Rodney was born in Saint Ann's Bay, St. Ann, Jamaica, as were Bob Marley and Marcus Garvey; who both had a great influence on Rodney's life. Garvey in his philosophy, which Burning Spear greatly took to, and Marley in directly helping Burning Spear get started in the music industry. Burning Spear was originally Rodney's group, named after Jomo Kenyatta, the first Prime Minister and President of an independent Kenya. As fame took hold the name of the group gradually became synonymous with Rodney.
Burning Spear is one of the strongest proponents of Marcus Garvey's self-determination and self-reliance for all African descendants, thus leading to several album releases in commemoration of the African activist.
In 2002, Burning Spear and his wife, Sonia Rodney who has produced a number of his albums, founded Burning Spear Records.
Burning Spear advocates messages of honesty, peace, and love, which tie in with his religious and political messages of Rasta and black unity.
About Burning Spear
Burning Music
"I don't know how other people see music," reggae legend Burning Spear reflects. "Some people might see it based upon money, some people might see music based upon opportunity and access. But I see music as life. I see music as inspiration."
For more than 35 years, Burning Spear's music-thus, his life-has inspired people on numerous continents. Since the beginning, his songs have implored listeners to fight oppression in all its forms, to work at improving their own condition and to consider the social impact of their actions.
OUR MUSIC builds upon the Jamaican native's legacy of musical activism. With its inimitable dancing groove, the album percolates and bubbles rhythmically in its call for unity between races, between nations, between individuals and even between business associates.
OUR MUSIC is the second album released on his Burning Spear label, following 2003's Grammy-nominated FREEMAN. In the midst of its expected messages about love, oppression and African history is the title track, a public confirmation that his brand of positivity is tempered with a strong sense of self. "Our Music" is Burning Spear's reclamation of his own artistry-a justification for establishing his record company and a challenge to all artists to commandeer their own future.
"A lot of artists just have no time to really look within the business section of the music business," Burning Spear reasons. "There's no one to really sit them down and give them some of that business understanding before they get into what they get into. So then people walk all over these artists and do things where it's not appropriate and it's not right. It's not in the artist's love."
With his art and his business now firmly in his own control, Burning Spear's OUR MUSIC stands among the most joyful albums of his career. Bolstered by its throbbing basslines, bright horn parts and slinky female background singers, the songs embrace persistence ("Try Again"), self-analysis ("Friends"), love ("Fix Me") and community ("Together") through deceptively simple lyrics that point to deeper issues. It is, in effect, smart music you can dance to.
"It's like art," he says. "You're gonna paint this thing, and people are gonna look at this art and say that it looks like a tree, looks like a car, some people it looks like a flower. People are gonna say different things according to what they see. It's very different, what it looks like to them."
No matter who looks at Burning Spear's career, they have to be impressed. Of his more than 25 albums, nine have earned Grammy nominations, with one of them - 1999's CALLING RASTAFRI - receiving the Academy's Best Reggae Album honor. And he remains one of the few reggae pioneers still working and influencing the people today.
Born Winston Rodney in St. Ann, Jamaica, he was an early fan of Bob Marley. As the legend goes, Rodney bumped into Marley while walking through a field, and the two began talking about music. Marley encouraged him to visit Jamaica's Studio One, where Rodney and a fellow musician recorded "Door Peep." By the time of its release, Rodney had branded the duo Burning Spear, taking the nickname of Jomo Kenyatta, who was jailed by a colonial British government in Africa but rose to become the first president of Kenya.
"I believe in people who are gonna stand up for what they believe in," Burning Spear notes, "not only for themselves, but for themselves and their people, and that was what Jomo was doing."
Even more central to Burning Spears' mission - and it truly is a mission - was the doctrine of Marcus Garvey, a 20th century figure who pushed for a stronger black race through self-reliance. The Jamaican-born Garvey supported freedom and economic strength for all people, but made the African-originated population his focus and published his views in a New York-based newspaper, Negro World. Garvey was jailed in the 1920s and eventually exiled to Jamaica, though he never lashed out at the system that brought him down. His message survived, influencing the likes of Kenyatta, Martin Luther King Jr., Marley and Burning Spear, which titled some of its seminal albums MARCUS GARVEY and MARCUS' CHILDREN.
"Those men wasn't preachin' any violence," Burning Spear says. "They were preachin' about Oneness and the struggles of black people about where they can live and having their voices heard. I don't see anything wrong with his plan and his direction. I think he opened a lot of eyes and opened a lot of mouths so those people could really talk and their voices could be heard. I think the time is right now to clear his name up and set his record free."
Burning Spear's mission remains rather unchanged today, though the act and the music have undergone some alterations. The duo grew into a trio, but has long since morphed into Burning Spear, a solo artist. And while his music has always been a vehicle for social change, his songs are now increasingly melodic, developed with catchy hooks that use short phrases and point more subtly to internal truths for those willing to go through self-exploration.
The music survives in a much different musical era. The reggae genre, once a distinct idiom unto itself, has been co-opted by artists throughout the years and melded with other pop forms. Artists such as Eric Clapton, Paul Simon, The Rolling Stones, The Police, Stevie Wonder and UB40 combined it with pop and rock during the '70s and '80s, while Shaggy and Sean Paul have blended it with hip-hop textures in more recent years. Even country man Willie Nelson put together a hybrid album involving Toots Hibbert, of The Maytals.
Those efforts have called attention to the genre, and specifically to those who helped bring reggae to the world in the '70s, including Burning Spear, Peter Tosh, Hibbert and Marley. In his time, Marley gave Burning Spear his personal seal of approval, and the Spear continues to maintain a devotion to reggae's roots while continuing his service to Jah.
"I think people have to remember the originals," Burning Spear suggests. "So to be honest, I don't really feel no way about it when people put reggae in a different form. Regardless who's gonna do what with the music, I don't think they interfere with Burning Spear."
OUR MUSIC relies heavily on the roots of the reggae movement.
"What I tried to do with this album, musically and lyrically, is to go back to the '70s, when we were singin' about the history and the culture and the lifestyle of these people," Burning Spear observes. "A lot of Burning Spear songs of that earlier times, people would see as political. To me, it's just a natural thing. As an artist, I just expressed that."
Burning Spear continues his mission of expressing his heart, of entertaining and educating the masses. He cleverly accomplishes that by winning over his listeners' bodies before he impacts their minds. He witnesses that process each time he takes the stage.
"You see the head start to nod, you start to see one movement from one of these legs down here and another one, 'til the whole body just gets involved in the whole thing," he laughs. "You have to think about that when you're creatin' the music-you're not just creatin' the music for people to sit back and listen, 'Oh, that's all good and that's bad.' You need people to shake a leg."
As they listen at home and shake legs to OUR MUSIC, listeners will also be swept up with the headiness of Burning Spear's message. The political statements are still there, most obviously in the continued references to Marcus Garvey ("One Marcus" and "Little Garvey").
But OUR MUSIC also contains deeper ideas that penetrate quietly, subtly into the mind before they reach clarity. The bouncy "Friends" asks rather simplistically, "Are you my friend, my neighbor or my enemy?/Who are you? Who are you?" On further reflection, it's obvious that the question is a complex one about societal roles and provocative self-evaluation. "Together" recalls the image of African slaves, shackled together at the ankles, while suggesting that contemporary blacks can still link together figuratively at the elbow in the continued quest for equality. And "Fix Me" embraces the power and essence of love, which Burning Spear sees as the ultimate goal of humanity.
"Love," he says, "is a harmony thing, it's a communication. Love is a link."
Burning Spear's link is a pure one in 2006. Unfettered by someone else's record company, still linked to the roots of reggae and to the ideals of its forefathers, OUR MUSIC points to a better world for those who are oppressed, and for those who simply believe a better world is possible.
"Music," Burning Spear maintains, "is a very important thing. We have to remember that no force is stronger than the music."
700 Strong
Burning Spear Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
This is the story of the trou macacq, the pine box derby, the monkey track
Not what I heard or saw on TV,
But what I witnessed entirely
Each bend in the road was infact another curve on the monkey track
Once upon a time we thought we were free
And had control over destiny
We saw ourselves a competent band
But we had a chamber up in the moon
Circumstance made us change our tune
When the veil was torn from our face
We became the monkeys riding the race
MONKEY!
You think you got the stuff it takes to break away!
Boy youll be on the track every day
Talent, vigor, drive
Youll eat peanut butter the rest of your life
And these last things you can arrange
Find other people equally strange
Stuff yourselves in the van and ride the pine box derby to the finish line
I said: Chris P. rides on a serious plan
Hes going to finish as fast as he can
The Escalator takes it personally
And does not drive professionally
Charming Enchantress and Bones can run
Even if the winshield wipers are on
I the Broadcaster avoid police
But the Bat was led into custody
The song "700 Strong" by Burning Spear tells the story of the trou macacq, the pine box derby, and the monkey track. The lyrics describe the reality of life, contrasting what is watched on TV to what is actually witnessed. The Monkey Track is a metaphor for the ups and downs of life, where each bend in the road is another curve that must be overcome. The band once thought they were free and had control over their destiny, but circumstance made them change their tune.
The lyrics of the verse "You think you got the stuff it takes to break away! Boy, you'll be on the track every day. Talent, vigor, drive. You'll eat peanut butter the rest of your life. And these last things you can arrange. Find other people equally strange. Stuff yourselves in the van and ride the pine box derby to the finish line" tell a story of determination and self-motivation. It suggests that breaking away from the norm requires a considerable amount of hard work and dedication, and it is not an easy journey. The monkey race is a symbol of the struggle to make something of oneself, to succeed in life despite the odds.
Furthermore, the song portrays the characters who participate in the monkey race. Chris P. is driven to finish as fast as he can. The Escalator is taking the race personally, not driving professionally. The Charming Enchantress and Bones are capable of running, even with the windshield wipers on. The Broadcaster avoids the police, but the Bat was taken into custody. Each character in the song represents a different aspect of life's struggles.
Line by Line Meaning
This is the story of the trou macacq, the pine box derby, the monkey track
The singer narrates a story of the monkey track.
Not what I heard or saw on TV,
The singer's story is not based on something they heard or saw on TV.
But what I witnessed entirely
The singer's story is based on what they witnessed entirely.
Each bend in the road was infact another curve on the monkey track
Every bend in the road was actually another curve on the monkey track.
Once upon a time we thought we were free
In the past, the artist and others thought they were free.
And had control over destiny
The singer and others believed they had control over their destiny.
We saw ourselves a competent band
The singer and others viewed themselves as a competent band.
Able to reason, prosper and plan
The artist and others believed they were capable of thinking, thriving, and planning.
But we had a chamber up in the moon
The artist and others had an unrealistic belief or goal.
Circumstance made us change our tune
Circumstances caused the artist and others to change their perspective.
When the veil was torn from our face
When they realized the truth of their situation,
We became the monkeys riding the race
The artist and others became the monkeys riding the race.
MONKEY!
Exclamation to emphasize monkeys.
You think you got the stuff it takes to break away!
Challenging statement directed to someone who thinks they have what it takes to escape.
Boy youll be on the track every day
The person being addressed will be on the monkey track every day.
Talent, vigor, drive
Having skills and determination.
Youll eat peanut butter the rest of your life
The person being addressed will live a low-income life.
And these last things you can arrange
The last things can be arranged.
Find other people equally strange
Search for people who share your passion.
Stuff yourselves in the van and ride the pine box derby to the finish line
Load yourselves into the van and ride to the finish line.
I said: Chris P. rides on a serious plan
Chris P. has a serious plan for riding the track.
Hes going to finish as fast as he can
Chris P. wants to finish as fast as possible.
The Escalator takes it personally
The Escalator has a personal stake in the race.
And does not drive professionally
The Escalator does not drive in a professional manner.
Charming Enchantress and Bones can run
Charming Enchantress and Bones can run.
Even if the winshield wipers are on
They can run even if the conditions are not ideal.
I the Broadcaster avoid police
The Broadcaster manages to avoid the police.
But the Bat was led into custody
However, the Bat was caught and taken into custody.
Writer(s): Tom Maxwell
Contributed by Kayla K. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
ZimboChild263
on Nyah Keith
my brothers and sisters,
Let us run away together,
Away, zion I , away,
Away can treat you long,
For we walk to go to the lion,
Where the mill can hold before,
For the wise might knock at your door,
Zion I away,
Zion , i away,
High high high high
Who is higher than high ?
High x4
Who is higher than high
When i am on Zion
Mount zion Has,
All land, Jah Rastafarai
Away can treat you long,
For we walk to go to the lion,
Where the mill can hold before,
For the wise might knock at your door,
Zion I away,
Zion , i away,
High high high high
Who is higher than high ?
High x4
Who is higher than high
When i am on Zion
Mount zion Has,
All land, Jah Rastafarai
Richard maina
on Children
Greetings on of my favorite song, of Rodney
GEORGE MANGANYE
on Appointment With His Majesty
I NAMED MY CHILD RITA MARLEY .EVER SINCE SHE WANT TO MEET THE REAL MOTHER(RITA MARLEY).HOW CAN SHE DO THAT.
GEORGE MANGANYE
on Appointment With His Majesty
IS BROTHER WINSTON RODNEY WATCHING THE XENOPHOBIC ATTACK IN AFRICA.LET HIM COME AND CONVINCE THIS JAH-JAH CHILDREN NOT TO KILL EACH OTHER
GEORGE MANGANYE
on Appointment With His Majesty
I AM INTERESTED IN THE LYRICS(EDUCATION)BY WINSTON RODNEY
Malefu Cathy Motaung
on Loved For Who I Am
I love this song how can i download it pls help
Teba Sinker
on Man In The Hills
Jah Live Jah Guide Jah Protect.
Darren Smith
on Throw Down Your Arms
TOCH MY HEART OH JAH.......JAH RASTAFARI
Darren Smith
on The Invasion
SLAVER DAYS
Hamisi Omari Magala
on Give Me
reggae is like school, you can more thing in the reggae music