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Possibly one of the last of the traditional Jamaican mic. men but definitely the first of the island’s international superstar deejays…
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| Date Added: Oct 24, 2013, Date Updated: Apr 26, 2019 Copyright (C) 2024 Dub Store Sound Inc. |
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Born Rexton Rawlston Fernando Gordon on 17th January 1966 in Sturgetown in the country parish of St. Ann Rexton's family moved to Kingston when he was aged eight. A keen student of the deejay school from the age of twelve his favourites were mic. masters General Echo, Brigadier Jerry and Yellowman and he began deejaying live and direct on the Roots Melody sound system alongside Admiral Bailey. The sound's selector was known as Navigator and Rexton briefly became Co Pilot releasing his debut record under that name, 'Heat Under Sufferer's Feet', on the Kingston 11 based Razam label in 1985.
The Colonel, Josey Wales, then took Shabba to King Jammy(Lloyd James)'s headquarters on St. Lucia Avenue where he adopted the nom. de mic. Shabba Ranking or Shabba Ranks and began deejaying both live and on record for the King. Following further reinforcing of his reputation as a live mic. man Shabba then progressed to the recording studio where his gruff, 'rockstone' delivery and contentious material began to set the standards that all his subsequent work would be judged by. Never a stranger to controversy Shabba's 'slack' or sexually explicit lyrics, such as the unambiguous 'Needle Eye Pum Pum' from 1987, and his forceful delivery ensured his unbounded popularity in Kingston's dancehalls. His first long player, 'Rough & Rugged', where he shared the honours (one side each) with Chaka Demus, was released in 1988 and was a huge hit. The floodgates were now open and, by the beginning of the new decade, Shabba Ranks was being described as "a one man reggae industry". His staggering release schedule meant that half a dozen or so strong selling pre-release 7" singles from Jamaica, three or four twelve inch records and one or two LPs from both the UK and USA were all selling strongly in the UK and USA reggae charts at any given time. If a record featured Shabba then it was a seller and the man could do no wrong.
He recorded relentlessly with Kingston's top producers including Jammys protégés Bobby 'Digital' Dixon(Bobby Dixon)'s Digital B label, with spectacular smashes such as 'Wicked In Bed' over an update of the 'Love Is Not A Gamble', Wycliffe 'Steely' Johnson's and Cleveland 'Clevie' Browne's Steely & Clevie label, Gussie Clarke's Music Works and Gussie's protégés, Mikey Bennett's and Patrick 'Shadow' Lindsay(Patrick Lindsay)'s Two Friends label. His phenomenal popularity coincided with the global ubiquity of USA based rap and, when it became apparent where the USA based mic. men were coming from, it presented a brief window of opportunity and acceptance which Shabba Ranks proceeded to throw wide open. Effortlessly stepping up to global stardom Shabba's first long player for Epic, the appropriately titled 'As Raw As Ever', was released in 1991. Previously reggae crossover signings had been advised to perform rock, soul, calypso... anything in fact apart from what had gained them the contract in the first place. But this time round no concessions were made and Shabba's major label releases remained as rough and rugged and as raw as ever and he not only sold an incredible amount of records but 'As Raw As Ever' was also awarded a Grammy for that year's Best Reggae Album.
His singles for Clifton 'Specialist' Dillon(Clifton Dillon)'s Shang Muzik label 'House Call' with Maxi Priest, driven by a distinctive and much imitated drum pattern, reached Number Thirty One in the UK National Charts in summer 1991 and 'Mr Loverman' with Chevelle Franklyn reached Number Twenty Three in the UK National Charts the following summer. The 'Shabba' refrain was on everyone's lips and, in 1993, his 'X-Tra Naked' long player on Epic secured the Ranks his second Grammy award. His international career established new records for a Jamaican deejay but Shabba never lost sight of where he was coming from and 'Respect', also for Shang Muzik and released at the height of Shabba's international fame in 1993, gave thanks and praise to Jamaica's deejay elders. On this epic release he name checked a number of his illustrious predecessors including King Stitt, U Roy, Big Youth, Brigadier Jerry, Admiral Bailey and Josey Wales over a recut of Jackie Mittoo's 'Hot Milk' rhythm... or Barrington Levy's 'Murderer' if you prefer.
In 1993 Shabba's version of Sly & The Family Stone's 'Family Affair" was featured on the 'Addams Family Values' film soundtrack and gave the Ranks another crossover hit, however, his success now placed Shabba in the unenviable position of being the scapegoat for just about everything that the media felt was not to their liking about ragga music. His career suffered some serious criticism often through guilt by association rather than anything the Ranks might have done or said himself. He was the first Jamaican international superstar since Bob Marley (and there the comparisons end) to have bust this big and he was now forced into positions where whatever he said, or whatever he didn't say, was going to upset someone.
Throughout his incredible career Shabba Ranks has had to manage a very difficult balancing act by never leaving his roots, never selling out while still shocking out internationally. Shabba has never ceased to record and, although his prolific output has slowed slightly, the impeccable standards he first set in 1987 have never faltered. He returned to the Kingston studios in the mid nineties where he recorded the roots anthems 'Think You Having It All' and 'Heart Of A Lion' for Bobby Digital and in 1999 a greatest hits compilation featuring his Epic material, entitled 'Shabba Ranks & Friends', was another major worldwide hit.
And he continues to get up, stand up and rock. In 2012 'The Emperor Of Dancehall' received a heroes welcome in his first Jamaican stage show for eleven years on Reggae Sumfest's International night and, the following summer, it was reported that the Ranks was working on an eagerly anticipated new album... |
| Oct 24, 2013 (Apr 26, 2019 Update) Text by Harry Hawks
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| Best selling 10/12"(s) |
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| Best selling 7"(s) |
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