THURSDAY,APRIL10,2003
MUSIC
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN = 3
Reggae legend comes to Lawrence, plays Bottleneck
By JJ Hensley
jhensley@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
"Living legend" is an appropriate term for noted sexagenarian subjects, but there's a distinction to be made between artists who truly deserve that title and dinosaurs who owe their misleading designation to lazy critics and overzealous fans.
Any way you slice it, Jamaican-born and-bred reggae kingpin Frederick "Toots" Hibbert probably qualifies as a legend.
"He's the best," said Lisa Starr, Tonganoxie senior and avowed reggae fan. "You can hear his influence in so much music out there today, it's amazing. I can't wait to see him live."
For a living legend, however, Toots is shockingly accessible. While most people who have reached his stature in the music
industry surround themselves with a labyrinth of yes-men more impenetrable than the National Security Council, Toots is playing the Bottleneck for the second time in three years. He allows his management to give out his home phone number in Jamaica to anyone claiming to be a reporter. If Toots is nowhere to be found around the house, no one hesitates to reveal his cell number. Keep in mind, this is the man who invented the term, "reggae" (on 1968's Do the Reggay), who spent eighteen months in jail on a trumped-up ganja charge in the early '60s and who had a Grammy-nominated album as recently as 1998.
Of the few remaining links to reggae's roots, he is perhaps the only one still recording new music in the studio, which is where, after a little tracking we caught up with Toots.
"It's going to be a number-one album,"
Toots claims matter-of-factly.
Three of his last five full-lengths have been nominated for Grammys, and he has enjoyed gold-selling success in all corners of the world. With "Beautiful Woman," he even scored a platinum single.
Unfortunately, it seems fewer and fewer people do know, or at least recognize, the contribution to popular music that the original reggae artists made. Sure, Bob Marley's greatest-hits package, Legend, consistently ranks among the top-selling catalog albums of any given year, but the profile of other, more political, reggae singers has dropped over time, replaced with the easy-to-digest and witty dance hall composers like Shaggy.
But there are people out there of all generations who've developed an appreciation for Toots' rarefied reggae.
"I think his music's positive and the beat's
always fun to dance to," Georgia Palos, a junior from Lawrence, said explaining her fascination with reggae's elder statesman. "He's definitely the best of all the old guys, right up there with George Clinton."
Toots takes influences from American soul and gospel music and singing over hard-driving Jamaican beats. He even went so far as to record Stax covers on 1988's 'Toots in Memphis', his most highly regarded and popular album to date.
Though he's worked with every major reggae producer from Sir Coxson, Leslie Kong and Byron Lee down to Sly and Robbie, Toots is trying his hand at it alone this time.
"I'm producing this new record myself. It's got to be good, because it's coming from the inventor," he said.
CALENDAR
— Edited by Anne Mantey
TODAY
Cave In w/ Piebald / The Damn Personals, 9 p.m. at The Bottleneck
Floyd The Barber, 7 p.m. at Pachamama's
Big Metal Rooster at The Jazzhaus
Helios Creed / Santo Gold at Replay Lounge In Kansas City...
- "Jagermeister Music Tour" feat. Breaking Benjamin / (hed)pe / Saliva / StereoMud / Systematic, 6 p.m. at Uptown Theater
- KCBS Free Jam at Grand Emporium
- Temprid / One Last Hope at Davey's Uptown, 21+
Overstep / Theta, 10p.m. at The Pyro Room,
21+
Dirtnap / Sicbay / Ring / Cicada, 10 p.m. at The Brick, 21+
TOMORROW
Dougie MacLean at Lawrence Art Center
Paul Schneider CD Release Party w/thesistermaria, 8 p.m. at The Jazzhaus
Dj Not a Dj at The Jazzhaus :: following Paul Schneider, $4
Be/Non / The Charge Droplets at Replay Lounge
Lee McBee & The Confessors, 9 p.m. at Stu's Midtown Tavern
- **The People / The Billions / The Autumn**
  - State at The Bottleneck
  - In Kansas City..
Luce / The Duece Project / Feel, 8 p.m. at Beaumont Club
Randy Reed, 9 p.m. at Westport Coffee House
Animated By Sound / The Stella Link / Pathos at The Pyro Room
Cyclamatic / Black Mollys at Davey's Uptown
The Elms / Holland / Radial Angel, 7:30 p.m. at The New Earth Coffee House
animated by sound / Stella Link / A Stoired Northwest / Pathos, 10 p.m. at The Pyro Room
Dionne Warwick at Ameristar Hotel & Casino
The Feds / Doosu at The Hurricane
Koko Taylor at Grand Emporium
Catch 22 / Madcap / Count the Stars, 7:30 p.m. at El Torreon
Battle of the Bands feat. Gametime / Anteye Luci / Around the Bend / Footcandle / Perestroika / Agent 5 9 / Trangquility Lost / Deliver Us / Loosening Bridges / Chloe Bridges, 10:30 p.m. at Shawnee Civic Center
Seven Nations, 10 p.m.at Danny's Bar & Grill
SATURDAY
Guster / Wheat, 7 p.m. at Liberty Hall
Larry Garner and the Road Lizards at The Jazzhaus
Pomeroy / Heiruspecs at Abe & Jake's Landing
Brown Butterfl. 7:30 p.m. at Lied Center
bulldog battle break dance competition, 3 p.m. at Granada Theatre
MidLife Crisis / Paul Schneider, 10 p.m. at Granada Theatre
Stu's Birthday Bash feat. Blue 88 / Rocking House, 9 p.m.at Stu's Midtown Tavern
Son Venezuela at The Bottleneck
Green Party Benefit w/ Danny Pound / Two Dollar Shoe / Acme Jazz Co. / Homespun / Et Tu Brute. 3 p.m. at Replay Lounge
In Kansas City...
The Underdog Conspiracy / Eleven Hours Down / Foregone Conclusion, 7:30 p.m. at The New Earth Coffee House
Deep Elm "Too Young to Die" Tour w/
Brandtson / Red Animal War / David Singer /
Desert City Soundtrack / Settlefish, 7 p.m. at
El Torreon
Be/Non, 10 p.m. at The Brick
Blue Riddum at Grand Emporium
Mr. Marco's V7 at Davey's Uptown
DJ's Are Not Rock Stars" feat. Princess Superstar (DJ Set) / Mac Lethal / DJ Bee-Can, 9 p.m. at The Hurricane
Oldies Unlimited Party, 8 p.m. at Madrid Theatre
Kirby Wendler, 9 p.m. at Westport Coffee House
The Elders, 10 p.m. at Danny's Bar & Grill
SUNDAY
Sweet Honey in the Rock, 7:30 p.m. at Lied Center
Bob Log III / Bebe and Serge at Replay Lounge
Scott Keeton & The Deviants, 9 p.m. at Stu's Midtown Tavern
Standing Wave / TBA at The Bottleneck In Kansas City...
Tim McGraw and The Dancehall Doctors, 8 p.m. at Kemper Arena
Ann Berreta / National Fire Theory/ Off by One, 7 p.m. at El Torreon
MONDAY
Getaway Driver at Granada Theatre ::
"Collide" an experiment in music and video
Open Mic Night - Last Band Standing at The Bottleneck In Kansas City...
Brodiokie at The Brick
Appleseed Cast / Cursive / Casket Lottery/ Putrecine, 7:30 p.m. at El Torreon
Colonel Bruce Hampton and The Code Talkers at Grand Emporium
TUESDAY
The Epoxies at Replay Lounge
- Toots and the Maytals / The Yards, 9 p.m. at
  The Bottleneck
  In Kansas City...
Club Wars Invitational Round feat. Ilicit Trip / Soulitify / Substance, 8 p.m. at Grand Emporium
The Deal / Forgone Conclusion / Sister Mary Rotten Crotch, 7 p.m. at El Torreon
Emma Feel / Houston at The Hurricane
Pat Green w/ Lost Trailers, 8 p.m. at Abe & Jake's Landing
WEDNESDAY
Q not U / El Guapo / * (the color blue), 8 p.m.
at The Bottleneck
Honey Tongue at The Jazzhaus
The Nexus Intent / J Pharoah / Michael J. Box, 10 p.m. at Paradise Café In Kansas City.
boysetsfire / Hope Conspiracy / Vaux /
Midnight Creeps, 7 p.m. at El Torreon
Coco Montoya at Grand Emporium
Vena Cava at Davey's Uptown
Pillbox / Tripwire / Mud Puddle Dive at America's Pub
Midnight Creeps, 10 p.m. at The Pyro Room