My Good Friend, Junior Marvin, at Newport Reggae Festival 2012. Preview Article written for The Narragansett Times

 

Just because summer is winding down doesn’t mean it’s time to pack up and brace for the cold just yet. There are plenty bright days ahead, and still much to do like the 3^rd Annual Newport Waterfront Reggae Festival taking place this Sat. Aug. 11, at the Newport Yachting Center. This year’s all-star lineup includes reggae icons Barrington Levy, and Junior Marvin rockin’ the main stage, as well as Bushman, Taj Weekes & Adowa, and Mighty Mystic & The Thunder Band grooving’ on the Courtyard Festival Stage. Also, beginning at 10:30 a.m. Newport reggae hometown heroes, The Ravers, will fire up the festivities with a free performance outside the yachting center gates.

Junior Marvin, who is most noted for his years as lead guitarist for Bob Marley & The Wailers, will share the spotlight on the main stage. Playing alongside Marley, Junior was able to experience moments in history that are exclusive to even the most decorated musicians. Marvin recalls playing during the Zimbabwe Independence Ceremony in 1980 to a crowd, which included English Royalty and Presidents from all over the world, “The freedom fighters, who had been fighting for freedom all these years, weren’t allowed into the festivities, so one of the soldiers took a hand grenade and blew the gate off,” Marvin said. “Of course the police panicked, all the dignitaries scrambled, everybody ran, and the freedom fighters came in. It was lucky that nobody got hurt, and was a funny experience having tear gas in your eyes while your trying to play “I Shot The Sheriff.”’ 

While Marley molded much of Marvin’s Career, Junior’s diverse resume is not strictly reggae, and not strictly music for that matter either. Marvin moved with his family to London at the age of nine. When he was sixteen, Marvin landed a role in The Beatle’s movie “Help” as one of the police officers that chased Ringo Starr on the beach. Junior never got the chance to jam with The Beatles, but he remembers the few days he spent hanging with the fab four fondly, “They were very funny you know…always joking around, having a ball,” Marvin said. “They made everyone feel at home; they weren’t alienating themselves, the atmosphere was very relaxed.” Junior’s acting credentials also include a two and half year stint in the British production of Hair.  

Marvin’s father and aunt were both a jazz pianists who began teaching Junior piano at the age of two, but Marvin remembers looking up to the likes of Jimi Hendrix and Elvis Presley when the time came to settle on an instrument. “When I moved to London, all my schoolmates were into Elvis, so we all went out and bought guitars. Then I saw Jimi Hendrix and that was it. No more keyboards for me,” Marvin said. “Jimi Hendrix got me into the guitar more than anybody else,” he added.

Marvin’s musical career has seen him share the stage and studio with top-notch talent such as T-Bone Walker, Toots & the Maytals, and Steve Winwood just to name a few, the entire list would fill this page beyond its borders. Junior recorded two albums early on in his career with his blues-rock band Hanson, and has recently been recording and re-mastering tracks for two albums to be released this fall. One named Smokin’ To The Big M Music will feature a compilation of songs that span Marvin’s illustrious career to date, while the other titled Lion To Zion will be a tribute to dub artist, King Tubby, and is being recorded with acclaimed engineer Jim Fox.    

Each year the Newport Reggae Fest strives to grow, including internationally acclaimed Jamaican reggae acts, and better accommodations. This year is no exception with the addition of more open-waterfront spaces, which boast breathtaking views of Newport Harbor, and a flexible general admission ticket, which allows attendants to come and go at any point during the ten-hour festival. The Jerk Café, based in South Yarmouth, will also be on hand alongside Massachusetts and Aunt Birdies Caribbean Cruise offering Jamaican treats for feasting fans. Also this year features a $60 Rocksteady Pass, which offers all-day reserved deck seating, cocktail service, and a complimentary island cocktail or Red Stripe lager. Tickets purchased by Aug. 10 (under the purchaser’s name) will be entered to win a five day four night all-inclusive trip for two to Jamaica;s Sunset Beach Resort, Spa & Waterpark in Montego Bay.   

Passing of Patrick "Shep" Martin

 

There’s a bond between surfers like no other.  Surfing unites perfect strangers, encourages like-minded folks to accomplish lofty goals together, and most importantly makes people smile.  Within any surf community there are characters that define what it means to be a surfer, to help others, to teach, and to persevere through adversity.  For Newport, Patrick Martin was a man of just that nature.   

On May 10 Patrick “Shep” Martin paddled out to Marines, his favorite spot, to enjoy some fun waves.  Just 45 minutes into the surf, Patrick collapsed face down on his board due to a heart attack and later died at Newport Hospital, he was only 58 years old.  It’s a loss that was felt by generations of surfers here in Newport and around the globe.  “He had a great last session,” assured friend Andrew Florey who helped swim Shep to shore.

Patrick spent his life teaching those fortunate enough to know him the art of surfing and sharing stoke.  News of Martin’s passing spread quickly through the line-ups, beaches and surf shops.  Shep was an Original Water Brother, one of a tight knit group that helped pioneer surfing spots like Ruggles and Marines.  An OWB, as Water Brother surf and skate shop owner Sid Abruzzi explained, “is an original group of guys and this was our goal.  We’ve always been Water Brothers...and all it is, is maybe the nucleus center, the core of Water Brothers.  It’s sort of like the center of the circle.” 

On May 18 at Belmont Beach in Newport that circle was never more tangible as hundreds were gathered to remember their dear friend. The waves were small, the wind was onshore, and the tide was high.  On the beach Dr. Love read from the book of Ecclesiastes, “A good name is better than precious ointment…and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit…Wisdom is good with an inheritance and by it there is profit to them that see the sun.  For wisdom is defense, and money is defense but the excellence of knowledge is, that wisdom giveth life to them that have it.”     

After the sermon and a load of cheers, Sid led over 100 surfers out to Marines for a heartfelt sendoff.  The group literally formed a circle, holding hands, sharing words and splashing in honor of their fallen friend.  Some folks shared a few waves before coming to shore, others remained chatting on their boards and eating shrimp cocktail served by Shep’s old buddy Ringo who had pulled up on his boat.

After the paddle out, a fire was lit, music played from a small radio, and friends gathered with Martin’s family around a driftwood memorial built over the past week.  Messages to Patrick were written on the wood and surrounding stones.       

Long after most surfers had exited the water, one man on a stand up paddleboard made his way to shore from around the point.  He was dressed in a tuxedo and drinking a Red Bull.  Just as he was about to step safe and dry on shore a wave came, knocked him off the board and into the red seaweed.  Again the crowd cheered as life long friend Greg Tano got to his feet and joined the party.  “Shep was the ultimate surfer,” Tano said.  Greg wore the tux to commemorate Martin’s work as a fine dining waiter at the Chart House in San Diego.  Shep shredded the tux after many years and started his own technology-consulting firm the Sheppard Group.     

Shep eventually returned home to RI where he spent some time working at Water Brothers.  “Losing Shep was like losing one of the stones, like losing the bassist of the band, like losing part of the shop.  He was a good soul and he overcame so many hurdles,” said friend and co-worker Logan Hill. 

Martin’s niece Jen Fitzgerald was overwhelmed by the amount of people that came out to the event.  “I had no idea this many people loved him as much as I do.”  She picked up a childhood photo left on the memorial and pointed out that it was taken in the same exact spot that we were standing.  “This is where he spent his childhood, where he hung out, it was his stomping grounds, where he went out, in style.” 

Shep scoured the earth in search of good surf.  He touched the lives of many along the way.  Abruzzi told me that similar paddles outs for Patrick were held that same day in Hawaii, Australia, and California.  In the recorded message during a Water Brothers surf report the week after Patrick’s passing, Martin’s brother Harry said, “Shep came back to the East Coast to find the perfect wave and he did, and the perfect wave was you.” 

 

Ziggy Marley Interview for The Narragansett Times

                                               Photo: Sean Hower

This Fri. June 29^th, five-time Grammy Award winner Ziggy Marley will bring his music, and message of love to the Newport Yachting Center. Marley’s latest album Wild And Free is classic reggae in its truest form and features the vocal styles of friends Woody Harrelson, the late Heavy D, and Marley’s son Daniel. Through his songs, Marley shares his views on family, personal change, political corruption, and the legalization of Marijuana. Aside from music, Ziggy has keep busy with the production of Marley, an in depth documentary about the life of his father Bob Marley, a new Sirus XM radio show “Ziggy Marley Legends of Reggae,” a comic book Marijuanaman, and even releasing his own organic food line. Over the phone, Marley fielded a few questions.

Recently you acted as executive producer for the film Marley. How did making the film affect your relationship with you father?

I’ve always been close with my father, and it’s been so long since he passed away, but it made me understand his life a little better. Some parts we weren’t aware of as kids, you know, the early days, stories that we heard about him being teased because he was of mixed race, and then the later days when he was in Germany during treatment, so, it was interesting to find out about his experiences at that time.

You’ve been heavily involved with the non-profit group U.R.G.E. (Unlimited Resources Giving Enlightenment) helping out in Chepstowe, Jamaica building schools and planting trees. What else is coming down the pipeling for U.R.G.E and how can others get involved?

The pipeline is basically what we’ve been doing with that school and anything we can do. People can get involved within their own community, that’s what I would say, everybody needs help, especially the children, let’s focus on the kids in our own communities.

You conceived the character for the comic book Marijuanaman, which you said represents the hope of the future, and the hope that we will utilize all the power the universe has given us to save our planet. Most people know about using hemp for pulp, paper, and clothing, but what are some of the more overlooked uses of the plant?

Well, you have bio-fuel. Henry Ford, I think, built a car out of hemp, but way back in the day. You can build a car out of hemp, you know what I’m sayin’? A lot of the business we have today is based on oil, not only for gas that runs our cars, but for a lot of products that we see in stores…plastics, anything that is an oil by-product. So there is a lot of that stuff that isn’t biodegradable, which hurts the environment, and if we can switch to a more environmental way of making the products that we use, then that would be better for us. Hemp can do that. Also the hemp seeds, which cannot get you high - it is not a drug, are very nutritious, [it has] a lot of omegas and fatty acids that’s good for the human body. This plant is an easy plant that can be grown without a lot of pesticides, it’s very resistant, and it also helps the soil, it regenerates the soil, it doesn’t damage the soil, it gets the soil ready for the next crop weather it be corn or whatever. But, the world continues to deny the uses of the plant, which is wrong.

Many states have, or are moving toward de-criminalization, so it seems that things are moving in that direction.

Yeah, that’s one aspect of it though. What I would really love to see is hemp. The smoking, I’m happy, that’s good but that’s one aspect. I don’t know why the non-smoking part of it is so difficult to get done. America used to grow a lot of hemp back in the day, but somehow it became this evil thing. In my culture, the plant was a spiritual thing. This plant was something that was used to open the mind to spiritual things. It wasn’t used to get the munchies or joke, you know, we have all these different uses and we have to be careful not to abuse it. I see the plant has changed so much since growing up. It’s so manipulated; it’s not nature anymore…grown indoors with the artificial lights, this strain and that strain. Just give it to me the way nature intended it to be. Weather it be food or marijuana, the natural way is the best way.          

Speaking of food, what can you tell me a little bit about your Ziggy Marley Organics food-line?

We’re making some flavored coconut oils, and we’re doing a hemp seed, but it’s in the shell so it’s this crunchy, nutty thing and we have different flavors for that too. It’s organic, it’s non-GMO, and we carry that message with the food product, to have the people be aware, [to see] if their food has been genetically modified in any way.

How do you feel about the current state of food that is in the mainstream markets?

It’s terrible. It’s a business. Anytime the motive for food or medicine becomes money, then it gets corrupted. Then, it’s not about “what’s good for the people” it’s about, “how can we make the most money”. If it were the other way around, and the priority was “how can we create something that is beneficial to the people” then their methods of doing things would be different. Instead of injecting the animals with all these drugs, genetically modifying these food products so that it lasts longer on the shelves or whatever, they would think of other ways to create the food product without destroying us. You have to be careful when corporations and institutions are driven by profit instead of what’s good for you. The people have to be the police for themselves.

What power do we have to affect the way our food is made?

We buy things. We can actually affect corporations by not buying things that they are producing. I don’t think they’re listening to our voices so much. If you hit them in the pocket, that’s when they’ll listen.

It seems today that it’s harder to find quality music within the confines of the mainstream. Why do you think that is?

Well, that’s the economic thing bro. You know…how can the media work within the system to facilitate the continuous manipulations of people, to want to buy things, and be like others, and not focus their minds on the truth or what’s happening in the world. Music is a part of how society is set up and what society wants its people to focus on. Music is a very important tool. Imagine, again, if music was different…if kids were being influenced by messages in music that made them more peaceful or loving or whatever, just more positive things, society would be different.

In your song Changes, you call for change from ordinary people. What are some changes that people can make in their everyday lives to help better society?

One of the things I think, is to seek the truth independent of media, because I think a lot of the people is so dependant on what they see on TV, and news organizations, and their way of thinking is slanted left or right based on that. I think people should not be so easily swayed by media…you know less TV more work, more individual effort to find out things.

That song also features your son Daniel. You now have six kids, so how do you balance your workload with family time?

We just try to do our best. I have older kids now, they are adults so, they have their lives, they have to be independent, and I have young kids who still need that close relationship, so we just try to be a part of their lives as much as possible.

The Original Hells Angels

 

“I hope you’re saving these photos mom, they’re priceless,” reads a letter home from England during WWII, dated May 28, 45’.  I found the note in an old oak box full of amazing photographs that my Grandfather, Cpl. John H. Clancy took while serving as a photographer for the Mighty 8^th Air Force, 303^rd Bombardment, 358^th Squadron.  It finishes, “Don’t worry Mom, everything is good and we’ll all be home before you know it, and won’t that just be swell.  That big kiss in the sunrise.  Love, My John.”

The 358^th, a.k.a. “Hells Angels” was the first group in the US Army Air Force to complete 300 missions over Europe. The USAAF was responsible for clearing the air and paving the way to victory against the evil Nazi regime.  “Hells Angels” adopted their name from the their first B-17 bomber to complete 25 missions over Europe.  The Brave men and women of the 303^rd proved to the world that teamwork; perseverance, courage, and sacrifice prevail in the face of evil. 

Reaching England in late Oct. 42’, the group was a bit green around the edges but what they lacked in experience they made up for with that good old American can do attitude.  Their first mission on Nov. 17^th 42’ yielded no results due to bad weather, but soon the “Hells Angels” were finding and hitting their targets with a precision that annoyed the German Luftwaffe (Air Force).

“They never turned around in the face of the enemy,” reads The First 300 Hells Angels, one of the books contained in the box. The young American fighters learned many lessons from the Luftwaffe who, flying M.E. 109’s, F.W. 190’s and accompanied by anti-aircraft flak gunners on the ground, made every effort to deter the American bombers from hitting their targets. The 303^rd earned their wings bombing the U-Boat pens over France in Lorient, St. Nazaire, Brest, and La Pallice.      

By the end of fall 42’ men, supplies, planes and morale were running low.  Empty bunks at the end of the day were a sobering reminder of the cost of victory, still the 303^rd pushed on, as their mission was essential.  Pilots were reluctant to pull their planes into the hanger for repair fearing that they may be grounded and stripped for parts.  Unable to bear that thought, they flew on sketchy equipment, and patched up ragged holes with tin cans.

In Jan. 43’ Lt. Colonel Charles E. Marion flew General Eaker to Casablanca where they decided to beef up the 8^th AF.   Supplies were replenished, bunks were filled, and heroic stories like that of the legendary Mathis brothers pumped blood back into the hearts of the Mighty 8^th. 

Mar. 18^th, 43’ First Lieutenant Jack Mathis, 359^th bombardier aboard “The Duchess” had the German submarine yards at Vegesack in his crosshairs just before he was blown into the back of the plane by a flak shot.   After sustaining fatal injuries to his arm and abdomen Lieutenant Mathis crawled back to his station, dropped the bombs and hit the target moments before he died.  He was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor posthumously. 

Weeks later on May 14^th Jacks brother, First Lieutenant Mark Mathis, also a member of the 303^rd, was shot down by enemy fighters over the North Sea.  Crewmembers bailed, but Mark remained at his station in the nose of the plane shooting at enemy fighters as the Flying Fortress plummeted into the icy waters.    

Though there were plenty in the 303^rd, it wasn’t all high-flying heroics that won the war.   The extraordinary efforts put forth from everyday men and women who banded together as a team is what ultimately led the U.S. to victory against the Germans in Europe.  A passage from The First 300 Hells Angels,

“After nearly two-and-one-half years of combat it (the 303^rd) had gone from a pathetically green outfit to an experienced, smooth-running organization.  Operations, intelligence, engineering, ordnance, down to the cooks and supply, all functioned perfectly to the last detail.  In the constant turnover of combat men, the old-timers passed on to the newcomers the priceless know how that comes only with experience.” 

The 303^rd played an integral role in taking apart the Nazi war machine by crippling the German Luftwaffe, destroying enemy communications, transport, manufacturing plants, and oil supplies.  They also played a huge role aiding ground troops before and after D-Day.  

My Grandfather never spoke about the war.  He kept these photos, amongst many others tucked away in a box.  I was astounded when I found them.  They made me think twice about the old man I though I knew.  After the war, Cpl. John H. Clancy retired as a custodian at Millis High School in MA.  He, like all our country’s Veterans, was an ordinary person who did extraordinary things in the name of our country, and in the name of the brothers and sisters they fought beside.  Today, just like every other day we walk free, we owe them a Thank You.