INTERVIEW
Interview by : Sébastien Jobart
Pictures by : Benoit COLLIN
on Wednesday, November 24th 2004 - 15 649 views
Author of the monumental "War Ina Babylon" and "Revelation Time" (reissued by Blood & Fire under the title "Open The Iron Gate"), Max Romeo has not had the late career he deserves. Swindled by his producers, Max Romeo is still waiting for the returns on his work. Unable to repeat those successes, he carries on with more or less success. His latest opus, "A Little Time For Jah", maintains his stature and position in roots reggae without granting him the standing he should claim.
Author of committed lyrics mixing biblical preaching with political and social demands, Max Romeo suffered from the world's lack of interest in reggae after the death of Bob Marley. Nearly thirty years after uttering the words " War Ina Babylon " in a studio, Max Romeo welcomes us for a long conversation. A look back at his career, with a smile.
Reggaefrance / Like many Jamaican artists, you got your start thanks to a talent contest…
Max Romeo / Yes, it was at Clarendon. There was a talent contest, in 1965. Friends of mine were always telling me I had a good voice. They pushed me to enter. I went along to the audition, and I won.
What was your first experience in the studio?
My first experience was on Carlton's label. I started working with Carlton. He gave me the chance to record my first track. I was interested in singing, and he gave me that opportunity. It was Buy You A Rainbow with the Emotions. That's how it all began.
Who were the other members of the Emotions?
There was Kenneth Knight, and Lloyd Shakespeare. Lloyd Shakespeare has passed away now; he was Robbie Shakespeare's brother. Robbie Shakespeare was still a kid, he was going to school.
You formed another group, The Hippy Boys...
It started with a guy called Reb Stuart. We began with two guys, called Shan and Mars, who were the drummer and bass player of The Gators Band. Later on, they were replaced by Familyman and his brother Carlton Barrett. The group carried on like that for a while, and then I left it to go solo. There was this guy, Albert Rollins, who took over from the Emotions, and he also worked with the Hippy Boys.
And the Hippy Boys became the Upsetters...
They became the Upsetters, and later the Wailers (laughs).
Max Romeo is not your real name. Why did you change it?
Max Smith is my real name. It doesn't sound like a stage name, does it? (laughs). The name Romeo was given to me by a friend of mine, Bunny Lee, who I spent a lot of time with. I was looking for a name and he said to me: “You're a ladies' singer, you should call yourself Romeo.” Max Romeo wasn't a bad idea, because it recalls Romeo & Juliet, the emblem of love. And so Max Romeo could mean Maximum Love.
One of your most famous songs at that time was Wet Dream.
Wet Dream came out in 1969. It was produced by Bunny Lee. The song was a smash in England. It stayed in the charts for 26 weeks. It went down in history because it was played on the radio only once before being banned.
Yes, it was banned because of its explicit lyrics...
Yes, but between the DJs and the rappers now, what do they have to say? The lyrics were too obscene, and the song was banned. The skinheads were the ones who defended the song at the time. They understood it straight away. Because in England, you couldn't say ''damn!'' And they had the opportunity to say ''Wet Dream''. So they shouted it loud and proud!
You said the song was about a leaking ceiling...
Yes, you know, we had to come up with something, because they were starting to put pressure on me. They wanted to drive me out of the country, take me off the charts because the lyrics were too obscene... I defended myself. We came out with this story about a leaking ceiling, water dripping on the bed and my girlfriend complaining and wanting to fix the leak. And I answer her: “No, lay down girl, i'll push it up”. They didn't believe the story, they knew it was nonsense.
When did you become a Rasta?
I was exposed to the faith from a very young age. I wasn't involved until 1971. That's when I took things seriously. I didn't much like religion because it's what made me run away from home. I was with evangelicals, who are the most brutal people with children. I couldn't stand it any more, so I ran away from home. That's why I've never really liked religion. These are evil things. You know, the two most destructive things on Earth today are religion and politics. More and more people are being killed in the name of religion and politics. People rally under an emblem, but they don't even know what it means.
And you turned to Rasta...
I started growing my locks in 1972. I was influenced by the teachings of Marcus Garvey. I wasn't really into the religion; above all I was questioning the explanation of the creation of the world. In fact, I was looking for ''the half of history that has never been told''. Up to that day, the half I had been told was nonsense. So I told myself there might be another half, more appealing than that one. I had to put the pieces together. That's how I came to sing songs like Watch Your Temple.
Because your conversion had an impact on your songs, which became more political and social. One of them, Let The Power Fall On I, was used for the PNP campaign.
In 1972, Michael Manley came along with the concept of democratic socialism. To my mind, we had the same message: the gap between rich and poor is getting wider and wider. I was watching the news on TV and China was saying the same thing as us: that the gap had to be closed. When the song came out, the campaign was getting under way. They liked the song. They asked my permission to use it, and I agreed, because I agreed with what he was saying.
But isn't politics at odds with your faith?
Yes, politics is a dirty word in my vocabulary, but at that time, Michael Manley was more realistic in politics. He had a message similar to mine: closing the gap between rich and poor, trying to move forward in a positive way... We didn't have quite the same message, but almost. So it was easy for me to take part. But if you ask me today, I'll tell you that I don't like politics. Politics and religion must be condemned for the destruction of creation.
That's also when you met Lee Perry.
I knew him well before I started recording with him. He was working for Coxsone as a producer. He left him to work with Byron Lee. He carried records to the shops. Then he launched the Upsetter label. The aim was to focus on Bob Marley, the shaping of the Bob Marley icon. Bob sang like him; if you listen to the songs of Lee Perry and Bob, you can't say Lee Perry sings like Bob Marley. Obviously, Bob Marley sings like Lee Perry, because Lee Perry was singing long before Bob Marley! Yuh understand? Then Chris Blackwell came along and Bob left with him, leaving a void behind. Lee Perry lost his mind. He set fire to his studio.
I knew him well before we recorded together. He's the man who made the riddims for ''War Ina Babylon''. We wrote the lyrics together. That album we made is the fruit of a real collaboration.
Speaking of which, what were the recording sessions with Perry like?
He's fast. But when you think you've finished, you haven't: if you go home in the evening and come back to the studio at two in the morning, he's still there! Adding strange sounds. He doesn't like what you hear all the time. With every new production, he wants to hear something different. The sounds of stones, of water... He would stay up all night playing those strange sounds. He's the one who should be called Mad Professor! (laughs)
Why did you stop such a fruitful collaboration?
He decided to stop everything, he no longer wanted anything to do with reggae artists, because he resented Bob Marley for betraying him. He no longer wanted to work with reggae singers, me included. I respected his decision. Today, it would be fair to say that I'm the only reggae artist he has any respect for. I'm the only one who can bump into him in the street and even touch him. Nobody else can do that. He has always been respectful towards me. Whatever he may have said to Bob, he would never have said it to my face (laughs).
In 1976, you decided to leave for the USA. Why?
It wasn't a choice, I had a job waiting for me over there. I was to write lyrics for a Broadway musical called ''Reggae''. I accepted the job. I was able to take my family. I had three children, and my wife was pregnant with the fourth. I was supposed to go for six months. The first night on Broadway was hell, the play moved to the Biltmore and then to the Alvin. It ran for seven weeks. It was about the political situation in Jamaica, at a time when violence was everywhere. I think the message was too strong; Broadway people didn't want to see scenes of rape and violence. And the play was shut down.
In the USA, you also worked with the Rolling Stones...
It was an exchange. I worked on the album ''Emotional Rescue'' (1980), I did backing vocals on some tracks. And Keith Richards played lead guitar on my album (''Holding Out My Love To You'', also co-produced by Keith Richards, editor's note). In fact, his interest in playing on the album was to pick up that reggae vibe. That guy is a great guitarist, he wanted to learn to play real reggae. His involvement wasn't motivated by money. Fortunately, because I couldn't afford Keith Richards!
One album remains obscure in your discography: ''Max Romeo meets Owen Gray'', released in 1984. What can you tell us about it?
Well, I can't say much. That album is a compilation of old tracks, put together by Bunny Lee and Count Shelly. I can hardly say any more than that. I know that album exists, but I've never heard it. I have nothing to do with it. It's not very good, it's not even worth going to court over! (laughs) The tracks come from other projects, and they compiled them. They used the sleeve of Every Man Ought To Know, where I'm on a bicycle, in Jamaica. They put me in front of a record shop on a London street, with my bike! These pirates are incredible! (laughs)
Let's talk about the song Fire Fe The Vatican. It's one of your most famous songs...
Right. The first time I went to Rome, I didn't know the song was so popular there. I arrived in Rome without a visa, because I knew that we Jamaicans fought alongside the Italians to kick the French's arses during the French Revolution! (laughs) So why bother with a visa? When I got there, I saw this mobile radio station linked to 60 radio stations all over Europe. They were explaining the meaning of the lyrics of Fire Fi Di Vatican. Those are my words that I used: to be purified, you must be burned by fire, and to be sanctified, you must be washed by blood. Outside the Vatican, which is in Rome, I saw suffering, people sleeping on newspapers. And the Vatican is the richest state in the world. You must be purified and sanctified. So ''Fire fi di Vatican, blood fi di pope''. That's all. I wasn't saying ''Kill the Pope''.
What is your opinion of the current reggae scene in Jamaica?
We don't have a reggae scene in Jamaica. We have a ragga scene, which is dragging the industry down. These guys only sell 3,000 albums. Where's the industry?
There are still some ''conscious'' artists, though...
Yeah, ok. We don't have an industry in Jamaica, we have artists who could make up an industry. But they use ragga and kill the industry. Nobody buys ragga. You don't need to buy the CDs, you just turn on the radio. Behind the mic, the presenters announce: ''Yeah massives, tonight some fresh selections, make sure the tapes are recording!'' At midnight, the presenter comes back and says: “The new Max Romeo, massives!! Start the tapes!” Who am I going to sell my album to? Everybody's already got it! There's no industry, it's chaos. God Bless France, where roots & culture artists can endure.
Is that why you have worked with French people?
Not really. It's been 25 years since I left the Jamaican market. The situation was starting to turn negative, and I didn't want to be part of it. The world is big enough for me to find my place. I went exploring.
I went to court with Island Records, because I was with that company when they announced in France that I was dead. Years later, I did a tour in France; the first show was in Paris. The promoter came to the concert to make sure it was me, because people had read in the papers that I was dead! And here I am now, with my tours sold out. I must be doing something right here! (laughs)
You have had trouble collecting your royalties. What is the situation now?
I found someone in Paris who takes care of all that, André Bertrand. He's working hard to make it all come through and come back to us. They don't want to pay, I don't know why, but André is doing his best. I think we'll get there, because we deserve it. When I say ''us'', I'm talking about all the artists in Jamaica. Those people have never paid us.
You also worked with Steve Barrow, of Blood & Fire, on ''Open The Iron Gate'', which takes up many songs from ''Revelation Time''. Can you tell us about that album?
The songs on ''Open The Iron Gate'' were recorded in 1973 and 1974. They had been made for a small label that I was producing with Clive Hunt. The album was called ''Revelation Time'', with a hammer and sickle on the sleeve. At the time, they called it ''communist reggae''. When Blood & Fire got interested in the project, they didn't want to reissue that original sleeve. They changed the sleeve and the title, which became ''Open The Iron Gate'', and they also added a few songs. And everything went very well.
What are your plans for the future?
I'm giving myself a few more years on the road, maybe three or four. Then I'll devote myself to teaching younger artists. About the tricks of the trade, the things they should expect... And then I'll produce my children, who are interested in music. I know the business from the inside.
Speaking of which, are you thinking of getting involved in production, building your own studio?
First I created my label, Romax. It was pirated by Winston Wright, of the Techniques. So I abandoned it and created Charmax. Most of the things I haven't done in my life are down to financial reasons. It's only recently that I've been making a few dollars. Building a studio takes money to buy equipment. And time.
To finish, do you have a message for our readers?
Yes: don't let Bush get you down. Don't let Babylon cloud your mind. Don't let yourselves be lured by the bling-bling. Remember that you have children and grandchildren who will come after you. So don't waste your time. And be careful. Love one another, and love yourselves. One love, one peace. In the hope of one day having one world, with one people. We will have someone to answer to for all of this. Think about it.
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