Tag Archives: rastafari

Bob Marley Interview – After the Boston Show 1980

By Lee O’Neill    *Updated 2020
V11#3 1993

As Bob Marley and the Wailers took their positions on stage for a 1980 Boston concert [at Hynes Auditorium,] they resembled a tribe of Biblical prophets carrying electric guitars. Red, gold, and green spotlights shined on the different members of the band, from the patriarchal percussionist Seeco Patterson to guitarist Al Anderson dressed in military fatigues.

The leader of the tribe walked to the center microphone in complete darkness and slowly began the song “Natural Mystic.” A spotlight finally landed on Bob Marley, whose long dreadlocks suggested a lion’s mane, and the mood for the show was fixed. Whether they knew it or not and whether they liked it or not, the Boston audience was being drawn into a spiritual experience.

Bob Marley with the Commodores, Madison Square Garden, 1980

I had the opportunity to interview Marley several hours after that September 1980 concert. It was to be one of his last. The Wailers [then] traveled to Providence, Rhode Island, for a show at Brown University and went from there to New York. *Following two extraordinary shows at Madison Square Gardens, where the Wailers finally performed before a predominantly African-American audience while outshining the Commodores, Marley collapsed while jogging in Central Park. The extent of his illness became apparent. The Wailers made their final appearance in Pittsburgh a few days later. Continue reading

The Murder of Reggae Legend Peter Tosh 1987 History

THE TRAGIC DEMISE OF “MYSTIC MAN” PETER TOSH –  V5#5 1987

By M. Peggy Quattro

The mystery surrounding the violent death of Reggae Superstar PETER TOSH is as complex and mysterious as the man himself.  The many reports, stories, assumptions, and speculations leave a shroud of doubt and suspicion in staggering proportions.

What a dark day for Reggae and a sad and shameful day for mankind.

What is known to date is that on the evening of Friday, September 11, 1987, three gunmen on motorcycles entered Tosh’s Plymouth Avenue residence in Barbican, Kingston, Jamaica. Apparently known by Tosh, the three were in the house for a short while before the massacre began. What a dark day for Reggae and a sad and shameful day for mankind. One of the killers, Dennis Lobban, turned himself into the Kingston Police only days later, following a warrant issued for his arrest and the involvement of Interpol (the international police force.) Two others are still being detained, their names as yet unannounced.

A Robbery Gone Wrong

The first to be fired upon was Marlene Brown, long-time girlfriend and Tosh’s current manager and accountant. Winston “Doc” Brown was shot and killed on the spot, with Peter being shot several times and reportedly beat about the head. He died hours later at the University of the West Indies Hospital.  Radio personality Jeff “Free I” Dixon also received shots to the head resulting in his death days later. Also wounded were Free I‘s wife Joy, Peter’s drummer Carlton “Santa” Davis, and another friend named Michael Robinson. Continue reading

Damian Marley & SOJA Sail into SunFest 2015

The West Palm Beach waterfront festival was full of fun, food, and music!
Words & Photos by M. Peggy Quattro
Video & Social Media by Arielle Quattro

This year, the trek to West Palm Beach (WPB) from Miami was by Tri-Rail. As first timers on the two-tier train that rides alongside the 10-lane I95 expressway, we enjoyed the special SunFest $5 fares, an added bonus to the hands-free, gasless, mindless commute.

Damian Marley
Damian Marley at SunFest WPB 2015

Downtown Palm Beach was all abuzz with festival activities. A favorite for South Floridians, SunFest draws all ages, races, and nationalities, men, women, kids, and millennials sporting the latest fashion trends. But it’s the music that brings them to the waterfront fest every year, for the five days of top names from all musical genres and the best in local talent. This Saturday drew me in with two acclaimed Reggae acts – Grammy-winner Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley, aka Zilla, and the Grammy-nominated Washington, DC-based band SOJA. Continue reading

1995 & IT’S HIP TO BE RASTA Buju Banton, Capleton, Dermot Hussey, Cat Coore

It’s 1995 in Jamaica and It’s Hip to be Rasta

By Howard Campbell    V13#1 1995

Buju Banton cries out for divine help in “God of my Salvation”; Capleton gives assurance that the Emperor still sits on the throne with the constant reminder that “Selassie liveth every time,” while Garnet Silk’s equally prolific shouts of “Jah Rastafari” have given the proclamation Bob Marley made internationally famous new flavor.

buju banton, rasta got soul, reggae, dancehall, reggae report
Buju Banton’s Rasta Got Soul LP

Such are the lyrics of cultural change that have been blaring through the speakers of Jamaica’s dance halls in recent times, replacing the gun and ribald lyrics of the DJs that dominated for the greater part of a decade. The cultural rebirth in the dance halls has also sparked a second coming of the Rastafari religion that traces its roots back to the late 1950s and which gained worldwide prominence in the 1970s with the international emergence of the dreadlocked Marley.

Buju’s newfound faith has been wholly accepted by the youth with whom he can do no wrong. The same can be said of fellow DJ Capleton and charismatic singer Silk, one of the forerunners of the revival. Their impact is there for all to see. It’s in vogue to wear locks again. It’s even cool to openly acknowledge Jah without fear of being ridiculed. It’s Jamaica 1995 and it’s hip to be Rasta. Whether a “God of my Salvation” will hold relevance as a “Roof Over my Head” 10 years from now is left to be seen. That could all depend on whether Buju and Capleton decide to forsake their still growing locks and Rasta rhetoric for the latest “talk,” or look, in the coming months. Continue reading