began as a sound system DJ in 1961, spinning records for the Doctor Dickies set, later known as Dickies Dynamic, in such well-known Jamaican venues as Victoria Pier, Foresters Hall and Emmett Park. His inspiration was the DJ Winston Count Machuki, who worked for Coxsone Dodd and subsequently on Prince Buster's Voice Of The People sound system. By the mid-60s he was DJ for Sir George The Atomic, based around Maxfield Avenue in Kingston. Around 1967 he began to work with King Tubby as DJ for his Home Town Hi-Fi. From this association developed the whole modern DJ style; Tubby's work at Duke Reid's studio, where he was disc-cutter, led him to discover dub. He found that by dropping out the vocal track and remixing the remaining rhythm tracks he created new �versions� of much-loved tunes. He began to record a series of special acetate recordings or dub plates for exclusive use on his sound system. The space left by the absent vocal tracks enabled U-Roy to improvise his own jive-talk raps or toasts when the sound system played dances. The effect in the dancehall was immediate and electrifying. In 1969 U-Roy was invited to play for Dodd's Down Beat sound system, playing the number 2 set; the number 1 set had King Stitt as DJ. U-Roy became dissatisfied with playing the latest Coxsone music only after Stitt had first exposed it to dance patrons, and returned to Tubby's. He then began his recording career in full, recording two discs for Lee Perry, Earth's Rightful Ruler and OK Corral, before moving to producer Keith Hudson, for whom he made the outstanding Dynamic Fashion Way.
U-Roy then began recording for Duke Reid, using as backing tracks Reid's rocksteady hits from 1966-67; their success was unprecedented. His first record for Reid, Wake The Town, which used Alton Ellis� Girl I've Got A Date as backing, immediately soared to the top of both Jamaican radio charts. His next two releases, Rule The Nation and Wear You To The Ball, soon joined it. These three releases held the top three positions in the Jamaican charts for 12 weeks during early 1970. Other sound system DJs were quick to follow U-Roy, including Dennis Alcapone and Scotty. The radio stations refused to play DJ music just to give singers a chance, so big was the demand. U-Roy recorded 32 tracks for Reid, in the process versioning almost every rocksteady hit issued on the label and releasing two albums. By 1973 he was recording for other producers, including Alvin Ranglin, Bunny Lee, Glen Brown and Lloyd Charmers as well as self-productions. However, the rise of the next DJ generation including Big Youth signalled the partial eclipse of U-Roy. In 1975 he made a series of albums for producer Prince Tony Robinson which were leased to Virgin Recordsin the UK, wherein the DJ revisited Reid's earlier hits in the then prevalent rockers style. He appeared at the London Lyceum in August 1976, backed by a band featuring Channel One stalwarts Sly Dunbar (bass) and Ansell Collins (organ). He operated his own sound system, Stur-Gav, featuring Ranking Joe and selector Jah Screw. When they left after the sound system was broken up during the turbulent 1980 Jamaican election, it was rebuilt with new DJs Charlie Chaplin and Josey Wales, and Inspector Willie as selector. U-Roy continued to record sporadically throughout the '80s, recording Hustling, a single for Gussie Clarke, in 1984, and two excellent albums for DJs turned producers Tapper Zukie and Prince Jazzbo, in 1986 and 1987 respectively. In 1991 he played a successful �revival� concert at the Hammersmith Palais, London. U-Roy is the man who is responsible for putting the DJ on the map, both as recording artist in Jamaica and as a major indirect influence on the US rappers. As such his importance is immense. source: http://u-roy.20m.com/
Your Wish Is My Command
U Roy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And as a dj, I'm here to play what you demand
Go on man, sing something, baby
Won't you play, won't you play what the young girls love to hear?
Won't you play, won't you play what the young girls love to hear?
They love to hear the rub a dub stuff playin' on the radio
They love to hear the rub a dub stuff playin' on the radio
So me say anything you want I will give you
Wan rub a dub, me will give you
You wan soul, come, me will give you
Wan the rock 'n' roll, me will give it to you, baby, one time
[Incomprehensible] baby, two time, y'all
They love to hear the rub a dub stuff playin' on the radio
So listen dj, listen dj, I want you to play me that song?
So come on, won't you play me that song?
Will you play, your music so sweet
So if you wan funky, me will give you
Wan the Lambada, you can dig it
If you wan some jazz, me will give you
The old folks love to hear
They love to hear the rub a dub style playin' on the hear
They love to hear the rub a dub style playin' on the hear
In Brazil, it's the Salsa
Ina Trinidad, it's the Zonka
Ina America, it's the hip hop
In Jamaica, it's the Reggae
So come, Reggae for me
Make me Reggae for you too
So me put down this a music
It's real Reggae music
When me make me record, it's the music
The real Reggae music
You wan some Jazz, you can take it
And if you wan Soca, me will give you
You wan some Reggae, you can take it
Play me that song, come on
Won't you play me that song? Come on
Won't you play me that song? Come on
Won't you play me that song? Come on
Won't you play me that song? Come on
The song "Your Wish is My Command" by U Roy is all about the relationship between a DJ and his audience. The lyrics are a plea from the listeners to the DJ to play the music they want to hear. The opening lines "Sing that your wish is my command, And as a DJ, I'm here to play what you demand" make it clear that the DJ is there to serve the people and play the music they want. The song then goes on to list different genres of music that people can request, including rub a dub, soul, rock and roll, and jazz.
The lyrics also reference different musical styles from around the world, such as salsa from Brazil, zonka from Trinidad, hip hop from America, and reggae from Jamaica. This further emphasizes the idea that music transcends cultural and geographical boundaries and can bring people together. The chorus "They love to hear the rub a dub stuff playin' on the radio" is a reminder that sometimes all it takes to make people happy is to play the music that they already love.
Line by Line Meaning
Sing that your wish is my command
I am ready to fulfill your desires
And as a dj, I'm here to play what you demand
As a DJ, it is my responsibility to play the music you want
Go on man, sing something, baby
You can request any song you want me to play
Won't you play, won't you play what the young girls love to hear?
Young girls would love to hear some catchy, upbeat rhythms
They love to hear the rub a dub stuff playin' on the radio
On the radio, they prefer the Amalgamation of various genres together
So me say anything you want I will give you
I am willing to play any music genre you desire
Wan rub a dub, me will give you
I am ready to play some Reggae music for you
You wan soul, come, me will give you
If you prefer, I can play soulful music as well
Wan the rock 'n' roll, me will give it to you, baby, one time
I can play rock 'n' roll as well if you like
They love to hear the rub a dub stuff playin' on the radio
On the radio, they prefer the Amalgamation of various genres together
So listen dj, listen dj, I want you to play me that song?
DJ, can you play my favorite song for me?
So come on, won't you play me that song?
Please play my desired tune
Will you play, your music so sweet
Can you play your mesmerizing music for me?
So if you wan funky, me will give you
I am capable of playing funky music too
Wan the Lambada, you can dig it
In case you enjoy Lambada, I will play it for you
If you wan some jazz, me will give you
If Jazz is what you want me to play, I will for you
The old folks love to hear
Elderly people prefer to listen to
They love to hear the rub a dub style playin' on the hear
A mix of Reggae and Dub is appreciated by them
In Brazil, it's the Salsa
In Brazil, Salsa music is popular
Ina Trinidad, it's the Zonka
In Trinidad, Zonka genre is liked
Ina America, it's the hip hop
In America, Hip hop is admired
In Jamaica, it's the Reggae
In Jamaica, Reggae is the most popular music genre
So come, Reggae for me
I request you to play Reggae for me
Make me Reggae for you too
In return, I will play Reggae for you as well
So me put down this a music
Now, let me play some music for you
It's real Reggae music
This music is authentic Reggae
You wan some Jazz, you can take it
If you like Jazz, I can play it for you
And if you wan Soca, me will give you
Should you want Soca music, I can play that as well
You wan some Reggae, you can take it
You can have Reggae music if you want
Play me that song, come on
I am requesting you to play that song for me
Won't you play me that song? Come on
Kindly play that song for me
Won't you play me that song? Come on
Please play that song for me
Won't you play me that song? Come on
Can you play that song for me, please?
Won't you play me that song? Come on
I really want you to play that song for me
Contributed by Ian V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.