Wednesday, February 3, 2010 7:30pm

The Legendary Wailers come to The Music Hall

Caribbean Night @ The Music Hall!
Doors open at 7pm: Pre-concert in the Founders Lobby: signature cocktails and Blue Mermaid Island Grill appetizers

Just Announced: Opening for The Wailers: Green Lion Crew
“At the forefront of reggae, dancehall and party vibes, Green Lion can rock the party with exclusive beats,
up to the time hits and a respect for the roots reggae musical foundation”
Can’t afford to go to the Caribbean this winter? The Music Hall has the perfect solution! It’s Caribbean Night @ The Music Hall with The Wailers Wednesday February 3, 2010 at 7:30pm. The greatest living exponents of Jamaica’s reggae tradition, The Wailers are the latest installment in the Music Hall’s popular Intimately Yours concert series. The evening starts off in the Founders Lobby at 7pm with appetizers provided by Blue Mermaid Island Grill, and signature cocktails. Then, it’s upstairs for a hot concert!

The Intimately Yours series, sponsored by 92.5 The River, has been hailed as a “crowd-pleaser” by The Portsmouth Herald: “bring(s) the brightest and best the music industry has to offer to…one of the best venues in the Northeast.  To date, they’ve brought in artists that were on the cusp of blowing up (Ray LaMontagne, Brandi Carlile) to seasoned veterans that you’re hard pressed to find playing a venue as small as The Music Hall (The Neville Brothers, Bruce Hornsby, Rufus Wainwright, etc.)…a series that continues to bring compelling offerings to Seacoast music fans.”

According to Therese LaGamma, Music Hall Programming Manager and Curatorial Associate, “The Wailers are one of the great reggae institutions. There is an authenticity to these guys that has been exciting audiences since they began performing alongside Bob Marley in the late ‘60s. On a cold New England night, where else would you rather be but at Caribbean Night @ The Music Hall?!”
About The Wailers
Bob Marley took reggae music from its former status as a regional Jamaican phenomenon and transformed it into a sound and style that captured the attention of the world. Today, The Wailers consist of seven original members who recorded and/or toured with Bob Marley and the Wailers. The Wailers live show consists of Bob Marley and the Wailers songs such as: “Buffalo Soldier,” “Lively up Yourself,” “Is This Love,” “One Love,” “I Shot the Sheriff,” “Satisfy My Soul,” “Trench Town Rock,” “Get Up Stand Up,” “Jamming,” “Who the Cap Fit,” “Exodus,” “Roots Rock Reggae,” “Kinky Reggae,” “War,” “Redemption Song,” “Stir it Up,” “No Woman No Cry,” and “Could You Be Loved” as well as new original Wailers songs.

In the period since Bob Marley’s passing, in May 1981, one group has continued to carry the message. Year after year ‘The Wailers’, lead by Aston “Familyman” Barrett (the bass player and musical leader for the Wailers and the musical director for Bob Marley), have toured the globe playing their special brand of music, enjoyed around the world by countless millions of fans. “Familyman” is the sole living musician who was with Bob Marley from the beginning of Bob’s career to his unfortunate death.
Together with Bob Marley, the Wailers have sold in excess of 250 million albums worldwide. In England alone, they’ve notched up over twenty chart hits, including seven Top 10 entries. Outside of their groundbreaking work with Marley, the Wailers have also played or performed with international acts like Sting, the Fugees, Stevie Wonder, Carlos Santana, and Alpha Blondy, as well as reggae legends such as Peter Tosh, Bunny Wailer, and Burning Spear. As the greatest living exponents of Jamaica’s reggae tradition, the Wailers have completed innumerable other tours, playing to an estimated 24 million people across the globe. They have also been the first reggae band to tour new territories on many occasions, including Africa and the Far East.

Their nucleus formed in 1969, when Bob Marley, Bunny Wailer, and Peter Tosh recruited the Barrett brothers – bassist Aston “Family Man” and drummer Carly – from Lee Perry’s Upsetters to play on hits such as Lively Up Yourself, Trenchtown Rock, Duppy Conqueror, and many more besides. Inspired by Rastafari and their ambitions of reaching an international audience, this is the line-up that pioneered roots rock reggae, and signed to Island Records in 1971. Bunny and Peter left two years later. It was at this point that the in-demand Barrett brothers – whose rhythms also underpinned innumerable seventies’ reggae hits by other acts – assumed the title of Wailers, and backed Marley on the group’s international breakthrough album, Natty Dread. Under Family Man’s musical leadership, they then partnered Bob Marley on the succession of hit singles and albums that made him a global icon, winner of several Lifetime Achievement awards, and Jamaica’s best-loved musical superstar.

Drummer Carlton “Carlie” Barrett died in 1987, leaving his brother as the main beneficiary of the Wailers’ mantle. Subsequent line-ups have revolved around Family Man, who is widely regarded as one of the world’s greatest bass players. Modest and unassuming, he was present on all of those unforgettable performances by Bob Marley & The Wailers from the seventies. He and lead singer Elan Atias form the main axis of the current Wailers – a group that’s one of the last, great reggae institutions, yet which refuses to live off past glories. That’s because whereas Family Man represents tried and trusted roots authenticity, Elan injects fresh excitement into a show that continues to attract enthusiastic audiences from around the world.

Hailing from Los Angeles, Elan was discovered by Wailers’ guitarist Al Anderson, and first sang with the band in 1997. After a brief hiatus to record his acclaimed debut album Together As One, produced by No Doubt’s Tony Kanal, he was soon called home by the Wailers’ mesmerizing rhythms, and the opportunity to revisit those landmark reggae hits. Since reuniting with them, Elan has seamlessly worked some of his own songs into their repertoire, and also formed a joint production venture with Family Man that’s designed to extend the Marley legacy yet further, and branch out into all areas of contemporary music. By way of example, their first project – which promises to be a revelation – is a new Wailers’ album featuring some of the biggest names in popular music. Prepare to be amazed!
About Green Lion Crew
Producers. Sound system selectors. Radio deejays. Event promoters. All around entertainment experts. Led by producer/selector Zeke Stern (responsible for productions with Collie Buddz, Capleton and Niyorah), producer/artist Dana Knowles (productions credits include Ras Attitude and Cherine Davis) and producer/selector Joshua Chamberlain (Poirier, Lunice and Grahmzilla), Green Lion is at the forefront of reggae, dancehall and party vibes. Based in New England (USA), St. Croix and Montreal, its international presence means Green Lion can rock the party with exclusive beats, up to the time hits and a respect for the roots reggae musical foundation in any language. On the New England Seacoast, Green Lion’s renowned parties at the Red Door (Portsmouth, NH) and its Sunday radio program on WXGR 101.5 FM (4-6PM, www.wxgrfm.org) are a requirement for everyone interested in Caribbean and reggae culture and for those who just want to “forget their troubles and dance”! For more information visit www.greenlioncrew.com.