Signatures: A review of "Midnight Rocker" by Horace Andy
Instrumental. I was thinking recently, while writing a review, about something that I don't know if I've ever really wondered about to any degree: When it comes to vocalists we definitely do it, but when we speak about musicians and players of instruments, do we show them the respect of wonderful they're capable of distinguishing themselves? I think that we do it only in certain instances and for individuals who we look at as being at the absolute top of their 'class'. A very good example of this would be someone like Dean Fraser whose career as a.... pretty much everything in Reggae music. Fraser has attained a level as a musician (over the course of the past half century or so) which has, basically, made him the equivalent to a vocalist. He is well respected for having his very own distinct style on the saxophone which, along with several other things he has done in the music (producing, arranging, writing....) has made him a legend. Coincidentally, someone else who has definitely reached that point through playing an instrument is the great Ernest Ranglin, on the guitar. Ranglin's own career goes back well over SEVENTY years and he has provided the world with sounds which will simply last forever. Fraser and Ranglin have collaborated on a project, "Two Colours", set to release later this year, which WILL most certainly be a musical presentation for the ages. And I look at others such as our favourite, Tuff Lion from the Virgin Islands scene, who have been able to not only show that they have the ability to separate themselves from dozens and dozens of other skilled players, but to do so in the eyes and ears of fans of all types of who can hear it for ourselves. My thoughts, as someone with no musical talent whatsoever, came in thinking that there had to be something in the way of separation. Maybe one player holds a note longer habitually, than another. Maybe a drummer hits harder than another or hits a different area of the drum and (like I said, from the perspective of someone who knows NOTHING on the subject) I would think that this produces, however miniscule-ly, a slight difference in the resulting sound. This is something which we note in producers. Regardless of how involved they truly are (even if they just pay for the riddim to be made and make no other contribution whatsoever), we look at producers for having a certain STYLE of their own. Of course, when we do get into that same conversation regarding vocalists, things become completely wide open as not only do we inherently celebrate individuals for doing things which their peers do not (and CAN NOT and WOULD NOT, even if they could in some cases), we routinely lift up artists who have styles and approaches that are so far away from the norm that we struggle to categorize it AND others still who have talents clearly derivative of another's (virtually BEGGING the question of whether or not we would be capable of appreciating a keyboardist, for example, who almost always played off-key) (no. No we would not be). This, obviously, is because it is easier to hear style when it comes to vocals and, in Reggae music, we have been so fortunate to have encountered some of the most unusually BRILLIANT imaginable.
For example: As I've said in the past, if you are a fan of Reggae music you are in the fortunate position of being able to experience and enjoy the single greatest voice in the history of the world (.... when its owner isn't busy... I'll stop now) (DAMN!) in Jah Cure. Think about that for a second. The GREATEST VOICE EVER IS IN A REGGAE SINGER. His ways are fairly straight-forward for the genre (though his music has become more diverse in recent times, I admit) and Jah Cure exists, wonderfully, as one of the bigger names in Reggae music. He isn't this outlier (well, he is, obviously with what he can do, but not REALLY). There's also Chezidek, Garnet Silk (and Ras Shiloh and Avaran, by extension) (biggup Avaran), Barrington Levy, Mykal Rose and Norris Man and a line of deep, baritone voiced singers like Luciano, Bushman and Natty King (new album, "Rebelution", in stores now) who've not only found a platform for their work, but a HEALTHY audience as well which they might not have, had they found their way towards another genre. We will listen to them. We will celebrate them. We will raise our children to be fans. No matter how 'unconventional' their gifts may be, they are PERFECT for Reggae music. I don't know exactly where that line would have begun (I just wrote "beginned") (wow!), but I do know that if we started to trace it backwards (and forwards, obviously), we'd eventually run into the legendary Horace Andy. The venerable Kingston native and veteran of Studio One has a voice that just STAYS with you. With its almost maddening frailty to his tones, Horace Andy has thrilled (and full-on raised) generations of Reggae fans for well over half a century and he has existed as one of the most COMPLETE artists the genre (....or music, in general, as far as I'm concerned) has ever known.
And, clearly, he is not quite finished with us yet. Bright and early into 2022, Horace Andy returns with a brand new album courtesy of a tremendous source, "Midnight Rocker". Said "tremendous source" finds Andy in the care of the esteemed Adrian Sherwood from out of the UK and his On-U Sound Records label. Projects like this are damn interesting because of the type of attention they tend to attract. If you've noticed it at all in the past couple of weeks or so, you, like me, are probably going to have a difficult time recalling the last time that Horace Andy's name has been mentioned so much as not only is the quality of the set very good (to be expected), but the early publicity for it has been extremely impressive as well. The audience for such releases always tend to be quite diverse as well as, of course, Reggae heavy listeners are sure to turn up for a new Horace Andy album, but you also see them mightily appreciated in more 'mainstream' channels as well, which is always a great thing (particularly for an elder like this) (Beres Hammond routinely receives the same treatment for his work as well). Even by comparison the early response to "Midnight Rocker" has been curiously strong as Andy's previous full release, 2019's "Live It Up", did receive a nice buzz, but never really up to these levels and I might even go back to 2010's "Serious Times" as the last time he was able to generate a buzz like what has come along with "Midnight Rocker" (and you could even argue that it didn't reach here - although it would have been damn close in my opinion if it did not) (and, in retrospect, that album wasn't as good as this one is). Sherwood, for his part, definitely brings an immense amount to the table. With a history of his own in the music dating back more than FORTY years now, the UK native has worked with a roster of artists and creators which is damn difficult to rival by virtually ANYONE in Reggae music. The likes of Lee 'Scratch' Perry (extensively), Bim Sherman, Jazzwad, Sly & Robbie and a whole heap of others have found their way to Sherwood in one way or another during their pillaring careers. He's also done significant work with artists from other genres which I won't dig into (because reading through this list, I know some of these names, but some of them are probably more crucial than I'd give them credit for being) and has FULLY stamped himself amongst the very best in production that we've likely seen.... anywhere. Such credentials, when paired with a vocalist like Horace Andy positively GLOWS on paper and, again, when it came to fruition, fans from all over the world have responded mightily. If my research is correct, the music and production for the album, on Sherwood's end, was done in the UK while Andy's vocals were performed in Jamaica and then sent back to be mixed by On-U Sound (I've also read that it was a longtime goal realized by Sherwood as he'd wanted to make an album with Horace Andy for a very long time). If that is correct, then a large credit goes to TECHNOLOGY because, even before you get into whether or not you actually enjoy the music, one of the most immediately apparent traits possessed by "Midnight Rocker" is just HOW GOOD IT SOUNDS. The sonics here, at times, would have me believing that it was created in a studio with Andy and a full band on hand backing him. A sizable chunk of Sherwood's well-credentialed career has seen him doing some of the finest Dub work in the world and that would also be something I would expect in listening through this one. Such fantastic audio quality is served well throughout as, fortunately, "Midnight Rocker" quickly shows itself to be a real winner.
The ten tracks of "Midnight Rocker" are a mix of remakes of older songs with (at least as far as I know) completely newer material. I'm going to guess that such circumstances were DAMN pleasing to such a fan of Andy's like Adrian Sherwood (can you imagine if you were a music nerd (like You, I and surely Sherwood) (who I suddenly keep trying to call 'Yearwood' for some reason) (biggup Edwin Yearwood) being in charge of remaking what is probably some of your favourite songs EVER and having the actual TALENT to accomplish it) and to many of the singer's longtime supporters in general. With that being said, you might be downright ecstatic to see the opening selection of "Midnight Rockers", 'This Must Be Hell', a remake of the Tappa Zukie steered original, an amazing tune on its own (incidentally, 'This Must Be Hell' was kind of a remake of its own as prior to it was the very similar 'Earth Must Be Hell' for Aston Barrett). The relicked version is not only at least on a similar level of results, but it PERFECTLY demonstrates what I meant in regards to just how wonderful this release sounds. Chosen as an early single, 'This Must Be Hell' holds its own as not only one of the finest songs from "Midnight Rocker" but, historically (between its two forms), one of the largest from Andy's entire decorated discography. It is excellent. The same definitely goes for the next offering, 'Easy Money'. The riddim on this damn song..... it has dug its claws into me and it refuses to let my ass go! It is STUNNING! Andy puts the dynamic track behind him to good usage in explaining that absolutely NOTHING comes for free.
"Money, money where did you go?
Thought you were mine, but you never know
Money, money you just can't be true
You left me all alone, went to someone new
There's no such thing as easy money
There's no such thing as easy money
It's always just one step away
Like promises some people say
Fading just like yesterday
Money, money
Money, money you got nno heart
Tell me why did I ever start -
To make money, money
You did me wrong
YOU'VE BEEN CHEATING ON ME MY WHOLE LIFE LONG"
Lyrically 'Easy Money' is very clever but in an extremely relatable type of way. I would suggest that almost everyone has had the type of conversation where you turn 'money' and finances in general into a person and talk about the relationship that you two have (even if you are well off and haven't had much problems with it) (you and money get along quite well with one another). So I immediately gravitated towards to it and enjoyed it.... and I have I mentioned that the riddim on that song is SO DAMN GOOD?!! Have I done that? I can't remember. 'Safe From Harm' is a tune originally from Massive Attack with whom Horace Andy has sung with very often through the years. In its case, however, the vocalist was Shara Nelson, who is one of the group's other frequent lead singers (she has an amazing voice, an amazing voice). Sherwood's cut of the record is a bit more grounded and streamlined than the initial version in a style more befitting (in my opinion) Andy's voice and gifts. Nelson sang a song which was, at times, very LARGE and spectacular sounding, particularly during its latter half. Andy, on the other hand, sings a much grimier tune. We also get reworkings of both the look at classism, 'Materialist', and, of course, 'Mr. Bassie'; with the latter being one of the legendary singer's most recognizable drops (and I'm kind of wondering why they didn't do 'Skylarking' as well) (I mean why not???). The Niney The Observer produced original cut of the former represents one of the best vocal performances of Andy's entire career to my ears and while he doesn't reach those levels here, this 'Materialist' is solid on its own merits and, the more I listen to it, the more I grow to appreciate its vocals as well. 'Mr. Bassie' is a classic and a song which is going to be damn hard for ADRIAN SHERWOOD to flop -- even if he specifically tried to -- and he doesn't here. Though it is, perhaps, highlighted by this constant POUNDING sound underpinning it, this 'Mr. Bassie' is SWEET to my ears and shows that there is new life yet still to be found within the nearly forty-five year old immortal song (there is a lot of Dub and Dub elements in this mix). And though it took me quite awhile to realize it, "Midnight Rocker" also contains the remake of another older Horace Andy tune, 'Rock To Sleep'. In this instance, Andy & Sherwood don't do much in the way of attempting to add or change anything from this version and that is a good thing as they rediscover the magic first mined by the great Augustus Pablo.
As far as I can tell the remaining quartet of selections from "Midnight Rocker" are completely new and exclusive to it (and even if they aren't, I'm going go ahead and act as if they are). Be that the case, the single finest moment the release has to album is one which has yet to set its own course as a classic but figures to in the future. 'Watch Over Them' is MAMMOTH!
"Show them the way
Jah Jah steer them right-
From foolishness - never lead their side
Day-by-day, night-by-night
Steer them clear, Jah Jah be their guide
Oh Jah, over - beg You watch over them
Steer them from the corner, don't let them get a hold of them
Oh Jah, over - beg You watch over them
Steer them from the corner, don't let them get a hold of them
Give them the sense not to fuss nor fight
WHEN TO WALK, WHEN TO RUN OR WHEN TO HIDE
Away from the gun, away from the knife
Bless them with the sense to know when they're wrong from right"
One part praise, one part social commentary, 'Watch Over Them' is WONDERFUL in any category you want to place it and it is the single biggest moment "Midnight Rocker" has to offer altogether. Trailing not too far behind is another fresh piece, the literally glowing 'Today Is Right Here', where the singer warns all against the perils of procrastination ["Forget about next week. Forget about next year. You've got to live for today. Today's right here"]. The 'bed' this song lays down in -- that wonderful, wonderful riddim -- is SO NICE! It is so beautiful! I hear horns and I hear.... a ton of different smaller sounds blending to create one syrupy sweet composition on one of the album's finest. 'Try Love' is another one that is a very easy listen and it helped in this case, because I had to do some work on it to figure out what the ultimate message was behind it. Where I am with it now is that Andy is saying that when you're in a tough spot in your life and you have seemingly done everything in your power to turn things around and you've exhausted all of your resources, you may want to give LOVE a try. Now that sounds nice and everything, but it doesn't particularly mean anything practical unless you explain it a bit and, fortunately, Andy does that as well:
"Tell me all your troubles
Tell me now
Tell me all your troubles
Tell me now
After you try wealthy
After you try fame
After you try money
Time and time again
Try love"'
He distinctly goes about speaking on how important it is for people to talk to others about their problems and knowing that, whatever it is that we're facing, we don't have to face it by ourselves. So, because of that, I think you can get themes such as the importance of community and mental health issues (and how important it is that we feel comfortable asking for help when we feel we need it) at the heart of 'Try Love'. It will take you some time to uncover, but it'll be worth it. Trust me. Also have to give credit to the player of.... violin, cello, whatever it is. That individual SHINES on 'Try Love' nearly as much as Andy, Sherwood or anyone else. Lastly is the wholly old school rinsed 'Careful', another one which asks a bit more of us to appreciate fully. I don't think this one has as much to offer as some of the others here (and it most surely isn't the best written offering here), but if you do dig into it a bit more, there is some substance here. As is the subject of the tune - be careful and take a little more time before you make up your mind and pass a final judgment.
Overall, "Midnight Rocker" is such a very well put-together release and, again, I'm very happy to see the early buzz that it has managed to generate from all over the world thus far. When all of those fans actually get into the music what they will find, as expected, is some of the finest work, in spots, from not only the most recent portion of Horace Andy's career, but also one or two tunes which're amongst his very best... like ever. Seriously. When you take that into consideration and respect the project built around the vibes of "Midnight Rocker" by Adrian Sherwood, you have a release that history will look back on very favourably and while I'm not prepare to call "Midnight Rocker" a "CLASSIC" or anything like that, what it most certainly is, is yet another clear example of not only how Reggae music supports some of our more colourfully talented kings and queens, but is also prepared to celebrate them in every way possible as one of the greatest to ever do it, Horace Andy, shows that he is still wearing his crown.
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