Mikey Dread
Encyclopedia
Michael George Campbell (born 4 June 1954 in Port Antonio
, Jamaica
- died 15 March 2008 in Connecticut
, United States), better known as Mikey Dread, was a Jamaican singer, producer
, and broadcaster
. He was one of the most influential performers and innovators in reggae
music. His abilities, technical expertise, and unique vocal delivery combined to create a unique sound that tells the listener emphatically that it is the "Dread at the Controls".
and electronics
. In 1976, after he finished college, Campbell started out as an engineer with the Jamaica Broadcasting Corporation
(JBC). Campbell wasn't impressed that the JBC's playlists mainly consisted of bland, foreign pop music
at a time when some of the most potent reggae
was being recorded in Jamaica. He convinced his JBC bosses to give him his own radio program called Dread At The Controls, where he played nothing but reggae. Before long, Campbell (now using the DJ name Mikey Dread) had the most popular program on the JBC. Well-known for its fun and adventurous sonic style, Dread At The Controls became a hit all over Jamaica. Inevitably, JBC's conservative management and Campbell clashed, and he quit in protest.
A lot of Mikey Dread's distinctive radio chatter can be heard on the US release of the RAS label LP African Anthem Dubwise.
Unlike its Jamaican counterpart Mikey Dread At The Controls Dubwise, his radio exclamations and chatter have been included and add quite a bit of atmosphere to the dubwise proceedings.
By 1979-80, Campbell had earned a solid reputation as a singer and producer and began recording his own material. Distinctive albums such as Dread at the Controls, Evolutionary Rockers, and World War III all became favorites amongst reggae fans. His collaboration with producers King Tubby
and Carlton Patterson stand out as some of the best work each party has done.
Campbell's music attracted the attention of British punk rockers The Clash
, who invited him over to England to produce some of their music. Although initially suspicious of the strangers, Campbell soon became the best of friends with the band, producing their famous "Bankrobber
" single and performing on several songs on their 1980 album Sandinista!
. Campbell also toured with The Clash across Britain, Europe, and the US, gaining many new fans along the way.
He studied at the National Broadcasting School
in London where he perfected his media production/radio broadcasting skills, graduating with special commendations in 1980.
During the early 1980s he provided vocals with the reggae collective Singers And Players on Adrian Sherwood
's On-U Sound record label.
Dread produced ten dub tracks for UB40
and toured Europe and Scandinavia as their support artist.
Some of his works in the United Kingdom include narrating reggae documentaries, hosting series such as Rockers Roadshow and the ever popular six-part Channel 4 reggae documentary series Deep Roots Music. He later recorded "The Source (Of Your Divorce)" for Warner Brothers Records US, which obtained regularly rotated video airplay.
In 1991, Dread recorded Profile and African Anthem Revisited. He also toured in Europe and the US with Freddie McGregor
, Lloyd Parks
, We The People Band, and the Roots Radics Band.
In 1992, he collaborated with former Guns N' Roses
guitarist Izzy Stradlin
on a duet entitled "Can't Hear 'Em". He was nominated for a NAIRD award, an award from the Billboard Magazine, for his work on his 1990 compilation album Mikey Dread's Best Sellers.
In 1993, Mikey Dread was involved in several projects, including his tour supporting the album Obsession and working in TV with the Caribbean Satellite Network (CSN) where he was Program Director and On Air personality as well as Producer of various shows.
In 1994 he presented The Culture Award of Honor in the Martin’s International Reggae Music Awards in Chicago. In 1995, he worked as a Radio DJ for WAVS 1170 AM and WAXY-AM 790 in Miami, Florida
. In 1996 he participated in the Essential Music Festival as a performer in Brighton
, UK.
Mikey furthered his knowledge of TV/Video Production at the Art Institute of Ft. Lauderdale, where he graduated in 1996 with Honors and at Lynn University
in Boca Raton / Florida where he earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in International Communications, with Magna Cum Laude honors.
He did live appearances with The Clash, UB40, Bob Dylan
, Carlos Santana
, Macka B
, Channel One, and many other bands and artists. He also produced artists such as Sugar Minott
, Junior Murvin
, Earl Sixteen
, Wally Bucker, Sunshine, Jah Grundy and Rod Taylor. He also worked closely with producer Trevor Elliot to launch musical career of singer Edi Fitzroy
. Mikey Dread was the featured artist on "Lips Like Sugar
" with Seal
for the soundtrack of the 2004 film, 50 First Dates
.
After many years working as a producer and singer, Campbell withdrew from the business and moved to Miami where he furthered his college education with courses in electronics and business. Disgusted with several unfair contracts with record companies, Campbell shrewdly waited until all of the existing contracts expired and then regained control over his entire catalogue. Since then, he has been re-releasing much of it on his own Dread At The Controls record label.
Dread, together with The Blizzard of 78
, featured on The Sandinista! Project, a tribute to the 1980 Clash album Sandinista!, with the song "Silicone on Sapphire". The tribute album, recorded in 2004, was released on 15 May 2007 by the 00:02:59 Records (a label named after a lyric from the Sandinista! song "Hitsville UK").
In October 2007, it was announced that Campbell was being treated for a brain tumour. He died on 15 March 2008, surrounded by his family, at the home of his sister in Stamford
, Connecticut
.
Articles
Port Antonio
Port Antonio is the capital of the parish of Portland on the northeastern coast of Jamaica, about 60 miles from Kingston. It had a population of 12,285 in 1982 and 13,246 in 1991...
, Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
- died 15 March 2008 in Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
, United States), better known as Mikey Dread, was a Jamaican singer, producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
, and broadcaster
Presenter
A presenter, or host , is a person or organization responsible for running an event. A museum or university, for example, may be the presenter or host of an exhibit. Likewise, a master of ceremonies is a person that hosts or presents a show...
. He was one of the most influential performers and innovators in reggae
Reggae
Reggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady.Reggae is based...
music. His abilities, technical expertise, and unique vocal delivery combined to create a unique sound that tells the listener emphatically that it is the "Dread at the Controls".
Biography
From an early age, Campbell showed a natural aptitude for engineeringEngineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
and electronics
Electronics
Electronics is the branch of science, engineering and technology that deals with electrical circuits involving active electrical components such as vacuum tubes, transistors, diodes and integrated circuits, and associated passive interconnection technologies...
. In 1976, after he finished college, Campbell started out as an engineer with the Jamaica Broadcasting Corporation
Jamaica Broadcasting Corporation
The Jamaica Broadcasting Corporation was a public broadcasting company in Jamaica founded in 1959 by Prime Minister Norman Manley with the aim of emulating the success of other national broadcasting companies such as the BBC and CBC.-History:...
(JBC). Campbell wasn't impressed that the JBC's playlists mainly consisted of bland, foreign pop music
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
at a time when some of the most potent reggae
Reggae
Reggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady.Reggae is based...
was being recorded in Jamaica. He convinced his JBC bosses to give him his own radio program called Dread At The Controls, where he played nothing but reggae. Before long, Campbell (now using the DJ name Mikey Dread) had the most popular program on the JBC. Well-known for its fun and adventurous sonic style, Dread At The Controls became a hit all over Jamaica. Inevitably, JBC's conservative management and Campbell clashed, and he quit in protest.
A lot of Mikey Dread's distinctive radio chatter can be heard on the US release of the RAS label LP African Anthem Dubwise.
Unlike its Jamaican counterpart Mikey Dread At The Controls Dubwise, his radio exclamations and chatter have been included and add quite a bit of atmosphere to the dubwise proceedings.
By 1979-80, Campbell had earned a solid reputation as a singer and producer and began recording his own material. Distinctive albums such as Dread at the Controls, Evolutionary Rockers, and World War III all became favorites amongst reggae fans. His collaboration with producers King Tubby
King Tubby
King Tubby was a Jamaican electronics and sound engineer, known primarily for his influence on the development of dub in the 1960s and 1970s...
and Carlton Patterson stand out as some of the best work each party has done.
Campbell's music attracted the attention of British punk rockers The Clash
The Clash
The Clash were an English punk rock band that formed in 1976 as part of the original wave of British punk. Along with punk, their music incorporated elements of reggae, ska, dub, funk, rap, dance, and rockabilly...
, who invited him over to England to produce some of their music. Although initially suspicious of the strangers, Campbell soon became the best of friends with the band, producing their famous "Bankrobber
Bankrobber
"Bankrobber" is a song, and single by The Clash. The song was not released on any of their studio albums, instead appearing on their compilation Black Market Clash...
" single and performing on several songs on their 1980 album Sandinista!
Sandinista!
Sandinista! is the fourth studio album by the English punk rock band the Clash. It was released on 12 December 1980 as a triple album containing 36 tracks, with 6 songs on each side...
. Campbell also toured with The Clash across Britain, Europe, and the US, gaining many new fans along the way.
He studied at the National Broadcasting School
National Broadcasting School
The National Broadcasting School is a small educational institution in Brighton, England. The school is located on the campus of the University of Sussex.Red FM is the school's own radio station....
in London where he perfected his media production/radio broadcasting skills, graduating with special commendations in 1980.
During the early 1980s he provided vocals with the reggae collective Singers And Players on Adrian Sherwood
Adrian Sherwood
Adrian Sherwood is an English record producer best known for his work with dub music as well as for remixing a number of popular acts such as Coldcut, Depeche Mode, The Woodentops, Primal Scream, Pop Will Eat Itself, Sinéad O'Connor, and Skinny Puppy...
's On-U Sound record label.
Dread produced ten dub tracks for UB40
UB40
UB40 are a British reggae/pop band formed in 1978 in Birmingham. The band has placed more than 50 singles in the UK Singles Chart, and has also achieved considerable international success. One of the world's best-selling music artists, UB40 have sold over 70 million records.Their hit singles...
and toured Europe and Scandinavia as their support artist.
Some of his works in the United Kingdom include narrating reggae documentaries, hosting series such as Rockers Roadshow and the ever popular six-part Channel 4 reggae documentary series Deep Roots Music. He later recorded "The Source (Of Your Divorce)" for Warner Brothers Records US, which obtained regularly rotated video airplay.
In 1991, Dread recorded Profile and African Anthem Revisited. He also toured in Europe and the US with Freddie McGregor
Freddie McGregor
Freddie McGregor has been variously a singer, musician and producer. According to Allmusic he is one of reggae's most durable and soulful singers, with a steady career that started in the 1960s, when he was just seven years old.-Biography:In 1963 he joined with Ernest Wilson and Peter Austin to...
, Lloyd Parks
Lloyd Parks
Lloyd Parks is a reggae vocalist and bass player.-Biography:Parks' interest in music was fuelled by his uncle Dourie Bryan, who played in a calypso band, and Parks became the band's singer...
, We The People Band, and the Roots Radics Band.
In 1992, he collaborated with former Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band, formed in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, in 1985. The band has released six studio albums, three EPs, and one live album...
guitarist Izzy Stradlin
Izzy Stradlin
Jeffrey Dean Isbell , known by his stage name Izzy Stradlin, is an American musician and songwriter. He is best known as the co-founder and former rhythm guitarist of the hard rock band Guns N' Roses, which he left at the height of its fame in 1991. Following his departure, he led his own band Izzy...
on a duet entitled "Can't Hear 'Em". He was nominated for a NAIRD award, an award from the Billboard Magazine, for his work on his 1990 compilation album Mikey Dread's Best Sellers.
In 1993, Mikey Dread was involved in several projects, including his tour supporting the album Obsession and working in TV with the Caribbean Satellite Network (CSN) where he was Program Director and On Air personality as well as Producer of various shows.
In 1994 he presented The Culture Award of Honor in the Martin’s International Reggae Music Awards in Chicago. In 1995, he worked as a Radio DJ for WAVS 1170 AM and WAXY-AM 790 in Miami, Florida
Miami, Florida
Miami is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States with a population of 2,500,625...
. In 1996 he participated in the Essential Music Festival as a performer in Brighton
Brighton
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...
, UK.
Mikey furthered his knowledge of TV/Video Production at the Art Institute of Ft. Lauderdale, where he graduated in 1996 with Honors and at Lynn University
Lynn University
Lynn University is a private, non-profit university in Boca Raton, Florida, founded in 1962.The university currently hosts students from 40 states and 90 nations...
in Boca Raton / Florida where he earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in International Communications, with Magna Cum Laude honors.
He did live appearances with The Clash, UB40, Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
, Carlos Santana
Carlos Santana
Carlos Augusto Alves Santana is a Mexican rock guitarist. Santana became famous in the late 1960s and early 1970s with his band, Santana, which pioneered rock, salsa and jazz fusion...
, Macka B
Macka B
Macka B is a British-born reggae artist, performer and activist with a career spanning thirty years in the United Kingdom and Jamaica. According to AllMusic.com “Macka B was one of Britain's most influential dancehall toasters.”...
, Channel One, and many other bands and artists. He also produced artists such as Sugar Minott
Sugar Minott
Lincoln Barrington "Sugar" Minott was a Jamaican reggae singer, producer and sound-system operator.-Biography:...
, Junior Murvin
Junior Murvin
Junior Murvin is a Jamaican reggae musician. He is best known for the single "Police and Thieves", produced by Lee "Scratch" Perry in 1976. Murvin's soaring voice and the infectious rhythm made "Police and Thieves" into an international hit during the summer of that year. It peaked at #23 in the...
, Earl Sixteen
Earl Sixteen
Earl Sixteen is a reggae singer whose career began in the mid-1970s.-Biography:Daley grew up in Waltham Park Road, Kingston, and, influenced by American soul and Jamaican artists such as Dennis Brown, began his singing career by entering local talent shows...
, Wally Bucker, Sunshine, Jah Grundy and Rod Taylor. He also worked closely with producer Trevor Elliot to launch musical career of singer Edi Fitzroy
Edi Fitzroy
Fitzroy Edwards , better known by his stage name Edi Fitzroy is a Jamaican reggae singer, active since 1975 but best known for his work in the dancehall era.-Biography:...
. Mikey Dread was the featured artist on "Lips Like Sugar
Lips Like Sugar
"Lips Like Sugar" is a single by Echo & the Bunnymen which was released in August 1987. It was the second single from their 1987 eponymous album. It reached number 36 on the UK Singles Chart and number 24 on the Irish Singles Chart...
" with Seal
Seal (musician)
Seal Henry Olusegun Olumide Adeola Samuel , known simply as Seal, is a British soul and R&B singer-songwriter, of Nigerian and Brazilian background. Seal has won numerous music awards throughout his career, including three Brit Awards—winning Best British Male in 1992, four Grammy Awards, and an...
for the soundtrack of the 2004 film, 50 First Dates
50 First Dates
50 First Dates is a 2004 American romantic comedy film directed by Peter Segal and written by George Wing. The film stars Adam Sandler as a woman-chasing veterinarian and Drew Barrymore as an amnesiac, along with Rob Schneider, Sean Astin, Lusia Strus, Blake Clark, and Dan Aykroyd.Most of the film...
.
After many years working as a producer and singer, Campbell withdrew from the business and moved to Miami where he furthered his college education with courses in electronics and business. Disgusted with several unfair contracts with record companies, Campbell shrewdly waited until all of the existing contracts expired and then regained control over his entire catalogue. Since then, he has been re-releasing much of it on his own Dread At The Controls record label.
Dread, together with The Blizzard of 78
The Blizzard of 78
The Blizzard of 78 is a Boston/Providence based five-piece rock band. Consisting of ex-Delta Clutch members, they currently have two albums to their credit, the first being the critically acclaimed Where All Life Hangs. Tanya Donelly contributed a guest vocal to the album, and it won several Motif...
, featured on The Sandinista! Project, a tribute to the 1980 Clash album Sandinista!, with the song "Silicone on Sapphire". The tribute album, recorded in 2004, was released on 15 May 2007 by the 00:02:59 Records (a label named after a lyric from the Sandinista! song "Hitsville UK").
In October 2007, it was announced that Campbell was being treated for a brain tumour. He died on 15 March 2008, surrounded by his family, at the home of his sister in Stamford
Stamford, Connecticut
Stamford is a city in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. According to the 2010 census, the population of the city is 122,643, making it the fourth largest city in the state and the eighth largest city in New England...
, Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
.
Studio albums
| Year | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | African Anthem
|
||
Dread at the Controls
|
|||
| 1980 | World War III
|
||
| 1981 | Beyond World War III
|
||
| 1982 | Dub Catalogue Volume 1
|
||
Dub Merchant
|
|||
Jungle Signal
|
|||
Pave the Way
|
|||
S.W.A.L.K.
|
|||
| 1989 | Happy Family
|
||
| 1991 | Profile
|
||
African Anthem Revisited
|
|||
| 1992 | Obsession
|
||
| 1995 | Come to Mikey Dread's Dub Party
|
||
| 2000 | World Tour
|
||
| 2002 | Rasta in Control
|
||
| 2007 | Life Is a stage
|
Compilations
| Year | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | African Anthem / Happy Family
|
||
S.W.A.L.K. / Rockers Vibrations
|
|||
| 1991 | Best Sellers
|
||
| 1998 | The Prime of Mikey Dread: Massive Dub Cuts from 1978–1992
|
||
| 2006 | Best Sellers II
|
||
Dread at the Controls / Evolutionary Rockers
|
Singles
- 1982 "Roots & Culture" / "Jungle Dread" (DATCD 008)
- 1982 "Break Down the Walls" (DREAD 1)
Appears on
- The Trojan Story Vol. 2 (1982; compilation album by various artists; TALL 200)
- Singers and Players - Staggering HeightsStaggering HeightsStaggering Heights is the third album by Singers & Players. It was released in July 1983 on On-U Sound Records.It was produced by Adrian Sherwood.-Track listing:Side 1# "African Blood"...
(1983; On-U Sound), "School Days" - Singers and Players - Leaps and BoundsLeaps And BoundsLeaps and Bounds is the fourth album by Singers & Players. It was released in 1984 on Cherry Red Records.It was produced by Adrian Sherwood.-Track listing:Side 1# "Moses" # "Make A Joyful Noise"...
(1984; Cherry RedCherry RedCherry Red is a London-based independent record label formed in 1978.-History:Cherry Red grew from the rock promotion company founded in 1971 to promote rock concerts at the Malvern Winter Gardens...
), "Autobiography (Dread Operator)" and "Vegetable Matter" - Funky Reggae Crew - Strictly Hip-Hop Reggae Fusion (1989; compilation album by various artists; 926 011-1)
- The Roots of Reggae Vol. 1 (1991; compilation album by various artists; MCCD 014)
- Larks From the Ark (1995; compilation album by Lee "Scratch" Perry; NTMCD 511)
- History of Trojan Records 1972-1995 Volume 2 (1996; compilation album by various artists)
- Arkology (1997; compilation album by Lee "Scratch" Perry; CRNCD 6)
- Rockers Galore (1999; compilation album by The ClashThe ClashThe Clash were an English punk rock band that formed in 1976 as part of the original wave of British punk. Along with punk, their music incorporated elements of reggae, ska, dub, funk, rap, dance, and rockabilly...
; ESK 47144) - Classic Reggae: The Producers (2000; compilation album by various artists; MCCD 444)
- Dub Reggae Essentials (2000; compilation album by various artists)
- Blunted in the Bomb Shelter Mix (2002; compilation album by MadlibMadlibOtis Jackson Jr. in Oxnard, California, known professionally as Madlib, is a Los Angeles-based DJ, multi-instrumentalist, rapper, and music producer...
; ANTCD102) - Auralux Reggae Showcase (2004; compilation album by various artists; LUXXCD007)
- 50 First Dates (2004; compilation album by various artists)
- Radio Clash (2004; compilation album by various artists)
- Best 1991-2004 (2004; compilation album by SealSeal (musician)Seal Henry Olusegun Olumide Adeola Samuel , known simply as Seal, is a British soul and R&B singer-songwriter, of Nigerian and Brazilian background. Seal has won numerous music awards throughout his career, including three Brit Awards—winning Best British Male in 1992, four Grammy Awards, and an...
) - Echodelic Sounds of Future Pigeon (2006; album by Future PigeonFuture PigeonFuture Pigeon is an American punk/dub band from Los Angeles, California, contemporary to the late 1990s and early 2000s.-History:Future Pigeon are an award-winning underground band from LA; they are often associated in performances with other more famous members of that scene such as the late...
) - Singles BoxSingles BoxSingles Box is a compilation album by The Clash. Included within is all the singles that they released in the UK , with the single mixes and edits with the B-sides released, and also containing B-sides from different parts of the world.The discs are packaged in a sleeve which reproduces the...
(2006; compilation album by The Clash; Sony BMG) - Down in a Tenement Yard: Sufferation and Love in the Ghetto 1973-1980 (2007; compilation album by various artists; TJDDD352)
- Family Front (2008; Album by Habakuk; 5935240)
- Royale Rockers: Reggae Sessions (2008; album by Casino Royale)
- Iration - Generation Time (Ft. Mikey Dread)
External links
Articles
- Complicated Dread: the Mikey Dread interview Complicated Fun, 21 June 2006
- Mikey Dread Interview: Mikey Dread at the controls trakMARX.com - Punk Rock... & Roll, trakMARX 21 — October 2005 — The No Time To Be 21 Issue