Burning Spear | Artist
Burning Spear was a Jamaican roots reggae trio formed 1969 in Kingston, led by Winston Rodney with Rupert Willington and Delroy Hinds as backup vocalists. Winston Rodney OD has worked under the stage name Burning Spear since the trio dissolved after recording their masterpiece 1975 album Marcus Garvey produced by Jack Ruby. Rodney is a committed Rastafarian and one of the most influential and long-standing roots artists in Jamaican reggae. Rodney was born in Saint Ann's Bay, Saint Ann, Jamaica, the same town as Bob Marley. As a young man he listened to the R&B, soul and jazz music transmitted by the US radio stations whose broadcasts reached Jamaica. Curtis Mayfield is cited by Rodney as a major US musical influence along with James Brown. Rodney was deeply influenced as a young man by the views of the political activist Marcus Garvey, especially with regard to the exploration of the themes of Pan-Africanism and self-determination. In 1969, Bob Marley, who was his friend from Saint Ann, advised Rodney to approach Coxsone Dodd's Studio One label after Rodney sought his advice about how to get started. Rodney and Rupert Willington auditioned for Dodd as a duo in 1969 which led to the release of their debut single "Door Peep". They were then joined by tenor Delroy Hinds, and the trio recorded several more singles for Dodd, and two albums, before they moved on to work with Jack Ruby in 1975. Their first recording with Ruby, "Marcus Garvey", was intended as an exclusive track for Ruby's Ocho Rios–based Hi-Power sound system, but was released as a single, giving them an immediate hit, and was followed by "Slavery Days". These recordings featured the backing band The Black Disciples, which included Earl "Chinna" Smith, Valentine Chin, Robbie Shakespeare and Leroy Wallace. The group worked with Ruby on their third album, Marcus Garvey (1975), which was immediately successful and led to a deal with Island Records to give the album a wider release. Further releases followed on Island including Garvey's Ghost, a dub version of the Marcus Garvey album, and Man in the Hills. In late 1976, Rodney split from both Ruby and group members Willington and Hinds, and from that point on used the name Burning Spear for himself alone. Tghe album Dry and Heavy followed in 1977, self-produced but still on Island, and with a sizeable following by now in the United Kingdom. Rodney and his producer wife Sonia established their own label Burning Music Records which gave them creative control over their extensive recorded output. Outstanding albums include Studio One Presents Burning Spear (1973), Rocking Time (1974), Marcus Garvey (1975), Man in The Hills (1976), Dry & Heavy (1977), Marcus' Children (1978) (re-released as Social Living), Hail H.I.M. (1980) and the live album Live (1977). Burning Spear has won two Grammy Awards for Best Reggae Album; one at the 42nd Grammy Awards in 2000 for Calling Rastafari, and one for 2009's Jah Is Real. The name 'Burning Spear' comes from a military award given by Jomo Kenyatta, the first President of an independent Kenya.
Artist Website: burningspearwebsite.com
Featured Albums: Burning Spear
Related Artists: Winston Rodney
