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-- by
Basil Walters, Observer staff
reporter
It
has dawned, albeit late for
some persons, that reggae music
is a mature, multifaceted,
global cultural expression.
For others, this clear reality
is only dimly obvious. There
is yet another category of
persons, the cognocenti, who
were among the first to recognise
the worldwide influence of
the indigenous Jamaican rhythm.
It is to the first two categories
of persons that we recommend
the knowledge that a growing
stream of foreigners have long
been trekking to Jamaica to
revel in, or to make their
own brand of reggae.
One of the most recent of
such arrivals, is Matisyahu,
the latest offshore rising
reggae sensation who, along
with his producer David Kahne,
made his first visit to the
fountain of the internationally
acclaimed reggae music. In
addition to working with a
number of reggae kingpins -
Sly and Robbie as well as Stephen
McGregor - Matisyahu also drew
on the services of Kingston
College choir, to include on
his latest set to which he
is adding the finishing touches
at Anchor Recording Studio
in Kingston.
"We're trying to get
the kids to sing on a track
we've called Bread of Destitution.
And we're trying to get some
drums also, some of the songs
I was writing, I was visioning
in certain parts of it, a Nyahbinghi-like
kind of vibes," Matisyahu
told Splash in an exclusive
interview at the Hilton Hotel.
"
And just to be here," he
added, " is like, it's
about time.
People always asked me, when
you coming to Jamaica, have
you been to Jamaica yet. This
my first time coming. But next
we come, we definitely going
to do shows. Trying to find
the right festival to come
for, and then do some club
shows as well."
A relatively unknown reggae
singer/rapper, Matisyahu was
born Mattew Paul Miller, in
West Chester, Pennsylvania,
but his parents later settled
in White Plains, New York.
He was brought up a Reconstructionist
Jew, and one stage in his journey
from Mattew to the reggae musician
Matisyahu, he would perform
under the alias MC Truth for
MC Mystic's Soulfari Band.
He counts Bob Marley, Sizzla,
Phish, God Street Wine and
Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach among
his musical inspirations. In
2004, Matisyahu, after having
signed with JDub Records, a
not-for-profit record label
that promotes Jewish musicians,
released his first album, Shake
Off the Dust...Arise. He did
not rise to prominence until
Bonnaroo 2005, when Trey Anastasio
of the band Phish invited him
a guest spot on his set. This
would prove to be the event
that launched his career.
His live album, Live at Stubb's,
released in 2005, was recorded
at a concert in Austin, Texas.
This concert album and Youth,
both received critical and
popular acclaim. Throughout
2006, Matisyahu toured extensively
in the United States, Canada
and Europe, making a number
of stops in Israel, including
a performance as a supporting
act for Sting.
In late 2006, he released
No Place to Be, as well as
a cover of the Police's Message
in a Bottle. In that same year,
the live version of his song
King Without a Crown, broke
into the Modern Rock Top 10.
"The natural link is
the music, reggae music in
a lot of ways is the bridge
that promotes Jamaica out to
the world," Matisyahu,
who became connected to reggae
12 years ago, attested. "I
started out rappin in a hip
hop kind of style," he
explained, "but I started
listening to artistes like
Sizzla, that kind of conscious
stream of music, it's like
rappin, but with melody to
it. So that style started really
to become attractive to me,
not to mention that the vocals,
the lyrics on a lot of those
songs stem from the Old Testament,
comes from the Bible, the Torah,
Psalms....so that also made
me feel like I've some connection.
"Then
I started kinda singing more
and getting into
that reggae style because I
was listening more and more
to it.....I just didn't stand
in the way, I just let it happen.
The song that did the best
for me was King Without A Crown.
That was like the number one
song on the Alternative Kroc
radio station in California."
Matisyahu
said the new album that is
going to be coming
out this fall, is almost done,
but it was missing a couple
of things, and lacking a certain
touch, hence his trip to Jamaica
a week ago. "What it needed
was that touch, certain touch,
y'know, and a few songs that
have reggae style rhythm section
like a one-drop, steppers kinda
rhythm to it. So I know from
before, having recorded with
Sly and Robbie, a song called,
Jeruselam when they came to
New York and recorded it with
me.
"I knew from that, that
was the sound that I was looking
for. Some people you can try
to explain to them a certain
feel, you know what I mean,
and they might get it, but
my experience, particularly
with Robbie, when he starts
playing the bass, is that he
hears it, he hears something,
you know what I mean, that
a lot of musicians don't hear.
So, I wanted to get him doing
that, and figured that this
was a good chance to come," Matisyahu
said as he added that Stephen
McGregor, was also recommended
highly to him by Maxine Stowe.
He
told Splash that he is thinking
about launching the
album here in Jamaica. "We're
trying to put it (the album)
out here first, before we put
it out in America, put out
a track here, have a launch,
come play a bunch of shows
and have a bunch of parties,
invite the international press
to Jamaica. For sure for the
bass, you have to come to Jamaica," said
Matisyahu who is slated to
do a punk rock tour in the
summer.
SOURCE
published: Friday | May 30, 2008 | Jamaica Observer
http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/lifestyle/html/20080529
T220000-0500_136178_OBS_JEWISH_REGGAE_
ARTISTE_MATISYAHU_
TAKES_HIS_FIRST_TRIP_
TO_REGGAELAND.asp
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