Ready or not, Scotland – here he comes, the greatest ever reggae artist called Johnny*, one month to go: Johnny Osbourne, Thursday 3rd October, BAaD, Glasgow.
Why am I so excited about the prospect of seeing Johnny
Osbourne live with the Uppercut band for the first time playing in Scotland?
Straight from international festivals and the Jazz Café in London to the
Barras, we are very lucky to have one of the living legends of reggae with us. No
other Jamaican singer has spanned the generations and genres of reggae so
comfortably, cutting his teeth in the rocksteady era of the late sixties with infectious
hits like 'Warrior’, equally at home with conscious messages like ‘My Name Is Man’, from sublime love songs like 'Love Is Here to Stay’, to cutting eighties digital anthems
like ‘Budy Bye’ that still rock the dancehall. Why he is not more of a household
name in the UK today remains something of a mystery (although it may be something
to do with spending most of the seventies in Canada). A pupil of the Alpha Boys’
School, where he would have looked up to the likes of Don Drummond and Tommy
McCook as they invented ska in a lunchbreak, Johnny’s first recordings were
with Winston Riley as a member of the Wild Cats, clearly showing an early
affiliation with Scotland. ‘Come Back Darling’, accredited to Johnny Osbourne
and the Sensations in 1969, is a rock steady gem with crossover appeal (the
title track later a top ten hit for UB40) but he left for Canada the day he
completed the album to be with his family. His return to Jamaica in 1979 led to
a hugely prolific period. The ‘Truths and Rights’ album alone secures his place
in music history, a Studio One album (like Freddie McGregor’s ‘Bobby Bobylon’) that
looks, sounds and feels like it was forged in the fire at the very foundation
of reggae music, it came as a shock to discover it was only released in 1980 (though
many of the rhythms date from earlier). Every track on the album is a classic,
with the outstanding ‘Jah Promise’, ‘We Need Love’ and ‘Sing jay Stylee’ he
built the bridge between rocksteady, roots and the emerging dance hall explosion.
He followed this up with a string of hit singles and albums for the top producers
of the early eighties such as Prince Jammy, Henry Junjo Lawes and Bobby Digital,
including ‘Water Pumping’, ‘Fally Ranking’, ‘Rock It Tonight’ and ‘On the Right
Track’, making him a constant feature in the reggae charts. He also documented
the history of black Britain with the poignant ‘13 Dead and Nothing Said’
following the New Cross Fire. Even those not familiar with his work may
recognise his voice which graced many of the tracks on the classic Greensleeves
dub albums, floating in and out of the mixes from Scientist, or even sampled by
Major Lazer. But while I’m still discovering more of his classic tunes, I know
the Glasgow reggae community will be ready to show their appreciation for
Johnny ‘Bumpy’ Osbourne. One love!
*Top 10 Reggae Johnnies
1.
Johnny Osbourne
2.
Johnny Clarke – he would be a lot of people’s
number one, as testified by the crowd when he played Glasgow
3.
John Holt – he would be higher but no one ever
really called him Johnny. Just Sir John.
4.
Johnny “Dizzy” More – trumpet player, founding member
of the Skatalites.
5.
John McLean – not the Glasgow revolutionary
socialist, but the London lovers rock singer.
6.
Johnny Nash – Bob famously taught him to play
reggae.
7.
Johnny Lover – deejay on ‘I Like it Like That’ Tuff
Gong version on B-side of Rock My Boat.
8.
Little John – gave us the unforgettable Clarks Booty
9.
Johnny Was – classic from Bob Marley’s Rastaman
Vibration, covered by Stiff Little Fingers.
10.
John Brown – fictional character who personified
Jamaica and saved the world in ‘To Jamaica With Love’
