HUGH MUNDELL
Reggae Performer
With the tragic murder of Hugh Mundell, who was shot and killed while sitting in a car
with Junior Reid, in 1983, reggae
lost one of its most promising young performers. Mundell's 1975 debut album, Africa Must Be Free By 1983, produced by Augustus Pablo, remains a
classic roots reggae recording. In a review of the album, www.reggaeexpress.com
wrote, "(Mundell's) singing style and soothing voice will lull you into
tranquility if you let it."
Mundell was still a
teenager when he teamed with influential producer Joe Gibbs to record a still-unreleased single,
"'Where Is Natty Dread." His first break came when he was hired as a
DJ for Augustus Pablo's Rockers sound
system. His debut single, "Africa Must Be Free," was released in
early 1975. Mundell also recorded
several 12" singles as Jah Levi. Beginning in 1979, Mundell took over the production of his own
recordings. He also produced the debut album, Speak the Truth, by
"Little" Junior Reid, on Pablo's label, Rocker. A dub version of Africa Must Be Free By 1983 was released in 1989. ~ Craig Harris, All
Music Guide
Click here to hear a sample of his work.
The teenaged Hugh Mundell cut this album under the tutelage of the legendary producer Augustus Pablo in the mid-1970s, and had a Jamaican hit with the title track. Mundell's artlessly fervent singing is attractive far out of proportion to his technical skill. It's the sincerity and devotion in his voice that make successes of songs like "Let's All Unite" and "My Mind" -- that and the rock-solid instrumental backing of Pablo's studio band, which at this time included bassist and trombonist Leroy "Horsemouth" Wallace and guitarists Earl "Chinna" Smith and Jeffrey Chung. The CD issue of this album includes dub versions of six of the original album's eight tracks as well as several other miscellaneous dub tracks. Like too many of Jamaica's best reggae musicians, Mundell died young -- in an almost creepy irony (given the title of his hit song), he was shot and killed in 1983 at the age of 21. ~ Rick Anderson, All Music Guide
Many reggae fans have long
been aware that the tragic death of singer Hugh Mundell at age 21,
severed what promised to be a highly successful career. Under the great Augustus
Pablo and on his own, Mundell recorded a small, but impressive body
of roots material beginning when he was in his early teens. Though the greatest
triumph of his five years in music was undoubtedly the 1978 set Africa Must
Be Free By 1983, his subsequent releases were nearly as stunning.
Shanachie's Blackman's Foundation selects five tracks from Time and Place
(1981), adding four cuts from the same period. Mundell's voice is
already deeply expressive at this very young age, and his lyrics carry a series
of heavyweight reality themes. The rhythms are equally solid and include a
handful of Pablo's best-loved Rockers-style creations. "Stop 'Em Jah"
(paired with its excellent dub) has the young Rasta delivering a scathing
attack upon Babylon over the same track that appeared on the classic King Tubby
Meets the Rockers Uptown LP. Mundell glides, multi-tracked, across the
rhythm for "Rastafari's Call," a thick mix of shimmering keyboards,
syrupy guitar figures, and creaking accents. The set closes with "One Jah,
One Aim, One Destiny" whereby Mundell's themes come to a head in a
plea for unity voiced on a tough, reverb-laden mix of Pablo's "Rockers
Rock" (aka the Studio One classic "Real Rock"). Along with the
sides he engineered for Jacob Miller (gathered on Who Say Jah No Dread),
the Mundell catalog contains the finest vocal productions of Pablo's
career. ~ Nathan Bush, All Music Guide
http://www.artistdirect.com/music/artist/card/0,,471341,00.html
Prepared by Bob Dalrymple, PO Box 122, Dapto, NSW Australia 2350
eMail: bob@relativelyyours.com