Brigadier Jerry
Encyclopedia
Brigadier Jerry is a Jamaican dancehall
reggae
deejay
known for his "cultural" lyrics.
He became a member of the Twelve Tribes of Israel organization's Rastafarian branch by 1978 and spread their message on the Jah Love Muzik sound system. By 1980, Brigadier Jerry was one of Jamaica's most sought-after performers by sound systems across the island, and a well-respected deejay among his peers. He recorded for Studio One in the early 1980s before having his first hits with "Pain" (on the Answer/Never Let Go riddim
) and "Gwan a School" for producer Delroy Stansbury on the Jwyanza label in 1982. His first album was the live recording Live at the Controls in 1983, and his debut studio album,Jamaica Jamaica, was released in 1985.
Jerry also nurtured the career of his sister, who performed and recorded as Sister Nancy
.
Briggy (as he is affectionately called) often chats verses directly from the Bible, and preaches against the evils of slackness
in dancehall music when performing. He attributes his unique pattern to melding together the styles of a few artists who came before him, including U-Roy
, Prince Jazzbo
, Big Youth
, and Dennis Alcapone
.
Jerry has recorded six albums over the years, but the bulk of his career has been spent touring the world, as well as Jamaica, performing over countless sound systems. He still records the occasional single, most recently for the Ranking Joe label, but remains primarily a live performer (mostly for King Sturgav).
He is considered by many to be U-Roy's greatest student; a stable which includes Ranking Joe
, Josey Wales
, Charlie Chaplin
, U Brown
on down to modern-day deejays such as Buju Banton
.
He has lived in New York with his wife and children between 1988 and 1991 before returning to Jamaica and performing again on the Jah Love Muzik sound system. In the late 1990s, U-Roy revived his Stur-Gav sound and Jerry returned as a touring deejay.
Compilations:
Dancehall
Dancehall is a genre of Jamaican popular music that originated in the late 1970s. Initially dancehall was a more sparse version of reggae than the roots style, which had dominated much of the 1970s. In the mid-1980s, digital instrumentation became more prevalent, changing the sound considerably,...
reggae
Reggae
Reggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady.Reggae is based...
deejay
Deejay
A deejay is a reggae or dancehall musician who sings and toasts to an instrumental riddim .Deejays are not to be confused with disc jockeys from other music genres like hip-hop, where they select and play music. Dancehall/reggae DJs who select riddims to play are called selectors...
known for his "cultural" lyrics.
Biography
Russell was born in the Papine area of eastern Kingston in 1957, and he became interested in music at an early age, initially linking with U Roy's King Stur-Gav Hi-Fi sound system. Jerry's earliest stage appearances were as a young man performing stand-up comedy, but he soon switched to deejaying for local sound systems.He became a member of the Twelve Tribes of Israel organization's Rastafarian branch by 1978 and spread their message on the Jah Love Muzik sound system. By 1980, Brigadier Jerry was one of Jamaica's most sought-after performers by sound systems across the island, and a well-respected deejay among his peers. He recorded for Studio One in the early 1980s before having his first hits with "Pain" (on the Answer/Never Let Go riddim
Riddim
Riddim is the Jamaican Patois pronunciation of the English word "rhythm," but in dancehall/reggae parlance it refers to the instrumental accompaniment to a song. Thus, a dancehall song consists of the riddim plus the "voicing" sung by the deejay. The resulting song structure may be taken for...
) and "Gwan a School" for producer Delroy Stansbury on the Jwyanza label in 1982. His first album was the live recording Live at the Controls in 1983, and his debut studio album,Jamaica Jamaica, was released in 1985.
Jerry also nurtured the career of his sister, who performed and recorded as Sister Nancy
Sister Nancy
Sister Nancy, aka Muma Nancy, real name Ophlin Russell-Myers, is a dancehall DJ and singer. She is known to the world as the first female dancehall DJ and was described as being a "dominating female voice for over two decades" on the dancehall scene...
.
Briggy (as he is affectionately called) often chats verses directly from the Bible, and preaches against the evils of slackness
Slackness
Slackness refers to vulgarity in West Indian culture, behavior and the music. It also refers to a subgenre of dancehall music with straightforward sexual lyrics performed live or recorded. Its form and pronunciation varies throughout the Caribbean....
in dancehall music when performing. He attributes his unique pattern to melding together the styles of a few artists who came before him, including U-Roy
U-Roy
U-Roy , OD, is a Jamaican musician, also known as The Originator. He is best known as a pioneer of toasting.-Biography:...
, Prince Jazzbo
Prince Jazzbo
Prince Jazzbo is a Jamaican reggae and dancehall deejay and producer.Prince Jazzbo began recording with Coxsone Dodd's Studio One label in the early 1970s...
, Big Youth
Big Youth
Manley Augustus Buchanan , better known as Big Youth , is a Jamaican deejay, mostly known for his work during the 1970s....
, and Dennis Alcapone
Dennis Alcapone
Dennis Alcapone is a reggae DJ and producer.-Career:Smith initially trained as a welder and worked for the Jamaica Public Services...
.
Jerry has recorded six albums over the years, but the bulk of his career has been spent touring the world, as well as Jamaica, performing over countless sound systems. He still records the occasional single, most recently for the Ranking Joe label, but remains primarily a live performer (mostly for King Sturgav).
He is considered by many to be U-Roy's greatest student; a stable which includes Ranking Joe
Ranking Joe
Ranking Joe aka Little Joe is a reggae deejay who rose to prominence in the 1970s and had continuing success in the 1980s.-Biography:...
, Josey Wales
Josey Wales
Josey Wales, born Joseph Winston Sterling in St. Mary, Jamaica is an influential Jamaican dancehall deejay. He was considered, along with Brigadier Jerry, Yellowman and sound system partner Charlie Chaplin, one of the best deejays of the 1980s....
, Charlie Chaplin
Charlie Chaplin (singer)
Charlie Chaplin is a Jamaican dancehall and ragga deejay and singer. It was common for Jamaican deejays of the era to name themselves after film stars or characters. Bennett, however, had been nicknamed after the comedian since his youth. His career began in 1980 when he began working with...
, U Brown
U Brown
U Brown aka New Roy, Hugh Brown, Nuroy is a reggae deejay who released eleven albums between 1976 and 1984.-Biography:...
on down to modern-day deejays such as Buju Banton
Buju Banton
Buju Banton is a Jamaican dancehall, ragga, and reggae musician.Banton has recorded pop and dance songs, as well as songs dealing with sociopolitical topics....
.
He has lived in New York with his wife and children between 1988 and 1991 before returning to Jamaica and performing again on the Jah Love Muzik sound system. In the late 1990s, U-Roy revived his Stur-Gav sound and Jerry returned as a touring deejay.
Discography
- Live at the Controls (1983), Dance Hall
- Jamaica Jamaica (1985), RASRAS RecordsRAS Records, also known as Real Authentic Sound, is a reggae record label.-History:RAS Records was founded in 1979 by Doctor Dread. In his travels to Jamaica he created a network within the reggae artist community there. By the early to mid 1980s RAS had signed artists such as Black Uhuru, Inner...
- On the Road (1986), RAS
- Hail Him (1992), Tappa
Compilations:
- Freedom Street (1995), VPVP RecordsVP Records is an independent reggae record label, located in Queens, New York. It is best known for producing Caribbean singers.-The foundation:...