan contributes a soulful, rock goddess vocal that I’d argue would make both Bowie and Tina Turner very proud. The song closes out with a trippy and inspired David Gilmour-like guitar solo from the legendary Lifeson.
Ziggy Stardub‘s third and latest single “Five Years” features the legendary Steel Pulse. Rooted in a soulful and slow-burning reggae riddim, the Easy Star All-Stars rendition lovingly retains the soaring string-driven hooks and choruses, and the weary, apocalyptic sigh-like vibe of the original.
Directed by Robert Bartolome, the accompanying video portrays the end of the world — and its eventual rebirth — on a miniature scale. It’s a gorgeous and unsettling reminder of the fate that we’re marching lockstep towards, and of the fact that nature will eventually reclaim everything once we’re all gone.
Continuing their long-held tradition of playing on April 20 — 4/20 y’all! — the acclaimed reggae outfit will be playing an album release show at Sony Hall.
Throwback: Happy Belated 87th Birthday, Lee “Scratch” Perry
JOVM’s William Ruben Helms belatedly celebrates Lee “Scratch” Perry’s 87th birthday.
New Audio: Easy Star All-Stars Tackle Bowie’s Ziggy Stardust
Founded and led by producer, arranger, multi-instrumentalist Michael Goldwasser, Easy Star All-Stars have established themselves as one of the top reggae acts on the international scene for the better part of two decades. During that same period of time, they’ve managed to tour in over 30 countries on six continents while brining together fans of reggae, classic rock, dub, indie rock and pop into one big family as a result of their collection of critically acclaimed reggae tribute albums that includes 2003’s Dub Side of the Moon, 2006’s Radiodread, 2009’s Easy Star’s Lonely Hearts Dub Band and 2012’s Easy Star’s Thrillah — and 2010’s remix album, Dubber Side of the Moon. They also have two releases of original material, 2008’s Until That Day EP and 2011’s First Light.
Continuing their run of reggae tribute albums across classic rock, dub, indie rock and pop, the acclaimed local reggae outfit will tackle David Bowie‘s beloved classic, 1972’s The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders From Mars. Slated for an April 21, 2023 release through their own Easy Star Records, Ziggy Stardub is a reggae re-imagining of the beloved album, featuring guest spots from Macy Gray, Steel Pulse, Maxi Priest, Fishbone, Living Colour‘s Vernon Reid, The Skints, Mortimer, The Expanders, Samory I, and a lengthy list of others.
Pre-order packages of the album are available here, including royal blue colored vinyl along with CD and exclusive t-shirt offerings.
But in the meantime, Easy Star All-Stars have shared two singles from the album:
“Starman,” featuring Maxi Preist, who’s one of two British-born acts to have a #1 Billboard here in the States with 1990’s smash hit “Close To You.” By the way, for you trivia heads, the other British act was UB40 with their cover of Neil Diamond’s “Red Red Wine” back in 1983.
“Starman,” is a warm and soulful dub take on the original that retains the rousingly anthemic hook everyone and their grandmother knows but places it within a shuffling, reggae riddim paired with warm blasts of Rhodes, some cinematic strings and Maxi Priest’s effortlessly soulful delivery.
“Moonage Daydream,” which features Naomi Cowan and the legendary Alex Lifeson. Cowan is th daughter of impresario Tommy Cowan, a producer, songwriter and former road manager for Bob Marley — and the internationally beloved reggae vocalist Carlene Davis. Touted as one of the top rising female artists in Caribbean music, Cowan won the Breakthrough Reggae Artist Award at 2019’s Jamaica Reggae Industry Awards. Building upon a buzz-worthy profile, her single “Paradise Plum” has topped several reggae charts and has quickly become a staple in the new wave of reggae. Lifeson is best known as the co-founder, backing vocalist and guitarist of beloved Canadian prog rock outfit Rush. As a member of Rush, Lifeson is in the Rock N’ Roll Hall of Fame, and is included on Rolling Stone‘s list of the “100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time.” Adding to an extensive list of accolades, Lifeson was made an Officer of the Order of Canada back in 1996 and in 2012, he received the Governor General’s Performing Arts Award, Canada’s highest artistic honor.
The Easy Star All-Star cover of “Moonage Daydream” is a hazy dub-leaning take that makes loving nods to the original, with a full string seciton and a flute solo from Jenny Hill, that takes the place of Bowie’s recorder solo from the original. Cowan contributes a soulful, rock goddess vocal that I’d argue would make both Bowie and Tina Turner very proud. The song closes out with a trippy and inspired David Gilmour-like guitar solo from the legendary Lifeson.
“This has been my favorite tune on the Bowie album since I first started listening as a teenager,” Easy Star All-Star’s Michael Goldwasser says in press notes. “In light of that, it’s interesting that it’s the song that I changed most radically by simplifying the chord progression and pedaling on one bass line for the entire track, which gives it somewhat of a hypnotic effect and roots it in reggae tradition.”
Throwback: Black History Month/Happy 78th Birthday, Bob Marley!
JOVM’s William Ruben Helms celebrates Black History Month and the 78th anniversary of Bob Marley’s birth.
New Video: JOVM Mainstay Mariaa Siga Shares Uplifting “Le murmure des anges”
Mariaa Siga (born Mariama Siga Goudiaby) is a Senegalese singer/songwriter, musician, and JOVM mainstay, who can trace the bulk of the origins of her music career to winning a local talent show, where she caught the attention of acclaimed Senegalese act Joan of Arc. Joan of Arc’s frontperson mentored the young Goudiaby, helping her refine her style and further develop her musical skills. Shortly after, Gouldiaby landed a role in Mon Réve, a film which aired on RDV.
As a singer/songwriter and musician, the Senegalese JOVM mainstay was long accustomed to the traditional rhythms of the Casamance region of Southern Senegal; but her curiosity led to her to discover and experiment with Western styles like reggae, blues and jazz, which she freely incorporates into her own work.
Back in 2016, Goudiaby was was one of the winners of the Festival des Vielles Pirogues‘ Tremplin competition. Building upon that momentum, she released two singles the following year, “Ya sama none” and “Asekaw.”
The Senegalese JOVM mainstay performed in her native Casamance for the first time with a set at 2018’s Kayissen Festival. That same year, Yoro Ndiyae featured Goudiaby on his Sunu Folk compilation. She capped that year off with a French tour that November.
Her full-length debut Askew, which translates to “Woman” in her native Diola, was released back in 2019. That year, she won Baco Records‘ One Riddim Contest, which led to sets at Morocco’s Festival MarcoFoiles, France’s Midem Festival and to an invite to play Quebec’s Festival Mondial des Femmes d’Ici et d’Ailleurs.
The JOVM mainstay begins 2023 with “Le murmure des anges.” The song features a shuffling and buoyant reggae riddim from Artikal Band, complete with a slow-burning and soulful guitar solo paired with Siga’s gorgeous and expressive delivery. “Le murmure des angels” is a song that does two things — give thanks to the enteral while reminding listeners that they should listen to the little voice inside of us, which arms us with much-needed confidence; that voice that frequently says “You know, you got this. You know you’re dope.”
Directed by Mao Sidibé, the gorgeously shot, accompanying video captures snippets of everyday Senegalese life, following a small collection of hard-working folks, trying to survive with their dignity intact. When the video’s protagonist, stumbles upon a suitcase of money that falls out of car, he’s tempted to keep the money — who wouldn’t? — but he does the right thing and winds up being rewarded.
Boulder, CO-based roots reggae outfit Policulture specializes in music that attempts to bridge the gap between generations and unite all under one sound — heavy drum and bass, roots riddims and a melodic horn section paired with conscious, thought-provoking lyrics. Their last album, 2018’s Mountains to Cross featured the two-step inducing, love song “Heart & Soul,” a song centered around shuffling riddims, an enormous horn line and James Searl’s effortless crooning.
Joel “J. Dubby” Scanlon remixed “Heart & Soul” and turned it into a percussive and dubby bop that retains some of the elements of the original — namely, some of the more powerful lyrics of the original, the roots riddims and the enormous horn section. The J. Dubby remix manages to be a loving tribute to both reggae and dub.
Happy 74th Birthday, Grace Jones!
JOVM’s William Ruben Helms celebrates Grace Jones’ 74th birthday.
Preview: Easy Star All-Stars at Brooklyn Bowl
JOVM’s William Ruben Helms’ previews East Star All-Stars set this week at Brooklyn Bowl.
New Audio: French Outfit Le Douze Releases a Summery and Cosmic Bit of Irie Vibes
Deriving their name for the French word for “twelve,” the Normandy, France-based French-American indie outfit Le Douze — David Boutherre (vocals, drums), Frédéric Scamps (keys) and Maxine Lebidois (guitar, production) — can trace their origins to a need to be creative during quarantine in France: Lebidois had reached out to Boutherre and Scamps with instrumental tracks and the trio quickly went to work. “Quarantine created a special place, out of time,” Lebidois says. “It gave me a total freedom to express something through music — and through music, create a special connection with David and Fred.
.The French indie trio will be releasing their debut EP in April, which they plan to follow-up with their full-length debut, slated for release in September. Both efforts will feature a sound that the band describes as a blend of Pink Floyd, Metronomy, The Police, and Daft Punk. To build up buzz for both their forthcoming EP and full-length, the French indie outfit released “Fruits of My Life,” a slow-burning, irie vibes packed, reggae jam that sounds like a slick mix of Dark Side of the Moon era Pink Floyd meets Regatta de Blanc era The Police, centered around Boutherre’s uncannily Sting-like vocal delivery.
As the trio developed lyrics for “Fruits of My Life,” the song began to take on a special and very personal meaning for the band. “‘Fruits of My Life’ is the story of someone who’s been away from home for a very, very long time,” the band’s David Boutherre explains. “Someone who comes back to their homeland to take care of the ones they love the most and to be taken care of by them as well.”
The trio spent a lot of time working and recording on France’s West Coast, which helped inspired the mood of the track and its lyrics. “We would sing and then go out to the water, the apartment was just in front of the beach and the sea,” the band’s Frédéric Scamps says. “We thought about swimming with the dolphins, being back from Babylon after touring for a long time, like Roman soldiers 2000 years ago. We just wanted to stay here, to be with wine and family.”