Formed
in 1975, their debut release, Kibudu, Mansetta
And Abuku arrived on the small independent label
Dip, and linked the plight of urban black youth
with the image of a greater African homeland.
They followed it with Nyah Love for Anchor.
Surprisingly, they were initially refused live
dates in Caribbean venues in the Midlands because
of their Rastafarian beliefs. Aligning themselves
closely with the Rock Against Racism organisation
and featuring in its first music festival in the
spring of 1978, they chose to tour with sympathetic
elements of the punk movement, including the Stranglers,
XTC etc.: "Punks had a way of enjoying themselves
- throw hordes at you, beer, spit at you, that
kind of thing". Eventually they found a more
natural home in support slots for Burning Spear,
which brought them to the attention of Island
Records.
Their first release for Island was the Ku Klux
Klan 45, a considered tilt at the evils of racism,
and one often accompanied by a visual parody of
the sect on stage. By this time their ranks had
swelled to include Selwyn 'Bumbo' Brown (keyboards),
Steve 'Grizzly' Nisbett (drums), Alphonso Martin
(vocals, percussion) and Mykaell Riley (vocals).
Handsworth Revolution was an accomplished long
playing debut and one of the major landmarks in
the evolution of British Reggae(Executive Producer
Pete King). However, despite critical and moderate
commercial success over three albums, the relationship
with Island Records had soured by the advent of
Caught You (released in the US as Reggae Fever).
Formed
in 1975, their debut release, Kibudu, Mansetta
And Abuku arrived on the small independent label
Dip, and linked the plight of urban black youth
with the image of a greater African homeland.
They followed it with Nyah Love for Anchor. 