About Black Uhuru

Black Uhuru is a Jamaican reggae group formed in 1972, initially as Uhuru (Swahili for 'freedom'). The group has undergone several line-up changes over the years, with Derrick "Duckie" Simpson as the mainstay. They had their most successful period in the 1980s, with their album Anthem winning the first ever Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album in 1985.

History

The group formed in the Waterhouse district of Kingston in 1972, initially called "Uhuru" (the Swahili word for freedom), with a line-up of Garth Dennis, Don Carlos, and Derrick "Duckie" Simpson. Their first release was a cover version of The Impressions' "Romancing to the Folk Song", which was followed by "Time is on Our Side"; Neither song was a success and they split up, with Carlos pursuing a solo career, as did Dennis, before joining The Wailing Souls. Simpson also briefly worked with the Wailing Souls, before forming a new version of Uhuru with Errol Nelson (of The Jayes) and Michael Rose, the group now taking the name Black Sounds Uhuru. Their Prince Jammy-produced debut album, Love Crisis, was released in 1977.

Nelson returned to The Jayes in late 1977, and was replaced the following year by Sandra "Puma" Jones, a social worker from South Carolina, US, who had previously worked as a dancer for Ras Michael and the Sons of Negus, and as a member of the group Mama Africa. The band now took on their most familiar name, Black Uhuru. The group began working extensively with Sly and Robbie, and recorded a string of successful singles, including "General Penitentiary" a re-recording of Rose's solo hit "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner", and "Shine Eye Gal", which featured guest guitarist Keith Richards. The group's second album Showcase drew on these singles, and the band cemented their status with a performance at the 1980 Reggae Sunsplash Festival.

They were signed by Island Records in 1980, who issued the Sinsemilla album to an international audience in 1981. The follow-up, Red reached number 28 in the UK Albums Chart in 1981, Chill Out reached number 38 a year later, and they toured with The Rolling Stones. In 1989, their album Red was ranked No. 23 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the "100 greatest albums of the 1980s." Their next studio album, Anthem, appeared in 1984, and won the first ever Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album the following year.

Despite this success, Rose left the group in 1984 to resume his solo career after falling out with Simpson, and was replaced by Junior Reid. They signed to RAS Records and moved in a different direction with the album Brutal and the single "The Great Train Robbery", the latter recorded with New York dance producer Arthur Baker. Although these alienated much of their roots reggae following, Brutal was nominated for a Grammy and "The Great Train Robbery" gave them their second UK hit single, reaching number 62. The band began to disintegrate; their next album with Jammy was started but never completed, they stopped working with Sly and Robbie, and Jones left the band due to ill health (she died in 1990 from cancer). Her replacement was Janet "Olafunke" Reid, and the group returned in 1987 with the Positive album.

Black Uhuru, now reduced to Simpson alone, had been booked to play at an awards ceremony in California, which coincidentally had original Uhuru members Don Carlos and Garth Dennis on the bill, and they took the opportunity to reunite the original line-up for a performance at the event, and decided to continue afterwards. The Now album followed in 1991, and was also nominated for a Grammy Award. In 1996 the group fragmented again, with Simpson leaving to tour Europe with dub poet Yasus Afari, under the name Black Uhuru, while Carlos and Dennis also toured the US under the same name. A legal battle over the name followed, won by Simpson in 1997. Carlos resumed his solo career, while Simpson formed a new line-up of Black Uhuru with Andrew Bees and Jennifer Connolly.

In 2012, Black Uhuru was honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award in music by the IRAMA and were also given The Key For The City of Las Vegas, which made 31 August officially Black Uhuru Day in Las Vegas. The band, composed of Duckie Simpson, Kaye Starh and Andrew Bees, was invited to take part in a red carpet event representing the continent of the Caribbean in a Broadway musical dubbed Loving The Silent Tears in 2012, which was held at The Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.

On 29 June 2025, the band played at the Glastonbury Festival for the first time since 1989, on the West Holts stage, with the set being available via BBC iPlayer. Writing in The Guardian, Jason Okundaye said, "And they look impossibly cool. ... it's the older international Black acts who are able to project the fresh, snazzy and authoritative aura that other acts, legacy or otherwise, could only dream of."

Current Members

• Derrick "Duckie" Simpson
• Kaye Starh
• Andrew Bees

Awards & Recognition

Black Uhuru has won one Grammy award and were nominated eight times. Their album Anthem won the Grammy Award for Best Reggae Recording in 1984, marking the first-ever Grammy in this category. The band has also received numerous other accolades including the Lifetime Achievement Award in music.