Yabby You aka Vivian Jackson R.I.P.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=glqIcqziy4Y

2010 is off to a raging start, damn. R.I.P.

One of seven children, Jackson left home at the age of twelve to find work at a furnace in Waterhouse. At seventeen, the effects of malnutrition had left him hospitalized, and on his release he was left with severe arthritis which had partially crippled his legs.[2] His physical condition meant that he was unable to return to his previous work, and he was forced into hustling a living on the streets of Kingston.

His Christian beliefs were markedly different from that of his Rastafarian comtemporaries, which often prompted debate on religio-philosophical matters, and it was after one of these discussions that Jackson first headed towards a recording studio, having heard music "like a strange ting, inside a my thoughts - like an angel a sing".

Another spell in hospital meant that finding money for recording was difficult, but eventually the "Conquering Lion" single was released late in 1972, credited to Vivian Jackson and the Ralph Brothers. Cut for King Tubby, the popularity of the song and its distinctive introduction (the chant of "Be-you, yabby-yabby-you") earned Jackson the nickname "Yabby You", which has remained with him during his entire career.

The next few months saw the recording of several more singles, released under different names on various record labels, (although usually credited to Vivian Jackson and the Prophets, and often featuring a King Tubby 'version' on the b-side); culminating in the release of the Conquering Lion album. A King Tubby mixed dub set, King Tubby's Prophesy of Dub, was also issued, albeit on a limited run of 500 copies, helping to establish Jackson as a roots artist.

Yabby's success allowed him to branch out as a producer, and he began working with both upcoming and more established artists including Wayne Wade, Michael Rose, Tommy McCook, Michael Prophet, Big Youth, Trinity, Dillinger and Tapper Zukie, while continuing to release his own material.

Jackson continued to record, produce and perform (often with the aid of crutches) until the mid 1980s. He re-emerged in the early 1990s, issuing both new and old material, and his recordings have been the subject of several high quality reissues in recent years. In 2000 he released a singles remix project with Glen Brown. The album included remixes of "Conquering Lion" by Smith and Mighty and a remix of Glen Brown by Small Axe and Terminal Head.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=627lc-gLjOE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-4E_-MhQ3G8

Way too many deaths in the last few days. RIP

Goodbye, Jesus Dread.

FUCK THIS.

One of my all-time favorites. Sad to see him go.

Absolutely. One of the eternal ones. Jesus. I can't even handle this.

What a terrible way to start the year. RIP.

one of my all time faves. very, very sad.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=glqIcqziy4Y

RIP Yabby

http://www.reggae-vibes.com/concert/yabbyu/yabbyu.htm

RIP :(

Very sad. Jesus Dread collection is still the Blood & Fire pinnacle.

I have the blood and fire comp. What a gorgeous and complex piece of work. Is all of his best stuff collected here or are there other things worth listening to?

The other Blood & Fire albums are also excellent. As is the first Michael Prophet record which really deserves a nice CD reissue.

def other things you should check out. I'd start with Deliver Me From My Enemies, King Tubby's Prophecy of Dub, and Dub it to the Top (which actually has some tracks w/full vocals).

for pretty much any Jamaican artist, there's always going to be more worthwhile material out there than can be contained on one compilation.

the blood and fire website has a pdf of the liner notes. i'm just going through both discs now with the pdf open.

I think you also need King Tubby's Prophecy of Dub and the excellent Deliver Me From My Enemies reissue. I'm not sure if the tracks from Chant Down Babylon Kingdom appear on Jesus Dread but that is a great album too. I also have Dub it To the Top but i'm not sure it's essential. It is very good, but for some reason I listen to the others more.

RIP

Thanks. I think I have Prophecy of Dub but will try and get Deliver Me from my Enemies.

"I'm not sure if the tracks from Chant Down Babylon Kingdom appear on Jesus Dread"

I think there are a couple discomixes of CDB tracks on the second disc.

I love Dub It To The Top though, but it's a completely different animal from Prophecy.

from AMG's review of Dub It To The Top:

This time out the featured album is a rare gem from the Yabby You catalog originally released under the title Yabby You Meets Mad Professor & Black Steel in Ariwa Studio. Here its original ten-track program is expanded by another eight, most of them B-side dub versions of singles produced under Yabby You's direction.

this leads me to believe that dub it to the top is an expanded, re-titled reissue of yabby you meets mad professor & black steel in ariwa studio. is that right? i feel like it can't be right, since the two albums don't share any common song-titles.

seems more like what they did was reorder and reissue yabby you michael prophet: vocal + dub, based on the track-listing.

any thoughts on this album would be greatly appreciated.

I pull out Jesus Dread more often but Dub it from the Top is my 2nd choice. It's worth getting.

Maybe 3rd or 4th choice but I think all the Blood and Fire discs are worth owning.

yeah; i agree wholeheartedly. i actually have dub it to the top (and jesus dread), but just located my CD copy and was wondering if i should load it onto my ipod. this song is hypnotizing me now.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4XvWp8IbQU&list=RDnvHOQ5Uzmes

blood & fire's shuttering was (and remains) a terrible loss. i bet there are still scores of fantastic roots reggae albums from jamaica in the 1970s that haven't yet been rediscovered. there's still the pressure sounds label, but that's not enough in a market glutted with dodgy, maybe predatory, here-and-gone record labels.

jesus dread is so fucking perfect

yup

i think i might quit my life and become a bassline instead

i think i might quit my life and become a bassline instead

Underrated post.

(Prompted by watching the evening redness in the west, listening to Conquering Lion.)

There's a Pressure Sounds comp out. It's good!

https://www.discogs.com/release/22435450-The-Prophets-The-Yabby-You-Sound-Dubs-Versions