This right here is a first. Unless you are in possession of one of Steel Pulse’s 12-inch singles, which are fairly rare to come by, you have probably never heard a Steel Pulse dub track. I’m not sure why they have not explored their own music through dub, but I do plan to ask David Hinds this very question when I do the interview (soon come I hope).
Here you have the opening track to their debut album and a real stunner. Think about it. This is the very first time that many people are hearing Steel Pulse. If this opener did not grab each and every listener by the throat, then they are just not reggae fans. It’s just that simple. Hinds’ vocal is not only pitch-perfect, but his message both positive yet apprehensive. Deep. Almost Marley-esque:
I say the people of Handsworth, know that
One hand wash the other so they say
So let’s join hands my bredren
Make the way for our children (our children, our children)
And their children (their children, their children)
Ensuring that they get life’s fair share of…
Equality…
Doesn’t justice stand for all
Doesn’t justice stand for all
Doesn’t justice stand for all mankind
We find society putting us down
Crowning us, crowning us, crowning us, crowning us
A place of Evil, OH, OH
Handsworth means us the Black People
Handsworth means us the Black People
We’re taiklng now. Speaking Jah Jah language!
I lost many hours, maybe even days, listening to this album when I first found it. Bombtrack after bombtrack after bombtrack.
“Handsworth Revolution,” “Bad Man,” “Soldiers,” “Sound Check,” “Prodigal Son,” “Ku Klux Klan,” “Prediction,” “Macka Splaff” all in rapid succession. A virtual atom bomb dropped right into the crowded streets of Babylon in 1978, coming five months after the release of their first single for Island records “Ku Klux Klan.” The album, brilliantly produced by Bob Marley’s own engineer Karl Pitterson, reaches #9 on the British charts just 10 days after its release. The band would soon support Bob Marley & The Wailers on a 12-date European tour in June and July 1978, including concerts in Paris, Ibiza, Gothenburg, Stockholm, Oslo, Rotterdam, Amsterdam, and Brussels. The tour kicked off with an outdoor festival at the New Bingley Hall in Stafford. David Hinds recalls:
We learned a lot of discipline on that tour that rubbed off – rehearsal, execution on stage, how to tour, stability [...] that’s when the doors really started to open for us. It has always been one of the most memorable moments of my career. To play as part of that package exposed Steel Pulse to audiences that literally were in awe of our message. Of course, being formally introduced through Bob Marley helped us tremendously. Playing for audiences, especially those in Paris who saw the force of Steel Pulse and the force of Bob Marley play on the same bill, enabled us to sell out shows every time since then.
The dub track included here is just phenomenal. Unspeakably strong. Here’s for a Steel Pulse in Dub album come real soon!
Related articles
- Dubwise Garage ‘Midnight Raver Millenial Mix 2013′ (midnightraverblog.com)
- Steel Pulse – full reggae concert (parkereactmusic.wordpress.com)
- DERMOT HUSSEY’S 5 top reggae albums (midnightraverblog.com)
- Bob Marley Rastaman Vibration by Ian Burrell (midnightraverblog.com)
- Bob Marley: One Love Peace Concert 1978 (Re-Up!) (midnightraverblog.com)
