Reggae Strong—Black Uhuru, Pt. 1

The first reggae supergroup to win a Grammy in 1984, Black Uhuru, exemplifies the militant roots tradition of the Waterhouse sound. Reggae Strong interviewed Black Uhuru in 1984— Mykal, Duckie, Puma, Sly and Robbie—after their show at the Ritz...the shortest interview we ever did, and if you heard Duckie's recent interview on Entertainment Report Podcast, (   • DUCKIE SIMPSON (BLACK UHURU) On Sly &...  ), it's easy to understand why no one was too chatty that night.

So in this episode, we picked up the Black Uhuru story in 1986, as Duckie, Puma and Junior Reid returned to NY again to do a show at the Ritz. And when the crew traveled to JA in 1987, Stafford interviewed Duckie again, driving in KIngston.

Included are original concert and rehearsal clips shot at The Ritz, with Earl Chinna Smith on guitar and Santa Davis on drums performing, "Conviction or a Fine", "Great Train Robbery" and "Let Us Pray". The News and Reviews segment with the Night Nurse,, was shot in Kingston in 1990, and added later, when this episode was re-broadcast on WNYC-TV. I've also added one of the original cultural segments, on dread-wrapping, with Henry Shillingford (shot at long-gone Tower Records downtown).

On a directorial note: nobody got good shots of Chinna onstage during, "Great Train Robbery", and every time I look at this, I am irked, remembering the intention to make up for that by shooting him doing his guitar solo atop a train trestle in Jamaica. One of those of those plans that got thwarted for one reason or another during the JA shoot....

Special thanks to Stafford Ashani, may he R.I.P., and cameraman, Jefferson Miller.