7 Miles Of Black Star Liner: The Fred Locks Story

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7 Miles Of Black Star Liner: The Fred Locks Story

Рет қаралды 5,170

Күн бұрын

Best known for 1975's Black Star Liners - which rode a wave of highly Rastafarian influenced and repatriation to Africa themed reggae music as the 1970's turned very spiritual and dread - Fred Locks spun that hit song off into a classic 1976 reggae LP and a career that continues well into the 21st Century. My look at the history of Fred Locks, through the records in my collection!
As always I can be found on Facebook ( / fatcityvinylmusicblog ) and Instagram ( / fatcityvinyl ) with more updates!
0:00 Intro
1:05 Early Days & the Lyrics
15:25 Fred Locks
23:35 Black Star Liner/True Rastaman
31:44 The Missing Link
35:02 Creation Steppers
42:20 Never Give Up

Пікірлер: 59

@2gs585 Ай бұрын

We need that back knowledge in roots reggae. So often we just listen to the music, without knowing any of the history behind the artist journey. Big up Fat City and man like David Rodigan

@FatCityVinyl Ай бұрын

I always found that a knowledge of the history enhanced appreciation of the music - I certainly have more of an overstanding of Fred's music now, having gotten a grasp of the historical nuances. Cheers and thank you 🙏

@originaldonovan1003 Ай бұрын

F.C.V. your a real historian & lecturer for Jamaican music. Highly informative study guide...

@FatCityVinyl Ай бұрын

Thank you, much appreciated 🙏

@DarrenSmith-uj8fj Ай бұрын

Thanks for another amazing video about a great artist still going strong 🙌❤💛💚🙌🙏

@FatCityVinyl Ай бұрын

Thank you! Yep still going, well into the 21st century - he's said in interviews that all his singing partners of old have passed and gone, long may he continue to sing roots reggae muzik 🙏

@chrisp6820 Ай бұрын

Yes!!! great video Doug! Fred Locks only gets love for B.S.L. so it is nice to have a video that looks at his whole career. Another fabulous video :-)

@FatCityVinyl Ай бұрын

Having recently picked up the remastered Black Star Liner from VP - and with the Love & Harmony set just reissued after all these years - I figured I may as well go all the way and cover as much of his career as I could (a bit lacking in more recent 00's releases). Big props to Angus Taylor and others for their insightful interviews, without which this would not have been possible!

@rasmarcusdubwise1242 Ай бұрын

ALOT OF ROOTS ARTIST DIDN'T GET RECOGNIZED OR PLAY..BUT IM REVAMPING THEY MUSIC FOR LAST 10 YRS NOW..BIG UP FRED..B.S.L..BIG UP DOUGIE FO HIS RESEARCH..🎼🎵🎵🙏🙏🎶🔥🔥📖😎😎🎤📖🔥🎶INDIKA SOUNDS

@FatCityVinyl Ай бұрын

Important to keep their music alive and being played...music alone shall live and never die...but up to us to make sure it doesn't get forgotten over the years...thank you and big up my friend...

@westkingston3135 Ай бұрын

@@FatCityVinyl Bess up Iyah.Could you do something on Jackie Mittoo .Mannaz and respect 🙏

@FatCityVinyl Ай бұрын

@@westkingston3135 Could do, would take a little while to put together but definitely had him in mind to cover at some point. Thank you and respect 🙏✌

@westkingston3135 Ай бұрын

@@FatCityVinyl Thank you 🙏

@highrantdistrict Ай бұрын

It's funny sometimes how simple the reasoning is for why a particular stage name was chosen. Great stuff as always, Doug! Cheers, Tom

@FatCityVinyl Ай бұрын

So simple I never thought of it until reading that explanation somewhere! There was even a common lyric that a couple of artists used that went "used to know a dread by the name of Fred/used to make his living by selling lambsbread" which should have been another clue as to the rhyming nature. Thanks Tom!

@highrantdistrict Ай бұрын

@@FatCityVinyl 🤣🤣🤣

@solfergav Ай бұрын

Another super informative vid, thanks Doug. Keep em coming 👍 Gav (Roots Collecta)

@FatCityVinyl Ай бұрын

@@solfergav Thank you, I surely will 🙏

@Greyhound645 Ай бұрын

Continued thanks for your work and highlighting the lesser known artists . I totally love catching up with your vids. Or recently, listened to you on my headphones whilst on the move.

@FatCityVinyl Ай бұрын

Thank you 🙏 much appreciated - hope I am doing my bit to keep the knowledge of these great artists and their music in circulation in these times ❤💛💚

@paulg3012 Ай бұрын

You have a really nice collection there. Always loved Fredlocks coming up, still know all the lyrics off by heart.

@FatCityVinyl Ай бұрын

Thank you! Yes those songs stay with you, close to the heart ❤💛💚

@anthonychukwuka8839 Ай бұрын

Great work. thanks

@FatCityVinyl Ай бұрын

Thank you 🙏

@anthonychukwuka8839 Ай бұрын

@@FatCityVinyl I have forgotten the title of your work on I Roy. Kindly give me the link. I want to watch and listen again. Respect

@FatCityVinyl Ай бұрын

@@anthonychukwuka8839 Sure thing, here it is: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/npqmdJakrNWnmGg.html

@anthonychukwuka8839 Ай бұрын

@@FatCityVinyl Thanks a bunch

@richmod Ай бұрын

Top in depth video Doug , i have waited for a top review of one of my fave roots reggae albums ......Black Star Liner is a real classic .

@FatCityVinyl Ай бұрын

@@richmod That it is! A benchmark of 1970’s roots reggae music. Thank you very much, cheers 🙏

@chrisirie4210 Ай бұрын

Awesome! As usual!

@FatCityVinyl Ай бұрын

Big thanks 🙏😎✌️

@RandyforRoyals Ай бұрын

Great video Doug. You went in depth on an artist that I didn't know anything about. I did know a totally different artist known as The Lyrics, a doo wop group. I think that you had made reference to The Impressions and their influence on several reggae artists. You have so many hard to find reggae records and finding the one for $5 is amazing. I really liked the Fred Locks clips that you included. Have a great weekend.

@FatCityVinyl Ай бұрын

Thanks Randy and sorry it came out so long, about double the time length I was anticipating. Although Fred does not have a massive discography by reggae standards some of the early history got quite involved and took a good deal of research to unravel - still not sure if I got it entirely correct but I think it is pretty close. Although some of the interview videos with him that I watched run between 1-2 hours so I guess this isn't too bad in comparison. Hadn't heard of the doo wop Lyrics, again as with my earlier Delroy Williams video there is an American r&b group with the same name as the Jamaican one. I guess in this case it was coincidental as Fred is quite clear on how his group got their name. Cheers and take care!

@ganjafarmer1572 Ай бұрын

You should do an interview w/ Mr Stafford Elliott, he is still alive and well here in Jamaica. He is a very cool brother to reason with.

@FatCityVinyl Ай бұрын

I wouldn't have been able to do this without some of the recent interviews with him here on YT...he indeed seems like an upful and easygoing guy!

@derrickoreagan1578 Ай бұрын

STAFFORD ELLIOTT, aka Fred Locks or Bull Dread, is the most significant singer and Lyricist of our musical culture of Jamaica, from Ska, Rocksteady to the present maturity of reggae art form. His musical ability in expressing the Rastafarian Pan-African movement of Marcus Garvey is extremely profound and cannot be surpassed, he has the most intellectual presentation. He and I are from the same Community of Harbour View, and I am not writing from partisan objective but practical factual evaluation of his musical work. Without a collection of Fred Lock's musical Library, all reggae lovers will be limited in defining the Musical culture of Jamaica. Derrick O’Reagan, Engr aka KamJel @ (Spokenwords)

@FatCityVinyl Ай бұрын

A crucial representative of the Garvey philosophy within the roots reggae culture of Jamaica for sure! Respect to Fred and all Harbour View massive ✌️

@gloriaglo8403 Ай бұрын

Thank you for this history. Just came across your channel, and sub.

@FatCityVinyl Ай бұрын

Thank you! Much appreciated 🙏❤✌

@desiremarie5114 Ай бұрын

😍😍😍😍

@FatCityVinyl Ай бұрын

🙏❤💛💚☺

@alandamaceno5091 Ай бұрын

👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

@FatCityVinyl Ай бұрын

🙏❤💛💚✌

@stevecarlsonvinylcommunity9147 Ай бұрын

Black Star Liner story was interesting. I wonder if they booked up a lot of passages? Fred Locks was definitely committed to his religion. Funny how Rafsa is much more accepted now

@FatCityVinyl Ай бұрын

The Black Star Line did get up and running and made some voyages as I understand it. The scenario envisioned in the song did not happen however but perhaps Fred was thinking of the future and how it might yet come to pass. Yes times have changed for sure, cheers Steve!

@jamesgriffithsmusic Ай бұрын

Not sure if I have heard of Fred Locks, though I remember the Black Star Liners story in outline. Fun to see him skinning up a big one on the cover of the 'In Dub' release. Baking tapes, that sounds like quite an extreme measure for rescuing music (I'm sure I've heard of that being done by another artist though I can't think who it is). In fact, I'm surprised there's never been a deep dub release called 'Baking Tapes' (or perhaps there has?) Good video Doug, and glad it's done well!😎

@FatCityVinyl Ай бұрын

Not sure why they chose that particular photo for In Dub! Maybe they had it kicking around in the archives and wanted to use it. Baking is a last ditch method of transferring music from highly degraded tapes that are in danger of disintegrating, as I understand it...I remember hearing about the technique in the old Blood & Fire reissue days. Thanks, don't know if you saw but I'm informed that Fred himself has seen this and says it is about 95% accurate (apparently I got a bad bit of info somewhere about him getting married, but otherwise sounds like I got it pretty close). Isn't it a lark how these things go - I thought putting a 45 minute video out on an artist many haven't heard of would surely doom it to the YT basement but it took off very quickly. I have no explanation why, but it is certainly welcome. Cheers James!

@jamesgriffithsmusic 28 күн бұрын

@@FatCityVinyl I have found in the past that obscure artist videos do well (Andy McMaster, Thomas Dolby etc). In the last year or so I've mainly just been sticking to the big obvious artists whose work I've been revisiting, and my views have dropped off dramatically in response.

@FatCityVinyl 27 күн бұрын

@@jamesgriffithsmusic That's an odd paradox - you'd think that bigger name artists would equal more attention, but perhaps more content being centred on those artists means it is that much harder to get noticed....

@Stick3x Ай бұрын

Yeah buddy. Clan Elliott. Jacob (Elliott) Miller, Maxi (Elliott) Priest Fred Locks, are all the same family and my mother’s first cousins.

@FatCityVinyl Ай бұрын

That's right, I had forgotten Jacob Miller was somehow related as well!

@tapanipiirainen2131 Ай бұрын

Excellent stuff. Enjoyed a lot. Btw did you know that FORM was a subsidiary of Burning Sounds?

@FatCityVinyl Ай бұрын

I don't think I did, that would make sense why they reissued the Love & Harmony set - though I kind of prefer the title & cover of the other version! Thank you very much 🙏

@hippydjkit9913 Ай бұрын

I believe that the BS liner did happen and many Jah believers left Jamaica for Ethiopia mainly, i think i saw a documentary on utube....thanks Doug for yet another roots reggae story that needs to be told....maybe Fred Locks changed his faith because of the crowded house he grew up due to Catholicism haha...i'm kidding...

@FatCityVinyl Ай бұрын

The Line did happen and ships made trips to various ports of call but not Jamaica as far as I understand Kit...nor did they reach Africa...it is true some Rastas later settled in Ethiopia (in an area called Shashamane that was set aside for them) but the sect as we know it did not yet exist while the BSL was in operation...they formed in part because of the influence of Marcus Garvey and some of the ideas and sayings attributed to him...several other reggae songs talk about the Line as well...thanks for watching and sorry it came out so long...more history than I realized and it took a while to go through it all...cheers pal...

@michelrood2966 Ай бұрын

Not hating here, but i always find it weird how a white man studies black history

@FatCityVinyl Ай бұрын

@@michelrood2966 My main interest has always been the music and the culture of it...which seemed to offer more of substance and meaning than other styles around at the time. It was very unfamiliar to me early on, I had no experience with it at all and so a certain knowledge of the history frequently referenced in the music became key to understanding it more fully...can't explain it much further than that but certainly in my experience reggae music has often appealed to fans outside of a strictly black audience...