Misty in Roots are a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

roots reggae Roots reggae is a subgenre of reggae that deals with the everyday lives and aspirations of Africans and those in the African Diaspora, including the spiritual side of Rastafari, black liberation, revolution and the honoring of God, called Jah ...

band formed in

Southall Southall () is a large suburban county of West London, England, part of the London Borough of Ealing and is one of its seven major towns. It is situated west of Charing Cross and had a population of 69,857 as of 2011. It is generally divided ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, in the mid 1970s. Their first album was 1979's ''Live at the Counter Eurovision'', a record full of Rastafarian songs. It was championed by

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...

DJ John Peel, helping to bring roots reggae to a white audience. At this early stage, the band was a collective with five lead singers and various musicians, though by the time of the second album proper the band had slimmed down to just three members. Along with

Steel Pulse Steel Pulse are a roots reggae band from the Handsworth area of Birmingham, England. They originally formed at Handsworth Wood Boys School, and were composed of David Hinds (lead vocals, guitar), Basil Gabbidon (lead guitar, vocals), and Ro ...

, Aswad, Matumbi, Cimarons and

Black Slate Black Slate are a reggae band based in the United Kingdom, and formed in 1974. They toured heavily around London and backed Jamaican musicians such as Dennis Brown, Delroy Wilson, and Ken Boothe when they played in the UK. They toured the UK ...

, Misty in Roots were one of the most popular British reggae bands of the late 1970s. Following their debut, Misty in Roots released four studio albums through the 1980s. The band had two BBC Radio 1 "In Concert" appearances in 1983 and 1985. They were invited to play in

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and ...

in 1982 in recognition of their support for the independence movement, and were the first reggae band to tour South Africa, Poland, and Russia. After a break from recording in the next decade the band returned with a new mini-album ''Roots Controller'' in 2002. and continue to play concerts . In 1979 Clarence Baker, a member of the collective, was severely beaten and injured by the SPG during a protest in Southall against a National Front march. The punk band

The Ruts The Ruts (later known as Ruts DC) are an English reggae-influenced punk rock band, notable for the 1979 UK top 10 hit single "Babylon's Burning", and an earlier single "In a Rut", which was not a hit but was highly regarded and regularly pla ...

, who were partners of and had their debut single released by the People Unite co-operative, honoured him in their song "Jah War" which was released as a single and on their album '' The Crack'' the same year. In 1989 Misty in Roots played Treworgy Tree Fayre, a free festival in Cornwall.

Album Discography

; Studio and live Albums : * ''Live at the Counter Eurovision 79'' (1979) ecorded live in Belgium- ( People Unite) * ''Misty Over Sweden'' (1979) wedish release - recorded live in Sweden- ( Nacksving) * ''Wise and Foolish'' (1981) - (People Unite) * ''Earth'' (1983) - (People Unite) * ''Musi-O-Tunya'' (1985) - (People Unite) * ''Forward'' (1989) - ( Kaz Records) * ''The John Peel Sessions'' (1995) ew tracks plus new versions of previously-released material- ( Strange Fruit) * ''Roots Controller'' (2002) new tracks plus previously-released material - (

Real World Records Real World Records is a British record label specializing in world music. It was founded in 1989 by English musician Peter Gabriel and original members of WOMAD. A majority of the works released on Real World Records feature music recorded at ...

Virgin Virginity is the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. The term ''virgin'' originally only referred to sexually inexperienced women, but has evolved to encompass a range of definitions, as found in traditional, modern ...

) ; Compilations : * ''Chronicles - The Best of' Misty In Roots'' (1994) - (Kaz Records) * ''Jah Sees Jah Knows'' (1997) CD version includes bonus CD of ''Live at the Counter Eurovision '79'' - ( Recall 2cd, owned by

Snapper Music Snapper Music is an independent record label founded in 1996 by former head of Castle Communications Jon Beecher, Dougie Dudgeon and funded by Mark Levinson from Palan Music Publishing. In 1999, Snapper broke away from its Palan parent company ...

) ; Singles & EPs : * ''Six One Penny'' (1978) - (People Unite) * ''Oh Wicked Man'' (1978) - (People Unite) * ''See Them Ah Come'' / ''How Long Jah'' (1979) - (People Unite) * ''Six One Penny'' / ''Oh Wicked Man'' (1979) - (Nacksving) * ''Richman'' / ''Salvation'' (1979) - (People Unite) * ''Zapatta'' (1980) - (People Unite) * ''Wandering Wanderer'' / ''Cry Out For Peace'' (1981) - (People Unite) * ''Peace And Love'' / ''Bail Out'' (1981) - (People Unite) * ''Jah Jah Bless Africa'' (1981) - (People Unite) * ''Poor And Needy'' / ''Follow Fashion'' (1983) - (People Unite) * ''Poor And Needy'' / ''Persecution'' (1985) - ( Tonpress) * ''Own Them Control Them'' (1986) - (People Unite) * ''Together'' (1988) - (People Unite) * ''The Midas Touch'' (1989) - (Kaz Records)

References

External links

Biography on Misty in Roots website
*

Allmusic biography AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

br>Singles discography on 45CatInterview on Reggae Vibes
{{Authority control Musical groups from London Real World Records artists Performers of Rastafarian music English Rastafarians British reggae musical groups