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EASY STAR
ALL-STARS
The Easy Star All-Stars are a
collective family of some of the
finest reggae musicians in the
New York area. The band features
a rotating cast drawn from a
talented pool of players,
meaning that every show has its
own nuances and its own life.
The masterminds behind the
All-Stars are Easy Star musical
director Michael Goldwasser
(a.k.a. Michael G), frequent
production partner Victor
Axelrod (a.k.a. Ticklah), and
Easy Star execs Eric Smith and
Lem Oppenheimer. These four were
the team behind the album Dub
Side of the Moon (2003), the
complete reggae re-vision of
Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the
Moon and one of the most
successful reggae albums of the
21st century. It has spent over
5 years on Billboard’s Top
Reggae Chart and Reggae Catalog
Chart. In 2006, the band
followed up Dub Side with
Radiodread, a complete reggae
re-vision of Radiohead’s OK
Computer. That record has also
been a huge success, sparking
great reviews, and even
garnering praise from Radiohead.
Originally formed in 1997 for
Easy Star Records’ first
recordings, the All-Stars
primarily existed as a studio
entity until releasing Dub Side
of the Moon. The success of that
album led to the formation of a
touring version of the
collective. The core of the
touring line-up has remained
relatively intact, including Ras
Iray (bass/vocals), Junior Jazz
(guitar/vocals), Ivan Katz
(drums) and Jeremy Mage
(keyboards) in the rhythm
section. Tamar-kali and Menny
More provide additional lead and
backing vocals, while the group
is filled out by the Chronic
Horns (Jennifer Hill on
saxophone & flute and Buford
O’Sullivan on trombone). The
band is always mixed live by a
dub engineer, usually Marcos
Ferrari or Jocko Randall (of
John Brown’s Body). Other
members of the musical
collective, such as Victor Rice
(Victor Rice Octet, Version City
All-Stars and bassist on Dub
Side of the Moon), reggae legend
Ranking Joe, trumpet player Pam
Fleming (of the Burning Brass),
singer Stephanie McKay, Groove
Collective’s Jay Rodriguez,
Antibalas’s Stuart Bogie, John
Brown Body’s Josh Driscoll, and
even Ticklah and Michael G join
the All-Stars on specific gigs,
adding their abilities to the
already talented ensemble.
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The Easy Star All-Stars--in any combination of members--have
been a resounding success. The band has played at numerous major
festivals or headlined their own shows in the U.S., U.K.,
France, Italy, Chile, Poland, Turkey, Mexico, Argentina, Israel,
Croatia, Ireland, Egypt, Brazil, and beyond.
As individuals, the band’s vocalists and instrumentalists have
toured and recorded with Burning Spear, Toots and the Maytals,
Jimmy Cliff, Gil Scott-Heron, The Toasters, The Meditations,
Bernie Worrell, DJ Logic, MC Solaar, King Django, Antibalas, The
Scofflaws, Diana King, Dennis Brown, Monty Alexander, Sister
Carol, and many others. Each of these musicians gets a chance to
shine in the typical Easy Star set, whether it is through
soloing, composing, or singing, or simply through playing an
essential part in this tight-knit collective. Each line-up may
result in slightly different sounds for this unique reggae band,
but regardless of who plays, the one thing that never changes is
that the Easy Star All-Stars deliver a fun, exciting, and
different show every time out.
Easy
Star All-Stars Links:
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