''Man from Wareika'' was the first album recording for Rico Rodriguez led by his own artistic imagination, and his first recording created for album release. It is notable for being the only

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 ...

album to be released on

Blue Note Records Blue Note Records is an American jazz record label now owned by Universal Music Group and operated under Capitol Music Group. Established in 1939 by History of the Jews in Germany, German-Jewish emigrants Alfred Lion and Max Margulis, it deriv ...

. After recording one track ("Africa") in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

with engineer

Dick Cuthell Dick Cuthell is a British musician and record producer. He plays flugelhorn, cornet, and trumpet, amongst a range of other brass instruments, including tenor horn and valve trombone. Cuthell is best known for his work with the SpecialsStrong, M ...

as a kind of a demo for label owner

Chris Blackwell Christopher Percy Gordon Blackwell OJ (born 22 June 1937) is a Jamaican-British former record producer and the founder of Island Records, which has been called "one of Britain's great independent labels". According to the Rock and Roll Hall ...

- its arrangement is completely different in comparison to the rest of the album and contains flute and chorus - Rodriguez was offered a contract to record this album; and he could arrange to record in

Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...

. After 15 years Rodriguez returned for the first time to Jamaica. He had left the country in 1961 when he was already heavily involved in creating the then new

ska Ska (; , ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a w ...

sound. In 1976 he added something new to reggae music. A critic wrote in 1977 that the album "does not just reflect the current popular trends, but ... expresses in a definitive way the Jamaican music tradition." The nine self-composed tracks on the album offer Jamaican rhythms with horn lines between a melodic use (e.g. on "This Day" and "Lumumba") and jazz; the latter helped to define something like a new genre, Jamaican jazz, transforming the experience from early ska days into 1970s roots reggae. Most of the songs remain in Rodriguez's live repertoire until today. Some have been re-recorded by other artists as well as by himself.

Track listing

All compositions and arrangements by Rico Rodriguez #"This Day" – 4:14 #"Ramble" – 4:11 #"Lumumba" – 4:01 #"Africa" – 4:36 #"Man from Wareika" – 3:16 #"Rasta" – 3:38 #"Over the Mountain" – 3:14 #"Gunga Din" – 3:53 #"Dial Africa" – 3:22

Personnel

*Rico Rodriguez - trombone *Viv "Talent" Hall - trumpet *

Bobby Ellis Bobby Ellis OD (2 July 1932 – 18 October 2016) was a Jamaican trumpet player. He worked with many reggae artists including Peter Tosh, Burning Spear and The Revolutionaries. Biography Born in Kingston on 2 October 1932, Bobby Ellis attended ...

- trumpet * Richard "Dirty Harry" Hall - tenor saxophone *George Lee - tenor saxophone *

Herman Marquis Herman Marquis is a Jamaican saxophone musician who has played with many reggae artists including Burning Spear. He recorded for Arthur "Duke" Reid in the 1960s and was a member of The Revolutionaries and The Upsetters in the 1970s.Barrow, Steve ...

- alto saxophone *Ray Allen - alto saxophone *Bernard "Touter" Harvey - keyboards * Ansell Collins - keyboards *Errol "Tarzan" Nelson - keyboards *

Karl Pitterson Karl Pitterson is a Jamaican record producer and sound engineer. Pitterson began his career in the early 1970s as house engineer with Jamaican studios such as Dynamics, Federal, Randy's, Studio One, Treasure Isle and Aquarius. Over the course of ...

- lead guitar, keyboards, percussion *Radcliffe "Duggie" Bryan - lead guitar * Junior Hanson Marvin - lead guitar *

Lloyd Parks Lloyd Parks (born 26 May 1949) is a Jamaican reggae vocalist and bass player who has recorded and performed as a solo artist as well as part of Skin, Flesh & Bones, The Revolutionaries, The Professionals, and We the People Band.Larkin, Colin: ...

- rhythm guitar * Ras Robbie Shakespeare - bass *

Sly Dunbar Lowell Fillmore "Sly" Dunbar (born 10 May 1952, Kingston, Jamaica) is a Jamaican drummer, best known as one half of the prolific Jamaican rhythm section and reggae production duo Sly and Robbie. Biography Dunbar began playing at 15 in a ba ...

- drums * Skully - wood drums *Flick - fussy tambourine ;Personnel on "Africa": *Rico Rodriguez - trombone *

Eddie "Tan Tan" Thornton Edward Thornton (born 1931), better known as "Tan Tan", is a Jamaican trumpeter, whose career began in the 1950s. Biography Thornton was born in 1931 and attended the Alpha Boys School.Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter (2004) ''The Rough Guide to ...

- trumpet *

Keith Gemmell Keith Gemmell (15 February 1948 – 24 July 2016) was a British musician. He was best known for being a member of art rock band Audience from 1969 to 1972 and from 2004 to 2016. He was also a musical arranger and composer, published digital sh ...

- tenor saxophone *Tony Washington - keyboards * Phillip Chen - rhythm guitar *Bunny McKenzie - bass *Jacko (Although it is very likely to be Carlton 'Carly' Barrett.) - drums *Tony Utah - percussion *Satch Dixon - percussion * Ijahman - backing vocals *Candy McKenzie - backing vocals Recorded at

Joe Gibbs Joseph Jackson Gibbs (born November 25, 1940) is an American auto racing team owner and former American football, football coach. He served as the head coach of the Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL) from 1981 Washingto ...

Studios and Randy's Recording Studio,

Kingston, Jamaica Kingston is the Capital (political), capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long spit (landform), sand spit which connects the town of Por ...

, September 1976.
Engineers:

, Errol Thompson,

, assisted by Flick.
"Africa" was recorded at Island Hammersmith Studios, May 1976 by Dick Cuthell.
All tracks mixed at Island

Basing Street Studios Basing Street Studios was a recording studio in a former 17th century chapel at 8–10 Basing Street, in Notting Hill, London, England. Originally established in 1969 as Island Studios by Chris Blackwell, the founder of Island Records, the studi ...

by Karl Pitterson and Dick Cuthell, assisted by Kevin Dallimore.
Executive producer:

Cover illustration by Tony Wright. Design by Eckford/Stimpson.

Releases

1977: *LP: Island ILPS 9485 /UK *LP: Blue Note BN LA819 H /US *LP: Top Ranking no # /Jamaica ca. late 1980s: *CD: Mango /Island CID 9485 /UK 1999/2000: *Vinyl Only /Island 2004: *CD: Island Japan 2016: *CD: Caroline International CAROLR049CD (Double CD featuring 'Man From Wareika' and 'Wareika Dub' with extra tracks.) ''Man From Wareika'' was also remixed into a dub version, released as ''Warrika Dub'' (LP: Ghetto Rockers PRE 1), re-released 2004 in Japan on Island CD.

References

External links

*
Two-Tone Records Roots Archives
{{Authority control 1977 albums Rico Rodriguez (musician) albums Island Records albums Blue Note Records albums