Always around. I think that if you, like me, are a fan of modern Roots Reggae music, then we just might be a little spoiled. It's the type of genre which isn't the hardest to support as it consistently provides not only a great deal of material, in general, but a lot of it which is of tremendous quality. On top of that, I think while it may have been the narrative that people like me went on a few years ago -- Roots Reggae being underrated and underappreciated -- that things have changed in the biggest pictures. Certainly, like in any type of music (or probably in any type of anything else), we have more than a few individual artists and producers who go overlooked in respects to their talents, but I think Roots Reggae has grown to a level which even tops Dancehall. Dancehall tends to have more spectacular, breakout moments than Roots does, but on the 'day-in and day-out' business, we definitely see more work being done, globally, on the Roots side. Sure, a great deal of that would be due to the works of people like Chronixx and Jah9 and Kabaka Pyramid as this new class of reigning queens and kings that we currently enjoy and, even more so, to the likes of Sizzla Kalonji, Capleton, Buju Banton, Luciano and Anthony B who saw over the previous era. Of course, if you wanted to, you'd trace that back even further and ultimately end up at a man named Bob and his peers and the processes have continued. Today we're taking a look at someone who I didn't just mention but is a name who, SO WONDERFULLY, is within a group of very powerful artists who, while they do tend to receive a great deal of attention at times and are capable of scoring sizable hits at any time (and often do), are not THE biggest names in the genre. I'm talking about people like Richie Spice. While I've never been his biggest fan, I have to give credit where it is du. Richie Spice has had an incredible career and, were he to never voice another record, he'd go down as one of the greatest champions of Roots Reggae music of his era. I'm talking about artists like Jah Mason, Queen Ifrica, Lutan Fyah (a definite favourite of mine now and long time), Mark Wonder [ditto!], Bushman (probably going to review a Bushman album pretty soon) and a few more (like Norris Man). These are individuals who have countless hits amongst them and will go on, likely, to have quite a few more. You'll find bona fide classic albums in there as well and you cannot tell a story of the music in its modern era which is worth a damn without including each and every one of their names in some respect. If you take a closer look at that lot, maybe the single biggest name would be Richie Spice, and someone very much in that scope would be the fantastic Chezidek.
I took the angle I did for this review because, when I decided I was going to try to write for this album, i found myself thinking, heavily, about a couple of things. The first was something I'm going to tell you about in just a minute and it was an extension of the second (... I guess that makes the second one the first then) (nevertheless). The second thing on my mind at the time was just how impressive of a career Chezidek has put together. It was a very brief nineteen years ago now that the singer from out of St. Ann with the unusual voice would begin to make his name globally via the release of one of the most solid debut albums you'll ever hear, the Xterminator steered "Harvest Time" (which is probably a modern classic contender) (I can definitely call it a PERSONAL classic). Since then, the singer has gone onto enjoy such a wonderful career which has taken him all over the world and seen him score a great deal of hits. As I said about Richie Spice, were Chezidek never to make another song, his legacy would be secure as one of the most CONSISTENT lights Reggae music has ever produced. And last year, when he dropped his most recent album, the only thing he did was to enhance an already CHUNKY musical estate (it could stand a few minutes on the treadmill).
Along with reaching with a relatively steady stream of hits of varying degrees and a nearly inerrant supply of big tunes, Chezidek has also done big business on the album side of things. Along with "Harvest Time" ["INNA DEM MIND!"], he has given us GEMS such as "Inna Di Road", "Freedom Fighters" ["Dem ah dweet. A dem ah dweet"], a woefully forgotten GIANT of a release produced by Bassie Campbell (still available on the digital side, check it out if you have not) and, most notably, "Judgement Time" and its followup "The Order Of Melchezidek", which were both produced by impressive Dutch outfit, Jahsolidrock (who is still around!). "Judgement Time" was his best album to date in my opinion and it has gone on to become declared an actual CLASSIC on these pages. During out hiatus, he remained very active, releasing a trio of projects over the course of three years. The most recent of these and the most high profile was a SWEET set by the name of "Hello Africa" which arrived just last year (a few months following "Timeless"... which I probably shouldn't talk about too much because I may decide to review it one day) (it was very interesting). Throughout his career, Chezidek has done albums for a variety of different producers and labels. Along with the aforementioned Jahsolidrock [MUSIC FROM THE HIGHEST REGION], the Bobby Konders produced "Inna Di Road" came from Greensleeves, "Harvest Time" and its very strange younger sibling, "Rising Sun" (an album which has wholly perplexed me for the last sixteen years and, should I live long enough, will likely do the same for the next sixteen), were VP Records' releases produced by Xtermnator and he's also worked with the likes of the legendary Sly & Robbie ("I Grade"), Flava McGregor ("Firm Up Yourself") and others. For its part, the self-produced "Hello Africa" would come to fruition via the always reliable Tad's Records (simply one of the strongest labels in all of Reggae music, whether you realize it or not) ("Through It All", new album from George Nooks, available now). This was not a first pairing either. Back in 2009, there was the "Herbalist" album, also from Tad's. That album stands out in my mind, unfortunately, because it basically inhaled much of the Al.Ta.Fa.An. controlled "Mash Dem Down" from three years prior (and, again, that's unfortunate because, looking back, though a bit HEAVY at twenty-two tracks, "Herbalist" was a pretty good album), but it was the first Chezidek/Tads's Records link. Eleven years later (ten for the disc), they'd do it again and, this time there would be absolutely nothing "unfortunate" about the results. Let's talk about it!
As I alluded to, when I initially decided to do a review on this album, a pair of things really stood out. One of them was the just how impressive Chezidek had been throughout his career. The first??? The first thing that hung around for me in regards to "Hello Africa" was just how OUTSTANDING of an album that it was. Even before I get into the songs and just taking a quick glance at things - I can tell you that while I still favour "Judgement Time" and "The Order Of Melchezidek" (by slim margins), I can't say that about any of the rest of them. That includes both "Harvest Time" and "Inna Di Road". "Hello Africa" was fantastic from beginning to end. That "beginning" was a real highlight in the form of 'My Life'. Previously, Chezidek hit in a major way with a song called "All My Life" from "The Order Of Melchezidek" and he had something else special on his hands with this similarly titled (but different) track.
"When good people bad-
And real people get mad
It's gonna be so sad
Who is gonna save the world now?
The hurdles are so high!
The gap's getting so wide!
And still we won't run nor hide
Stand up on yuh feet when the time come
CANNOT WAIT FI DEP SEA FI DRY DUNG
TRAP-SETTERS AH LOOK MAN FI TIE DUNG
John Crow just ah wait just fi fly dung
Whole heap a youth ah live just fi die young
Juvenile ah save up fi buy gun
AND YOU KNOW SEH JAH NEVA DENY NONE
My life, my only life
My life, defend it with all my life
I know that I have all rights
Fighting down yuh brother is all that you know
Where are you headed?
Where will you go?
Then you say you ae the victim of injustice
But hatred and jealousy is all that you show
How can you what I've endured?
You never walked my way, I'm sure
LEARN FROM EXPERIENCE UNTIL THERE'S MORE
ONLY JAH JAH CAN MAKE SECURE
How can you trust when you hurt before?
How can you love when you're tricked before?
When you walk right through that door
Only Jah Jah know"
BOOM! Lyrically speaking, 'My Life' ranks EASILY amongst Chezidek's very best (like EVER) and he uses a very sharp pen to push a message about things like pride and understanding people and their situation to the best of your ability. To my opinion, BARELY, it is the very best selection on the whole of "Hello Africa", but there may actually be around four or five others for which you could make that claim. Next we find the artist calling for 'Freedom' on an inspirational piece which (is excellent, but isn't amongst the best here for me, showing just how strong it is, ultimately) has this big, beautiful and vibrant sound to it. It is that vibe which will grab your attention at first, but it advances on more than that. Relatively simple, 'Freedom' will grow on you! You will enjoy it more on the fifth listen than you did the first and I think that is due to just how well done it is. Along with that attractive vibes, you have a song which is well 'covered'. There's nothing which is wasted and, for his part, again, Chezidek writes a very nice song and one which will almost surely make you SMILE. The moving call to action, 'March', was one of the singles from "Hello Africa" and it was another big tune. This one, from a bigger point of view, was one of the most crucial on this album and probably from the last few years of Chezidek's career on the whole. It primarily looks at institutionalized racism from a historical side. Fittingly, 'March' is somewhat of a bleak song at times and it never fully gets around to lifting itself out of that, but near its end, Chezidek (accompanied by some excellent horn-play) does begin to offer the listener something in the way of at least a little sunshine, suggesting that the work is necessary to be done for the benefit of the forthcoming generation ["We must overcome - through the powers of The Most High, for the betterment of the children!"]. Even if this one were kind desolate throughout, however, because of what it is about, it would have worked, but that kind of bright moment at its end is definitely a highlight. 'Because I'm Black' continues the them of 'March' and, arguably, even takes it up a notch. Though a few years old by the time "Hello Africa" reached, it seemed to get something of a 'second-wind' via the nice push it received for this album. I hear songs, albums full of them, which I always think are so amazing and I always wonder what may have happened to them if more people got the opportunity to hear them on a bigger level. Fortunately I won't have to wonder the same thing about 'Because I'm Black' and, when you hear it, it becomes crystal-clear exactly why this song deserved such a spotlight.
"The whole a alla wi-
A one family tree
Created equally
To live in harmony
Then why must I be-
Fighting to be free?
Don't make yourself to be-
Downpressor to me
YOUR HATE WAS ALL YOU SHOWED
WHEN LOVE IS WHAT WE NEED TO GROW
Don't come crucify I, because I'm black
You waan come persecute I, because I'm black
You waan come execute I, because I'm black
You waan come exterminate I, because I'm black
You waan come demonize I, because I'm black
You waan come false imprison I and I, because I'm black
Enslave I and I, because I'm black
Brainwash I and I, because I'm black
Deceive I and I, because I'm black"
There is a song on "Hello Africa" called 'Jah Protect I Life' which is, in full, about as COMPLETE and SATISFYING of a Roots Reggae selection that I've heard in a VERY long time. It is a SENSATIONAL song! There was a project that Bushman did years ago by the name of "Signs" and on of the biggest things about it was that it was recorded entirely (if I recall accurately) with a live band. And when you listened to it, you could hear the quality in the musicianship and the sonics linking so nicely. I don't know if 'Jah Protect I Life' was recorded like that (I doubt it), but it DEFINITELY has that quality to its sound. It just pushes this stinging level of... I don't even know how to explain it (I tell you all the time, I'm an old ass man). But I walk away from hearing it, thinking that someone really did their job on 'Jah Protect I Life'. For his part, the singer is sure to not waste the moment and we find him at the height of his powers, giving thanks and praises to a degree that has me now rethinking my selection of the best song I'm finding here. 'Jah Protect I Life' was downright MAGICAL. Later on we get another song which grabs me in a similar way, the MASSIVE 'Inna Dem Eye', on which Chezidek takes on a history lesson for the ages.
"Twenty-first of April, 1966
King Selassie I made that visit
RASTA MADE DI BABYLON DEM LOOK LIKE RUBBISH"
He goes from speaking directly about His Imperial Majesty's visit to Jamaica, to things like His coronation and Bad Friday and really just takes a look at several significant events in the history of Rastafari. What really stands out for me from 'Inna Dem Eye', however -- even with its great sound and how wonderfully it is written and presented -- is the CONFIDENCE it exudes. And it isn't all positive and glowing ["Bad Friday, 1963. Coral Gardens, Montego Bay City. Under the order of Bustamante, dem kill and abuse Rastaman brutally. And still 'one love', Bob Marley, after all these atrocity. RASTA PUT JAMAICA PON DI MAP GLOBALLY. Reggae music internationally"], but he seems to be saying that, with all Rasta has gone through, the result is COMFORT. I've been scarred and battle-tested, I'm not afraid of anything you can bring to me. The name of the song; 'Inna Dem Eye', rings confidence. I'll put in your face. I want you to see it. I don't care how you respond. I welcome it in any way.
The clever 'No Guns' also sits amongst the biggest winners from 'Hello Africa'. The way this one was composed is so COOL because what Chezidek does, initially, is to show just how welcoming he is. It doesn't matter who you are, what walk of life you come from ["You can bring a draw of herbs or some roots or fruits or nuts will do. Bring your Quran, your Torah or your Bible"] or what you believe... but if you're bringing a gun, you can just stay home. We don't need to see you today (or tomorrow either). What subsequently develops is a unique anti-violence track with an infectious BOUNCE to it. I gravitated towards 'No Guns' immediately and it hasn't waned at all for me. It won't for you either. 'Standstill' may be the oldest offering on the whole of "Hello Africa" and, as he is the producer on the album, I'm thinking Chezidek included it because it definitely fit the theme of vibes of this project and he PERSONALLY really enjoyed it. I like it too!
"Turn to di hills from dem caan tek di vibe yah
Caan tek di suffering pon di streetside yah
Sew nuff seeds, but it hard fi survive yah
Caan find money fi buy fertilizer
SKILLFUL! MAN HAFFI GO SKILLED LIKE MACGYVER
LONG FINGERNAIL HAFFI GO TURN SCREWDRIVER
Hunger mek yah swallow yah pride with saliva
Inna dem yah hard, hard time yah"
It would have been nearly a decade old before appearing on "Hello Africa" so, again, it leads me to think that it was one which meant a lot to the artist for it to pop up here somewhat randomly. It is a relatively straight-forward social commentary at its core, but what I enjoy about it, specifically, along with its delivery (which finds Chezidek basically deejaying much of the song) is how he says that when people are struggling, we have to find other means to get by, lest we get lost in the shuffle and end not progressing at all. We have to 'hustle' in a sense and do what we can. It covers all of the other proverbial bases that you would think an offering like this would, but it goes a very nice extra step in making a mighty point. If you missed it the first time, 'Standstill' stands on a very high ground this time around [Note: He also has a tune called 'Still Standing', which is excellent. Just thought I'd let you know] ["Inna di middle of battle where mi find mi comfort. ACTION MI AH DEAL WID, LONG TIME MI DUN CHAT!"]. And I also have to place the golden motivator that is 'Try Again' within this lot of my absolute favourites from "Hello Africa". This one has a lovely sound to it, but I am in love with its direction. As I have said in the past, I always appreciate songs and messages, in general, that stress just how NORMAL it is to make mistakes and to be unsuccessful at various things in life. It's okay. It is NOT okay to be perfect (if you're perfect you're an alien). It's not the end of the world (and if it is the end of the world, WHO CARES?! It's over anyway! You won't have any time to regret). 'Try Again' carries that wonderful notion in a gorgeous package and I would well recommend that you join me in spending a considerable amount of time listening to it ["Things work out, try again. It is not over when they say it is the end"].
Although I didn't mention them as favourites, the remaining selections here are very strong as well (you can just scroll ahead and see what I ended up scoring this one and know that I didn't do it on the strength of like eight or nine songs). Most notably amongst them is the title track, where Chezidek takes us on a geographical tour, musically of The Motherland. Gifted with, easily, one of the most beautiful riddims on the album named after it (it so nice!), 'Hello Africa', doesn't ruin the moment at all. Instead, it finds our star lyrically touching down all over the continent. During our travels, he takes us to places like Lagos, Addis Ababa, Lilongwe, Abidjan, Khartoum, Cape Town and several others. And the tune doesn't have 'wings' in the sense of trying to bring out some prevailing sentiment. It is LITERALLY Chezidek showing love and saying 'HELLO' to home. And I should mention (because I'm a nerd) a point at about two minutes and ten seconds in, where 'Hello Africa' SUBTLY presses the gas (when he says, "I don't ever wanna leave you. Never!"). It really hits another level of intensity and I don't know if anyone else thinks that, but it's a standout moment for me. Check the old school touched 'Unite' which came very close to being mentioned in the previous group (as did the next one I'm going to tell you about. Started writing both of them in there before changing my mind). Like a few songs here, 'Unite' will surely grab your attention from its sound, but if you take a minute and pay attention to what is being said, it goes somewhere considerably higher.
"Let's unite!
LET LOVE FILL THE EMPTINESS THAT DIVIDES"
You've heard dozens of songs by this point teaching and preaching solidarity in the world (and you're going to hear many more), but hopefully this one sticks with you because it is does find a nearly perfect blend of sound and direction by its end. Later, Chezidek warns all to stary far away from 'Ungrateful People' and negativity in general, wherever you may find it. A piece like this can hit you in a variety of different ways. I like the kind of simple route, at least initially, which is in the small things. As I've gotten older I've tried to make sure I do things like say 'pardon me' or 'thank you' or apologize when I've done wrong. For me, the inability to do things like that are signs of being an ingrate. And if you push it further, you get to things like constantly complaining and whining (DONT NOBODY WANNA HEAR THAT SHIT!), while doing nothing to change anything. Clearly such behaviour bothered the artist so much that he made a song about it ["Dem no memba when dem down pon di floor. Now dem get big, dem no memba Jah no more. SI WI PON DI CORNERS AND TEK A DETOUR. JAH LOVE, DEM IGNORE"] and we're all better off because of it. The prevailing idea here, for me at least, is to try to treat other people better and just to improve yourself. And finally, not really, is bouncing 'Never Runaway From Jah'. If any song on "Hello Africa" gives you a chorus to continue singing long after you've finish listening to it, it's probably this one. As for its course, 'Never Runaway From Jah' is fairly simple: I love The Almighty SO MUCH! Going in any other direction is not an option for me. I wouldn't even think of doing it. It's foolishness. Again, however, good luck shaking this one from your memory. I'm not even listening to it right now and.... I'm singing it.
But that isn't all! About a year after its 2020 release, Tad's Records did a very interesting re-release of sorts with "Hello Africa". The "Vinyl Cut" of the album featured THREE MORE downright appetizing selections for our digestion. 'Deliver Me', 'Fool and His Money' and 'Money Move' add nearly twelve minutes to what was already a HUGE set. The first of the three might be the best of them as every time I spin it, it grows on me more and more. It's just a very nice song about seeking the aide and protection of The Almighty and it is a gorgeous one of those. 'Fool and His Money' was Chezidek's cut of Tad's Old King Cole Riddim which was a remake of an older track, the I'm Just a Guy Riddim. Here's another one with vibes that will bring a smile to your face, but it isn't entirely a happy song, necessarily. If you don't know the TRUE place of money --it is important by our standards, but it isn't THE most important-- then you will mismanage, abuse and, ultimately, LOSE it. And 'Money Move' is similar to 'Fool and His Money' as they both deal with monetary issues and both check in across classic riddims. 'Money Move' was a previous single, also from Tad's, and received a nice push just a few years or so back. It is kind of the opposite of the track ahead of it as, if you DO treat your money properly and care for it well, it will return the favour and you can definitely enjoy yourself. Chezidek certainly is. And SPEAKING of money [!], I don't have any figures to back up this statement, but from everything I can tell, "Hello Africa" did quite well from a commercial standpoint. My evidence of that would be the existence of the vinyl cut. Initially released digitally, on CD and on vinyl (I do not know why it was called the "vinyl cut", both CD and vinyl versions have the same amount of billed songs, with the only difference being the order of one song (#2 on disc is 'Freedom' and 11 is 'Ungrateful People'. On record it is reversed, essentially, with 'Freedom' being #5 on side B), the album received a great deal of attention and should very well sit as one of the artist's highest profile releases to date (and I'm wondering what else might be in that line and definitely "Inna Di Road" would be up there somewhere, maybe even "Judgement Time", in retrospect). Furthermore, just LOOKING AT IT, it is a very well put-together release. The cover is uncomplicated, but effective and just beautiful, inviting and full of CLASS and respect.
Overall, I remember saying I felt confident that, while it was excellent, I still favoured both of the JSR albums over "Hello Africa", but after scrutinizing it now for the point of this review... I'm not so sure about that anymore. When I review an album and give it my highest score it means that I'm seeing either one of two things. The first is an album which is ENTIRELY spectacular from beginning to end. These albums have (for example) thirteen songs and thirteen of the thirteen are some type of amazing. They're also likely to contain one or two which will go down as all-time personal favourites as well. "Hello Africa" isn't that type of an album, but I'm thinking that it may be type 2. Those albums have CONSISTENTLY top songs. They are all of a certain level which is very high and I will find myself at a point when I'm nearly overwhelmed by how MUCH strong material I'm hearing. What "Hello Africa" may lack in the SPECTACULAR, it more than makes up for with a relentless persistence. By its end, in fact, a case could very well be made that it proves to be THE most consistent album from Chezidek, one of THE most consistent stars Reggae music has ever seen. Essential.
Rated: 5/5
Tad's Records
CD + Vinyl + Digital
2020 + 2021
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