52-458: Neville O'Riley Livingston OM OJ (10 April 1947 – 2 March 2021), known professionally as Bunny Wailer , was a Jamaican singer-songwriter and percussionist . He was an original member of reggae group The Wailers along with Bob Marley and Peter Tosh . A three-time Grammy Award winner, he is considered one of the longtime standard-bearers of reggae music. He was also known as Jah B , Bunny O'Riley , and Bunny Livingston . Wailer
104-426: A daughter with her named Pearl Livingston. Peter Tosh had a son, Andrew Tosh , with Wailer's sister Shirley, making Andrew his nephew. Wailer had originally gone to audition for Leslie Kong at Beverley's Records in 1962, around the same time his step-brother Bob Marley was cutting "Judge Not". Wailer had intended to sing his first composition, "Pass It On", which at the time was more ska -oriented. However, Wailer
156-657: A major in the Jamaica Regiment . His mother's family, the Lindos , were of Sephardic Jewish heritage, originally from Spain, the family adopted Christianity and became New Christians . His parents divorced when he was 10 years old. Blackwell spent his childhood in Jamaica, and was sent to Britain to continue his education at Harrow . Deciding not to attend university, he returned to Jamaica to become aide-de-camp to Jamaica's Governor , Sir Hugh Foot . After Foot
208-525: A new operation. In 2001, Blackwell was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and bestowed the Ahmet Ertegun Award. During his acceptance speech he made a point of thanking Steve Winwood and acknowledged his importance in the development of Island Records. Blackwell said "Steve Winwood was really the cornerstone of Island Records. He’s a musical genius and because he was with Island all
260-553: A performance in Birmingham, Blackwell focused on the rock acts that Island had signed. Island became one of the most successful independent labels of the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s with an eclectic range of artists, including Traffic , King Crimson ; Emerson, Lake & Palmer ; Jethro Tull , Cat Stevens , John Cale , Free , Fairport Convention , Nico ; Heads, Hands and Feet ; John Martyn , Sparks , Spooky Tooth , Nick Drake , Roxy Music , Grace Jones , Ultravox , Eddie and
312-582: A recording home for his acts and other artists. Blackwell sold his stake in Island in 1989, eventually resigning from the company in 1997. In 2009, Blackwell was at the centre of celebrations held in London for Island's fiftieth anniversary. Each of Blackwell's companies was eventually sold to PolyGram and, in 1999, were part of the Universal Music Group conglomerate, but Blackwell left with
364-429: A reputation for looking after artists as diverse as Bob Marley, U2, Cat Stevens , Grace Jones , Steve Winwood, Melissa Etheridge , Tom Waits , The Cranberries , Richard Thompson and PJ Harvey . After selling these companies, Blackwell went on to found Palm Pictures , a media entertainment company with music, film and DVD releases. In the late 1990s, Blackwell merged Palm Pictures with Rykodisc to form RykoPalm,
416-458: A single artist yet released. " As Blackwell says, "Toots and the Maytals were unlike anything else...sensational, raw and dynamic." Blackwell had a strong commitment to the band, describing Toots Hibbert as "one of the purest human beings I've met in my life, pure almost to a fault." Blackwell appeared in the 2011 BBC documentary Reggae Got Soul: The Story of Toots and the Maytals which told
468-467: A start-up investment of $ 10,000 provided by his parents. The business took its name from Alec Waugh 's novel Island in the Sun . Radio personality Graeme Goodall was his initial business partner. Blackwell received an allowance of £2,000 per year from his mother, which enabled him to have his own apartment at a young age and build on the low revenue that the business was bringing in. Island's debut release
520-637: A very classy delicatessen." Yet Blackwell has admitted to turning down some major names, most notably Elton John , whom he considered too shy to become a successful performer. Island and Blackwell himself became renowned for a relaxed, nurturing approach. Blackwell showed skill in spotting and creating trends, as well as a gift for finding talent. He had an imaginative flair for marketing, and Island's releases were often packaged in lovingly designed gatefold sleeves. Blackwell has said: "I really believe that if people see something that looks good, subconsciously they'll think maybe there's something going on inside, on
572-501: Is a Jamaican-British former record producer and the founder of Island Records , which has been called "one of Britain's great independent labels." According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame , to which Blackwell was inducted in 2001, he is "the single person most responsible for turning the world on to reggae music ." Variety describes him as "indisputably one of the greatest record executives in history," while Barron's has described him as "a contender for most interesting man in
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#1732773245947624-486: Is acknowledged as the first ska hit. It also made Small an international star at such a very young age. Blackwell later recalled his decision to license the release to Fontana, a part of Philips . It was a big hit all around the world, and I really wanted to look after Millie, so I went everywhere with her, which took me into the mainstream of the record industry... This whole new music was emerging. After discovering The Spencer Davis Group , featuring Steve Winwood , at
676-968: Is considered the most exclusive of the Island Outpost resorts. Blackwell currently runs Island Outpost , which he set up to operate and market a group of elite resorts in Jamaica, including Strawberry Hill in the Blue Mountains (where Marley recovered after being shot in 1976), The Caves in Negril , and GoldenEye Hotel & Resort in Oracabessa . Island Outpost also owned The Tides and The Marlin in Miami Beach, Florida . The Miami Beach properties including The Tides, The Marlin and The Kent along with several other hotels in Miami Beach and The Bahamas have since been sold. Blackwell
728-838: Is involved in a number of philanthropic organizations. Among these are Island ACTS, the Oracabessa Foundation, the Oracabessa Bay Fish Sanctuary , the Mary Vinson Blackwell Foundation (established in honour of his late wife to whom he was married from 1998 till 2009), and the Jamaican Conservation Trust. In 2003, Blackwell launched the Goldeneye Film Festival, which ran for three years. In September that year, Blackwell received
780-596: The Order of Jamaica . In 2016, he played a month-long 'Blackheart Man' tour to celebrate the 40th anniversary of his 1976 album. In October 2017, he was awarded the Order of Merit by the Jamaican government, the nation's fourth-highest honour. In October 2019, a commemorative blue plaque dedicated by the Nubian Jak Community Trust honoring Bob Marley, Peter Tosh, and Bunny Wailer was placed at
832-635: The Third World . Mango introduced Salif Keita , Baaba Maal , Gibson Brothers , Angélique Kidjo , King Sunny Adé and many others. Eventually, Island moved into movies and released The Harder They Come (1972) in the UK, which featured Jimmy Cliff . Produced and directed by fellow Jamaican Perry Henzell , the film marked the first time that Jamaican themes appeared in mainstream cinema. In 1977, Blackwell built Compass Point Studios in Nassau, Bahamas as
884-548: The roots style, in keeping with his often political and spiritual messages; his album Blackheart Man was well received. According to the journalist Peter Mason, writing in the Guardian newspaper, Blackheart Man "is widely felt to be one of reggae’s highest peaks". After leaving the Wailers, Wailer experimented with disco on his album Hook Line & Sinker , while Sings the Wailers reworks many of The Wailers songs with
936-511: The "untold story of one of the most influential artists ever to come out of Jamaica." One of Blackwell's achievements was bringing Bob Marley & The Wailers to the attention of international audiences. Without a signed contract, Blackwell advanced money to The Wailers for their first Island album, displaying the trust which stemmed from his 1958 beach rescue by Rastas . Excerpt from an interview of Winston Grennan by Carter Van Pelt: Chris Blackwell say, 'Yeah, Yeah, Yeah. I give them
988-625: The American Labels Shelter Records whose roster included Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers , J.J. Cale and Phoebe Snow and also Sue Records , who produced Jimmy McGriff , The Soul Sisters and Ike and Tina Turner . Toots and the Maytals introduced the term " reggae " in song with their single " Do the Reggay " (1968). Having signed Bob Marley, Blackwell added Toots and the Maytals to his roster, and had
1040-543: The Grammy Award in 2004 for Best Reggae Album, and showcased many notable musicians including; Willie Nelson , Eric Clapton , Jeff Beck , Trey Anastasio , Gwen Stefani / No Doubt , Ben Harper , Bonnie Raitt , Manu Chao , The Roots , Ryan Adams , Keith Richards , Toots Hibbert , Paul Douglas , Jackie Jackson, Ken Boothe , and The Skatalites . Wailer's catalogue is now under the curation of his agent Simon Vumbaca . However, in 1991, Bunny Wailer faced one of
1092-499: The Hot Rods , Robert Palmer , Jess Roden , Marianne Faithfull , The Buggles , Etta James , Melissa Etheridge , Julian Cope , The Cranberries , Womack and Womack , U2 , and others. Blackwell also signed artists in non-English speaking countries such as French singer Charlélie Couture whose album, Poèmes rock , was released on Island. "The bigger labels are supermarkets," Blackwell remarked. "I like to think of Island as
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#17327732459471144-564: The Jamaican Musgrave Medal , which is awarded to Jamaicans who excel in the arts, music and public service. In 2004, the Order of Jamaica was bestowed upon Blackwell for philanthropy and outstanding contribution to the entertainment industry. In April 2009, the UK magazine Music Week named Blackwell the most influential UK music executive of the past 50 years. Blackwell revisited his family's legacy in Jamaica's banana, coconut, and rum export industries in 2009, when, at
1196-618: The James Bond film Dr. No (1962). Blackwell's mother, Blanche, had been original Bond author Ian Fleming's mistress. After the film wrapped, producer Harry Saltzman offered him a full-time position. Conflicted between music and film, Blackwell visited a psychic, who told him that he would be successful if he stayed in the music industry. By the following year, the fledgling record producer had released 26 singles and two albums on Island. Blackwell returned to England that year and continued to grow his business. He began having success with
1248-557: The Maytals band... And then we hit the road in 1975...we were the opening act for the Eagles , Linda Ronstadt , and Jackson Browne . We were the opening act for The Who for about two weeks. The first Toots and the Maytals album released and distributed by Island Records was Funky Kingston . Music critic Lester Bangs described the album in Stereo Review as "perfection, the most exciting and diversified set of reggae tunes by
1300-707: The Spider Woman and Stop Making Sense , among others." In 2022, he published a memoir, The Islander: My Life in Music and Beyond . Christopher Percy Gordon Blackwell was born on 22 June 1937 in Westminster , London , the son of Joseph Blackwell, an Irish member of the family responsible for the Crosse & Blackwell brand, and Blanche Lindo Blackwell , a Costa-Rican-born Jamaican heiress. The family moved to Jamaica soon after his birth where his father became
1352-459: The Wailers regularly changed producers in the late 1960s, Wailer continued to contribute songs to the group's repertoire. The music critic Kwame Dawes says that Wailer's song lyrics were carefully crafted and literary in style, and he remained a key part of the group's distinctive harmonies. Wailer sang lead on such songs as "Dreamland" (a cover of El Tempos' "My Dream Island", which soon became his signature song) "Riding High", "Brainwashing", and in
1404-562: The Wailers song) for his own label. Bunny Wailer toured with the Wailers in England and the United States, but soon became reluctant to leave Jamaica. He and Tosh were more marginalised in the group as the Wailers attained international success, and attention was increasingly focused on Marley. Wailer subsequently left the Wailers in 1973 and adopted the name "Bunny" in pursuit of a solo career after balking when Chris Blackwell wanted
1456-461: The Wailers to tour freak clubs in the United States, stating that it was against his Rastafari principles. Before leaving the Wailers, Wailer had become more focused on his spiritual faith. He identified with the Rastafari movement, as did the other Wailers. He also composed much of his own material as well as re-recording a number of cuts from the Wailers' catalogue. Wailer recorded primarily in
1508-578: The age of 73, of complications from the stroke he suffered the previous year. Order of Merit (Jamaica) Too Many Requests If you report this error to the Wikimedia System Administrators, please include the details below. Request from 172.68.168.133 via cp1102 cp1102, Varnish XID 536738589 Upstream caches: cp1102 int Error: 429, Too Many Requests at Thu, 28 Nov 2024 05:54:06 GMT Chris Blackwell Christopher Percy Gordon Blackwell OJ (born 22 June 1937)
1560-482: The backing of Jamaican session musicians, Sly and Robbie . He also had success recording in the typically apolitical, more pop, dancehall style. During this musical period, one of the highlights of Bunny Wailer's career was composing the hit single "Electric Boogie" in 1982 for Marcia Griffiths. This song led to the dance craze "Electric Slide" in 1986, which gained popularity in Washington D.C. and other parts of
1612-559: The bridge of the Wailers' song, "Keep On Moving" (sung in the style of Curtis Mayfield of the Impressions ), produced by Lee "Scratch" Perry . In 1971, the Wailers recorded Bunny Wailer's song "Pass It On", which he said he wrote in 1962; it was released as a dubplate mix on JAD's "Original Cuts" compilation. This version of the song features different lyrics and music in the verses to the later versions of "Pass It On" – Wailer would later reuse these in "Innocent Blood". By 1973, each of
Bunny Wailer - Misplaced Pages Continue
1664-422: The careers of Bob Marley , Grace Jones and U2 among many other diverse high-profile acts. He has produced many seminal albums, including Marley's Catch a Fire and Uprising , Free 's Free and The B-52's ' self-titled debut album in 1979. Having sold Island in 1989, Blackwell embarked on ventures in "hotels, real estate, resorts, another record company, rum, and his Island Films released Kiss of
1716-423: The final word in their lineup. In November 2016, Jackie Jackson described the formation of the group in a radio interview for Kool 97 FM Jamaica. Accompanied by Paul Douglas and Radcliffe "Dougie" Bryan in studio, Jackson explained, We were talking about reggae is going international now. We kept on meeting and he (Blackwell) decided that the backing band that back all of the songs, the recording band, should be
1768-676: The former site of Basing Street Studios in London, where Catch a Fire and Burnin' were completed. In November 2019, Wailer received a Pinnacle Award in New York from the Coalition to Preserve Reggae. In October 2018, Wailer suffered a minor stroke , resulting in speech problems. After suffering another stroke in July 2020, he was hospitalized at Andrews Memorial Hospital in Kingston, Jamaica , where he eventually died on 2 March 2021 at
1820-418: The guys...If I leave, I feel it would be a bad vibes." Blackwell's gesture led to the longterm success of both Marley and the label. Of his experience with Marley, Blackwell has said: He trusted my instincts, which were that he should go after being a rock star, rather than a star on black American radio. His music was rough and raw and exciting, but all black American music at the time, other than James Brown,
1872-496: The lowest points in his career at the annual Sting event in Portmore, when he was driven off stage by a shower of bottles thrown by the audience. This incident, not uncommon at dancehall events, highlighted the tension between Wailer's traditional style and the emerging trends popularized by artists such as Ninjaman and Shabba Ranks. [1] In August 2012, it was announced that Bunny Wailer would receive Jamaica's fifth highest honour,
1924-470: The mid-1960s as a driving ska/soul classic with Bunny Wailer on lead vocals. Wailer won the Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album three times; in 1991 for the album Time Will Tell: A Tribute to Bob Marley , in 1995 for Crucial! Roots Classics , and in 1997 for Hall of Fame: A Tribute to Bob Marley's 50th Anniversary . He was also featured on the album True Love by Toots and the Maytals , which won
1976-416: The money to make this record.' But at that time they was forming the band. Bob (Bob Marley) came to me, figure it was me, Gladdy, Winston Wright, Jackie and Hux to be the band. That was the band that Bob did really want, but those guys didn't want to get involved. You know that the situation around Bob was pretty hectic...They turned it down. So right away, I couldn't get involved, because I didn't want to leave
2028-508: The niche market of Jamaican music, and progressed to bringing in licensed master tapes. One of these contained a performance by Jamaican singer Millie Small , who Blackwell brought over to England. In 1964, he produced and recorded Small's cover of the 1956 Barbie Gaye song " My Boy Lollipop ," which was one of the first songs recorded in the ska style. Small's version was a massive hit in 1964, selling over 7 million copies worldwide. It launched Island Records into mainstream popular music, and
2080-473: The other talent really wanted to be with Island." Blackwell has long owned Goldeneye in Oracabessa , the previous home of Ian Fleming , where the author wrote all the James Bond books. Until his death, Fleming was the longtime lover of Blackwell's mother, Blanche. Blackwell developed the property into a community of villas and beach cottages, each with its own private access to the sea, and Goldeneye
2132-585: The record. There were times when somebody came out with a cover which was actually better than the record itself, so I'd have to send them back to remake the record." In 1968, Blackwell was the first record executive to offer a distribution deal to the newly formed Led Zeppelin . Zeppelin manager Peter Grant reneged on the handshake deal. Island Records was also the first distribution home for Trojan Records , Chrysalis Records , Bronze Records , Stiff Records , Virgin Records , ZTT , Gee Street Records and
Bunny Wailer - Misplaced Pages Continue
2184-462: The shore in searing temperatures. Collapsing on the beach, Blackwell was rescued by Rasta fishermen who tended his wounds and restored him to health with traditional Ital food. The experience gave Blackwell a spiritual introduction to the Rastafarian lifestyle, and was a key to his connection to the culture and its music. Only in his early 20s, Blackwell formed Island Records in 1958 with
2236-558: The three founding Wailers operated his own label, Marley with Tuff Gong , Tosh with H.I.M. Intel Diplo, and Bunny Wailer with Solomonic . He sang lead vocals on "Reincarnated Souls", the B-side of the Wailers first Island single of the new era, and on two tracks on the Wailers last trio LP, " Burnin' ": "Pass it On" and "Hallelujah Time". By now he was recording singles in his own right, cutting "Searching For Love", "Life Line", "Trod On", "Arab Oil Weapon", and "Pass It On" (a new recording of
2288-417: The world. Bunny Wailer also recorded versions of the song for himself, although with less success compared to Griffiths' versions. Wailer's music had dancehall and rockers influences, best exemplified by the album Bunny Wailer Sings the Wailers on which he reinterpreted some of the Wailers material as a solo roots singer with roots reggae-based backing by Sly and Robbie. The album, produced by Bunny Wailer,
2340-470: The world." Having formed Island Records in Jamaica on May 22, 1959, Blackwell was among the first to record the Jamaican popular music that eventually became known as ska . Returning to Britain in 1962, he sold records from the back of his car to the Jamaican community. His label became "a byword for uncompromised artistry and era-shaping acts." Backed by Stanley Borden from RKO , Blackwell's business and reach grew substantially, and he went on to forge
2392-406: Was a piano and vocal album by Bermudian jazz pianist Lance Hayward along with his band members, who all played at Half Moon resort in Jamaica as part of the resort’s in house band. Blackwell began recording Jamaican popular music in 1959, achieving a number one hit there with Laurel Aitken 's "Boogie in my Bones/Little Sheila." In 1961, Blackwell was a location scout and production assistant for
2444-607: Was born Neville O'Riley Livingston on 10 April 1947 in Kingston . He spent his earliest years in the village of Nine Mile in Saint Ann Parish . It was there that he first met Bob Marley , and the two young boys befriended each other quickly. The boys both came from single-parent families; Livingston was brought up by his father, Marley by his mother. Later, Wailer's father Thaddeus "Thaddy Shut" Livingston lived with Marley's mother Cedella Booker in Trenchtown and had
2496-547: Was influenced by gospel music and the soul singer Curtis Mayfield . In 1967, he recorded "This Train", based on a gospel standard, for the first time, at Studio One . Wailer was arrested on charges of possession of cannabis in June 1967 and served a 14-month prison sentence. Around this time he, Bob Marley, and Peter Tosh signed an exclusive recording agreement with Danny Sim's JAD Records and an exclusive publishing agreement with Sim's music publishing company Cayman Music. As
2548-656: Was late getting out of school and missed his audition. A few months later, in 1963, he formed "The Wailing Wailers" with Marley and friend Peter Tosh, and the short-term members Junior Braithwaite and Beverley Kelso . Wailer tended to sing lead vocals less often than Marley and Tosh in the early years, but when Marley left Jamaica in 1966 for Delaware in the US, and was briefly replaced by Constantine "Vision" Walker , Wailer began to record and sing lead vocals on some of his own compositions, such as "Who Feels It Knows It", "I Stand Predominate", and "Sunday Morning". Wailer's style of music
2600-434: Was recorded at Harry J Studio . Some of these tracks are reworked classic Wailers tracks such as "Dreamland", a cover of El Tempos' "My Dream Island" with slightly reworked lyrics that became Bunny's signature song. This was recorded in 1966 by Clement Coxsone Dodd , and in 1972 with Lee "Scratch" Perry ; it was released as a 7" in 1971 with a U-Roy version on the B-side. Another classic is "Dancing Shoes", first recorded in
2652-401: Was transferred to Cyprus, Blackwell left King's House to pursue a career in real estate and other businesses, including managing jukeboxes across the country, which brought him into contact with the Jamaican music community. In 1958, Blackwell was sailing off Hellshire Beach when his boat ran aground on a coral reef. The twenty-one-year-old swam to the coast and attempted to find help along
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#17327732459472704-489: Was very slick and smooth. Bob trusted me on that, he was as keen as I was. Blackwell also pioneered reggae to wider audiences the UK and the US beginning in the mid 1970s with releases from Burning Spear , Augustus Pablo , Inner Circle , Dillinger , Black Uhuru , Third World , Aswad , Max Romeo , Justin Hines , Sly and Robbie and Lee Perry . He also formed Mango Records , which featured Jamaican and other artists from
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