The first winners of a Grammy Award in the reggae music category, performing in 1985, Black Uhuru have always been one of the most progressive reggae or “reggae-rock” bands, managing to stay true to their fierce Rastafarian politics and brooding vocal harmonies despite many challenges throughout its 35-year history. And WOW, what a story!
Black Uhuru, whose name comes from the East African Swahili language meaning “freedom” (hence Black Freedom), was originally formed as a trio in 1974 in the Waterhouse district of Kingston, Jamaica by Derrick “Duckie” (now “Gong” ) Simpson, Euvin “Don Carlos” Spencer, and Rudolf “Garth” Dennis. They played clubs in Jamaica but didn’t garner much local attention despite their Top Cat-produced singles “Folk Songs,” “Slow Coach,” and “Time is on Our Side.” Kingston’s blacks had few opportunities to escape the poverty of the city’s slums. Reggae was certainly an escape route, but it was full of talented applicants, so the chances of success were very slim.
After a few years, Don Carlos left the band to pursue a solo career, Garth Dennis left for what would be an 8-year stint with Wailing Souls, and Simpson quickly reorganized the band with Errol “Jay” Nelson and Michael Rose. This time, the group’s singles “Natural Mystic” and “I Love King Selassie” garnered the attention of a London distributor named Count Shelley, and Black Uhuru’s first full-length recording, “Love Crisis,” produced by Prince Jammy, was released in England in 1977. (“Love Crisis” was later remixed and re-released as “Black Sounds of Freedom”).
Nelson departed shortly after the release, leaving Simpson and Rose working as a duo for a while. But it wasn’t until reggae’s hottest rhythm section, Sly Dunbar on drums and Robbie Shakespeare on bass (who were friends with Michael Rose), appeared on stage alongside them that they created their most unique sound and became the Black Uhuru with which we are most familiar. At the time, Sly and Robbie were putting together their Taxi label, and Black Uhuru’s “Observe Life” became Taxi’s first release.
In 1978, lightning finally struck when Nelson’s place was taken by Columbia graduate African-American harmony singer Sandra “Puma” Jones. Led by signature tenor Rose, and recording for Sly and Robbie’s Taxi label, this third line-up launched the group into their most commercially successful period with the haunting hits “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner,” “Abortion” (banned in Jamaica), “Leaving to Zion”, “Plastic Smile”, “Shine Eye Gal” and “General Penitentiary”. All of these singles were brought together on the 1979 “Showcase” album, later reissued on CD as “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner.”
The release of “Showcase” brought an invitation from a New York City radio station, WLIB, which was playing a concert at Hunter College. It was Black Uhuru’s first performance outside of Jamaica, an opportunity most reggae bands never got. “Showcase” also caught the attention of Chris Blackwell, president of Island Records, and Black Uhuru’s first major-label deal soon followed with Island’s subsidiary Mango.
The band made their American album debut in 1980 with “Sensimilla,” which established the group’s hard-hitting sound that blends traditional roots with modern digital effects on its sizzling tracks, all penned by Michael Rose, including “Happiness,” “Push Push “, “World is Africa” and of course the title cut. As the leader of Black Uhuru, singer-songwriter Rose was approaching international reggae stardom with the likes of Jimmy Cliff, Bob Marley and Peter Tosh. His voice and deeply conscious Rastafarian lyrics helped spark an exciting era in reggae music.
The release of “Red” launched the band into the top 30 of the UK charts and was considered by many to be the group’s masterpiece, illustrating their commitment to social change. “Youth of Eglington”, written by Rose, became the Uhuru manifesto and a reggae classic, linking Jamaican youth with African youth around the world from Eglington (the West Indian enclave of Toronto), to Brixton (where riots paralyzed London), Utica Avenue and Brooklyn. . The album’s tour encountered some violence; A show in Miami was reportedly stopped because the audience brought in weapons. “Red” would end up ranking at number 24 on Rolling Stone’s list of the 100 Greatest Albums of the 1980s with its rootsy classics like “Rockstone,” “Sponji Reggae,” and the upbeat “Utterance.” Black Uhuru were now among the most influential reggae groups on the planet after Bob Marley’s death in 1981.
With the 1982 release “Chill Out”, Sly and Robbie moved Black Uhuru from the simple sound of traditional reggae to a more electronic sound called “dub”, the new sound that was becoming so popular in reggae in the middle of the decade. from 1980. Some critics felt that this was Uhuru’s weakest album, while others marked it the best album of all. Some classics on this album include the title track, “Wicked Act,” and “Mondays,” which spoke to all of us workers who see Monday as “the day slavery begins.”
The group reached its peak in 1983 with the release of “Anthem.” Island Records tried to build on the success of “Chill Out” by remixing “Anthem” in 1984 for American and European audiences (but the original versions can be found on “Liberation: The Island Anthology,” an excellent two-disc anthology). And, in 1985, Black Uhuru won the first Grammy Award for reggae music, beating out Bob Marley and the Wailers, Steel Pulse and Yellowman. “What is Life” was a huge hit and the album was full of classic anthems like “Solidarity”, “Elements” (a masterpiece I say), “Botanical Roots”, “Black Uhuru Anthem” and “Bull in the Pen”. While Rose had written most of his previous stuff, these lyrics were largely written by Duckie Simpson. With this release, Black Uhuru mixed a hint of pop/R&B with reggae without sacrificing quality and was able to gain more mainstream attention.
However, as is often the case, success can destroy a group. In 1985, after the band’s success began to slow, Michael Rose decided to try a solo career and set up a coffee farm in the Jamaican hills. Delroy “Junior” Reid came in to replace him, first appearing on “Brutal” on the RAS label in 1986. A devout Bobo Shanti Rastafari, Reid was a gifted singer as evidenced by “Let Us Pray” and “Fit You Haffe Fit”. “, but the US government denied Reid a visa to tour the United States, causing him to return to his solo career and Uhuru to tour without him. And then Puma Jones left she was forced to leave for health reasons just before completing the recording of “Positive” in 1987: the singer was battling breast cancer and would pass away in 1990 at age 36. (She was briefly succeeded by Janet Reid.)
In 1987, the “Reggae Times” Awards honored Don Carlos for Best Vocalist and Black Uhuru for Best Group and arranged for Simpson, Carlos and Dennis to play together. A European tour followed, and by 1990 the original trio were recording once more as Black Uhuru. “Now” (1990) received critical acclaim and rose to number two on the “Billboard” world music chart. It also earned another Grammy nomination for Best Reggae Album. An award-winning video featuring controversial rap star Ice-T was made of the “Iron Storm” (1992) single, “Tip of the Iceberg,” and filmed on the burning streets of South Central Los Angeles in the aftermath of the Verdict. of the Rodney King police brutality trial. “Mystical Truth” (1993) and “Strongg” (1994) continued Black Uhuru’s commitment to ending oppression, offering hope despite injustice, and received critical acclaim.
In 1995, old animosities (mainly over money) resurfaced, and Uhuru broke up again. But Dennis and Carlos continued to tour using the Black Uhuru name and in 1997 they were sued in Los Angeles by Simpson, who claimed the exclusive right to the Black Uhuru name. Simpson won; Carlos and Dennis were out and lead vocalist Andrew “Bees” Beckford and harmony vocalist Jennifer “Jenifah Nyah” Connally were in, producing “Unification” (1998). Some highlights were “System”, “Real Thing”, “Hail Tafari” and “Lullaby Love”. Andrew Bees and Pam Hall, along with Sly and Robbie, appeared on “Dynasty” (2001) on the RAS label and toured in support of the album. (“Bees” soon left to pursue a solo career.) The wonderful greatest hits collection “20th Century Masters–The Millennium Collection: The Best of Black Uhuru” was released in 2002.
In February 2004, Simpson and Michael Rose reunited under the name “Black Uhuru with Michael Rose”. Along with a female backing vocalist named Kay Starr, they released a single, “Dollars,” and performed at several concerts.
Over the years Black Uhuru has headlined many music festivals around the world and has toured with groups such as the Rolling Stones, The Clash, Talking Heads and The Police. Duckie Simpson has continued to tour, with and without Michael Rose, and there is even talk of a new album!
Black Uhuru remain one of the greatest reggae groups of all time and are firmly entrenched in the hearts of reggae fans everywhere. And they were voted the number 1 reggae band in the “Rolling Stone” critics poll. Listen and delight in this reggae music legend that continues to evolve!