I-Roy
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Roy Samuel Reid (28 June 1944 — 27 November 1999, born in St. Thomas, Jamaica) better known as I-Roy was a Jamaican DJ who had a very prolific career during the 1970s.
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Biography
Deriving his name, and to some extent his style, from U-Roy, Reid was also heavily influenced in his early career by Dennis Alcapone. With early recordings for Gussie Clarke, Glen Brown, Lee Perry and Bunny Lee, Reid established himself at the forefront of 1970s reggae DJ's. His debut album Presenting I Roy is considered a classic of its genre, and was followed up by a series of strong albums including Hell and Sorrow. Linton Kwesi Johnson dubs I-Roy "the mighty poet" in "Street 66" on the album, Bass Culture.
The mighty poet I-Roy was on the wire
Western did a skank; and each man laugh
an feelin Irie; dread I;
Street 66, the said man said
any policeman come ere
will get some righteous ras klaat licks
yeah man - whole heap kicks.
For several years from 1975, I-Roy engaged in an on-record slanging match with fellow DJ Prince Jazzbo, the two trading insults on successive singles, although in reality they were good friends. In 1976, I-Roy signed to Virgin Records with whom he would go on to release five albums. On occasion he would utilise The Revolutionaries as his backing band.
Reggae's move to the dancehall era in the 1980s saw I-Roy's popularity decline and although he continued to record, his output was not of the standard that he had set in the previous decade.
He died in 1999 of heart failure, at the age of fifty-five.<ref>I-Roy in Fuller Up - the Dead Musicians Directory</ref> He was homeless when he died.
Discography
Studio albums
- Presenting I Roy (1973, Gussie/Trojan)
- Hell and Sorrow (1974, Trojan)
- Many Moods of I Roy (1974, Trojan)
- Truths & Rights (1975, Grounation)
- Step Forward Youth (1975, Live & Love) with Prince Jazzbo
- Can't Conquer Rasta (1976, Justice)
- Crisus Time (1976, Caroline/Virgin)
- Dread Baldhead (1976, Klik)
- Ten Commandments (1977, Micron)
- Heart of a Lion (1977, Front Line)
- Musical Shark Attack (1977, Front Line)
- The Godfather (1977, Third World)
- The General (1977, Front Line)
- World on Fire (1978, Front Line)
- Cancer (1979, Virgin)
- African Herbsman (1979, Joe Gibbs)
- Hotter Yatta (1980, Harry J)
- Whap'n Bap'n (1980, Virgin, produced by Dennis Bovell)
- I Roy's Doctor Fish (1981, Imperial)
- Outer Limits (1983, Hawkeye)
- We Chat You Rock (1987, Trojan) with Jah Woosh
- The Lyrics Man (1990, Witty's)
- Head To Head Clash (1990, Ujama) with Prince Jazzbo
Compilations
- The Best Of (1977, GG's)
- Don't Check Me With No Lightweight Stuff (1997, Blood and Fire)
- Touting I Self (2001, Heartbeat)
- GTA san A. K-Jah west
