Earl Anthony Johnson (born 1953), better known as Earl Zero, is a Jamaican
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 ...
artist, whose career began in the 1970s. He is the uncle of Toronto rapper Raz Fresco.
History
Born 1953 in the Greenwich Town area of
Kingston
Kingston may refer to:
Places
* List of places called Kingston, including the six most populated:
** Kingston, Jamaica
** Kingston upon Hull, England
** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia
** Kingston, Ontario, Canada
** Kingston upon Thames, ...
, Johnson was the eldest of ten children, his father a fisherman and his mother a fishmonger.Greene, Jo-Ann Earl Zero Biography ,
Allmusic
AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...
, retrieved 2011-01-02 Zero began his career in the 1970s, first as a member of the group Rush-It with his childhood friend
Earl "Chinna" Smith
Earl "Chinna" Smith (born 6 August 1955), a.k.a. Earl Flute and Melchezidek the High Priest,Johnson, Richard (2013)The Melchizedek way, ''Jamaica Observer'', 6 October 2013. Retrieved 12 October 2013 is a Jamaican guitarist active since the late ...
, who recorded for producer
Bunny Lee
Edward O'Sullivan Lee OD (23 August 1941 – 6 October 2020), better known as Bunny "Striker" Lee, was a Jamaican record producer. He was known as a pioneer of the United Kingdom reggae market, licensing his productions to Trojan Records i ...
, who gave him the name 'Earl Zero' to distinguish him from Smith.Katz, David (2003) ''Solid Foundation: an Oral History of Reggae'', Bloomsbury, , p. 140, 211Larkin, Colin (1998) ''The Virgin Encyclopedia of Reggae'', Virgin Books, , p. 324 His song "None Shall Escape the Judgement" was a hit for
Johnny Clarke
Johnny Clarke (born 12 January 1955) is a Jamaican reggae musician, best known for his recordings with producer Bunny Lee in the 1970s.
Biography
Clarke grew up in the Kingston ghetto of Whitfield Town and attended Jamaica College.Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter (2004) ''The Rough Guide to Reggae, 3rd edn.'', Rough Guides, , p. 186 and
proto punk
Proto-punk (or protopunk) is rock music from the 1960s to mid-1970s that foreshadowed the punk rock genre and movement. A retrospective label, the musicians involved were generally not originally associated with each other and came from a variet ...
garage band artist Jonathan Richman and the Modern Lovers had a UK #5 hit with an instrumental version of "None Shall Escape the Judgement" in 1977 titled "Egyptian Reggae". The track was included on the album '' Rock 'n' Roll with the Modern Lovers''. Although the writing credit was originally given to
Richman Richman is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Adam Richman (born 1974), American actor and TV host
* Adam Richman (singer) (born c.1983), American indie pop singer-songwriter
* Alfred A. Richman (c.1892–1984), American orthop ...
Al Campbell
Alphonso "Al" Campbell (born 31 August 1954) is a Jamaican reggae singer active since the late 1960s.
Biography
Born in Kingston, Jamaica, Campbell's singing career began in church, where his father was a preacher, and Al would sing to raise f ...
-produced "Righteous Works" in 1975. He recorded for Don Mais' Roots Tradition label (recording "Home Sweet Home" and "I No Lie"), and joined
Tommy Cowan
Tommy Cowan CD (born Thomas Lincoln Cowan, 6 April 1946, Saint Elizabeth, Jamaica) is a producer and singer, initially working in reggae but later concentrating on gospel, who has been involved in the music business since the 1960s.Brooks, Sade ...
's Talent Corporation roster, and had further success with "Please Officer", recorded with
Augustus Pablo
Horace Michael Swaby (21 June 1953 – 18 May 1999), Thompson, Dave (2002). ''Reggae & Caribbean Music''. Backbeat Books. , pp. 200–202. also known as Augustus Pablo, was a Jamaican roots reggae and dub composer, performer, record produc ...
and
Prince Jammy
Lloyd Woodrowe James (born 26 October 1947),Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter: "Reggae: The Rough Guide", 1997, Rough Guides, better known as Prince Jammy or King Jammy, is a Jamaican dub mixer, sound system owner and record producer. He began hi ...
, and "City of the Weak Heart", released on Cowan's Arab label, the latter also recorded by Jacob Miller on his ''Killer Miller'' album. In 1976 he moved on to work with Bertram Brown, recording "Get Happy", and again recorded with Campbell on "Heart Desire". He continued recording through the late 1970s, recording with
Soul Syndicate
Soul Syndicate, originally called the Rhythm Raiders, were one of the top reggae session bands in Jamaica from the early 1970s to the mid-1980s.
History
In the first half of the 1970s the band from the Greenwich Farm area of Kingston recorded ...
. His first two albums, ''Visions of Love'' and ''In the Right Way'', were released in 1979.
In 1979 he relocated to northern California, and continued to record since, with several albums released. Much of his ''Freedom Sounds'' label music was re-released in the mid-1990s on
Steve Barrow
Steve Barrow (born 29 September 1945) is a British reggae historiographer, chronologist, archivist, journalist, curator, writer, promoter, sound system operator, record-label owner and producer.
and
Mick Hucknall
Michael James Hucknall (born 8 June 1960) is an English singer and songwriter. Hucknall achieved international fame in the 1980s as the lead singer and songwriter of the soul-influenced pop band Simply Red, with whom he enjoyed a 25-year caree ...
King Tubby
Osbourne Ruddock (28 January 1941 – 6 February 1989), better known as King Tubby, was a Jamaican sound engineer who influenced the development of dub music in the 1960s and 1970s.
Tubby's studio work, in which as a mixing engineer he achiev ...
&
Soul Syndicate
Soul Syndicate, originally called the Rhythm Raiders, were one of the top reggae session bands in Jamaica from the early 1970s to the mid-1980s.
History
In the first half of the 1970s the band from the Greenwich Farm area of Kingston recorded ...
– Freedom Sounds in Dub'', thereby introducing his sounds to new generations of listeners, and his works are still consistently held in high regard and in demand with sound-systems worldwide. Moskowitz, David V. (2006) ''Caribbean Popular Music: an Encyclopedia of Reggae, Mento, Ska, Rock Steady, and Dancehall'', Greenwood Press, , p. 98 His latest album is ''Marketplace'', to be released in Spring 2011 with producer Siahvash Dowlatshahi. The album features members of the
Roots Radics
The Roots Radics Band is a Jamaican reggae group, formed in 1978 by bass player Errol "Flabba" Holt, guitarist Eric "Bingy Bunny" Lamont and drummer Lincoln "Style" Scott. The nucleus of Holt and Lamont had previously worked together in the ...
,
The Greyboy Allstars
The Greyboy Allstars are an American soul-jazz band from San Diego, California, United States, whose current members include Karl Denson on Saxophone, Robert Walter on Keys, Mike Andrews (under the pseudonym Elgin Park) on guitar, Chris Stillw ...
, The Devastators and others.
Discography
*''Visions of Love'' (1979), Epiphany
*''In the Right Way'' aka ''Only
Jah
Jah or Yah (, ''Yāh'') is a short form of the Tetragrammaton (YHWH), the personal name of God: Yahweh, which the ancient Israelites used. The conventional Christian English pronunciation of ''Jah'' is , even though the letter J here transliter ...
Can Ease the Pressure'' (1979), Freedom Sounds/Student
*''Roots & Romance'' (2001)
*''And God Said to Man'' (2010), A-Lone
*''Marketplace'' (2011), Foreign Key Records
*''Earl Zero Meets Sideway' 'Big Fisherman In Dub' (2020), Sideway Outernational Records