Sly Dunbar, one half of the Jamaican riddim twins Sly and Robbie, is not pleased with the quality of the album titled “Shakespeare – The Bassman Sly, Robbie & The Team Taxi,” released on August 23.
Speaking exclusively with WMV, the legendary drummer, born Lowell Fillmore Dunbar, said, “I’m not a part of it. It’s just somebody that did it. I don’t have anything to do with it.”
The album has been removed from streaming platforms, but it was submitted among 65 albums for voter consideration at the 2024 Grammys in the category for Best Reggae Album.
As the only living member of 12 time the Grammy nominated group “Sly and Robbie,” the 57-year-old says if the album is nominated, he will not attend the Grammy ceremony in February.
“I’ve been nominated many times before; I don’t want anything to do with that record. I don’t wish to go to the ceremony; I’ve been there before,” a disgruntled Sly said.
The 2024 Grammy nominations announcement are set for tomorrow November 10.
“Shakespeare – The Bassman Sly, Robbie & The Team Taxi” was released by Japanese businessman Kazuhiki “Kaz” Asonuma and features eight tracks.
Kaz has executive produced several Sly and Robbie projects in the past, including: “Sly & Robbie And The Jam Masters – Reggae Connection” in 2013, “Sly & Robbie + Unitzz – J Paradise” in 2009, “Sly & Robbie And The Taxi Gang – Sound Of One Pop Studio (Vol. 1),” and “Sly & Robbie – The Rhythm Remains The Same (Sly & Robbie Greets Led Zeppelin)” in 2007.
Although Sly says there is no chance of glimpsing at the Grammys this year, he said the Recording Academy is still important to reggae music’s development, and he will be submitting a project for next year.
“The Grammys are important to reggae. Everybody would like that. Next year we’re putting out a record, so they can vote for that. We have a new album called ‘Red Hills Road Vol 2,'” he said.
“We have a new single coming out called ‘Freedom’ with Sly and Robbie with Sherine Anderson,” he added.
The forthcoming album is the follow-up to their 2020 project and the last album before the passing of Robbie Shakespeare in 2021, “Red Hills Road Vol 1,” which paid tribute to Jamaica’s 1970s cultural hotspot where he met Robbie. Neptune, Stables, Golden Nuggets, and Turntable and The Rock were some of the nightclubs on Kingston’s longest street, and Sly recalled in the Jamaican Gleaner that “every club on the strip had a resident band. I played at Tit For Tat, and Robbie was across the road at Evil People, and that was how we met.”
WMV used the opportunity to ask the Grammy-winning drummer about the making of his most famous riddim “Murder She Wrote” which celebrates 30 years since its release.
“The original riddim was called Santa Barbara and we ran the guitar right through the song then Chaka Demus and Pliers came to the studio and did their part,” he recalled. “That is one of our biggest songs.”
https://youtu.be/-av7F1JBmj4?si=sfVUJMNQjmGmS-uX
Murder She Wrote like Santa Barbara was released by Mango Records, a division of Island Records and is certified Gold in the U.K. for surpassing sales of 400,000 units. It merges two songs: the 1987 track “Maxine” written by Everton Bonner (who changed his name a year later to Pliers) produced by Harry J and the 1989 song “Pretty Face and Bad Character” by Chaka Demus, produced by Bobby Digital.
Chaka Demus & Pliers came together and made a collaboration produced by Sly and Robbie that has become one of music’s biggest foundational songs to be released a year later.
Like Steelie and Cleevie’s Fish Market Riddim, Murder She Wrote is backbone of several Latin and hip hop superstar career hits. Daddy Yankee sampled Murder She Wrote riddim for Que Tire Pa Lante which has almost a billion views on YouTube. Chaka Demus and Pliers were not credited at first on the song, but eventually won a ASCAP lawsuit where they were credited.
Sly says he has not been following the lawsuit filed by the estate of Steely and Clevie for copyright infringement saying, “Publishing handles that, I don’t know I don’t really get involved,” he said emphasizing his distance from legal matters and his dedication to focus on music.
Nicki Minaj and French Montana sampled for Murder She Wrote for the RIAA Gold selling single “Freak” which peaked at No. 77 on the Hot 100. Jason Derulo also sampled the riddim for the song Too Hot.
