sound system Sound system may refer to:
Technology media
* Sound reinforcement system, a system for amplifying audio for an audience
* High fidelity, a sound system intended for accurate reproduction of music in the home
* Public address system, an institution ...
operator and dub producer from the UK. Aba and his sound system have been playing through UK and Europe for over 30 years. He has been a resident sound system at
Notting Hill Carnival
The Notting Hill Carnival is an annual Caribbean Carnival event that has taken place in London since 1966
since 1993 and was voted the No. 1 DJ in the World by
DJ Magazine
''DJ Magazine'' (also known as ''DJ Mag'') is a British monthly magazine dedicated to electronic dance music and DJs. Founded in 1991, the magazine is adapted for distribution in the United Kingdom, the United States, Spain, France, Italy, Lati ...
Antigua
Antigua ( ; ), also known as Waladli or Wadadli by the local population, is an island in the Lesser Antilles. It is one of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region and the most populous island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua ...
n parents, who immigrated to the UK in the 1960s. He was first introduced to
roots reggae
Roots reggae is a subgenre of reggae that deals with the everyday lives and aspirations of Ethnic groups of Africa, Africans and those in the African Diaspora, including the spiritual side of Rastafari, black liberation, revolution and the ho ...
music by his father Alan Smith, who himself ran a sound system called Count Alan in the 1960s.
Sound system career
While deejaying for the Jah Tubby's sound system, Aba Shanti-I was known as Jasmine Joe. In 1990, Aba took over the running of the Jah Tubby's sound system, debuting at the Leicester carnival. Since then, Aba Shanti-I and his sound system play regularly in the UK, with residencies at the
Notting Hill Carnival
The Notting Hill Carnival is an annual Caribbean Carnival event that has taken place in London since 1966
since 1993, Leicester Carnival and the University of Dub. The sound system has also played in Belgium, France, Italy, Japan, Lithuania, Portugal and Spain. From 1991 to 1993 Aba Shanti-I hosted the legendary Aba Shanti-I Sound System sessions at The House of Roots in Vauxhall, London. The weekly sessions were documented by photographer Mark Aleksy who attended the sessions. Aleksy is currently working on publishing a photobook featuring images from this time, "Bassland. A Roots Reggae Sound System Visual Odyssey".
Recording career
Aba Shanti-I has produced and recorded with his brother and the band the Shanti-Ites, releasing records on their own Falasha imprint. Their first record, Tear Down Babylon was released in 1993. Aba Shanti-I currently has a studio on Morning Lane, Hackney.
Singles
* Tear Down Babylon (1993)
* The Zulu Warrior (1994)
* Positive Vibration (1995)
* Children of the Most High (1996)
* The Position Vibration (1999)
* Jah Liveth (2000)
* Love in the Ghetto (2000)
* What A Gwan (2004)
* Father Give Life (2004)
* Behold (with Prince Malachi, 2004)
* Inna Sanctuary (with Shandi-I, 2005)
* Every Day (2005)
* Revelation Time (with Shandi-I, 2008)
* Digital Children (with Sister Miriam, 2008)
* Youth Man (with Emmanuel Joseph, 2009)
* Rastaman (with Emmanuel Joseph, 2009)
* Our Father (with Jackie B and Sister Miriam, 2012)
* Babylon Falling (2013)
Albums
* Wrath of Jah Verse I (1996)
* Pure Spirit (1996)
* Jah Lightning and Thunder (1996)
* Rasta Soul-Jah (with Ras Iyah, 1997)
* Jericho Walls (1999)
* Undiluted
* Psalms From The Heart (with Emmanuel Joseph, 2010)
* Inna Sanctuary (with Shandi-I, 2011)
* The Whole of Me – Testament I & II (with Blood Shanti, 2014)
Style
Aba Shanti-I sound system plays music in the roots reggae and dub style. He cites,
Dennis Brown
Dennis Emmanuel Brown CD (1 February 1957 – 1 July 1999) was a Jamaican reggae singer. During his prolific career, which began in the late 1960s when he was aged eleven, he recorded more than 75 albums and was one of the major stars of l ...
,
Bob Marley
Robert Nesta Marley (6 February 1945 – 11 May 1981) was a Jamaican singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Considered one of the pioneers of reggae, he fused elements of reggae, ska and rocksteady and was renowned for his distinctive voca ...
,
Junior Delgado
Oscar Hibbert (25 August 1958 – 11 April 2005),Greene, Jo-AnnJunior Delgado Biography, AllMusic. Retrieved 25 April 2016 better known as Junior Delgado, was a reggae singer, famed for his roots style.
Biography
Born in 1958 in Kingston, Jamaic ...
,
Yabby You
Vivian Neville Jackson (14 August 1946 – 12 January 2010), better known as Yabby You (or sometimes Yabby U), was a reggae vocalist and producer, who came to prominence in the early 1970s through his uncompromising self-produced work.
Biogra ...
and
Prince Lincoln
Prince Lincoln Thompson, known as Sax (10 July 1949 ''
...
as inspiration. The original tracks are usually supplemented by reverb, delays and effects to generate his distinctive sound.
Notable residencies
*
Notting Hill Carnival
The Notting Hill Carnival is an annual Caribbean Carnival event that has taken place in London since 1966
The sound system has been resident at the Carnival since 1993. It was originally situated on Powys Road, moving to Springbrook Road, then Southern Row; the system is currently situated on the corner between Southern and East Row.
* University of Dub Aba Shanti-I was a founder sound system of the University of Dub in the late 1990s and has been a regular ever since.
Family
Aba Shanti-I's brother, Blood Shanti, is a drummer and vocalist, contributing to both Aba Shanti-I's recordings and live performances. Aba Shanti-I also has a son who accompanies him to many of the shows. His son is a drummer in the band Six Soldiers.