Freddie McGregor has been variously a singer,
musicianA musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
and
producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
. According to Allmusic he is one of
reggaeReggae 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...
's most durable and soulful singers, with a steady career that started in the 1960s, when he was just seven years old.
Biography
In 1963 he joined with
Ernest WilsonErnest Wilson is a reggae singer who found fame as a member of The Clarendonians before working as a solo artist.-Biography:...
and Peter Austin to form
The ClarendoniansThe Clarendonians were a ska and rocksteady vocal group from Jamaica, active from the mid to late 1960s.-History:The Clarendonians were originally Fitzroy "Ernest" Wilson and Peter Austin , the duo coming together in 1963 in their native Clarendon...
, and began to record for the Studio One
labelIn the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
. McGregor worked with producer
Niney the ObserverWinston Holness, better known as Niney the Observer , is a Jamaican record producer and singer who was a key figure in the creation of many classic reggae recordings dating from the 1970s and early 1980s....
during the late 1970s and early 1980s.
In 1975, McGregor converted to Rastafari, which had a profound impact on his music. He is a member of the Twelve Tribes organization.
His popularity soared in the early 1980s with the release of "Bobby Babylon". Other popular
hitsA hit record is a sound recording, usually in the form of a single or album, that sells a large number of copies or otherwise becomes broadly popular or well-known, through airplay, club play, inclusion in a film or stage play soundtrack, causing it to have "hit" one of the popular chart listings...
of McGregor's include "Big Ship", "Push Comes to Shove", "Just Don't Want to Be Lonely" and "I Was Born a Winner"; as well as
cover versionIn popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
s of many early
reggaeReggae 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...
standards. He has also worked with producers Junjo Lawes,
Linval ThompsonLinval Thompson is a Jamaican reggae and dub musician and record producer.-Biography:Thompson was raised in Kingston, Jamaica, but spent time with his mother in Queens, New York, and his recording career began around the age of 20 with the self-released "No Other Woman," recorded in Brooklyn, New...
, and
Gussie ClarkeAugustus "Gussie" Clarke , is a reggae producer who worked with some of the top Jamaican reggae artists in the 1970s and later set up his own Music Works studio.-Career:...
. McGregor has also toured extensively for many years.
In 1984, he inaugurated his own Big Ship label, secured a licensing agreement with
RAS 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...
in
U.S.The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and released
Come On Over in 1987.
After slowing his pace in the late 1990s, McGregor returned in 2000 with the acclaimed
Signature, which restored his typical balance of roots reggae and lovers rock with touches of dancehall. He followed it two years later with a similarly well-received
albumAn album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
, the
GrammyA Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
nominated,
Anything for You.
He established the Big Ship Recording Studio, and has produced many
artistsA musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
including
LucianoLuciano is a Jamaican second generation roots reggae artist and poet....
and Mikey Spice.
One of McGregor's three sons, Stephen, is a
dancehallDancehall 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,...
record producer.
McGregor has spanned nearly every stylistic shift in Jamaican music, from
skaSka |Jamaican]] ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s, and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. Ska combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues...
and
rocksteadyRocksteady is a music genre that originated in Jamaica around 1966. A successor to ska and a precursor to reggae, rocksteady was performed by Jamaican vocal harmony groups such as The Gaylads, The Maytals and The Paragons. The term rocksteady comes from a dance style that was mentioned in the Alton...
to Rastafarian
roots reggaeRoots reggae is a subgenre of reggae that deals with the everyday lives and aspirations of the artists concerned, including the spiritual side of Rastafari and with the honoring of God, called Jah by rastafarians. It also is identified with the life of the ghetto sufferer, and the rural poor...
to
lovers rockLovers rock is a style of reggae music noted for its romantic sound and content. While love songs had been an important part of reggae since the late 1960s, the style was given a greater focus and a name in London in the mid 1970s.-History:...
to dabblings in
dancehallDancehall 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,...
,
ragga-Origins:Ragga originated in Jamaica during the 1980s, at the same time that electronic dance music's popularity was increasing globally. One of the reasons for ragga's swift propagation is that it is generally easier and less expensive to produce than reggae performed on traditional musical...
, and
dubDub is a genre of music which grew out of reggae music in the 1960s, and is commonly considered a subgenre, though it has developed to extend beyond the scope of reggae...
.
In a 2011 interview, he expressed concern many veteran artists, including himself, struggled for local radio play of their newer material, which he felt may be "lost" over time as a result.
Albums
- Bobby Bobylon (1979) Studio One
- Mr. McGregor aka Freddie McGregor (1979) Observer/Jackal/56 Hope Rd/Mercury
- Lovers Rock (Showcase Jamaica Style) (1981) Live & Love
- I Am Ready (1982) Coxsone/Studio One
- Love At First Sight (1982) Intense
- Come On Over (1983) RAS
RAS 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...
- Rhythm So Nice (1983) Thompson Sounds
- Across The Border (1984) RAS
- All In The Same Boat (1986) RAS
- Freddie McGregor (1987) Polydor
- Don't Want To Be Lonely Studio One
- Live at the Town & Country Club (1991) VP
VP Records is an independent reggae record label, located in Queens, New York. It is best known for producing Caribbean singers.-The foundation:...
- FM (1992) High Times
- Live in London 1991 (1993) Charly
Charly Records is a British record label which specialises in reissued material.-History:Among the labels whose original releases are reissued by Charly are Vee-Jay, Sun, Immediate, BYG, Tomato, and Fania. Charly Records was founded in France in 1974 by Jean-Luc Young, who had been a promoter of...
- Roots Man Skanking Clocktower
- Sing Jamaican Classics Vol.1
- Jamaican Classics Vol.2 (1998) Big Ship
- Magic In The Air (1999) Big Ship
- Zion Chant (1999) Heartbeat
Heartbeat Records is an independent record label based in Burlington , Massachusetts. The label specializes in Jamaican music. Founded by reggae music enthusiasts Bill Nowlin and Duncan Brown, the label's first release was a vinyl LP reissue of Linton Kwesi Johnson's Dread Beat an' Blood...
- Signature (2000) VP
- Rumours (2000) Greensleeves
- Carry Go Bring Come (2000) Greensleeves
- Hard to Get (2000) Greensleeves
- Forever My Love (2000) RAS
- Push On (2002) Big Ship
- Lovers Rock (2003) Prestige
- Anything For You (2002) VP
- Reggae Max (2003) Jet Star
Jet Star was a United Kingdom record distribution company that grew out of Pama Records in 1978. It was one of the largest distributors of reggae music, the company themselves claiming the title "the world's largest reggae distributors".-History:Jet Star was formed in 1978 by the Palmer Brothers,...
- Heart Is Willing (2003) Charm
- Rhythms of My Heart (2004) Nuff
- Comin' in Tough (2005) VP
- Masterpiece (200?) VP
- Mister Eudaric Riddim (2009)
- Mr.McGregor (2009) VP
- Giants (2009) Joe Gibbs Publishing
UK hit singles
The following were hits on the
UK Singles ChartThe UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
:
- "Just Don't Want To Be Lonely" (1987) - #9
- "That Girl (Groovy Situation)" (1987) - #47
Various artists releases featuring McGregor
- A Reggae Christmas (1988) RAS
- Sunsplash '90 - Reggae Rockers (1990) Wienerworld (DVD)
- The Reggae Movie (1996) Geneon (DVD)
- Golden Voices of Reggae (2005) Island MVD (DVD)
- Western Consciousness Pt 2 (2005) Island MVD (DVD)
See also
External links