RockOm

A casual interview with neo-reggae band Passafire on their new album, connecting with nature and "being in the zone"
By Trevor Harden and Tom Crenshaw

When you think of the South, one thing that usually doesn't come to mind is reggae music. Even still one of the hottest bands rising up the charts today (including being prominently featured in the iTunes store and newsletter this week) is Savannah, Georgia's Passafire. Their latest album, Everyone on Everynight (out this week on LAW Records), pushes the boundaries of reggae music, giving the genre a "hard rock meets pop" edge that few (if any) other bands have attempted. In other words, though you will certainly hear musical influences in the parts of Passafire's music, the whole is something quite unique and noteworthy.

RockOm met up with keyboardist Adam Willis and drummer Nick Kubley before their show in downtown Savannah, GA to discuss the new album, seeing signs, their thoughts on God and how it feels to connect with an audience.

Trevor: How is Everyone on Everynight different than past records?

Adam: On the last record we had a year and a half while on the road to write the songs, put them together, try them live on the road and all that. For this record, we didn’t test any of these songs on the road. We got together after touring and had all this inspiration from traveling and locked ourselves up and wrote.

Nick: There was a lot of pressure to come up with a new record fairly quickly, but I think it was good. We all thought, “This has to be done quickly and it has to be really good.”

Trevor: The album's title comes from the lyrics in your song “Prelectricity" [one of RockOm's Featured Tracks this week]. This song talks about light pollution and the loss of connection with the stars, which used to guide people for many centuries. What was the inspiration for this track?

Adam: The song is about civilization and modern societies and how with the way we live now, the cities are so far removed from the natural world that you kind of forget about it. To us as a band it’s really important to reconnect when we’re somewhere, like when we’re out West we’ll go camping. We just hope to stay in touch with that because it’s really easy to forget about the world we live in and the natural beauty, especially when you’re in a vehicle all day traveling and playing in big cities.

Nick: You really don’t notice it until you’re out West in the middle of nowhere, driving in the middle of Wyoming for example. There are a million more stars that you see.

Adam: We just can’t forget about who we are, the people in the world around us and the world we’re living in. It’s very easy to do that nowadays and that’s what this song is about: distractions.

Trevor: Your song “Here in Front of Me” [the other RockOm Featured Track this week] talks about looking for signs and coincidences and even being disturbed or upset when we do see them. Was there a story behind these lyrics?

Adam: I think it came from when we were out West on our last trip. To me – and I didn’t write the lyrics, [guitarist/vocalist] Ted did – it always felt like this cryptic description of our band, all the good and bad we’ve been through, and our drive to keep going.

Nick: Yes, like the part that says, “It’s actually happening.” Is that what you’re talking about?

Adam: I don’t know if that’s actually what he means by that.

Nick: Ya, I don’t know either. [Laughter]

Adam: I think on this one we wanted to create a visual in the listener's mind and then they do whatever they want with it. But we are a people who think about the signs and notice things. I feel like personally I’m destined to do this and the signs are there.

Trevor: Let's look back to one of your older songs, “Feel It." There’s some language in there about “recognizing the eternal fire within.” What does that mean to you personally?

Nick: It’s taking notice that you have an energy inside you, a flame that needs to be kept going.

Adam: For me it’s definitely symbolic of God or a higher being. That’s how I always interpreted it.

Nick: “Feel It” doesn’t necessarily have to be about God. Ted says that in the song – “whether or not you think there is a God above.”

Adam: For me it does, though.

Nick: I’m not sure I believe in God completely, but I do think there’s something else there.

Trevor: And the way Ted has structured it, he’s left it open for interpretation.

Adam: Yes, I think we try to do that with all the songs. When you try to cram a message down someone’s throat, that doesn’t seem to work too well. If you leave it open for interpretation, people can understand it in their own way so they can use it to be better and go forth.

Nick: That’s the song we get written to about the most. A lot of people write us and say how that song in particular got them through tough times in their lives – crazy shit like that. This one kid was saying that he was thinking about killing himself and then he didn’t because of this song. That’s heavy.

Adam: It’s rock and roll, it’s a good time, but if there’s something in there that can uplift people or change them for the better or help them, that means we’re doing something right I think. It’s so easy to wield the weapon of music in a negative way. You can influence people to do just about anything.

Trevor: Reggae music usually carries with it this kind of positivity, spirituality and activism. Do you hope that you’re performances and songs are a little more than just “music” for people?

Nick: I always wanted my being in a band to be something more than just playing for people. If we can make them forget about their problems for an hour and a half then I think we’ve done our job. Yes, I’m in a band but why am I really here? I’m good at playing music and I need to use that for something positive. I think we all feel like that.

Adam: If you have a skill or an ability --

Nick: -- you should use it for good.

Adam: I think there's an obligation to do that.

Nick: Not everyone can play music or get to the level that we’ve been able to get to. Once you’re there you should do something with it.

Tom: You’re playing for a home crowd [in Savannah, GA] tonight and you’ve previously been out playing across the country. How do you know you’re connecting with the audience when you’re in a new setting, other than them rocking out? What do you feel?

Adam: That’s a hard thing to describe but it’s definitely real.

Nick: It’s not a tangible thing. It’s either there or it’s not. I think that time we played in Minneapolis, opening for 311, there were like a thousand people there and they were all just standing there with their arms crossed. But that night was one of the nights where we sold the most CDs. We sold a shit-load of CDs after thinking, “Oh my God, these people hate us.” [Laughs]

Adam: Aside from the obvious stuff – like people dancing or singing the lyrics – I think when you’re on stage you can feel positive energy when you’re reaching people. There is this invisible connection that can happen. Without running the risk of sounding cheesy, I firmly believe that. And there are some times when you walk off stage that you know something really magical just happened. It goes from us being on stage and them being out in the crowd, to us all participating in this thing together.

Nick: It’s like everyone’s in on this unspoken... agreement.

Adam: That’s good. That’s a good way to describe it.

Nick: It’s still not that good of a way to describe it. [Laughs] But I don’t know how else to say it.

Trevor: Moving on, let’s close with…

Nick: It would be like being in the Zone… in sports. [Long pause] Sorry. [Laughter]

Trevor: One more plug for the new album, what’s your personal favorite track on the disc?

Nick: My favorite is “Queen of Spades” because to me it’s the Southern Rock song on the album and I’m really proud of it. I feel like that embodies where we’re from – Savannah – and being in the South. It’s got this twang to it and crazy slide solo.

Adam: It’s tough to say a favorite but the one I keep going back to is “You’re Here.” I just feel like it’s really upbeat and positive and the lyrics are just cryptic to me. In listening over and over again it seems different every time. I feels like I hear new things in it each time.

LINKS:

Passafire's main website

Passafire on MySpace

Everyone on Everynight on iTunes

by Passafire

Visit Passafire at...
Main Website
MySpace
iTunes

Passafire is a 4-piece band hailing from Savannah, GA whose brand of progressive reggae both embraces and challenges the genre's boundaries. Their outstanding new album, Everyone on Everynight, was released today and includes this week's Featured Track, "Here In Front of Me."

"Here In Front of Me"

Lyric Excerpt: "Sun shines down on the mountain side / Lonely cloud that blocks the light / Shadow cast on the face of the range / In the shape of a burning flame / If it's a sign please let me know..."

Ted Bowne [Vocals/Guitar]: "The lyrics were inspired by an experience I had while riding in the van somewhere in the Southwest. I saw a shadow of a cloud on the side of a mountain that resembled our logo and wanted to take a picture, but I didn't have any battery left in my camera and my phone was fucking up." (Source)

Adam Willis [Keyboards]: "We are a people who think about the signs and notice things. I feel like I'm destined to [be making music] and the signs are there." (from RockOm's interview with Passafire, out this Friday, 9/18)

Click to Play

BONUS TRACK: "Prelectricity"

Lyric Excerpt: "Before the invention of the electric light / Stars were visible to everyone on every night / Without prevention, whether it's wrong or right / They disappeared in the night sky when the lights got bright..."

Adam Willis [Keyboards]: "The way we live now in cities we're so far removed from the natural world we kind of forget about it... To us as a band it's really important to reconnect."

Click to Play

RockOm Round-up is a quick glance at what's going on around the world in the areas of music and spirituality...

• Raider of the Lost Ark: ‘Scratch’ Perry is itching to release reggae’s spiritual side - "After more than 40 years exporting reggae and dub from Jamaica to the world, Lee “Scratch” Perry isn’t finished yet. At age 73, the legendary Jamaican producer certainly isn’t the same person he was in the 1970s, when he churned out hit tracks for the likes of Bob Marley, Peter Tosh and himself." (bostonherald.com)
• Thou shalt not steel: Robert Randolph's brand of sacred music angers the church, but he plays on - "And guys like me who've dared to play outside the church, well, we're the devil to the elders. It's really mind blowing that they say you can't spread the gift that God gave you to people who aren't in this church." (philly.com)
• Muslims can see Black Eyed Peas, Malaysia says - "Malaysia has reversed an earlier ban on Muslims attending a concert by U.S. hip-hop band the Black Eyed Peas, saying it had no right to keep people from entertainment events." (in.reuters.com)
• “Idol” finalist Danny Gokey gets countrified with record deal - "Gokey also has plenty of fans, especially from Wisconsin and among devout Christians, who responded to the way he showed his own faith on the show. That could serve Gokey well in the country music realm, which has always had a heavy dose of spirituality stirred in with more secular concerns of job, love and money." (blogs.reuters.com)
• Crowds up to 320,000 expected for 12th annual Christian music festival - "Leading artists performing on five LifeLight Festival stages include Newsboys, Kutless, Sanctus Real, Superchick, Lincoln Brewster, Rush of Fools, John Reuben and Phil Joel." (argusleader.com)

By Sneak Attack Media

Yesterday, August 25, marked two major events for Matisyahu - the release of his third studio album Light and the launch of his "One Day for Change" campaign.

NEW ALBUM, LIGHT

On Light, fans will find a much broader sound than what Matisyahu has offered in the past. Produced by David Kahne (Paul McCartney, Regina Spektor, Sublime) and Dave McCracken and the Smeezintons (Depeche Mode, Ian Brown), Light is Matisyahu's most diverse album to date. Billboard marveled at its ability to "Push musical boundaries... dipping into everything from guitar driven rockers to stripped down acoustic tunes."

It finds the musician from Crown Heights, Brooklyn displaying his one-of-a-kind voice in a variety of diverse genres, moving through his familiar reggae-soul stylings to dancehall, ska-influenced new wave, pop-rock and acoustic folk.

Links: Purchase Light on iTunes, Purchase Light (deluxe
edition) on iTunes, Purchase Light on Amazon

MATISYAHU LAUNCHES "ONE DAY FOR CHANGE" CAMPAIGN

Always looking to inspire and positively motivate fans - the socially conscious artist has partnered with Kenneth Cole to create an online movement via Twitter and YouTube encouraging people to share ideas to positively change their communities in one day.

One Day for Change asks fans, as well as celebrities, websites, and musicians, to tweet their "ideas for change" using the #ondaychange.net hash tag. Matisyahu will re-tweet his favorites on his own Twitter (which now has over 720,000 followers) and award a signed copy of Light to one tweeter each day. Participants are also encouraged to upload videos expressing their ideas for change to the "One Day for Change" YouTube page between August 25th and September 18th.

On September 25th, a grand prize winner from the video uploads will be announced on OneDayChange.net. The site, built by Republic Project, features all of the video submissions, tweets, and exclusive content for the initiative and can be visited to view the latest entries. The winner will receive a Matisyahu branded camera provided by Flip Cam, and Matisyahu and Kenneth Cole will donate $5,000 towards the charity of the winning entrant's choice. Other participants who upload videos will have a chance to win 1 of 4 Matisyahu branded cameras provided by Flip Cam.

"Consciousness and positivity spread like a wave." Matisyahu explains, "It starts with one person doing one good thing and links like a chain, going from one positive thing to the next."

Be part of the solution - tweet your ideas for "One Day for Change".

For more information on Matisyahu, please visit:

www.matisyahuworld.com
www.twitter.com/matisyahu
www.myspace.com/matisyahu
www.imeem.com/matisyahu

"We are all notes in this eternal song; God plays his flute, we all dance along." So sings Trevor Hall on his latest album - a self-titled release, available today (7/28/09). Trevor is a longtime friend of RockOm, having been featured several times on the site and it's no wonder why. His outstanding music is a blend of the sacred and secular - melding funky, acoustic-reggae jams with deep, spiritually significant lyrics.

Released by the legendary Vanguard Records, Trevor's new album features guest performances by Colbie Caillat, Krishna Das and Matisyahu. Over its 12 fantastic tracks, he explores themes of spiritual lightheartedness ("Internal Heights"), death and surrender ("Who You Gonna Turn To?"), unity between faiths ("Unity"), the story of Krishna ("Volume"), his accepting of all spiritual paths as one truth ("Many Roads") and more.

Despite these heavy themes, however, Trevor's music never comes off as preachy, but rather as humble, gentle and exploratory. The music gently jumps from hard rock to reggae to contemplative ballads and back again. Bathing in these songs of divine love and devotion, the listener is transported both to the transcendent beyond as well as to what lies within.

Fans of spiritually-significant lyrics and up-beat acoustic rock owe it to themselves to pick up a copy of this album. And even if those labels don't fit you exactly, it's nearly impossible to not be moved by this landmark musical accomplishment.  Purchase your copy of Trevor Hall today at iTunes, Amazon.com or other retailers.

In addition, be sure to keep your eyes peeled for an exclusive interview with Trevor Hall, right here at RockOm.net in a few short weeks.

www.TrevorHallMusic.com

A behind-the-scenes look at the song "Unity"

Whether singing the ancient Sanskrit mantras of India, the traditional folklore songs of South America, or performing his original works of divine inspiration, Shimshai's music invokes a sentiment of ancestral devotion and a dedication to higher consciousness. A self-proclaimed seeker of truth, described by many as possessing the voice of an angel, Shimshai is gifted with the innate ability to deliver his message flawlessly in several languages - most profoundly the universal language of Love and Oneness.

All this week, we're pleased to bring you Shimshai, who graciously welcomed our request for his song "Great Mystery" to be this week's RockOm Featured Track of the Week. Hear his song "Great Mystery" on the homepage all week long. Also, be sure to follow the links to his home page where you can find information on Shimshai's upcoming tour up the eastern seaboard. You can pick up his latest album, Alianza at CD Baby.

Psychedelic country-rock with a Kingston-inspired Reggae groove accompanying mystic Celtic chant and flute. It's how we roll at RockOm and we're rolling at you with three new RockOm Featured interviews today. Though different cultures separate them, each of these artists are creating music with a united purpose: to spread love, peace and some "righteous" joy.

The New Riders of The Purple Sage, California's psychedelic cowboys of 70's country-rock, have released their first album in 20 years. The New Riders' Buddy Cage joined RockOm for a revealing discussion on the new CD and band, and how it makes all the difference when you "play it in your own spirit."

The Wailers, led now by Aston "Family Man" Barrett continue spreading the message that "we're all Jah people." The band's reggae groove has been the soundtrack to the lives of hundreds of millions across the planet. Family Man joined RockOm before a recent performance to talk about the soul of Rastafari, the legacy of Bob Marley and an upcoming new Wailers CD featuring surprise guest artists.

A Celtic Mass for Peace: Songs for the Earth gives voice and sound to earth's deepest yearnings for peace. These are not just religious longings or Christian longings. These are sacred longings from the heights and depths of humanity's song. In a RockOm exclusive, composers Sam Guarnaccia and J. Philip Newell reveal how music and chant bring out the natural mystic in us all.

An Interview with The Wailers’ “Family Man”
By Tom Crenshaw and Trevor Harden

Think reggae and you immediately think of Bob Marley and the Wailers. No artist since has embodied the sound, message, philosophy and lifestyle of reggae music in such a mainstream and influential way as did Bob and his band. And now, decades after Marley’s death, the Wailers continue the legacy, touring in promotion of the re-release of their classic album, Exodus.

RockOm’s Tom Crenshaw met up with original bassist, Aston "Family Man" Barrett, at a Wailers show on Hilton Head Island, SC to discuss the band’s powerful impact, the spiritual foundations of reggae and a “secret” new album.

RockOm: Do you feel that you’ve been called to spread “the Word” through music all these years?

Family Man: Ya, man. I’ve been doing that since 1969, internationally until now and still going on. I just know that Family Man and The Wailers band - Bob (Marley), Bunny (Wailer), Peter (Tosh), my brother Carlton, and Wya (Earl “Wya” Lindo) – the six of us, we set the trend. After we set the trend in ‘72 and ‘ 73 we carried on with one man short. In ‘74 we were three [men] short; no Bob, no Peter, no Wya and we decided to take it to the next level when we came with the album Natty Dread. Those first two were Catch a Fire and Burnin’ and then Rastaman Vibration after Natty Dread. Then Live, then Exodus and Kaya, followed by Survivor. Then Babylon by Bus, Uprising, Confrontation and tracks taken from that catalog to bring forward the Legend and then Exodus - which is nominated by Time Magazine and awarded the Album of the Century.

Unfortunately we still have a little negative thing going on out there with a couple guys who used to be in my band, hired hands that were in and out, in and out more than 12 times. They cannot think of anything else than what they used to do before, so they are trying to impersonate my band and cause some kind of confusion out there with the fans. We would like [the fans] to know we are the band - the Bob Marley band. Those guys are British and one American who used to do some guitar licks. They are not “foundation people,” you know – from the Jamaican scene, the ghetto thing. How can you say that out there in the public eye, in the young generation that you are what you are not? It’s too bad. Anyway, we keep the music going on, the Wailers Band. This is the band, the Bob Marley Wailers band. We are run by the Family Man and the crew.

RockOm: When you were young how did you know you were going to be doing this the rest of your life?

Family Man: Well, I was voluntarily chosen for the mission, ya know? To spread the message to the four corners of the earth and that Jah’s will must be done by our means, no matter the crisis we are facing right now. Lucifer and his disciples are trying to penetrate the righteous.

RockOm: You’re a devout Rastafarian?

Family Man: Yes, Rastafari is a positive thing. It’s just like people who go to some other church who call themselves Christian. Rastafarian is the original Christianity and it’s just one, though it has many different names. But as we know, there’s only one living and true God - the Almighty who created heaven and earth and all living substance.

RockOm: Is there room for diversity in Rastafari?

Family Man: Yes, because He created all living substance - no matter the nation, you see? All of the nations and earth sprung from after the great flood when Noah and his family were safe in the ark. Those are the people that flourished the earth. It’s one man’s son. Noah got three sons - Ham, Shem and Japheth. Ham is like the black man, Shem is the oriental man and Japheth is the white people. It’s one man’s kids, no matter what you see there. It’s the Almighty, moving in mysterious form. We’re all Jah people, all children of the Almighty God.

RockOm: Do your audience and fans receive anything of Rasta when they hear your music, even if they know nothing about Rastafari?

Family Man: Of course. I see people coming to the concert who could not come when Bob was alive. They are coming today and even young people who were born after Bob have taken to the message and the music and are coming, because what we play is for all ages and all times. It’s about past, present and future. That’s the reggae music. It’s the heartbeat of the people, the universal language that carries the message of roots, cultures, and reality.

RockOm: There’s an explosion of reggae artists and music taking place. What is it about reggae that connects people in ways that other music can’t?

Family Man: Reggae music is coming from the King David’s throne, coming from the chief musician. It’s like the talking drum, what they used to use in Africa to send messages across the valley and village and city. That kind of drumming we culminate within the trap drum. We feel it on the one-drop and play the reggae music. It’s not like any other. The island music, they’re playing war drums. But we’re playing the love/peace drum with the positive message.

RockOm: I’ve read in interviews where you’ve said the goal of the Wailers is to uplift the oppressed and help the downtrodden. In what ways do you see that happening and manifesting through your music and do you think that has something to do with, “when the music hits you, you feel no pain”?

Family Man: Well that’s one good thing about the music - when it hits you, you feel no pain, my man. You know? The music is love; it’s life, ya know? And it tells you about reality and how to move through the earth. War is not the answer. Only love can conquer. War is very ugly but love is very lovely. Yes.

RockOm: When Exodus first came out did you know it would have the influence it had?

Family Man: Of course, because even the first time it was released I said to myself, I don’t figure they get the message fully yet. Before I heard the release of Kaya (we worked on both Exodus and Kaya at the same time), the single Exodus needed some more time before Kaya was released, to work on the business strategies, the marketing strategies. It was good. It’s also much better to see that they get the message after all and re-released it. (laughs) It’s good. And here we are out there promoting it, just like what we did with all the Bob Marley and the Wailers’ catalog. Year in and year out, no one else does that. We know what we do and people know - the world knows and God knows - that we keep the spirit of Bob alive through the reggae music and we’re out there generating it too, ya know? Only the Almighty can pay us for that, really. But we hang on there still. We know that God is real and also the devil, Satan, is real too. He has a lot of big people with him.

RockOm: Is music, the fire of music, a purifier?

Family Man: The fire of the music, yes, and the burning and the force of it and the energy. You will find the good, the bad and the indifferent around it for sure. It’s so precious.

RockOm: Let me ask you about “Natural Mystic” from Exodus. It’s a mysterious song. The lyrics say, “Many more will have to suffer, many more will have to die, don’t ask me why.” What was Bob saying in this song and why will many more have to suffer and die?

Family Man: There’s a part in the Bible that says, “Many are called, but few will be chosen,” and this could be the last trumpet. Just like when Noah was preaching for so many days, weeks, months and years warning the people of this great flood, because they didn’t have the Weather Channel in those times (laughs)! He was telling them to be good, make preparation; prepare yourself and your families to be in this ark. Many didn’t take him seriously. Just a handful did. So let it be.

RockOm: We’ve heard talk about a new album.

Family Man: Yes, we are working on a collaborative album, ya know. Something like Santana’s Supernatural with [various guest artists]. We said we would not disclose the names. We’re keeping that not so much a secret but a surprise for the music lovers. We still have to write three tracks to finish up before we start the mixing. We recorded some in Jamaica and some on the road. We have unreleased drum tracks with my brother playing drums. What I did was get in all the original members of the band to contribute, trying to catch back the ‘70’s and make it even better! So, that is the spirit, man. We make a new concept of rhythm around the drum tracks - like a brand new thing, like my brother is alive in the room playing the drums. It’s fantastic.

RockOm: How long are going to tour? How long are the Wailers going to stay on the road?

Family Man: How long you think I should? (laughs)

www.wailers.com

Photography by Tom Crenshaw

by Mel Cooke, The Gleaner, Jamaica W.I.

Though primarily a roots reggae album, Julian Marley delves into several other genres on his latest project, Awake.

On the album, due out May 26 through Ghetto Youths/Universal, there is a marked difference between the feel of two adjacent songs on the same topic, the slow, bare-bones (musically) "Just In Time", which is followed by the up-tempo reggae piece, "Jah Works". Both deal with the spirituality of the Rastafarian. Marley tells The Sunday Gleaner that the tempo for "Just In Time" was decided when the song was being constructed.

"Songs like that don't need a whole heap of instruments. It is a more organic sound. It is a desolate sounding song. Jah Works now, more upbeat, more in the reggae beat," he says.

Variations in tempo and vocal timbre are part and parcel of the album, the title track of which was the first that Marley came up with. (He points out that it took him two years from conceptualization to completion, but he was not "really consistent right through" the entire 24 months.) So he started out with the love song, "Oh Girl", featuring rapper Mr Cheeks, with a brief monologue in a deep voice and quickly goes into a good falsetto. "Boom Draw" is an out-and-out rub-a-dub tune, while "All I Know" is a hip-hop one.

Every little thing

Still, most of Awake is on familiar roots reggae ground. "Me is a man listen most of the legendaries," Marley says, adding that he listens to jazz, the blues and "every little thing".

"But when it come down to the roots we want to have it original," he said. And that means reggae rockers. "Jamaica has a history of reggae, just like America have a history of the blues. If you go to a blues show in America is like you are in the '50s. So me no care, me come fi deliver the roots and create it with live music." He can play a lot of that live music, as he plays the guitar, keyboard, bass and drums. The guitar is the accustomed composition tool, although he chuckles as he says if he had a keyboard with him he would probably write more songs.

Another pair of adjacent, thematically similar songs is "Rose Hall" and "A Little Too Late" (featuring brother, Stephen Marley). Both are about relationships where the male gets the bitter end of the stick. Marley says while they are not about his personal experiences, other persons he knows have been through them. They are in part intended for the men "to wise up. If you love a woman love her, but you can't lose yourself".

And while "Rose Hall" is not about the notorious Montego Bay lady, Marley says she is "one of the headliners. It is a lineage of people. It no have no colour either".

He is not looking askance at The Bible either, as in "Jah Works" Marley mentions Noah and the ark, as well as a pillar of salt. There is no conflict of spirituality here, as Marley says "of course Rastafari is biblically based. In The Bible, it speaks of the east. It may not say Ethiopia, but if you do your math ... Christ a go come in a new form," Marley said, referring to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. "As we live the prophecy reveal in front of our eyes."

Discrimination

"Violence in the Streets" features another brother, Damian 'Jr Gong' Marley. Julian sings about the youths who "say them can't gat a job/'cause they got no credential", while Jr Gong deejays about the youths being discriminated against because of their hair like wool. Julian says the song is about the plight of the youths in general.

"We represent the African children wherever we are. The wool is not necessarily the locks. Everyone have the wool same way. But we can use that song to represent Jamaica 'cause is nuff African brethren. This song is a very serious song. If me go England is the same thing," Marley tells The Sunday Gleaner.

He considers unemployment the beginning of violence.

"You can't eat no food, everything goes upside down. If you can't feed your youths, it gets bitter," he said. Still, he points out that "it is also a mentality that get us lazy along the way. Even if you get an opportunity, you been doing nothing for so long". He describes "All I Know", which uses the familiar image of the bucket going to the well repeatedly as a "parables kind of song", which applies to the personal as well as the international level, although "this song was composed even before the recession".

Marley says he is satisfied with his third album and says now it is a matter of promoting it, with the possibility of a promotional tour across the US. However, he says, "we need the support in Jamaica" because in matters of roots reggae, drum and bass, Jamaica is the base "of course".

No burden from father, brothers

In his facial features and stance onstage, Julian Marley is strikingly like his father Bob Marley. Being the closest thing to the physical replica of a legend can be as much a curse as a blessing, but the younger Marley has absolutely no doubts about the effect on him.

"Is a blessing. Is a blessing. If it wasn't a blessing we wouldn't be grateful for life. It is a blessing to be on Earth," he told The Sunday Gleaner. He points out that his father is a man from the hills, a man of the red dirt and soil, and "our father is our teacher so we learn same way". As for the possibility of being overshadowed by his brothers, including Stephen, Damian and Ziggy, Julian points out that "all of the brothers who do music, if you put us on a stage you going to enjoy everybody. We all have our unique thing. No shadows".

There may be a shadow over the Awake album's lead single though, as it may be restricted from airplay. Marley says, "Me hear a little thing, me no know. But me hear through de daggerin' ting we can't say certain tings. But we say herbs an' we a say it for 30, 40 years now." He advocates an individual assessment of songs for airplay, advising the powers that be to check all music and ban what needs to be banned.

"Jamaica is still hiding the truth and the truth get banned," he said. And although he has heard that "Boom Draw" "get couple play, it no get the full run". So although "Boom Draw" is available on iTunes, Marley says, "We want to penetrate the underground with this one, the sound system." It would seem too, that the most likely next single from Awake will be also pitched through the sound systems. As will the rub-a-dub "Violence in the Streets" with Damian 'Jr Gong' Marley.

http://www.myspace.com/royalmarley

An Interview with Cyril Neville
By Tom Crenshaw, tom@rockom.net

“It’s not so much brand new blues as it is brand new grooves.” So says Cyril Neville when asked to describe his new CD entitled Brand New Blues released April 7th on M.C. Records. It’s been eight years since his last release and Brand New Blues marks a distinctive departure from previous efforts.

The new album contains mostly original material written or co-written by Neville with the perspective of an outspoken human rights advocate. Brand New Blues is a musical gumbo containing a lifetime of musical influences & passions and spans the genres of blues, funk and soul. Brian J (of Pimps of Joytime) took care of the production chores and played most of the instruments while family and friends gathered to help Neville achieve his vision including Art Neville (Organ & Vocals), Ivan Neville (Organ), Ian Neville (Guitar), Tab Benoit (Guitar), Waylon Thibodeaux (Washboard) and Jumpin' Johnny Sansone on harmonica. The sessions were recorded in Brooklyn NY, Austin TX, Houma LA & New Orleans LA.

Cyril Neville is the youngest of the famed Neville Brothers and has made his own unique mark within the music industry with his distinctive style of music and his vision in serving and giving back to others. He does the latter primarily through a lifetime of service within the New Orleans’ community and through work with such causes as Amnesty International and wetlands conservation in Louisiana.

Cyril began singing professionally at 19 in 1967 and released his first single in 1970. He was the vocalist and conga player for the influential and successful band The Meters and contributed to two releases and a tour opening for the Rolling Stones (the Stones specifically stated that if Neville had not been a part of the Meters, they wouldn't have been asked). In addition to his work with the Neville Brothers, Cyril has formed other bands over the years including the Endangered Species Band in 1983 and the Uptown All-stars Band. Neville also found time to launch his own record label, Endangered Species, and founded the New Orleans Musicians Organized (NOMO), which helps musicians needing business advice with their careers.

Neville has issued several solo albums on his own including 1995's The Fire This Time and a pair in 2000, New Orleans Cookin' and Soulo. In addition he has guest performed on various other artists’ recordings over the years including albums by Edie Brickell, Jimmy Buffett, Dr. John, Bob Dylan, Daniel Lanois, Willie Nelson, Tab Benoit, and Big Chief Monk Boudreaux among others.

Tom: Tell me about Brand New Blues. What inspired the album and how are the blues brand new for you?

Cyril: Well actually it’s just brand new grooves put to blues lyrics in one sense. And we also did some traditional blues but we did it our own way. It basically came out the way it came out because of my friend Brian J who has a group called The Pimps of Joytime. He’s from Brooklyn, but I met him about 15 years ago in New Orleans where he was playing on the street in the French Quarter. I was working on a project that I had told a friend of mine I needed some help with. He said, “Man there’s a guy I’ve been playing with who is a one man band, he plays everything.” So basically the majority of the music that you hear on here is Brian J with the exception of Art Neville, Ivan Neville, Ian Neville, and Tab Benoit and [Jumpin’ Johnny Sansome on] the harmonica. Everything else: drums, bass, guitar, background vocals and some of the percussion is Brian J. We’ve worked together on a few other things before but this was definitely a labor love for both of us and we’ve been wanting to work on something special for some time. So when I decided to do a blues record he was one of the first people I called. So basically I sent him some lyrics, he put some music to the lyrics; he sent me some music, I put some lyrics to the music. Then we got together in Austin and we fleshed the project out. He took it back to Brooklyn, to his laboratory, put the finishing touches on it, and then brought it to New Orleans, got Art and them on it, brought it to the home of Louisiana and got Tab Benoit and the rest of the guys on it. Waylon Thibodeaux is playing the washboard, Jumpin’ Johnny Sansome is playing harmonica and Tab is playing guitar. Basically that’s how we came up with this musical Gumbo. Both of us have a great love not only for the blues, but for New Orleans at the same time. So that’s how it happened.

Tom: I’m loving the reggae infusion you’ve pumped into Brand New Blues (on M.C. Records, I should mention). How are blues and reggae similar and how do they differ?

Cyril: I was blessed to have traveled several tours with Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers when we were all young. I got to know the Marley family and saw that there were a lot of similarities in their lives and the people in New Orleans – food wise, spirituality, music, the whole 9 yards. It’s well documented that reggae music and the musicians in Jamaica were influenced by the music of New Orleans. I think Fats Domino went down there in the 50s and I guess that kinda turned things around too.

I had a band called The Uptown Allstars and we invented what we called Second Line Reggae. That’s where we learned all of the grooves the way the cats did them in Jamaica and then we put a New Orleans twist on it thanks to Mean Willie Green’s bass drum and his attitude. We called it Second Line Reggae because we didn’t want to just be repeating what someone else was doing but taking the stuff a few light years further, like they did with our music. We used to begin our shows by saying that we thought that New Orleans was not only the southern most point of America but the Northern most point of the Caribbean and that there were more similarities than differences between a black man in Jamaica and a black man in New Orleans. The thought that I have of it is that we do what we do for the same reasons – we don’t play music as a means of making a living. It’s a way of life.

Tom: In your liner notes you thank “The Great Spirit who moves through all things for life.” Is Brand New Blues a spiritual album and is there an essence of spirituality infused into it?

Cyril: Well everything I do has spiritual overtones to it. That is what I live for and how I live. Last October 10th I made 60 years old. In regulation years I’m 60 years old but in actuality I’m 120 because of the amount of stress that goes with being an African-American in a white supremist society. Also coming up in New Orleans I think you can add a year and a half onto each year. I’m saying it and joking with it but it’s actually the truth, man! There’s no way of describing what it’s like growing up black if you ain’t. It’s hard to understand it. I say that because I know that the reason I’m speaking to you right now is because of the love the Great Spirit has for me and that this gift of song that I have come directly from that. There must’ve been a reason that the Great Spirit put this gift in me. So every time I see injustice I have to put it into a song. That’s one of the things I loved about reggae music was the beautiful lilting melodies wrapped around those hard personal experiences – like “Slave Driver,” “Three o’clock Roadblock,” and “Them Belly Full but We Hungry.” Peter Tosh, Bunny Wailer, and Bob Marley were all three prophets in their own rights, working for a job, working for the Holy Spirit and that’s basically the way I am.

Tom: What do you say to white folks like me who love the blues and reggae and who don’t know anything about being black, who can’t understand because we weren’t raised in the black experience and yet we love the music and realize the spirituality in it?

Cyril: There’s really only one race on this planet and that’s the human race. What comes from the heart and from the soul goes straight to the heart and to the soul. So it’s like me riding in my dad’s taxi cab with him asking him why he was listening to this hillbilly music; he was listening to country and western. Because you listen to it and you learn something about the people who were singing it. That’s their blues. So I started listening more closely to what Hank Williams and some of those other guys were talking about. I saw it for what it was worth. I realized it was the same type of feelings, the same experiences but it was just from two different sides of the tracks. But it’s all basically coming from the same spirit. Loneliness is loneliness no matter what color your skin is. All of this skin stuff is a game someone invented to control people’s minds and actions.

The Blues cuts through age, through color, through all of that man. I’ve been on two Blues Cruises and I’ve not ever had that much fun in my life. Looking out in the audience I see people from all creeds, colors and genres. That’s the most beautiful thing in the world.

Tom: You’ve been an advocate for human rights with Amnesty International and have worked to conserve the wetlands in Louisiana. Would you be the same person you are today had you not become involved in these efforts?

Cyril: Yes, because I was doing all those thing before we ever heard of Amnesty International. There was a constant struggle going on in my hometown - a struggle for life. My whole thing is centered in the community that I come from. This thing called the Mardi Gras Indians is basically what saved my life. My uncle was the chief of the Mardi Gras Indian tribe called The Wild Chapatulas. The first Neville Brothers record was really the first Capatulas record because that was the first time we were all in the studio together. It was not only the Neville Brothers and my uncle Jolly but the musicians were The Meters, who came from the same neighborhood. That whole thing is very spiritual and it’s been compared to secret societies, African culture and Native American culture. It’s something that when I was growing up that you knew was not the same as the Mardi Gras floats and the people with the masks throwing things from them. This was something closer to the earth, closer to being real, closer to you who you were.

Cyril goes on to explain in detail more about Native American history, Mardi Gras, Hurricane Katrina and the aftermath and more. Hear the full interview on the April 9th Episode of the RockOm podcast.

Tom: New Orleans is different now as compared to six or seven years ago. When you play your new music there, there’s got to be some kind of celebration in your being there and your performing new music there.

Cyril: I celebrate being from there every time I open my mouth. I celebrate being from New Orleans. That’s the air that I still breathe. When I dream, I dream New Orleans. So I wrote a song about it called “I Got the Blues for New Orleans” which I did with the Voice of the Wetland All-stars. There’s also another song that Allen Toussaint and I wrote called “A Box of Pictures” about how who will believe that just in a matter of minutes everything that you hold dear will just be gone. All that’s left, luckily, is a box of pictures. That’s what a lot of people ended up with [after Katrina] – and some people didn’t even get that. And so I’m writing about a lot of this stuff and it’s therapeutic, I’ll tell you that; it’s healing. Because I do love New Orleans so.

http://www.mc-records.com/html/cyril_neville.html

http://www.nevilles.com/

http://www.myspace.com/cyrilnevilleandtribe13