Bob Marley & The wailers - they are back!
Play I Some Music: Nesta Honored Through Groundbreaking Versions Bob Marley Gets the Bass Turned Up on Roots, Rock, Remixed Bob Marley is one of the most celebrated and beloved figures on the planet. The term reggae is synonymous with the musical legacy he left behind. Digging deeply into that sacred catalog, the dozen remixes of legendary songs on Roots, Rock, Remixed (Tuff Gong/Quango/rockr music) are taking the familiar and cherished and reintroducing it to sound systems worldwide. Featuring a crop of today’s hottest producers – including Jimpster (Jamie Odell), Yes King (Rhys Adams & Mark Rae), Trio Elétrico (Boozoo Bajou), Fort Knox Five and DJ Spooky – Roots, Rock, Remixed balances that fine line of being respectful to the inimitable artist Nesta was, and using the bass-heavy, digital technologies available to us today.
Nothing of the gorgeous, crackly analog originals (including classics like “One Love,” “Trenchtown Rock,” and “Lively Up Yourself”) is lost in translation. “We thought there was a lack of quality Bob Marley remixes for the underground,” says David Hargis, co-producer and VP of A&R at rockr music, which spearheaded this project. “There have been a few high profile, mass market projects, but we wanted to present something for dance club audiences. There’s a lot of warmth and humanity in these songs. None sound too electronic or far from the analog originals.
Everyone who worked on this project had deep respect for the music.” Yet those drum beats and bass lines are completely new, the studio refurbishing of skilled hands and ears. Cordovan’s hip-hop slick kick adds punch to the sing-along “One Love,” while Afrodisiac Sound System takes “Soul Shakedown Party” from ghetto blaster to megaclub experience. Jimpster’s excellent retelling of “400 Years,” considered crucial in the Peter Tosh library, makes this song of rebellion available for the four-on-the-floor audience. Through and through, the Wailers shine in every moment. “We’re honored to work with such an important body of music,” says Jeff Daniel, the album’s co-producer and rock music’s chief.
“Marley’s sound was like no other and his indelible stamp can be heard all through these great new remixes. We took great care not to disrespect his legend.” “There’s a really nice balance between those that stick to the roots, and the ones that create their own interpretations,” says Bruno Guez, President of Quango Records. Adding to the sentiment, Hargis continues, “Some of the remixers stuck with the familiar song structure and layered modern elements into them, while others took samples of the originals and transformed them into something completely new.
It was often astounding how creative these DJs & producers were.” Originally launching Quango under Chris Blackwell’s Palm Pictures years ago, Guez knows the Marley catalog inside and out. While Blackwell was pivotal in introducing the young Rasta to global ears, this project is quite circular for the groundbreaking Quango. And while a lot of bootleg remixes of these songs exist – every song is from the legendary Lee Perry-produced Black Ark days – Roots, Rock, Remixed received a certified blessing from the Marley estate.
There’s no higher honor than that. “These are many of the seed songs for Bob,” Hargis concludes. “He went back through his catalog and updated many of them for Island later in his career. In a sense, we’re doing the same thing with these remixes. There are a lot of special songs here.” Special, indeed. Afrodisiac Sound System Formed to update the sounds of West African funk rarely heard by international ears, Afrodisiac founders Haul & Mason, along with global crate digger and producer Jed, began by releasing twelve-inches and revamped compilations scouring the sounds of Ghana, Guinea and Mali.
They went on to cut records with dub legend Scientist, and have made their mark with the now-legendary Afroheat collections. Their two remixes here – “Soul Shakedown Party” and “Soul Rebel” – represent their true style of down and dirty future funk. Bombay Dub Orchestra Since making waves with their two-disc self-titled debut on Six Degrees Records, which featured over fifty musicians centered on creating an electronic meeting ground for classical India, Bombay Dub Orchestra founders Garry Hughes and Andrew T. Mackay have been heavy on the remix circuit.
Their dubby, horns-led take on “Lively Up Yourself” gives one of Bob’s most uplifting songs an even more ambitious and joyous feel. Cordovan Few Bob songs are as memorable as “One Love,” and Los Angeles-based bassist and producer Greg Reeves, a.k.a. Cordovan, takes it into completely fresh and new terrain. Already experienced at remixing the likes of Sarah Vaughan and a dubby Led Zeppelin, the underlying keyboards and slick drumbeat makes this one of Roots, Rock, Remixed’s most far-reaching and enjoyable tracks.
DJ Spooky Paul D. Miller’s genius spans many forms of art, but he is most famous for his musical role as DJ Spooky That Subliminal Kid. The man’s range is truly unique, having remixed the likes of Metallica, Steve Reich and Killah Priest, as well as collaborations with Slayer and Chuck D. Adding Bob Marley’s “Rainbow Country” is a given to this reggae-loving producer, considering his prolific role in engineering the excellent In Fine Style, DJ Spooky Presents 50,000 Volts of Trojan Records!!!!. Fort Knox Five There’s a good reason why “Duppy Conqueror” has such a heady, hip-hop beat banging behind the original.
Washington, D.C.-based collective Fort Knox Five produced four tracks on the legendary Afrika Bambaataa’s latest, as well as remixing Tito Puente, Louis Armstrong and Mo’Horizons. With the 2006 release of New Gold Standard Vol 1 and an upcoming debut of original material, these funk and hip-hop DJs are ready to continue their worldwide stampede. Jimpster Few have created such dance floor classics as Jamie Odell. The man knows the inner workings of a club like few others, and his Freerange Records has released certified classics over the past decade. As a DJ he tours globally, and his original and remixing work is in high demand.
One listen to this floor-thumping, bass-throbbing take on the Peter Tosh-penned “400 Years” proves this beyond doubt. King Kooba Matt Harris and Charlie Tate united under the banner of King Kooba in the mid-‘90s. Credit the bass playing of Tate on this momentous take of “African Herbsman.” He’s played alongside Gil Scott Heron, Roy Ayers and even James Brown. His teaming with studio alchemist Harris has created seminal works, including The Imperial Solution and NuFoundFunk. Paul & Price With the success of Sounds Like Sex 1, Jonathan Paul and Damir Price have released five albums and been heard worldwide.
Their single “I Adore You” was used for a Nike campaign, and they’ve worked alongside vocalists like Telepopmusic’s Angela McCluskey and Toddy Ivy. There’s nothing small, however, about their remix of “Small Axe.” With a trademark dub landscape tempered by sharp, clean drumbeats, it’s as large a rendition as imaginable. STUHR Coming from the dubby kingdom of Brooklyn, the duo of keyboardist Dan Chen and film composer Nate Greenberg formed in 2002 as STUHR. Their resume includes an impressive list of studio tweakings, including cuts by Bebel Gilberto, The Crannberries’ Nole Hogan and Dub Trio. Chen’s quirky keys and Greenberg’s cinematic effects come in handy on this intergalactic rendition of “Don’t Rock My Boat." Trio Elétrico “One good thing about music, when it hits you feel no pain,” sings Bob in his classic “Trenchtown Rock.” Such is the motto of these three collaborators: Boozoo Bajou’s Peter Heider, Wildstyle’s Ekki Elétrico and studio wizard Peter Hoppe. The Trio Elétrico was originally a high-powered truck with a heavy-duty sound system, and popularized by Brazilian legend Caetano Veloso in a lyric. These three globetrotting figures are giving it a fresh uplift. Yes King Mark Rae’s name has become synonymous with the Rae & Christian tag that is totemic in the club world.
His latest production project alongside Rhys Adams, Yes King, grew out of a trip to Jamaica to record local vocalists. While the duo swings from ska to skank to ragga and dancehall in their rhythmic assaults, their reworking of “Sun is Shining” adds a bass-heavy foundation to this classic melodica-driven track.
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