Song:Sinsemilla
Album:Party In Session: The Black Uhuru Collection
The reggae group Black Uhuru have been around since the early 70s and they are still around. Their best recordings like Sinsemilla are from the early 80s. Black Uhuru was formed in Kingston, Jamaica in 1972 as Black Sounds Uhuru by Derrick "Duckie" Simpson, Don Carlos and Garth Dennis. Uhuru is the Swahili word for freedom. They split up after two unsuccessful singles. Carlos has had a successful solo career. Simpson reformed Black Uhuru in 1977 with singer Michael Rose and Errol Nelson of The Jayes. Nelson returned to The Jayes and was replaced by Sandra "Puma" Jones of Mama Africa. She was from South Carolina. That was the core of Black Uhuru until Rose left in 1984. He was not only a great singer but he wrote most of the songs. Black Uhuru started working with Sly Dunbar and Robbie Shakespeare who were successful in their own right. After a few successful singles and a performance on the 1980 Reggae Sunsplash Festival, Black Uhuru signed with Island Records and released the 1980 album Sinsemilla. It was a big success and so was the 1981 album Red and the 1982 album Chill Out. They toured with The Rolling Stones. Keith Richards played guitar on one of their singles. Then they won a Grammy for the 1984 album Anthem. But Rose wasn't getting along with Simpson. He left in 1984 and he was replaced by Junior Reid. Black Uhuru signed with RAS Records and they veered towards dance music with producer Arthur Baker. Sly & Robbie left and the new music alienated existing fans. After Sandra died of cancer in 1990 and Reid couldn't get a US visa, Simpson reunited with Carlos and Dennis. They were successful until they split in 1996 and Simpson won a legal battle over the Black Uhuru name. The new lead singer was Andrew Bees. He left in 2003 and Simpson reunited with Rose. That didn't work out and Simpson sang lead for a while until Bees returned and that version of Black Uhuru released an album a few months ago and toured the US to support it. This 2CD comp from the British label Spectrum covers Black Uhuru's Island years. It is a must for reggae fans. Here's Black Uhuru performing Sinsemilla at The Rainbow in London 1981.
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