Saturday, January 22, 2011

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Junior Delgado

Artist:Junior Delgado
Song:Sons Of Slaves
Album:Sons Of Slaves





Though he never had the fame or exposure of Bob Marley or Peter Tosh, Junior Delgado's music was as powerful as any 70s Roots Reggae artist. This comp covers his music of the 70s when he worked with Lee "Scratch" Perry. He was born Oscar Hibbert Aug. 25, 1958 in West Kingston, Jamaica. He began singing in his teens as Junior Hibbert with the vocal group Time Unlimited. The group recorded for legendary producer Lee "Scratch" Perry and had a hit with Reaction in 1973. But the group was not very successful and Hibbert left to go solo in 1975. He renamed himself Junior Delgado. Delgado was his long time nickname taken from the Spanish word for skinny. Delgado finally had some success when he recorded for Dennis Brown's DEB label. Delgado started his own label Incredible Jux in 1979 and became popular for his work with Augustus Pablo. He also became popular in England and started experimenting with Dancehall music. But he never deserted his Roots style or his social commentary. He reunited with Lee "Scratch" Perry for Sons Of Slaves and today it is considered his signature song. This comp is a good intro to his music. Delgado moved to London and wrote the 1985 song Broadwater Farm about poverty in North London. He continued to record with Pablo through the 80s but slowed down in the 90s. He mentored young artists and by the late 90s he started touring internationally. When Dennis Brown died, Delgado recorded a tribute album. Just as he was starting to gain some steam, Junior Delgado died on Apr. 11, 2005 at age 46. He was an overlooked master of Roots Reggae. Here's a video for Sons Of Slaves by Junior Delgado.

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