''Mystic Man'' is the fourth studio album by

Peter Tosh Winston Hubert McIntosh (19 October 1944 – 11 September 1987), professionally known as Peter Tosh, was a Jamaican reggae musician. Along with Bob Marley and Bunny Wailer, he was one of the core members of the band Bob Marley and the Wa ...

. All songs were composed by Peter Tosh. It was released in

1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...

Rolling Stones Records Rolling Stones Records was the record label formed by the Rolling Stones members Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Mick Taylor, Charlie Watts, and Bill Wyman in 1970, after their recording contract with Decca Records expired. The label was initi ...

(his second album for the label),

EMI EMI Group Limited (formerly EMI Group plc until 2007; originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At t ...

, and Intel Diplo (in Jamaica). The album's cover photo, by

Annie Leibovitz Anna-Lou Leibovitz ( ; born October 2, 1949) is an American Portrait photography, portrait photographer best known for her portraits, particularly of celebrities, which often feature subjects in intimate settings and poses. Leibovitz's Polaroid ...

, shows Tosh's head in profile, with his head cupped in his hands, as if in prayer.Masouri, John (2013) ''Steppin' Razor: The Life of Peter Tosh'', Omnibus Press, Sw. Anand Prahlad, in his book ''Reggae Wisdom'', suggested that on this and previous album '' Bush Doctor'', Tosh was seeking to portray himself in the role of "healer and prophet".Prahlad, Sw. Anand (2001) ''Reggae Wisdom: Proverbs in Jamaican Music'', University Press of Mississippi, , p. 38 The album peaked at number 6 in Italy, 17 in Germany, 25 in Austria, 27 in Sweden, 44 in the Netherlands, and at 123 on the

Billboard 200 The ''Billboard'' 200 is a record chart ranking the 200 most popular music albums and EPs in the United States. It is published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists. Sometimes, a rec ...

. The album was reissued in 2002 with five bonus tracks.

Reception

Lester Bangs Leslie Conway "Lester" Bangs (December 14, 1948 – April 30, 1982) was an American music journalist and critic. He wrote for ''Creem'' and ''Rolling Stone'' magazines and was also a performing musician. The music critic Jim DeRogatis called ...

, reviewing the album for ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'', saw ''Mystic Man'' as an improvement over ''Bush Doctor'' and viewed the 9-minute

disco Disco is a music genre, genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the late 1960s from the United States' urban nightclub, nightlife, particularly in African Americans, African-American, Italian-Americans, Italian-American, LGBTQ ...

-driven "Buk-in-Hamm Palace" as the album's strongest track.Bangs, Lester
''Mystic Man''
, ''

'' (archived), Iss. 310, 7 February 1980. Retrieved 30 November 2018 via

Wayback Machine The Wayback Machine is a digital archive of the World Wide Web founded by Internet Archive, an American nonprofit organization based in San Francisco, California. Launched for public access in 2001, the service allows users to go "back in ...

Jonathan Daümler-Ford, for the ''

Birmingham Daily Post The ''Birmingham Post'' is a weekly printed newspaper based in Birmingham, England, with distribution throughout the West Midlands. First published under the name the ''Birmingham Daily Post'' in 1857, it has had a succession of distinguished ...

'', thought it lacked the immediate impact of the previous album, but "sneaks up from behind" with what he described as "one of the best reggae tracks I have heard ("Can't You See") and several close contenders", calling it a "slow starter but a strong stayer". Ralph Heibutzki, for

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 ...

, saw the album as Tosh reasserting his "cranky contrarian militancy", "a proud declaration of Tosh's lifestyle, which he pointedly contrasts against Western consumerist decadence", viewing "The Day the Dollar Die" as a

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 ...

classic. Dave Thompson saw the album as a disappointment, picking out "Jah Seh No" and "Rumours of War" as highlights.Thompson, Dave (2002) ''Reggae & Caribbean Music'', Backbeat Books, , p. 291 ''

Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture publication based in Greenwich Village, New York City, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Ma ...

'' critic

Robert Christgau Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and later became a ...

wrote: "Mysticism should keep its own counsel; boast about it, translate your supposed experience of the ineffable into any but the most simpleminded ideology, and ninety-five times out of a hundred you'll sound like a smug asshole. Tosh's ever more preachy vocal stance does nothing for his dopey puns ('shitty' for 'city,' far out), his confused political-economic theories, or his equation of hamburgers with heroin. And his musicians sound like the bored pros rockers so often turn into."

Track listing

All tracks composed by Peter Tosh #"Mystic Man" #"Recruiting Soldiers" #"Can't You See" #"Jah Seh No" #"Fight On" #"Buk-In-Hamm Palace" #"The Day The Dollar Die" #"Crystal Ball" #"Rumours Of War" ;Bonus tracks on "The Definitive Remasters" 2002 EMI CD release: :10. "Buk-In-Hamm Palace" (12" version) :11. "Mystic Man" (long version) :12. "Fight On" (instrumental) :13. "Recruiting Soldiers" (version) :14. "Dubbing Buk-In-Hamm" (from 12" single)

Personnel

*Peter Tosh - lead vocals, guitar, keyboards *

Robbie Shakespeare Robert Warren Dale Shakespeare (27 September 1953 – 8 December 2021) was a Jamaican bass guitarist and record producer, best known as half of the reggae rhythm section and production duo Sly and Robbie, with drummer Sly Dunbar. Regarded as on ...

- bass guitar *

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, percussion *

Mikey Chung Michael Chung (1950 – 28 December 2021) also known as Mao Chung, was a Jamaican musician who played keyboards, guitar and percussion instruments. He was also an arranger and record producer of Jamaican music, and worked with a wide array of ...

- keyboards, guitar, percussion *

Robbie Lyn Robert "Robbie" Bernard Lyn is a Jamaican session musician who plays piano, keyboard and synthesiser. Biography Robbie Lyn is a popular Jamaican session musician, who has played with various session/backing bands including Now Generation, Soun ...

- organ, piano *

Uziah "Sticky" Thompson Uzziah "Sticky" Thompson (1 August 1936 – 25 August 2014) was a Jamaican percussionist, vocalist and deejay active from the late 1950s. He worked with some of the best known performers of Jamaican music and played on hundreds of albums. Biog ...

- percussion; repeater drums on "Fight On" *George Young - alto saxophone, flute *Howard Johnson - baritone saxophone *

Lou Marini Louis Eugene Marini Jr. (born May 13, 1945), known as "Blue Lou" Marini, is an American saxophonist, arranger, and composer. He is best known for his work in jazz, rock, blues, and soul music, as well as his association with The Blues Brother ...

- tenor saxophone, flute *Ed Walsh - Oberheim synthesizer on "Recruiting Soldiers", "Jah Seh No" and "Buk-In-Hamm Palace" *Barry Rogers - trombone *Mike Lawrence - trumpet *

Sammy Figueroa Sammy Figueroa (born November 16, 1948) is an American percussionist. At 18, he joined the band of bassist Bobby Valentín and also co-led the Brazilian/Latin fusion group Raíces. He is known as an extremely prolific session player, having pl ...

- percussion; congas on "Mystic Man" and "Buk-In-Hamm Palace" * Clive "Azul" Hunt, Mikey Chung - horn arrangements *Brenda White King,

Gwen Guthrie Gwendolyn Guthrie (July 9, 1950 – February 3, 1999) was an American singer-songwriter and pianist who also sang backing vocals for Aretha Franklin, Billy Joel, Stevie Wonder, Peter Tosh, The Limit and Madonna, among others, and who wrote son ...

The Tamlins The Tamlins are a Jamaican reggae vocal group formed in the late 1960s, known for their hits such as "Baltimore", and their work with artists such as Peter Tosh. History The group originally comprised Carlton Smith, Junior Moore and Winston Mor ...

, Yvonne Lewis - backing vocals *

Keith Sterling Keith Sterling (born Keith Sterling-McLeod, January 1952, Kingston, Jamaica)Larkin, Colin (2006) ''The Encyclopedia of Popular Music'', 4th edn., OUP USA, , p. 743 is a piano and keyboard player. Biography Keith Sterling is a well-respected Jam ...

- acoustic piano on "Mystic Man" *Ed Elizalde - lead guitar on "Can't You See" ;Technical *

Geoffrey Chung Geoffrey Aloysius Chung (1950 – 13 October 1995) was a Jamaican musician, recording engineer, and record producer. Biography Chung was born in 1950 in Kingston, Jamaica.Moskowitz, David V. (2006) ''Caribbean Popular Music: an Encyclopedia of ...

- recording, mixing *James Nichols, Michel Sauvage - assistant engineer *Dennis King - mastering *

- photography

Charts

References

{{Authority control Peter Tosh albums 1979 albums Rolling Stones Records albums