Let The Day Begin...Let The Day Start!: Day 189 Black Uhuru

Red - Black Uhuru

Island

Produced by Sly & Robbie

Released May 1981

UK Chart #28

01 - Youth Of Eglington
02 - Sponji Reggae
03 - Sistren
04 - Journey
05 - Utterance
06 - Puff She Puff
07 - Rockstone
08 - Carbine

I have loads of great Reggae albums in my collection from the early days of Trojan and Blue Beat to Studio One classics and the Greensleeves label. One of the finest mainstream labels in the UK for Reggae back in the 70s going into the 80s was Island Records. Of course they were responsible for introducing the music of Robert Nesta Marley to these shores as well as the likes of Linton Kwesi Johnson and Birmingham pioneers Steel Pulse.

Another one of their International Reggae acts that I have a lot of affection for is Black Uhuru (Uhuru is Swahili for 'Freedom').

Red was their fourth studio album and possibly their most successful album chartwise but they would go on to win a Grammy for their 1983 album Anthem, and surprisingly they would also tour with the Rolling Stones (Keith Richards had actually played guitar on an early single version of  Shine Eye Gal)!

Red had a more commercial sound than anything they had released up until that point and was a sign of good progression on Sinsemilla seeing that this was only the second release with the line-up of Derek "Duckie" Simpson, Michael Rose, Sandra "Puma" Jones, Sly Dunbar, and Robbie Shakespeare.

Seeing that the album is 35 years old it's incredible that it still sounds so fresh I think. I always say it, good music endures.

Let The Day Begin...Let The Day Start!