On February 14, 2010 (Love Day, Valentine’s Day, you know!), the epic spiritual roots reggae band from California, Groundation, was welcomed with love by many heady fans at Harper’s Ferry in Allston, Massachusetts. They covered Marley tunes (“Only in February!” says lead man Harrison Stafford), including ‘Punky Reggae Party’ which has a special place in my heart. They even blessed us with a few of their own. Love was all around and every time Harrison addressed the crowd he was entirely uplifting and humble. The purity of his messages can be strongly felt even through casual conversation with this musical conduit.
As the clock struck midnight on Saturday, February 6, the day of Robert Nesta Marley’s 65th birthday, John Brown’s Body returned to the stage for an encore. The opening notes of ‘Midnight Ravers,’ a crucial, rhythm-driven Marley tune, ignited cheers from the pulsating mass of more than 1,900 bobbing bodies.
Reggae's true essence filled the sweaty air. Tribute was paid to the man who pioneered this powerfully positive music, and his spirit could be felt as JBB drove home their set list of positive vibrations.
John Brown’s Body, a staple of American reggae, put on an invigorating, close-to sold-out show at the House of Blues in the city half of the band calls home.
“They were really killing it out there tonight,” said drummer for Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad, Chris O’Brian.
This was the fourth show of JBB's winter tour with Rochester, NY based roots reggae band Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad. Family and friends of both bands came from near and far to share in the Bob celebration. Musically aligned brothers and sisters could be found throughout the crowd and backstage dancing with each other, and even with some members of a local upcoming reggae band, Buffalo Soul.
New friends were made and old friends reunited over a mutual appreciation for the spirit of Marley and the heartfelt music he spread to the world. John Brown’s Body and Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad work hard and keep Marley’s message alive by producing analytically constructed music and soulful lyrics, touring constantly and collaborating with other bands from the United States and around the world, spreading a similar message.
A reggae family network is formed between the bands as they tour and create music together, and it seems they welcome new members to the family almost everywhere they play.
"They make me feel like part of the family already," says Tubby Love of Buffalo Soul. Keeping this spirit alive, the bonds between bands are as strong as the bonds between individual members that make it possible to play and tour together despite living in entirely different cities.
John Brown’s Body refers to the conscious reggae music they and their family bands create as Future Roots.
“The term ‘contemporary reggae’ is pretty hairy,” says Boston resident and trombonist for John Brown’s Body, Scott Flynn. “Sometimes words can be hairy,” says Flynn. “Reggae music is clearer.”
These musicians understand the power they hold as they project fresh rhythms that transcend constraints of traditional genres and offer something new to people who desire the warmth reggae music generates, expressed musically in love and positivity, as fathered by Marley in his time.
The dedication these bands have to staying true to the roots of their sound can be heard in every song, reminiscent of the music emanating from Jamaica in the 60’s and 70’s. But their sounds are fresh; keeping a rootsy feel while simultaneously projecting new angles through danceable sounds that crowds flock and groove to, with the first show of the tour at Higher Ground Burlington, VT, selling out.
“He’s the king of reggae,” said Panda guitarist Dylan Savage about Marley. “He never missed with any of his songs.”
These examples are followed by a local upcoming band, Buffalo Soul. The (Buffalo) Herd, as they call themselves, also played a sold out Marley birthday show at The Middle East in Cambridge, MA on Saturday night, along with Boston’s iLa Mawana (reggae) and Burlington’s Bearquarium (soulful funk).
Made up of eight current and former Berklee students, the Herd are already treated as part of the reggae family by JBB and GPGDS, as they were welcomed to watch John Brown’s Body from backstage by James Searl, Panda bassist.
Guitar and vocalist of Buffalo Soul, Tubby Love, is a Boston resident and Berklee student. As they danced wick reckless abandon, Love could be seen from the crowd, grooving stage-left with Searl during the ‘Midnight Ravers’ performance.
After the show, Love welcomed GPGDS into his home where he fed the band and their crew pizza and smoothies before setting them up with blankets, beds and couches. Bob could be seen and heard in the background, a live tour DVD on loop.
In a time where popular music is often void of any clear message, the essence of reggae music is alive and thriving, uniting audiences 29 years after Marley’s passing.
Bands like John Brown’s Body, Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad and Buffalo Soul help each other break the mold with confidence. They use their songs to bring people together in a way that only music can. It is the self-designated responsibility of these bands to uplift and inspire happiness in delicate and troubled American times.
[Above, photo of John Brown's Body by Marissa Lelogeais]
“90 percent of the shit you can talk about. But music is like a micro-phenomenon of life across the board,” says righteous Scotty Flynn of John Brown’s Body, responding to my attempt to probe his brain for a little taste of the enlightened soul lurking behind his kind eyes and saucy trombone melodies.
He sits across from me in the now familiar kitchen of Tubby Love, a group of us sipping smoothies at 3 a.m. post Dub Apocalypse set in the House of Blues Kitchen next to Fenway Park.
This particular Tuesday evening, Neal Evans (multi-band percussionist extraordinaire), Tubby Love (my Righteous reggae mentor) and my lucky, grooving self were blessed to witness a soul-food musical mash up: a Dub Apocalypse super jam complete with surprise performance from G. Love and guest vocals from our own Tubby Love.
The lovely Dan Africano (bass daddy of Buffalo Soul) joined us at the H.O.B. Kitchen and for the rest of the night slipping quickly into morning. Lucky as we were already this evening, the boys persuaded Scotty Flynn to come back to the Love Shack with us for smoothies and to record some horn tracks for The Soul’s MySpace. (The recording never happened this night, I wish I could blame the heavy conversation I dragged the boys into, but I think true credit must be paid to the deliciousness of smoothies and heady hummus, flavor hand-picked by the Scotty Flynn.)
I don’t know what I had in mind for accomplishment with my random questions about universal consciousness and the essence of reggae music; but Scott offered up exactly what I was starving for.
He is truly a beautifully well crafted individual, extremely intelligent and so ready to share the knowledge he’s compiled during his righteous life and times with JBB.
I recorded my interview with him on three paper plates, and I’ve been feeding off the resulting revelations ever since. That night of energy put into a higher thinking smoothie, a delicious mix of the fruits of our experience, is still paying off.
After my first big gulp, Scotty helped me realize higher thinking isn’t anything superior to breathing. It is all quite relevant; pita bread, bubble baths, reggae music, it’s all energy. “There is no fundamental building block to life; there’s just events…”
Scotty told me, and I could feel myself being washed in my own confusion. Trying to play well informed; I sat there hanging on his every idea, learning, my solid concepts dissolving and evolving into something new along with the conversation.
“I believe the truth is self evident,” said Scott. “Berklee was the facilitator. Reggae music infiltrated my life. And when you’re talking about roots music, you’re talking about the universal experience of life. Real love. The core of what I am is god awareness.”
Anyone can dance to an upbeat, but to trace where the warmth and light crammed into each and every reggae rhythm comes from is a heavy trip.
I knew immediately upon listening to Scott I’d be hooked on this type of musical conversation for life. I pushed it as far as I could at 3 a.m., half-baked, and being made extremely aware of the homework I’d need to do to keep up in a conversation like this next time the opportunity arose. “Words are limiting. Words are hairy. Reggae music is clearer.”
The boy was preachin’ to a disciple ready to give herself over, and I couldn’t remove my society shades fast enough to catch the light unaltered.
“You’re a channel, you’re a conduit, but you evoke the music with who you incend. It’s a constant evolution; that’s like life, that’s like music,” said Scotty.
“It applies to everything you do 100 percent,” added Neal.
“Music is a very collective thing,” Scotty says.
“Isn’t it heady?” Neal asked.
The boys were in agreement, I was in awe.
The righteous path of thinking I was working hard to stay on had just become one with the music that’s been saving my soul since I first heard and welcomed into my life JBB back in high school.
“The goal of higher consciousness is 24-7,” said Scotty. “So is anything if you’re interested.”
“Dude, I’m mind jamming right now! There are no wrong notes,” added Tubby Love.
Tell me more, oh tell me more! I was hoping the clock had lost all significance for the boys as it had for me the second Tubby and Neal picked me up earlier that night. Something about their presence stops time for me.
My questions for Scotty were complete dribble; I think he may have been able to tell I was just begging for a peek inside his beautiful musician mind because he was awfully gentle with my gaping hole of a brain.
I was determined to understand a little more about how his righteous think-piece worked, and I hoped in turn to understand a little more about reggae music; maybe a little more about myself and why the hell I love it so much.
I recorded what happened next in a spiral formation of words on the back of my last paper plate. I dare not interrupt this part of the conversation I recorded with interjections I’d be adding in now; there were none from me at the time the boys reached these thoughts.
The spontaneous creativity and realization hit us all at once – we were collectively reaching an understanding together, much like that moment of perfection resulting from an entirely spontaneous, time-limitless jam. It was a beautiful thing I was being permitted to document in plain English, my instrument of choice; and I feel it my duty as a writer and reporter for the righteous to share it with anyone who stumbles upon this read.
Scotty: “Music comes from nothing and goes into nothing.” Tubby: “Once you end one song you start another.” Scott: “We each have our own unique experience – freewill. We’re all endowed with our own choice, variety and existence, and our own ability to create.” Neal: “My medium [percussion] is accompaniment with other musicians. It serves the music.” Tubby: “Ram Dass, Be here now. It’s all human experience. It’s all collective. The question answers itself.” Scott: “There’s no distinction between vibrations of music or intention, everything is universal or accessible. We’re talking about different ends of the same spectrum…”
The conceptual orgasm occurred right in the middle of Tubby’s kitchen, and we exhaled as one.
Scott: “Hey it’s snowing! That’s dope.”
We all smiled at each other watching one of the first snows of the season; mine a smile of deepest gratitude and new understandings. We shared hugs good-bye and began contemplating tomorrow’s events.
The conversation was a beautiful journey, the same as the beautiful music these boys create and share with me [and you] from on stage. As I type this my fingers are still dancing to that heady jam…
I'm learning reggae is much more than music.
A taste of a Scott Flynn solo with Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad (Video by Larissa Green)
Scott gets down with the Love Show (in a mall?!) covering Panda. Totally righteous.
And this is me, showing love to the righteous trombone... (photo by Marissa Lelogeais)
'WERD TO THE HERD, WERD TO THE BUFFALO HERD ROLL WITH THE SOUL, ROLL WITH THE BUFFALO SOUL'
Buffalo Soul. Boston reggae band built of love and positive vibrations. Please, enjoy and experience.
The Soul comes from: Dan Africano (bass), Tubby Love (vocals, guitar), Mariletta Konstantara (vocals, awesomeness), Luke Ptomey (drums), Neal Evans (percussion), Brian Paulding (trombone), Wesley Maples (sax), and Mike Hurwitz (keys)
These first two clips of the Soul are from T.T. the Bear's in Cambridge, Mass, video by Righteous Larissa Green. This footage is from their very first show EVER 11.19.2009 opening up for Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad. The story of how they came together is so perfect I'm going to get all the details before I share it. Apparently all their songs were written in one month, every person in this band is 100% positive vibrations and love and I tell you, people, if you want to FEEL some music, if you want happy music that resonates all the way to your bouncy core - Buffalo Soul has got your back. They will play hype man with guitar - except woman also. And profoundly wordified perspectives vocally woven into air. And percussion and bass and keys and drums and horns and - all of it is part of the World Brain, certifiably. The story of how Buffalo Soul came to be might just be one of the great rocken reggae stories of our time... LOVE!
Next video taken of the Soul at Precinct in Somerville on December 5. This is a clip from only their second show, they had the place groovin', Mike's first night on keys! Also the night the pictures were taken.
This last one was recorded by Roger Tower at the Middle East in Cambridge on December 10. Buffalo Soul's third show. Clip of 'Caution' by Bob Marley... watch full video on youtube
And now, four of the Buffalo Soul are going on tour in Colorado over winter break as the Cashed Loved Quartet
Cashed Love tour dates for December '09/January '10 *new dates!
December 31 (9 p.m.) - Alma's Only Bistro - Alma, Colorado January 1 (3 p.m.) - The Maggie - Breckenridge, Colorado January 2 (8 p.m.) - Avogadro's Number - Fort Collins, Colorado January 3 (9 p.m.) - The New Quixote's - Denver, Colorado January 4 (9 p.m.) - 320 South - Breckenridge, Colorado *January 6 (9 p.m.) - Lobar - Crested Butte, Colorado January 7 (9 p.m.) - Fly Me to The Moon Saloon - Telluride, Colorado January 9 (9 p.m.) - Johnny G's - Frisco, Colorado January 14 (8 p.m.) - Herman's Hideaway - Denver, Colorado
Buffalo Soul back in Boston: February 6 (9 p.m.) - Middle East Upstairs w/ Ila Mawana - Cambridge, Mass.
When their music carries you to the edge of the stage, and you reach out to Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad post encore – you will get more than a set list in your hand to take home and cherish. By demonstrating your consciousness and appreciation, you will be given seeds to grow a friendship nourished with medicinal music.
It seems everything Students for Sensible Drug Policy works to achieve is accomplished more effectively with help from the righteous leaders we seek.
Students for Sensible Drug Policy bridges gaps between politics and culture as American Reggae music raises a strong arm with a swaying fist that is pulsating through the world with heavy rhythms controlled by artists who want sensible changes too.
In ways, musical groups function like political organizations, and political organizations like bands. We are individuals with individual roles and strengths. Sometimes we fly solo, and sometimes we combine forces for maximum impact.
Emerson SSDP united directly with our first band on November 19, Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad. We watched another band to potentially want to collaborate with SSDP perform their first show together opening for Giant Panda. Both groups speak to their listeners with the same message as SSDP.
The individuals making up Students for Sensible Drug Policy chapters have united on a quest for the ultimate truth. We transcend conceptualized societal boundaries – in the way that we live, learn and function together; for the world, about the world, because of the world.
I’m excited to know the bands I’ve been following for the past two years (because of their message; for the people, about the people, because of the people) are involved directly with Student for Sensible Drug Policy through the AMPLIFY [Artists Making Political Leadership Inspirational For Youth] project.
The AMPLIFY Project is key to this sensibility movement – if marijuana is a natural medicine, music is a natural doctor.
Popping a cookie’s fortune into a bag of sour diesel, I slipped it into Giant Panda bassist/singer James Searl’s palm as they broken down the stage. “The time is now to make new friends,” the little paper read, spelling out what I hoped my action would say.
Larissa Green (Righteous L Green - Emerson’s SSDP AMPLIFY coordinator), and I explained SSDP to the guys as they packed up their equipment. James and Drummer Chris O’Brian’s enthusiasm magnified our own excitement. We spoke with other musicians who had played earlier that night, and were invited to continue the exchange of ideas in one of their homes.
Scott Flynn, trombone hero of John Brown’s Body (already an AMPLIFY band) came out to play with Giant Panda and back to Tubby Love’s musical love shack. He shared his personal affection for SSDP in addition to his involvement by playing with JBB, “I met my girlfriend because of SSDP.”
The more we reach out to the world, the more love we receive.
In the home of a local force of righteous reggae, band members of several soulful groups joined in sharing spaghetti 3 a.m. dinner and red solo cups filled with pineapple smoothies.
Pineapple smoothies are the only beverages I saw in red solo cups at Tubby Love’s house – I now know to expect nothing less from a righteous force such as Tubby and the conscious people he surrounds himself with. Particularly as he welcomed members of Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad, members of one of his own bands Buffalo Soul who opened for GPGDS earlier that night, two members of Emerson SSDP, a member of John Browns Body and more of their collective friends.
Spaghetti and reggae for all – these bands know how to make it personal. I shared my offering of some of Boston’s finest bud with the love-shackers I met, though still high from the musical births we witnessed together. At 3 a.m. after a real reggae show I found there are no strangers – just new friends and peaceful offerings. Everyone shared knowledge, a love for dub, and the exchange of These.
The magnetic poetry stuck on a fridge in the basement enticed me to it. I tried to meditate for a moment and compose something artful myself; a sentence of what the basement studio I now stood in, surrounded with instruments, made me feel.
Noticing the hand drawn posters on every wall, I realized how much soul those marks had in contrast to the big black X’s drawn on my ‘underage’ fists. My thoughts took a new path as I watched my fingers stroke the keys of the piano near me.
Given up on words for the evening, I took a moment to appreciate the feelings that come from listening to your actions, and considered how much hard work goes into manipulating instruments collectively to create sounds that make you feel good when you hear them.
Not only does their music make you feel good, these bands know how to communicate with people in ways that get you physically moving. Their music is mobilizing; in SSDP’s case, the AMPLIFY project is fuel to a raging fire. And AMPLIFY completely reinforces the message coming from the music of these American Reggae bands, particularly the rock-heavy bands coming from the Northeast.
As we headed upstairs preparing to venture home, I spotted a new friend made earlier in the evening. James sat with me in the love kitchen and we medicated together. Their music, his presence, and his awareness were so healing, my feet should have been aching but I could have danced forever. They work very hard. And so do we. “Sometimes we must work harder…” – GPGDS, 'Work Very Hard'
However, our fight does not hurt those it touches, it seeks to heal.
Music – James of Giant Panda believes as well – is medicinal.
I texted James at 4:20 yesterday as I smoked a bowl in the Boston Garden after leaving this week’s SGA meeting. After wishing him well on the day of Giant Panda’s live album release (Live Up!), I told him the good news before even getting a chance to notify the rest of Emerson SSDP: I just spoke at an Emerson SGA meeting and they just voted to make the punishment for first offence marijuana possession 10 hours of community service instead of a year of academic probation!
“It’s a war of culture, politics, religion; a struggle of our souls. Nations rise, nations fall, and they be filling up their pockets…” – Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad, 'Pockets'
An Ode to the Overwhelmed
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*Forwarded in an email by a friend. Loved this! :)*
And as you stand there
Late again
Because you forgot to allow time to park
And the elevator was slow ...
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On February 14, 2010 (Love Day, Valentine’s Day, you know!), the epic spiritual roots reggae band from California, Groundation, was welcomed with love by many heady fans at Harper’s Ferry in Allston, Massachusetts. They covered Marley tunes (“Only in February!” says lead man Harrison Stafford), including ‘Punky Reggae Party’ which has a special place in my heart. They even blessed us with a few of their own. Love was all around and every time Harrison addressed the crowd he was entirely uplifting and humble. The purity of his messages can be strongly felt even through casual conversation with this musical conduit.
