SHARPS & FLATS : REGGAE LOSES INSTRUMENTAL FORCE.Byline: Fred Shuster With the recent death of influential reggae instrumentalist Augustus Pablo Horace Swaby (June 21, 1954 – May 18, 1999), better known as Augustus Pablo, was a Jamaican roots reggae and dub record producer and keyboardist, active from the 1970s onwards. He was perhaps the first person to use the melodica as a viable musical instrument. , the Jamaican production technique called dub lost another pioneer. Pablo, whose original name was Horace Swaby, was known for his ``Far East sound,'' with its reliance on haunting minor chords and sparse melodica lines over deep, throbbing throb intr.v. throbbed, throb·bing, throbs 1. To beat rapidly or violently, as the heart; pound. 2. To vibrate, pulsate, or sound with a steady pronounced rhythm: bass and echoing keyboards. Pablo, 46, died May 18 in Kingston, Jamaica The City of Kingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica. It is located on the southeastern coast of the island country at Coordinates: . , of a nerve disorder. His most consistent and creative period was in the mid-'70s with the release of such albums as ``King Tubby King Tubby (born Osbourne Ruddock, January 28, 1941 – February 6, 1989) was a Jamaican electronics and sound engineer, known primarily for his influence on the development of dub in the 1960s and 1970s. Meets Rockers Uptown,'' a collection of instrumentals remixed by the late engineer and producer King Tubby, and ``East of the River Nile,'' a reflective, self-produced instrumental set. These are among the cornerstones of dub reggae. Because of the enormous interest in Pablo's work over the years, most of his back catalog has been re-released. One to look for is ``This is Augustus Pablo,'' an impressive debut with a simple approach: over a dozen rhythms, Pablo improvises on what was previously a child's toy - the melodica, a harmonica harmonica. 1 The simplest of the musical instruments employing free reeds, known also as the mouth organ or French harp. It was probably invented in 1829 by Friedrich Buschmann of Berlin, who called his instrument the Mundäoline. with a keyboard attached. Although the word dub is currently used in dance circles to describe a remix re·mix tr.v. re·mixed, re·mix·ing, re·mix·es To recombine (audio tracks or channels from a recording) to produce a new or modified audio recording: , it stems from Jamaica, where experimental producers like Pablo, Tubby and Lee Perry removed the vocal from a record leaving the raw rhythm track to be manipulated in the studio. One of the first dub albums was Perry's ``Blackboard Jungle Dub,'' in which rhythms were saturated in delay and reverb re·verb Informal n. 1. A reverberative effect produced in recorded music by electronic means. 2. A device used for producing this effect. intr. & tr.v. effects while snatches of vocals, guitar and organ seemed to be coming across vast spaces. Another favorite is Pablo's ``Rockers Meet King Tubby Ina Firehouse.'' Pablo hardly ever toured, preferring to remain in the studio creating instrumental recordings into the '90s and employing digital technology in the last years. CAPTION(S): Photo Photo: Augustus Pablo improvised with the melodica in his recordings, which stand as cornerstones of dub reggae. |
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