Black Uhuru
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Website | blackuhuruofficial |
Black Uhuru is a Jamaican reggae group formed in 1972, initially as Uhuru (Swahili for 'freedom'). The group has undergone several line-up changes over the years, with Derrick "Duckie" Simpson as the mainstay. They had their most successful period in the 1980s, with their album Anthem winning the first ever Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album in 1985.
History
The group formed in the Waterhouse district of
Nelson returned to The Jayes in late 1977, and was replaced the following year by
Despite this success, Rose left the group in 1984 to resume his solo career after falling out with Simpson,
Black Uhuru, now reduced to Simpson alone, had been booked to play at an awards ceremony in California, which coincidentally had original Uhuru members Don Carlos and Garth Dennis on the bill, and they took the opportunity to reunite the original line-up for a performance at the event, and decided to continue afterwards.[5] The Now album followed in 1991, and was also nominated for a Grammy. In 1996 the group fragmented again, with Simpson leaving to tour Europe with dub poet Yasus Afari, under the name Black Uhuru, while Carlos and Dennis also toured the US under the same name.[11] A legal battle over the name followed, won by Simpson in 1997. Carlos resumed his solo career, while Simpson formed a new line-up of Black Uhuru with Andrew Bees and Jennifer Connally.[11] Only two albums, Unification and Dynasty, were released before Bees went back to pursue his solo career in 2003.
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".[10] Together with a female backing singer named Kay Starr, they released a single, "Dollars", and performed at several concerts including "Western Consciousness 2004" on 28 April in Jamaica, of which a live video was released shortly thereafter. A new album was reported to be in progress, although it was never released. The group toured throughout Europe in 2006.
In 2008, Simpson took on lead vocal duties, and in 2012 the group recorded a new album, As the World Turns, with guest appearances from Aterciopelados and Jarabe De Palo, although this was still unreleased a year later due to the master files getting corrupted.[12] A 25th Anniversary Edition DVD of their Live in London concert was released in June 2008. In 2011, the group now featuring Derrick "Duckie" Simpson, Andrew Bees, and Kaye Starr, toured the US for the first time since 2002. In 2014 Jojo Mac joined the group, and left in 2016 to continue her solo career. The band re-recorded all but one track of As the World Turns, which was eventually released in September 2018.[13]
In 2012 Black Uhuru was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award in Music by the City of Las Vegas and was handed the KEY TO THE CITY. Alongside that Award, August 31st was of officially named Black Uhuru Day in Las Vegas.
Black Uhuru undertook a US tour in 2016 with Andrew Bees on lead vocals and Elsa Green on backing vocals. Singer Onesty opened for the band.[14]
Selected album discography
- 1980 – Sinsemilla
- 1981 – Red
- 1982 – Chill Out
- 1983 – Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (Black Uhuru re-edition)
- 1983 – Anthem
- 1986 – Brutal
- 1987 – Positive
- 1990 – Now
- 1991 – Iron Storm
- 1993 – Mystical Truth
- 1994 – Strongg
- 2018 – As the World Turns
Awards and nominations
Black Uhuru has won one Grammy award and were nominated eight times.[15]
Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
---|---|---|---|
1982 | Reggae Sunsplash '81, A Tribute To Bob Marley | Best Ethnic or Traditional Folk Recording | Nominated |
1984 | Anthem | Best Reggae Recording | Won |
1986 | Brutal | Nominated | |
1990 | Now | Nominated | |
1991 | Iron Storm | Best Reggae Album | Nominated |
1993 | Mystical Truth | Nominated | |
1994 | Strongg | Nominated | |
2018 | As the World Turns | Nominated |
Notes
- ^ "Black Uhuru page on RasRecords.com". Archived from the original on 13 November 2012. Retrieved 10 August 2011.
- ^ a b Thompson, p. 38
- ^ a b c Thompson, p. 39
- ^ Harris
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Thompson, p. 40
- ^ a b "A touch of regatta-de-noir". Evening Herald (Dublin). 21 June 1986. Retrieved 1 December 2018 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ a b Black Uhuru, Chart Stats
- ^ "100 Best Albums of the Eighties: Black Uhuru". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 18 April 2011.
- ^ The Grammy-award winning album Anthem was actually released in three different versions: the Jamaican mix was released in November 1983, followed by extensively remixed UK and U.S. versions, with different sleeves and different mixes. The dubmaster behind the remix was Paul "Groucho" Smykle, already famed for his groundbreaking work on The Dub Factor. The year 2004 saw the release of a limited edition four-CD boxset on the Hip-O-Select label, entitled Complete Anthem Sessions. This set included all three versions plus bonus tracks and a previously unreleased dub companion to the original Jamaican mix.
- ^ a b Campbell (2004)
- ^ a b Thompson, 41
- ^ Campbell (2008)
- ^ Johnson, Richard (2018) "New turn for Black Uhuru Archived 6 November 2021 at the Wayback Machine", Jamaica Observer, 19 September 2018. Retrieved 21 September 2018
- ^ Black Uhuru Official. Facebook. Retrieved on 26 September 2016.
- ^ "Black Uhuru". GRAMMY.com. 14 May 2017. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
References
- Campbell, Howard (2004) "Michael Rose returns to Black Uhuru", Jamaica Observer, 4 February 2004, retrieved 26 September 2009.
- Campbell, Howard (2008) "Duckie sings lead", Jamaica Gleaner, 9 September 2008, retrieved 26 September 2009.
- Harris, Craig "Black Uhuru Biography", AllMusic, Macrovision Corporation.
- Thompson, Dave (2002), Reggae and Caribbean Music, Backbeat Books, ISBN 0-87930-655-6