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By Steve Serpiente Photography by Carmen Maria (Click the Pics for full size) CHICAGO - Giving his first U.S. stage show, Ghana native Magic Rocker spellbound patrons at the Cubby Bear with an Africanized blend of music, creating an atmosphere more akin to Accra than to Wrigleyville. A gruff voiced deejay whose delivery is strongly
influenced by dancehall heavyweights Shabba Ranks and Buju Banton, Magic (aka Richard
Eissen) was born in Ghana in 1970 and immigrated to Chicago in 1988. He first made a
splash on the local reggae scene in 2001 when his excellent debut CD, "Restored My Soul" (Toonga Records) garnered "Best
Reggae CD of the Year" from the Chicago Music Awards. Taking the stage shortly after midnight, Rocker's seven piece backup band got into the groove with an instrumental followed by a version of Bob Marley's "Soul Rebel" sung by guitarist Mitch Corso and backup vocalist/guitarist Saskia Pretorius. But it was on Magic's original material, which fuses elements of African, reggae, dancehall, rock and hip hop, during which the band's talents were more advantageously showcased. Launching into "Praise Him," Magic remained in the shadows backstage chanting "Emperor Selassie I" before bursting onstage to complete the track in full view of the assembled massive. Magic continued in a spiritual vein, performing the title track of "Restored My Soul." (Unless otherwise noted, all original material mentioned here appears on the "Restored My Soul" release.) Magic then switched gears from matters of the spirit to
delights of the flesh with "Love U to the Maximum" and "Nice &
Slow." During the former, two young lovelies graced the stage with a tantalizing
dance routine. (The dance duo doesn't have a name, but may this writer suggest the Magic
Rocker Dancers or perhaps the Magic Rockettes?) After a cover of Marley's "Stir It Up" mixed with lyrics from "Praise Him," Magic sang "Temptation Rising" with commanding female vocalist Ladina, who had also joined Magic on the studio version along with Frankie "Dancehall" Paul. While "Hola My Bonita" explored the
singer's obsession with a (presumably) Latina heartthrob, Magic delivered a more serious
message urging youths to think for themselves on "Don't Say Something." (Magic's
adoptive parents reluctanctly came onstage to sing the chorus on the latter tune.) Rocker previewed the title track of his upcoming "Brighter Day" release, a hard driving rock number. Produced by bassist Jimmy Binder, the new record's street date is tentatively slated for tax day, 4/15/03. While Magic took a breather backstage, the
"Magic Rocker Dancers," sporting colorful island garb, entertained with some
suggestive poses during a version of Arrow's soca hit "Hot Hot Hot." Returning with new vigor, Magic's energy spread through the house during "Yonuvil," sung over an infectuous West African rhythm in the Ewe language. Encore cuts included "Listen" and
"Wake Up Africa," both calls rallying African peoples to consciousness socially,
politically and culturally. He also offered "Back to My Roots," from the album
of the same name which is presently in the production phase. Out of respect to the late
reggae king, Rocker ended the show with Marley's anthemic "Redemption Song." Hopefully, Rocker enjoyed himself as much as his fans and will continue appearing in concert as this live show was an enchanting experience. Magic's fellow Ghanians in Dansika, a nine piece
ensemble with a four piece horn section, set the tone for the evening's eclecticism with
an hour and a half opening set which featured jazzy instrumentals a la Hugh Masekela,
various reggae covers as well as salsa and soca. Among the reggae covers were a set of Burning
Spear tunes ("Marcus Garvey," "Christopher Columbus" and "African
Teacher") with vocals sounding amazingly like Winston Rodney's, and a medley of
Horace Andy's "Just Don't Want to Be Lonely" / Bob Dylan's "I Shall Be
Released" / Frankie Paul's "Stuck on You." (Although several bands have
given the Dylan song a reggae treatment since, the Heptones' 1977 cut produced by Lee
Scratch Perry remains the definitive reggae interpretation.) The troupe also performed a surprisingly strong reggae rendition of Lionel Ritchie's "Hello." While Dansika is a self described "cover band," the band's resurrection of a trite ballad like "Hello" demonstrates its refined ability to deliver new and improved versions of familiar music. Dansika appears regularly at the Wild Hare and other Chicago area venues. Rounding out the West African theme, respected
Chicago DJ Slacky J, a Ghanian himself, served as the MC for the evening. Contact reggae addict Steve Serpiente at serpiente97@yahoo.com |
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