Majestic Vision Music: Heavy Load EP

17 Responses to “Majestic Vision Music: Heavy Load EP”

heyii lemmi
I can only partially understand your "boredom". Of course it's always the same riddim in eight different versions and that's something to argue about... but that's part of the sound system culture and I find the riddim itself remarkable, above average! Especially since the bassline grooves very smoothly from my ears to my central nervous system and down to the soles of my feet. Point one is already fully met.
Well, I admit that one could complain about the instrumentalists, for example the sax in the sax mix is ​​rather uninspired and played almost amateurishly... but even that creates a certain charm for me...
Oh, I know... sax isn't your thing anyway... trooooot!
Blessings

Hey Hajo Philipp!

I'm happy for the band and the producers that there is more than just my opinion. Far too often there is only my opinion here and that is "boring" or too one-sided. In principle, I would also be happy if there were at least 10 opinions here for each album. But I think there are a lot more "opinions" in the "GutschieBlock" for handbags.
If you like the EP, it's even better. Then the producer or producers haven't wasted their creativity.

Cheers ……………. lemmi

By the way, it is a remake of the song “Jah Heavy Load” by Ijahman Levi from 1978 from the album “Haile I Hymn (Chapter 1)” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r77D7H3U330 - and I admit, the original is much better (and I wonder why such a remake? Lack of creativity?)... Ijahman Levi was a force to be reckoned with anyway. I once read that he was Bob Marley's favorite singer... the above album is definitely at the top of my list, I also really like the Nyabinghi song "Zion Hut"!

Wow!

Now that is very interesting Philipp! You are right, now I recognise it too. It really is the bass line from “JAH Heavy Load”. I would never have recognised it, especially as I certainly wouldn’t have listened to it again on my own. But my “problem” or rather my boredom with the “remake” can now be explained even better. The bass line was “pitched” into the minus, so to speak, and as far as I’m concerned you can pitch anything in the world but not reggae!!! At least not when I’m around ;-) In my opinion that is a “capital crime” and should be punished for life and also require a preventive detention. Now of course (?) nothing has actually been “pitched” here, rather the bass line comes at half speed and in my opinion that explains best why I came to the “realisation” that “the riddim is dragging”.
I JAH Man, covering Levi is a hopeless undertaking. Of course you can do it, but of course you can't go any further. And certainly not at half speed.
Yes, "Heavy Load"!!! I was clearly missing "JAH". Because I never thought of the original by I JAH Man Levi. The bass line is so slow that I've already forgotten the previous notes before the next note finally comes ;-) I couldn't therefore see any connection between the notes.
I JAH man Levi and his Jamaican band gave concerts that, for me (and others), were among the best of the best of the very best. They played as one and had a top-notch guitarist who contributed tunes and guitar solos of the very best over the 1 to 6 minutes. He also occasionally had Noel "Skully" Simms with him with his full percussion performance and he moved me to tears because I couldn't believe how beautiful the world can be when such great music is playing. That's all over now and then and that's why I often cry tears of frustration when I compare today's reggae concerts with those of the past. Unfortunately, it's just a "B-movie" or a copy of my reality... including concerts by I JAH Man Levi and Burning Spear. It's like Nutella. If you don't know what the original Nutella tasted like, you might still "eat" it, but everyone else from my generation would have to puke after it...
Well, it's not quite that bad with the reggae concerts, but it was a good way to describe my mood about the whole decline. And every now and then a really good concert comes along.
Ok, before I really get into a state of “depression”, I’d rather say goodbye and hope my “frustration” isn’t too contagious.

So long ………… .. lemmi

haha, I definitely feel your arguments lemmi, especially when it comes to concerts and also the continuation/change of riddims and baselines etc. is a big topic!

I always say that without JAH's blessing you can't make really good reggae.
Bias lines must be blessed by JAH (and I almost wrote, by me). Otherwise they are banal, if not wrong…
And “trap” in dancehall is, in my opinion, a confession of failure… But hey, the main thing is that the lyrics groove and you have a lot of followers…

I'm going to the goal ………………. lemmi

There are two versions of IJahman’s ingenious “Zion Hut”.

First the original or rather the first version:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-SvL0pp3fIc

The second, slightly longer version, I find a little softer because of the flute:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCycbCVAXGM&list=OLAK5uy_m8z-tdp5-R2DhM7tbpnZ96_wTMtWXV6L4

The Binghi drumming by Ras Michael & The Sons Of Negus blew me away in 1978 and still does today. A beautiful Rasta song for eternity.
I just looked at the line-up again and was amazed. It's crazy how many top-class musicians worked on this album. Even Steve Winwood (Traffic) and Del Richardson (Osibisa).

After IJahman moved to England with his parents, he met Rico Rodriguez and worked on his masterpiece "Man from Wareika", on which he sang the song "Africa". During these recordings, Chris Blackwell became aware of IJahman and offered him a recording contract with Island Records. The sessions resulted in two albums with a total of just 9 tracks - "Haile I Hymn" and "Are We A Warrior". These are now classics that no collection should be without. Although I have to admit that I didn't like side two of "Are We A Warrior" at first. Over the decades and with the knowledge of all the rubbish that has been released in the meantime, I now like "Miss Beverly" and "Two Sides Of Love" at least a little better.
Yes lemmi and Philipp, the album “Haile I Hymn” will always remain one of the very special works for me.

High Ras Vorbei !
I felt very similarly, although for me it was mainly
“Two Sides Of Love” doesn’t do that.
OK, I don't know what your "algorithm" is like, but when I googled I Jah Man, YouTube showed me a concert that I couldn't find when I searched. I feel obliged to at least give everyone who hasn't experienced it live a little more insight into it. It's already a somewhat slimmed down "team" than the one I was able to experience, but for me it would still be worth a trip. I hope you have a few speakers that are somewhat suitable for reggae connected to your computer so that the "medicine" really gets into your veins.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZFKShDTDFag
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_-hWSjsqSv0

The algorithm or whatever should then offer the remaining parts. There is even a DVD of it, which I completely missed (grits my teeth) …………….

Greetings…………………… lemmi

Heyii lemmi & Ras Vorbei
Thank you for your comments, which I also feel pretty similarly, and the interesting links… very cool.
In my opinion, there is a real exception on the other side of the pond (very cool live and very good recordings): Stephen Marley.
He gives disgusting concerts with an (currently) acoustic band that just blows me away... unfortunately he is constantly touring in the USA and is not playing in Europe, what a shame!
What I would give to experience a live gig like that…
here's an example https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q_NsVZNuP5o
And of course he upholds his father’s legacy, but very stylishly and dignified…

Reply

High Philip!

Exceptions always prove the rule. This is a really beautiful and soul-massaged concert by Stephen Marley and his acoustic band.
An exception for me in two respects, as I actually prefer the full technical boom. For me, acoustic always means unplugged and therefore too lame for a reggae concert. I also always say that reggae without drums is not reggae for me. I write specifically for myself, as there is no generally valid formula for it. And besides, there are enough examples of good reggae without drums. You have already given a very good example of that. A nice, fat Nyabinghy album with DubVersions, which I even bought and really enjoy listening to. But even with the best will in the world, I can't remember the name of the band.
But this concert is really great and it has a lot of oomph, as the bass doesn't sound "unplugged" at all. It just creates a really good feeling.

Cheers …………. lemmi

High lemmi
I assume that you have the album “Dub Meditation” by the group “Tsadqan” (means Righteous or Sincere in Amharic ????).
It's a really unusual name that I can hardly remember... which makes the record even cooler!
Greetings

“A nice fat Nyabinghy album with DubVersions….. But even with the best will in the world, I still can’t remember the name of the band.”

@lemmi – I think that’s what we’re talking about:
https://dubblog.de/tsadqan-dub-meditation/

I would also like to draw your attention to a new Doctor Bird release. Dadawah (Ras Michael): Peace & Love has been re-released as a Do-LP/CD. The long overdue re-release on CD (https://songwhip.com/dadawah/peace-and-love-wadadasow) is complemented by a second 22-track disc featuring the best of Lloyd Charmers' Dub-Productions from the mid-70s.

Dadawah: Peace & Love was originally released in Jamaica and the United Kingdom (Trojan) in 1974. The hypnotic and at times semi-psychedelic collection is still considered one of the most important and accomplished albums of the golden era of reggae.

There is no such thing!

Ashes on my head Ras Vorbei. How could I have forgotten the real finder of this treasure?! You even wrote a review about it. So sorry and thanks again for the tip!
The tip for Ras Michael & The Sons Of Negus is also great!
When I first heard “Run Come Rally” I became deeply religious and that hasn’t changed to this day.
In the meantime, I also bought a “remake CD” which also has a lot of Nyabinghy tunes on it and also reggae tunes like “Babylon, Babylon, Babylon free up JAH people” and so on….
I also have a DubDisc by Ras Michael Tunes, with e.g. a Dub from “None A JAH JAH Children” but I find them very booooring. So I am very curious whether Lloyd Charmers will have some more exciting DubVersions included in the remake.
There is also a live album by Ras Michael & The Sons and Daughters of Negus. The versions “Boom A Ya” and even more so “I Ya I” are, for me, particularly sacred phenomena in the universal reggae cosmos. I would have liked to have expressed this in a much more theatrical way, because it seems simply otherworldly to me.

Yeah man! “Brutalize me with music!” …………………….. lemmi

No lemmi, I can't leave it like that. I think I first read the name Tsadqan in a comment by Philipp. Only then did I review the album.

All right Ras Vorbei !

The paths of my synapses have always been inscrutable to me.
So my thanks go to both of you.

Until ……………… lemmi

Leave a Comment

Your e-mail address will not be published. Required fields are marked with * marked

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed..