November 2009

  • Hopeton Lewis: Groovin'

    By cobwebsandstrange on 11/20/09 5:06pm
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    I mean absolutely no disrespect to the gentleman. And moreover, I enjoy a great deal of the music that Hopeton Lewis has given the world. But the introductory statement on his website actually made me laugh.

    Welcome to the official website of Mr. Hopeton Lewis, International Recording Artiste, Songwriter, Music Producer and successful Businessman.

    Of course, Lewis is an international recording artist and all those other things. But successful business man? Is that really something that needs to be included? Who knows, but it’s amusing (maybe just to me, but I doubt it).

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  • Norman Grant - "Somebody Please Help Me" (Video)

    By cobwebsandstrange on 11/18/09 8:56pm
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    Norman Grant would go on to found the Twinkle Brothers. This right here? This right here predates that kinda JA sound...

  • Bim Sherman: Inna Showcase Stylee

    By cobwebsandstrange on 11/8/09 5:10pm
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    The beginning of Bim Sherman’s recording career would come during the first half of the ‘70s. Due to the strict guidelines that the singer worked by, he didn’t release a full length, long player until nearly 1980. That fact is honestly the only reason why Sherman isn’t a better known name in JA music at this point. It can’t be said that his vocals were unmatched or that his politics and life view were drastically detached from his contemporaries, but Sherman was always able to deliver the goods. And later in his career, he would even find ways to expand on the reggae genre – most notably by recording an album with an Indian classical ensemble.

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  • Dancehall: B. Levy and Beyond

    By cobwebsandstrange on 11/4/09 9:47pm
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    As previously discussed on this site, dancehall and the culture that surrounds it isn’t always necessarily the most welcoming. Of course, that’s an outsider’s opinion, but one steeped in enough music listening and show going to at least have an informed point of view. Go ahead, disagree, that’s fine. But while we may wind up sitting around quibbling about the merits of new acts, the old ones not only founded the genre, but in a few cases persist in creating quality musics (let the cries of “fetishist” begin anew) - and no one can frown on a spate of good tunes. So, here’s another JA related list of some dancehall figures no one should do with out.


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  • Marley's fight to contain dad's image

    By Lipps on 11/3/09 3:33pm
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    Big Business Bob

    The image of Bob Marley is one of the most recognizable of pop/cult images out there. On par with Che Guevarra's famous rebel face. The Marley family, which includes notable musicians Stephen Marley, Damian Marley and Julian Marley amongst others, has hired a legal firm to get control of the image.

    Rights issues are nothing new to the Marley's, even Bob had his music essentailly stolen by on several occassions. To this day many of the recordings out there have been stolen over and over through either outright thievery or shady deals with old Bob affiliates.

    According to several articles the Marley empire is worth about $600 million worldwide. Legal sales were said to be around $4 million.

    The Outrage

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