Art of Jamaica

Next up in our Unsung series is Gregory Isaacs. Gregory was born on July 15, 1951, in the Fletcher's Land area of Kingston, Jamaica. He entered several talent shows and was first noticed by Bryon Lee. Bryon brought him and Winston Sinclair to record a duet titled "Another Heartbreak" (click on the video below to hear this track). It has no success. Gregory then joined a trio called The Concords. They spent the next couple years recording and releasing singles but did not gain the interest of the Jamaican audience.  The Concords ended in 1970 and Isaacs went at it alone for the next couple years. Isaacs persisted despite his failures and set up his own record store and label, African Museum, in partnership with Errol Dunkley in 1973. Under this label, Isaacs released his first hit "My Only Lover." This is credited as the first lover's rock record ever made. To finance more recordings made by African Museum's label and shop, Gregory recorded...

Garnet Damion Silk was born on April 2, 1966 in Hatfield,   Manchester, Jamaica. He was the 6 th of his mother’s 9 children. Garnett knew what he wanted to be as a child and started his musical career early. At the age of 12 years old, he had his first stage appearance at the Soul Remembrance sound system where he used the stage name “Bimbo”.   There he started his journey as a DJ. During the 1980s, in addition to working on Soul Remembrance, Garnett also on sound systems such as Pepper’s Disco, Conquering Lion, Destiny Outernational and Stereophonic.   In 1985, at the age of 19 years old, Garnett took his musical journey a step further and recorded his first track. It took him two years though to release his first single called “Problem Everywhere”, in which Garnet deejayed his lyrics. (See video below)   This single did not perform well so Garnett began focusing more on singing after veteran Derrick Morgan suggested this. He moved from Manchester to...

It's mango season in Jamaica! That means mangoes galore of all types, sweetness, textures and sizes. Mango season normally ends in July so Jamaica enjoys a few months of this delicious fruit. Mangoes are eaten raw, juiced, made into jam, used in smoothies, ice cream, cakes and more. The green/turned mangoes are sometimes cut up and "seasoned' with pepper and salt then left to marinate for a few minutes. Jamaicans call this treat pepper pot (this is also the name of a soup). It is said that mangoes are native to South Asia and was introduced to Jamaica in the 1700s. Some of the types were later introduced by Indian Immigrants. Mangoes grow all over the island with Clarendon, St. Mary, St. Elizabeth and St. Thomas producing the most. It was announced in April 2019 that Jamaica will export its mangoes to the USA under the Mango Irradiation Programme, with its first shipment happening in May 2019. Each mango is unique in its aroma, taste and texture. Some are big enoug...

It is not strange to hear a Jamaican recommending a particular herb when you are not well. Some Jamaicans believe that "bush" can cure any and everything. Being Jamaicans ourselves, we have personally experienced the positive impact of natural medicine. For example, we drink ginger tea whenever we have an upset stomach or the flu. This is just one of the many herbs found in Jamaica that has amazing benefits. Here are 3 that you should know about: 1. Guinea Hen Weed The scientific name for it is Petiveria alliacea and it is a  genus of flowering plants in the pigeonberry family, Petiveriaceae. It is known to be used by the Mayans for its medicinal benefits.  It is also called guinea hen leaf, garlic weed or gully root and is known as anamu in other countries. It is said to be rich in antioxidants, have  anti-carcinogenic properties , boost the immune system, lower blood sugar, relieves pain, assist with digestive and skin disorders and so much more. It g...

Artwork by KavionArt - www.kavionart.com Peter Tosh was born Winston McIntosh Oct. 19, 1944, in Westmoreland Jamaica. Tosh had a rough childhood. Abandoned by his parents, he moved around from relative to relative. He fell in love with music early &  taught himself to play the guitar by watching others play. He moved to Trench town as a teen where he met two other aspiring musicians Bob Marley & Bunny Wailer in the early 1960s. The trio would form a group called the Wailing Wailers. Tosh was the key member in the group's early stages simply because he was the only one that knew how to play any instruments. Under the tutelage of Joe Higgs, the three developed their love for music. In 1964,  the Wailers had their first success as a group with the ska song  "Simmer Down". They would go on to record some of the first know Reggae songs.  The 1970s brought the Wailers a major record contract with Chris Blackwell & Island records releasing their...

Painting By KavionArt In 1920s,  Marcus Garvey said "Look to   Africa , when a black king shall be crowned, for the day of deliverance is at hand" .  It is this ideology that eventually led to the growth of Rastafarian. Though Marcus Garvey was not directly involved in Rastafarianism , he is considered to be one of the religion's prophet. Marcus Garvey teachings on black empowerment, black unity and Africa being black people's rightful home served as the foundation for the Rastafarian  movement. By the 1920s, he had almost had a million  followers and one could say Rastarianism developed as an outcome of overall black empowerment. However, the official comme ncem ent of Rastafarianism as we know it became came after Ras Tafari Makonnem was crowned the emperor of Ethiopia & became known as Haile Selassie in 1930. Many took that crowning as a materialization of Marcus Garvey's words in 1920 hence the "prophet".  This connection was made by...