2 months ago
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In the early ‘80s, reggae singer Gregory Isaacs was the coolest Rastaman who the then June Wyndham had ever met, and although the student-teacher barely gave him the time of day, there was no denying that his mannerisms intrigued her. So much so that the two ended up tying the knot in 1983, and the girl with the strict Seventh-day Adventist upbringing soon started to grow her locs.
“When I just know him, Gregory nuh talk loud none at all,” June said, emphasising the last three words. “The man just too cool. If he was driving, it was very slow. If you are behind him, it’s either you pass him or stay there. He was cool and calm in every way.”
June Isaacs told The Sunday Gleaner that it was a female vocal trio from Jamaica – but who resided in England – who gave Gregory Isaacs the name the Cool Ruler, and it stuck to him like glue. Formed in 1974, 15-16-17 comprised Sonia Williams and the McNabb sisters Christine and Wraydette and they supported Gregory on his early UK tours.
“It was the perfect name … his movements, how he would sway from here to there, his dapper dressing, his signature hat. Gregory had a big fan base of females in London because of his lover’s rock songs, and that’s where it all started in the late ‘70s,” June reminisced.
Gregory Isaacs, who was born on July 15, 1950, passed away in October 2010. For the past 15 years, the Gregory Isaacs Foundation has remained committed to keeping his legacy alive through the Red Rose for Gregory concert and sponsorship of various music award honours in his name.
This year, the Cool Ruler would celebrate his 75th birthday, and the foundation has rolled out an exciting slate of activities to make it extra special.
In addition to his very own bottled water, the soon-to-be launched biography, The Cool Ruler: Message, Missteps and Mastery of a Musical Maestro, by Peter Price, a teacher at Kingston College, Gregory Isaacs will come alive on stage next month in London through The Cool Ruler: The Musical, a joint effort between Bagga John, a promoter in London, and the Gregory Isaacs Foundation.
“It was Bagga John’s idea, and when he got the first venue, it sold out right away. He got three other venues, and we are still getting calls from other countries - South Africa, [and] Belgium. I am very happy to do this because no matter what, Gregory was always very kind to me ... he was a gentleman. And I know Gregory would be happy, too. I can hear him saying ‘Who can play me?’” June said doing her best Gregory impersonation.
Actually, Gregory Isaacs was such a larger-than-life character that ‘Gregory impersonations’ are a thing in the music industry among the people who knew him well, and stories abound about the literary gems that easily dropped from the lips of the Cool Ruler during conversations as well as his sometimes incomprehensible actions, coupled with his much-talked-about kindness.
June tells an amusing story – with a face as straight as an arrow – about the time Gregory decided to cut off his locs. It goes something like this. The couple was overseas, and one morning, he woke up early and instructed her to trim him. No explanation given.
“But I was hesitant. Suppose him never serious? And then me go cut off Gregory locs and him start call me Delilah who did cut off Samson locs [in the Bible] … cause a so Gregory stay. No sah. But later that day, he cut it himself. And it wasn’t difficult because some of the locs in his head was mine. It did pop out when police beat up me and Gregory … and Gregory did put them in his hair,” June said casually, without going into details about the beating or the method Gregory used – whether it was a sew-in or a glue-in – to get her her popped-out locs into his hair.
Gregory, she continued seamlessly, shocked fans when he returned to Jamaica after a long absence. It wasn’t just that he had cut his hair. The once-dreadlocked, Rastafarian Gregory was now sporting jheri curls. As to why he cut his locs and never ever grew them back, June – who also never grew back hers – surmised that “Gregory did probably have some sort of epiphany”. Perhaps the book will tell more.
LOOK-ALIKE
In the musical, Gregory will be played by someone who not only looks like him, but also sounds like him and knows his catalogue inside out. “If we are watching a YouTube video of Gregory performing on stage, Terence can tell you what Gregory is going to do next …. and he is always right,” Bagga John told The Sunday Gleaner.
Terence Wallen will be supported by a live five-piece band during the production that “pays tribute to Isaacs’ signature smooth vocals, timeless hits, and undeniable impact on reggae music worldwide”.
With monster hits such as Rumours, Night Nurse, Tune In, Red Rose for Gregory, My Number One and countless others, Gregory Isaacs enjoyed a 30-year career, which has seen his release an estimated 500 albums, including compilation. He made his first record in 1968 and soon after had his first hit with the song My Only Lover, which his bio states is “credited as the first lovers’ rock record ever made”. He recorded for many of Jamaica’s top producers including Gussie Clarke, Lloyd Campbell, Glen Brown, Harry Mudie, Roy Cousins, Winston ‘Niney’ Holness and Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry and by the late 1970s, he was one of the three biggest reggae performers, the other two being Dennis Brown and Bob Marley.
A deal with Virgin’s Front Line Records helped to cement his international status, and upon leaving the label, he signed to Island Records and scored with Night Nurse, the title track from his first album for the label.
Fame also saw Gregory taking on a new and demanding mistress, crack cocaine, which became a diabolic force, disrupting his personal and professional life. A quote in his Wikipedia bio sums it up: “Isaacs said of his addiction in 2007: ‘Drugs are a debasing weapon. It was the greatest college ever, but the most expensive school fee ever paid – the Cocaine High School. I learnt everything, and now I’ve put it on the side’.”
When his contract with Island ended, he returned in 1984 with the Kool Ruler Come Again single and numerous others followed from producers Prince Jammy, Hugh ‘Redman’ James, Bobby Digital, Tad Dawkins, Gussie Clarke, and Steely & Clevie. An excellent working relationship with Clarke led to the release of the critically acclaimed 1985 album Private Beach Party and the mega hit Rumours in 1988.
Gregory Isaacs died of lung cancer on October 25, 2010, in London. In 2016, he was inducted into the Order of Distinction (officer class) by the Jamaican Government for his contribution to the development of Jamaican music.
The Cool Ruler: The Musical opens on Sunday, May 25, at the Hackney Empire and plays on May 31 at Fairfield Halls, Croydon; June 1 at the O2 Academy Birmingham; and June 7 and 8 at the Broadway Theatre, Catford.
English (US) ·