He by no means had the worldwide attain of Bob Marley, however in relation to high quality Jamaican reggae, Massive Youth’s identify ought to nonetheless be writ massive. The person credited with coining the time period “natty dread,” he’s nonetheless arguably his nation’s most revered deejay and his basic 70s albums, Screaming Goal and the stainless Dread Locks Dread rank amongst his style’s most important platters.
Born Manley Augustus Buchanan in April 1949, he labored as a diesel mechanic at Kingston’s Sheraton Resort as a younger man. He developed his toasting abilities at dances, the place he picked up his nickname “Big Youth” and have become the resident deejay with Lord Tippertone’s sound system in 1970. Buchanan’s dextrous lyrical abilities caught the eye of legendary Jamaican producers together with Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry and Phil Pratt, however his early 45s failed commercially and he solely scored his first main Jamaican hit in 1972 with “The Killer”: produced by Augustus “Gussie” Clark and based mostly on a model of the rhythm underpinning Horace Andy’s then-recent hit “Skylarking.”
Order Massive Youth’s Dread Locks Dread on vinyl now.
Additionally produced by Gussie Clarke, Massive Youth’s debut album, 1973’s Screaming Goal showcased his distinctive half-sung, half-spoken vocal supply and included his hits “The Killer” and “Tipper Tone Rock” in addition to two variations of the earthy titular tune, whereby Massive Youth paid an eccentric tribute to Clint Eastwood’s maverick celluloid policeman, Soiled Harry Callahan.
Screaming Goal was launched via Trojan within the U.Okay., however whereas it stays a wonderful calling card, Massive Youth’s second album, 1975’s Dread Locks Dread remains to be his artistic apogee. Recorded at two well-known Kingston studios, Randy’s and the Harry J. Studio, it options music from an all-star Jamaican forged together with bassist Lloyd Parkes and drummer Sly Dunbar and it contains a lot of Massive Youth’s most enduring songs.
Deeply rooted in Rastafarian ideology, Dread Locks Dread options spirituals resembling “House Of Dreadlocks” and “Natty Dread She Want,” however it’s additionally sturdy on social commentary, with the likes of “Train To Rhodesia,” and “Lightning Flash (Weak Heart Drop)” railing towards injustice and the forces of oppression.
Musically, too, Dread Locks Dread regularly presages future stylistic developments – and typically past the shores of Jamaica. The bouncy “Train To Rhodesia” and the playful “Some Like It Dread” sounds a bit just like the ska-pop crossover sound of 2-Tone, whereas the instrumental “Big Youth Special” is carried out with the type of aggression and depth equated with lots of the late 70s post-punk acts.
Certainly, Dread Locks Dread’s popularity initially grew due its affect Britain’s punk motion. The band who grew to become The Conflict initially thought-about calling themselves The Weak Coronary heart Drops after listening to “Lightning Flash (Weak Heart Drop),” whereas Killing Joke bassist/producer Martin Glover’s common soubriquet ‘Youth’ got here straight from his lifelong love of the Jamaican deejay. Even the Intercourse Pistols/PiL frontman John Lydon was so enamored that he inspired Virgin Data to signal him to their reggae imprint Entrance Line. From there on in, Massive Youth notched up additional late 70s notables together with Hit The Street Jack and Isaiah First Prophet Of Outdated, however his reward to the punky reggae occasion will all the time be the immaculately-cropped Dread Locks Dread.
