THE COOL RULER GREGORY ISAACS
By: Dubmatix
 
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In early 2009 I had already begun work on the follow up album to Renegade Rocker which had a lot of great people involved - including Alton Ellis, Sugar Minott, Linval Thompson, Pinchers and others. Not wanting to do a similar album I started calling some 80s-era artists such as Tippa Irie, Dennis Alcapone, Eek-A-Mouse, etc. at one point it was going to be a Dancehall album but then came The Mighty Diamonds and Gregory Isaacs - people I wanted to try and work with.

While setting up the Mighty Diamonds recording session was challenging enough, myself being on tour in Canada and them in California. Trying to get Gregory was an even more difficult challenge as he was touring, in and out of the studio and usually had someone as the middle person. It was this middle person that made it happen - through driving to the studio multiple times, the phone calls and even a fender-bender.

It started last October when a friend in Jamaica tracked down the manager and began to set up a recording session. We had everything set but then it just didn’t happen. Time, studio and touring, the normal obstacles that can occur when trying to connect musicians. Several months later I came across a contact for Gregory and tried again. It turned out it wasn’t directly him but someone who knew him - the middle man. It took some back and forth, my being in Canada and him in JA. Once we got the ball rolling it took two weeks and a lot of phone calls to lock down the studio, time and voicing.

When I finally knew Gregory was in I sat down and wrote music specifically for him as I wanted to re-produce the original early 80s sound of Night Nurse, Number One and others. If you listen to most of his tunes you’ll notice that the bass line tends to be the melody as well. I ended up writing the words which was a challenge as it had to be something Gregory would be comfortable singing about. It’s a challenge as the lyrics need to say something but also make the person voicing the tune comfortable - otherwise they won’t voice it.

Test Passed....He did a quick demo and sent it over - about 40 seconds long which I still have in the archive. Two nights later I spoke with him as he was in the studio voicing the song. We talked for a few minutes to say hello and discuss the track. I’ve always approached collaborations as two people bringing in their individual ideas and Gregory is and was a professional - so I didn’t have to say a word. Let him do his thing.

For me it was another highlight musically, working with one of the legends I grew up listening to in the 80s. I had no idea that he was ill. My feeling is that even when he found out, he didn’t want to tell people, to share that with the world but rather to get out there do what he loved to do - making and performing music.

The Cool Ruler is one of those unique talents that comes along so rarely that leaves an indelible mark on an entire musical genre and its offshoots. His voice ruled the dancehalls of the 80s and his legacy will continue through those incredible works of art.