PRODUCER and head of Penthouse Records, Donovan Germain, is on a mission to share the music of a bygone era with a younger generation.
To this end, Germain has re-recorded the music of reggae legend Peter Tosh and singer Beres Hammond done by younger acts.
He is currently in studio doing post-production work on the music of Joseph Hill, the late frontman of roots reggae group Culture.
“I am always moved by my spirit and that is how I did the Peter Tosh and Beres projects. Since last September I have not been very active in the studio and so I decided that my first project for 2016 would be the re-recordings of some of the favorites from Joseph Hill. I just want to get the younger generation to know the work. The radio disc jocks are not playing the music on air and so, if we are not careful, this music will get lost. I just want to give new life to these great songs by such a great artist,” Germain told the Jamaica Observer.
Donovan Germain
The 15-track project is expected to be released this year to coincide with the 10 anniversary of Hill’s death. The singer died in Berlin, Germany at age 57.Like his two previous projects, Germain has assembled a diverse cadre of acts. Marcia Griffiths, Chronixx, I-Octane, Sherita Lewis, Nikki Burt, Jahmali, Richie Spice, Natel, Duane Stephenson, Exco Levi, Tony Rebel, George Nooks, Queen Ifrica and Hill’s son Kenyatta will contribute to the album.
Culture
“We chose some of Joseph Hill’s best work and some of the tracks that we will using are Addis Ababa, Zion Gate, Innocent Blood, International Herb, Jah Jah See Them A Come and Two Sevens Clash — Queen Ifrica is doing that. We are also glad to have Kenyatta Hill on this project with us and we will have Joseph Hill on the album as well. A few years ago, we recorded a collaboration of Hill and Buju (Banton) on Natty Never Get Weary. For this project, we are using Hill’s full vocal track from that recording.”
Joseph Hill
Germain states that in introducing the music to the younger artists, he is always amazed by how receptive they are.
“During the recordings, you will find an artist saying: ‘I know this song, but never realized that is what it was saying’. That gives me such satisfaction knowing I was able to help them find new-found respect for an artist and his music.”
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