Lawless Street Blog » Island

Jimmy Cliff Gains Entry Into Rock N Roll Hall of Fame

Lawless — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 15:34:09 +0000

Jimmy Cliff – son of Jamaica, reggae super artist, star of “The Harder They Come” and living legend is being honored by being inducted into the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame tomorrow Monday March 15th in New York City. Congratulations Jimmy!

We were working on something more for the blog but our buddy over at The Duff Guide To Ska beat us to it and posted a solid collection of links and information on Monday’s induction ceremony already. So we’ll drive some love to his site today. Good one Steve!

Steve says:
“On Monday, March 15, ska and reggae great Jimmy Cliff will be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at a ceremony at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City. He is only the second reggae artist ever to be included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame after (not surprisingly) Bob Marley. ”

Read the rest of the article here:
www.duffguidetoska.blogspot.com

A Little “Door Peep” knowledge

Lawless — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 20:20:05 +0000

Hard work to put in ‘Door Peep’ introduction
Published: Sunday | August 16, 2009

Mel Cooke, Gleaner Writer

When Burning Spear’s Door Peep was first included on an album, it did not get title billing. Still, its position as the first song on side ‘B’ of the 1973 Studio One Presents Burning Spear suggested that it was very important.

And the title was actually Door Peep Shall Not Enter.

Always a favourite, the song’s importance in Burning Spear’s catalogue was underscored when it was used for the title of the collection of his work in the Island Anthology series in 1996. The actual title, Door Peep, was not the pair of words that graced the cover of the 35-song collection from Spear’s work with Island Records in the 1970s.

The title Chant Down Babylon came from a phrase which bore Spear’s hallmark of concise repetition and stated his musical intentions as he sang:

READ MORE AT www.jamaica-gleaner.com

Got a Millie fixation? Trojan needs your help

Lawless — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 02:15:17 +0000

Millie Small may only be truly known as a one hit wonder for the ska song heard round the world “My Boy Lollipop” but as mentioned in previous posts she was WAY more then that.

She was a leader and trailblazer for JA women and women in general as singers and songwriters. After her major hit she went on to record for various labels including Fontana, Island, Decca and Trojan from 1963 to 1970, when she decided to leave music behind. There were many stand out tracks that have not really seen the light of day since they were issued.

Well thanks to Island and Trojan Records a plan has been launched to correct that oversight and give some well needed rounding to this wonderful songstress and performer.

Trojan Records is looking for anything Millie related such as any interesting recollections or memories of the singer, pictures, label scans and the like. Contact them at trojanwebsite@gmail.com.

Monday Video Flashback: Millie Small “Enoch Power”

Lawless — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 09:43:03 +0000

Seems we’re on a Millie Small kick lately. To further illustrate the point that Millie wasn’t a one hit wonder here is a video with her playing Wembly Stadium in 1970 with a powerfully proactive political song “Enoch Power” coming out against Mr. Powell. This was before the real positive roots reggae took hold of reggae music in the late 70’s showing that Millie was in fact an artist to look up to and a Jamaican trailblazer ahead of the curve.

And as a bonus here’s another live video (See Below) of her performing her hit on Canadian TV in 1964. The text posted with the video sums it all up pretty well and I include it here with respect to SoDamnYeah.

Millie Small’s singing career began when she was still a teenager. She became a popular artist in the West Indies and was one of the few female performers to be involved in the branch of R&B music that grew in those islands, called ‘Ska’.

Her early local successes were made as half of a duet called ‘Roy And Millie’. The other half was called Roy Panton. She recorded as half of ‘Owen & Millie’ (Owen Gray) and ‘Jackie & Millie’ (Jackie Edwards).

These record releases were on labels like ‘Studio One’, ‘Island’ and the legendary ‘Blue Beat’. In fact she was to become known in the West Indies as the ‘Blue Beat Girl’ and ‘Ska’ is still known by many people as ‘blue beat’.

Millie was brought to Britain during 1963 by Chris Blackwell, who later made an effort to promote Reggae in the UK. Her first UK release ‘Don’t You Know’ owed less to her Ska background, being accompanied by an orchestra conducted by Lord Rockingham’s Harry Robinson. It didn’t sell too badly but Millie’s unique high pitched style wasn’t enough to get it into the chart.

However, her second release was a stronger song and was based more closely to the West Indian rhythms she was accustomed to. It became a massive hit on both sides of the Atlantic, reaching number 2 in the U.S. chart as well as in Britain.

Sadly, despite the great success of the record, it did not set a new musical style in people’s awareness. ‘My Boy Lollipop’ was simply regarded by most record buyers at the time as an item of delightful, but lightweight ‘pop’ . (Incidentally the record is alleged by some to have a young Rod Stewart on harmonica).

Although she had a couple of further minor hits, she never managed to consolidate her famous smash. She remained in the public conscience for a long time and was also regarded by many as a role model.

Monday Video Flashback: Millie Small “My Boy Lollipop”

Lawless — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 22:09:48 +0000

Feeling under the weather and this video always makes me smile. Not sure why because it’s kinda annoying but a classic none the less. Maybe it’s that helium filled voice. Enjoy!