U-Roy

Ewart Beckford OD (21 September 1942 – 17 February 2021),<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> known by the stage name U-Roy, was a Jamaican vocalist and pioneer of toasting.<ref name="AllMusic2">Jo-Ann Greene, U-Roy Biography Template:Webarchive, AllMusic. Retrieved 11 April 2013.</ref><ref name="ChangChen1998">Template:Cite book</ref> U-Roy was known for a melodic style of toasting applied with a highly developed sense of timing.

Early life

Ewart Beckford was born in Jones Town, Saint Andrew Parish, Kingston, Jamaica, on 21 September 1942.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He was raised within a religious and musical family; his mother was an organist for the choir at a local Seventh-day Adventist church.<ref name="UnitedReggae">Taylor, Angus, U-Roy Interview Template:Webarchive, United Reggae, 20 December 2012. Retrieved 7 April 2013.</ref> The sobriquet U-Roy originated from a younger member of his family who found it difficult to pronounce his first name.<ref name="Bogdanov2003">Template:Cite book</ref> Beckford attended Denham Town High School in Kingston.<ref>Cooke, Mel, "U-Roy Wakes The Town" Template:Webarchive, Jamaica Gleaner, 9 May 2010. Retrieved 8 April 2013.</ref> As a young man Beckford listened to the music of Louis Prima, James Brown, Ruth Brown, Fats Domino, Rufus Thomas, Smiley Lewis and was especially influenced by the vocal phrasing of Louis Jordan.<ref name="Reggae France">Rougeot. U-Roy Interview Template:Webarchive, Reggae France. Published 22 October 2012. Retrieved 12 April 2013.</ref>

Career

Inspired by Count Matchuki, U-Roy started his professional career as a deejay in 1961 on Dickie Wong's sound system (originally called Doctor Dickies later changed to Dickies Dynamic) moving later to the Sir George the Atomic sound system. He then worked on Sir Coxsone Dodd's sound system where he ran the number two set while King Stitt "The Ugly One" ran the main set. This was followed by a period with Sir Percy before he moved to King Tubby's Hometown Hi-Fi sound system.<ref>SNWMF site – U-Roy Biography Template:Webarchive. Retrieved 8 April 2013.</ref> His first single "Dynamic Fashion Way" (1969) was a Keith Hudson production.<ref name="Reggae France" /> It was followed by the Lee "Scratch" Perry production "Earth's Rightful Ruler" with Peter Tosh.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

In 1970, Jamaican singer John Holt (lead vocalist of the Paragons) heard U-Roy toasting over a Duke Reid track at a dance. Holt told Reid about the performance and on his recommendation Reid asked him to come and see him and an informal recording deal was arranged.<ref name="UnitedReggae" /> His first two singles on Duke Reid's Treasure Isle label in 1970, "Wake the Town" and "Wear You to the Ball", were Jamaican hits and established his reputation as one of Jamaica's most popular toasters. He went on to work with other major producers on the island including Lee "Scratch" Perry, Bunny Lee, Phil Pratt, Sonia Pottinger, Rupie Edwards, Alvin Ranglin and Lloyd Daley. 1971 saw the release of his deejay version of The Paragons' "The Tide Is High". He first toured the UK in 1972 with the artists Roy Shirley and Max Romeo.<ref>Katz, David (28 August 2008), "Obituary: Roy Shirley". The Guardian (UK). Template:Webarchive Retrieved 3 May 2013.</ref> The tour was organized by Rita and Benny King, the owners of R & B Records based in Stamford Hill, London.<ref>Peter I, Bunny Lee Interview Template:Webarchive, Reggae Vibes (no date). Retrieved 3 May 2013.</ref>

U-Roy's album Dread in a Babylon was released in the US, Europe and Jamaica by Virgin Records in 1975.<ref name="Inc.1977.TonyRobinson">Template:Cite book</ref> The album achieved significant sales in the UK, due in part to the ongoing expansion of the Virgin label and stores. The track "Runaway Girl" from the album was released as a single in Europe that same year. The success of Dread In A Babylon led to a series of Tony Robinson produced albums: Natty Rebel (1976), Rasta Ambassador (1977) and Jah Son Of Africa (1978).<ref name=AllMusic/> His international popularity led to the album Natty Rebel being released in 1976 on Virgin's Front Line label in Nigeria as well as in France on Virgin and Polydor.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news Template:In lang</ref>

U-Roy started his own sound system in 1978, which he named Stur Gav after his sons. The sound system would launch the careers of a younger generation of toasters and singers including Ranking Joe, Jah Screw, Charlie Chaplin and Josey Wales.<ref name="UnitedReggae" /> The pop group Blondie had a world-wide hit with a cover of "The Tide Is High" in 1980, prompting Virgin to re-release the original Paragons' recording from 1967 and the 1971 U-Roy version as a single that same year.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> His album Pray Fi Di People was released in 2012.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

U-Roy was featured on the album True Love by Toots and the Maytals, which won the Grammy Award in 2004 for Best Reggae Album, and showcased many notable musicians including Willie Nelson, Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, Trey Anastasio, Gwen Stefani / No Doubt, Ben Harper, Bonnie Raitt, Manu Chao, The Roots, Ryan Adams, Keith Richards, Toots Hibbert, Paul Douglas, Jackie Jackson, Ken Boothe, and The Skatalites.<ref>Toots and the Maytals. tootsandthemaytals.net. Web. "In Depth – Linear Notes" Template:Webarchive. Retrieved 9 November 2016.</ref>

He was awarded the Order of Distinction in 2007 by the Jamaican government for his contribution to music.<ref>U-Roy Order of Distinction Award Template:Webarchive, Jamaica Gleaner, 8 April 2008. Retrieved 6 April 2013.</ref>

His last recording was the song "The Coming of Jah Jah" for the project "The Deejay Battle: Sly & Robbie vs Roots Radics" released in April 2023 produced by the Grammy nominated musician and producer Hernan "Don Camel" Sforzini.

U-Roy's music and Rastafari

Rastafari has been a feature of U-Roy's lyrics from his earliest singles to his latest album Pray Fi Di People. Beckford's second single "Rightful Ruler" (1969) opens with a profession of Rastafari faith given in the Ethiopian language Amharic:

<poem>

Kibir amlak (Glory to Jah) Qedamawi ras fetari (First creator) Qedamawi iyesus kristos (Holy Jesus Christ) Lebdama mabrak isad Tenayistilgn (Greetings)

</poem>

His "Joyful Locks" (1975) is a DJ version of Linval Thompson's "Don't Cut Off Your Dreadlocks"; an encouragement to others to keep their dreadlocks and to "let it grow". The original song and U-Roy's DJ version both allude to the biblical Samson who as a Nazarite was expected to make certain religious vows including the ritual treatment of his hair as described in Chapter Six of the Book of Numbers:<ref name="Mahddy2014">Template:Cite book</ref>

All the days of the vow of his separation there shall no razor come upon his head: until the days be fulfilled, in the which he separateth himself unto the Lord, he shall be holy, and shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow.

Death

Beckford's death was confirmed on 17 February 2021 when his partner, Marcia Smikle, told the Jamaican newspaper The Gleaner. Trojan Records was also informed about his death. While no cause of death was made public at the time, he suffered from diabetes, hypertension, and problems with his kidneys prior to his death, and had been undergoing surgery at the hospital.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Legacy

Beckford was preceded by the toasters Count Matchuki, King Stitt and Sir Lord Comic who themselves were influenced by the jive talk of the US disc jockeys that they heard on American radio stations whose broadcasts reached the Caribbean. Beckford was the first toaster to popularize the form through a series of successful releases on the Duke Reid label gaining a wider audience for toasting. This approach to production and the remixing of previously recorded tracks with a new vocal influenced the early hip-hop pioneers.<ref name="NYT">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Kool Herc states:

"Hip-hop….the whole chemistry of that came from Jamaica…..In Jamaica all you needed was a drum and a bass. So what I did was go right to the ‘yoke’. I cut off all the anticipation and just played the beats. I’d find out where the break in the record was and prolonged it and people would love it. So I was giving them their own taste and beat percussion wise….cause my music is all about heavy bass."<ref>Reggae’s Impact on Hip-Hop – Jamie Ann Board (UVM Debate Paper – 17 April 2000). Template:Webarchive Retrieved 22 April 2013</ref>

Many internationally known dancehall deejays have acknowledged U-Roy as an influence on their careers, including Sean Paul and Shabba Ranks.<ref name="NPR">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Album discography

• Version Galore (1970)<ref name=AllMusic>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• Version Galore Vol. 2 (1972)<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
• U Roy (1974)<ref name=AllMusic/>
• Dread in a Babylon (1975) – produced by Prince Tony Robinson<ref name=AllMusic/>
• Natty Rebel (1976)<ref name=AllMusic/>
• The Best of U Roy (1976)<ref name=AllMusic/>
• Right Time Rockers-The Lost Album (1976) <ref name=AllMusic/>
• African Roots (1976)<ref name=Foster>Template:Cite book</ref>
• Rasta Ambassador (1977)<ref name=AllMusic/>
• Jah Son of Africa (1978)<ref name=AllMusic/>
• With Words of Wisdom (1979)<ref name=AllMusic/>
• The Originator (1980)<ref name=AllMusic/>
• Love Gamble (1980)<ref name=Foster/>
• Line Up and Come (1986)<ref name=AllMusic/>
• Music Addict (1987) - produced by Prince Jazzbo
• True Born African (1991) – produced by Mad Professor<ref name=AllMusic/>
• Smile a While (1993) – produced by Mad Professor<ref name=AllMusic/>
• Babylon Kingdom Must Fall (1996) – produced by Mad Professor<ref name=AllMusic/>
• Reggae Live Sessions Vol-1 (1998)<ref name=AllMusic/>
• Serious Matter (2000)<ref name=AllMusic/>
• Now (2001) – produced by Guillaume Bougard/Pierre Simonin<ref name=AllMusic/>
• Rebel in Styylle (2005) – Mediacom<ref name=AllMusic/>
• Old School/New Rules (2007) – produced by Mad Professor<ref name=AllMusic/>
• Pray Fi Di People (2012) – produced by Ewart Beckford<ref name=AllMusic/>
• Talking Roots (2018) – produced by Mad Professor<ref name=AllMusic/>
• Solid Gold U-Roy (2021) <ref name=AllMusic/>
• Dread In A Africa U-Roy (2022) Jamaican Art Records
• The Deejay Battle: Sly & Robbie vs. Roots Radics feat. Big Youth (2023) Serious Reggae

External links

• Smokeyroom's Version Galore
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• Natty Rebel (1976) Nigerian release at Discogs
• "Joyful Locks" (1975) Bunny Lee production at Discogs
• U-Roy Live & Interview
• "Heavy Duty" (2016) at Spotify
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