Tag: Toots Hibbert

"I Shall Sing"

Van Morrison’s “Binned” 1969 Pop Reggae

All these years I’ve naively assumed “I Shall Sing” to be a Judy Mowatt early reggae original (and 1974 Jamaican chart-topper, according to this Los Angeles Times piece from 1986). And yet that same Times piece makes clear, Judy Mowatt was taking her musical inspiration from Miriam Makeba (not Art

June 3, 2016 1 Comment

"Second Fiddle"

1973: The Year Pop Reggae Broke

You can count on one hand the number of times that reggae singles by Jamaican artists have cracked the Top 40 here in the States: “Israelites” by Desmond Dekker in 1969 (#9) and “Double Barrel” by Dave Barker and Ansel Collins in 1971 (#22). Two times [*actually, three – see

January 31, 2013 3 Comments