As I’ve certainly said before, I think that the art of writing song lyrics is one which is largely underrated in music as a whole, but particularly I find that this is true within Reggae music. Besides the typical things involved, such as the dialect/accent issue, I just don’t think that too many actually think about the concept of someone sitting down to write a Reggae song. On top of that, we also have artists who aren’t necessarily open about how the writing process takes place (and that’s not a critique, they can certainly do what they like) for them or if they are, it may be very cryptic (such as I Wayne noting that his ever present source of inspiration for writing all of his songs is “the wind”) to say the least. Still, as a writer myself to some degree, I’ve always found the actual writing of lyrics, that actual process to be a very interesting one insofar as I’ve gotten information on exactly how some of the various different artists do it. Of course my curiosity, however, hasn’t been even remotely satiated to the point of relieving my interest and ultimately I think I’d like if Reggae music was as celebrated lyrically as some of the other forms of music and in doing that I think that it would definitely shed some light on exactly how SIGNIFICANT these words are. I review album after album with lesson after lesson and many people are still oblivious not only to this wonderful music itself, but these wonderful concepts and perspectives had by many of our artists. Perhaps a nice way to bring some attention to some of our writers, especially those who exists almost exclusively behind the scenes would be to actually make an album essentially written by one, particularly one who isn’t very well known and you could, essentially, use the album as a sort of an introduction to the masses. In Reggae we get compilations which are showcases of artists, musicians, labels, producers, styles and even showcases of older artists who are no longer with us, but I’m sitting here and trying to wrack my brain to think of an album which served as a showcase for a WRITER in the most genuine since of the word and I’m not coming up with very much at all actually. I’m tempted to go back further and think of such a thing in the context of Dancehall music, where the existence of a ‘ghost writer’ has long become the norm and could you imagine if one day someone just released an album of - say tunes that Vybz Kartel or Tyrical wrote for other artists and did so before they both made their big break? I definitely think it would have added to what they have become (especially in Tyrical’s case) and on top of that, it would have just been COOL. But, it never happened and it probably never will.
All things are possible, however, as is evident by the project which brings us here today, Wadada: The 1st Itation from the venerable Virgin Island Reggae wizard Tuff Lion’s Outpost Music Workshop. This album is so inherently interesting that I don’t even quite know where to start with talking directly about it. Okay, first of all what the album is basically a compilation, but it’s not in the sense that we’re used to seeing. As I alluded to, most Reggae compilations will have certain things which tie the tunes which comprise them together, like a riddim or a producer or a label, the unifying structure, however, is a writer whose voice you won’t hear one time on this album to my knowledge. The album is named Wadada after the man ’Wadada’, James Gittens, who wrote 80% of the songs on the album (and the other two out of twelve selections were written by his step-son and his good friend) (more on them in a bit). It’s unfortunate that I don’t actually know more of the story behind this album, because given the press release that I read on it, apparently Gittens wrote quite a bit of these tunes, as poems, during a time of his incarceration and upon emerging from that situation, he eventually linked with the Tuff Lion, in a musical sense (I’m going to assume they were quite friendly before he was incarcerated given what happened here). The Lion then took those poems and apparently presented them to some of the absolutely sensational artists with whom he had worked in his career, he developed MUSIC for them and now he releases on his own label what is Wadada: The 1st Itation. That is VERY interesting! That is healthy material. You can very well be sure that upon learning that, the very first thing that went through my mind is that there has to be some SERIOUS vibes here and the poems which Gittens wrote had to be of such a nature to impress Tuff Lion to such a degree which he would subsequently take them on musically (and can you imagine how much work that had to be), take them to the artists and then take them worldwide. These are the actions of a man who has been around music for who knows how long at this point and has probably received music from people all over the world wanting to work with him throughout the years and not only that but - in all frankness - he’s one of the best Reggae producers and musicians on the planet and for him to take such an interest in any bodies of work (much less words which have to be musically translated) is a ‘serious thing’ indeed. The album comes at a time where it is essentially released in tandem with Ras Iba’s outstanding new album Matsahyel which is marking and immediate return to business of sorts for Tuff Lion’s label, Outpost Music Workshop (and apparently there’s a next release forthcoming from an artist by the name of Bless Noble) and hopefully forecasting it to be a more active and ’visible’ year for them in full. Well, first of all, if Ras Iba’s release was any indication (and I’m sure it was) then it is going to be a big 2010 for Tuff Lion and Outpost, but taking Wadada now into account, this album, probably the single most interesting ‘compilation’ which I’ve heard in a long time, would seem to portend a year which is potentially just as INTERESTING as it is mighty.
Any songwriter at any stage of their career would be so fortunate as to have the artists chosen on this album to sing their songs. Not only are you dealing with Tuff Lion on production, but some of the VI Reggae scene’s top talents in general, but of course the ‘star’ here is Wadada, the man, and his beautiful words.
The way the album is set - of the ten tunes written by Gittens, listeners are certain to be familiar with four of the artists on board, who really are stars of Virgin Island Reggae music. The first name you’re definitely going to recognize is Ras Iba’s who gets things off to a BLAZING start for Wadada: The 1st Itation with a tune which would have very well fit on to Matsahyel, ‘Jailhouse Pack’. The tune carries on messages (coincidentally) that Iba explored on his own tune ‘Jah People’ as it espouses on Gittens’ own personal experiences and observations of having been incarcerated and I won’t at all spoil the BEAUTIFULLY poignant Punchline of this tune, which carries a typical lovely bounce via Tuff Lion, but rest assured Gittens very carefully, but SPECIFICALLY makes a point which you can imagine seeing yourself in such a situation. Big tune and definitely one of the album’s finest. Iba returns later on with the slightly aforementioned ‘Serious Thing’ which is apparently the first single from the album and has done quite well. This tune is arguably better than the opener as it goes in a different direction and just may be the strongest written tune on the entire album! There is a stretch (you can call it a bridge if you’d like, or whatever it is on the technical side) later on in ‘Serious Thing’ where Iba goes on making and remaking and stressing a point about “15 to 25” and I could infer SO MUCH from that (my longtime readers probably already know where I‘m headed given the circumstances surrounding Gittens writing much of the album), but instead I’ll just ASSURE you how powerful that portion is and the entire tune where Iba familiarly stresses that “love is the beginning of the answer”, to solve the problems of our planet. INDEED! Sweet singing Army is also on board and when I saw his name I realized that ‘Down & Out’ may just be the first new tune that I’ve heard from the St. Croix veteran in quite awhile and, as usual, he definitely makes a big impression with the tune. The song is very simple and straight forward and essentially and wonderfully suggests that we seek His Majesty at moments where our life or situations in particular aren’t going as planned and it’s yet another very strong addition to the album.
As I tried to make the point earlier, Tuff Lion REALLY liked the material he received from Gittens obviously. So much so, in fact, that he decided to take on three of the compositions himself and Tuff Lion singing is something which unfortunately those of us who aren’t fortunate enough to see him perform live don’t get too often, so its definitely a real blessing here. The Lion first dives in with ‘Tyrants’ which has such a powerful vibes to it, even apart from the actual words on the tune. Those actual words speak of the absolutely RIDICULOUS lengths to which the oppressors of the world will go to preserve their oppression and how it seemingly knows no end (nor boundaries) within the world of those who are the oppressed. And speaking of oppression, the Lion returns with his second effort in the name of the master of the tyrants, ‘Satan’. The power of this tune, for me personally, comes within the possibilities of how it is worded. It doesn’t do anything ‘straight forward’, instead what it does is infuses worldly imagery to an otherworldly figure and doesn’t use Satan as a spirit, but attempts to show that ‘He’ indeed does have man-like characteristics, so I took the tune as a warning of sorts to mind who you spend your time around, definitely. And Tuff Lion’s final selection on Wadada is a lover’s piece, the very nice ‘Though We’re Apart’. This piece has grown to become my favourite amongst the Lion’s offerings on the album. Although it lacks the social or spiritual ramifications of his two previous tunes, there’s certainly room (especially in Reggae) for music which simply MAKES YOU FEEL GOOD and that is exactly what happens on ‘Though We’re Apart’.
The most popular and recognizable name on the album is Ras Attitude. The WICKED chanter from out of St. Croix has been dazzling fans for years and may arguably be the single most talented vocalist (all-around) from out of the Virgin Islands as of yet. His first go on the album is the curiously very familiar ‘Peaceful Man’ (which I’m almost sure I know from somewhere). I could have quite a bit of fun analyzing the source of this tune on Gittens’ part, because it sounds maybe like something he’s been through and it’s definitely a big vibes which Attitude conveys nearly perfect (especially when he defiantly says, “I won’t lose my peace to these beasts”). Attitude next returns with my favourite of his three tunes, ‘Country Man’. As a country youth myself, it definitely struck a heavy chord with me and I well appreciated its simplicity, but its candidness as well, such as when Attitude says, “Natty can’t go hungry in the country, nuff food deh bout fi keep I structure healthy”. It is a very lovely tune and not only Attitude’s best, but one of the best on the entire album as well. Ras Attitude’s final effort is also the closer on Wadada, the title track. The first thing you might want to know about the song is that it is well over eleven minutes long. The tune itself is just about appreciation of the vibes and the music and life in general, but the real star here is the music as the Lion crafts a wonderful and HEAVY one-drop which eventually ascends to being the main attraction on the tune and I could listen to Tuff Lion instrumentals all day long, so you know I enjoyed this one and so will you, I’m sure.
Lastly, there’re three artists here who you probably won’t be familiar with at all, just as I wasn’t for the most part. ‘Ghetto Children’ is a BIG tune here featuring Soul Sista (who you’ll hear singing backing vocals throughout the album alongside Empress Tonya Encarnacion and Sahra Indio (who I’ll probably tell you more about in a couple of weeks)) alongside a chanter named Ginjah Roots. I love Soul Sista’s very mellow tones and by contrast there’s Ginjah’s (not that Ginjah) somewhat excited chanting on a very powerful tune aimed at uplifting the children of the world and doing a great job in my opinion. Later on, you’ll hear a tune called ‘Don’t Want You Around’ which is by an artist by the name of Coman who just so happens to be James Gittens’ stepson. His is one of the two tunes not written by Gittens on the album and I’ll tell you something - when you first listen this tune you might not like it and it’s still not my one my favourites on the album after many listens, BUT it is better than you might think after your initial spin and I wouldn’t at all be surprised if it grows on me even more (the riddim on that tune is AMAZING!). And finally, after all of that, it is probably anti-climatic and I am somewhat embarrassed to say that my absolute favourite tune on Wadada the album wasn’t actually written by Wadada the man. Doc James’ is a name which I think I’m somewhat familiar with to some degree (and the press release lists him as a “veteran bandleader, bassist and vocalist”) and his tune here, ‘Burnin’ is downright hypnotic. His name sounds like someone from out of the Old West and he actually sounds like it also, with this kind of gravelly kind of murmuring style of delivery which mines pure GOLD on this song. The tune speaks of just stepping up and being accountable for what you do and say and not running away from what may come and it is simply BEAUTIFUL and within this still young year, it’s may be the best Reggae tune I’ve heard thus far. Yes, it’s that good!
Overall, as usual with Tuff Lion releases, I feel inclined to mention just how well done throughout this one is musically. It goes to show just how impressed (and rightly) so that he must’ve been with Wadada’s material to go to this level to support his pieces with some WORLD CLASS backdrops which didn’t create themselves and most certainly took quite a bit of time. Apart from that, what struck me, particularly in the case of Iba (who I feel has more of a pinpointed and specific style than the other familiar vocalists on the album), was how well the lyrics written by Gittens matched something that the artist might write and sing on their own. As I said, ‘Jailhouse Pack’ sounded directly like something from Iba’s most recent album and although I haven’t heard MUCH from Tuff Lion, none of the tunes he sings sounded like something which was out of his general scope and definitely none of them should surprise you. I’m also quite interested in the fact that the album is subbed - ‘The 1st Itation’ - which to me means we may be in store for a series of sorts and can you imagine the potential lineups of artists to voice some of Gittens’ tunes from Tuff Lion’s ‘connections’ (and I may even be interested in hearing some of these same tunes voiced by other artists also). Be it the case of being the first in a series or a standalone release, Wadada: The 1st Itation is an excellent release. HEAVY fans of Reggae are sure to enjoy it and it’s an early favourite for compilation of the year. I love the idea of focusing on a WRITER, it’s one which is long overdue and Wadada’s messages are of the type where now is a PERFECT time for them to be released to the masses, myself included and hopefully you as well.
Rated 4.5/5
The Outpost Music Workshop
2010
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