Wackies is an American

independent record label An independent record label (or indie label) is a record label that operates without the funding or distribution of major record labels; they are a type of small- to medium-sized enterprise, or SME. The labels and artists are often represented ...

specialized in

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...

and

dub music Dub is an electronic musical style that grew out of reggae in the late 1960s and early 1970s. It is commonly considered a subgenre of reggae, though it has developed to extend beyond that style.Dub: soundscapes and shattered songs in Jamaican re ...

Lloyd Barnes Lloyd Barnes (born 1944 in Jamaica),Moskowitz, David V. (2006), ''Caribbean Popular Music'', Greenwood Press, , p. 22. popularly known as Bullwackie, is a reggae music producer and the founder of the independent record label Wackies, which specia ...

founded the label in 1976, and it is possibly the longest-running American recording studio for reggae.

History

Wackie's is run by Lloyd "Bullwackie" Barnes, who was born in

Trench Town Trench Town (also Trenchtown) is a neighbourhood located in the parish of St. Andrew, part of which is in Kingston, the capital and largest city of Jamaica. In the 1960s, Trench Town was known as the Hollywood of Jamaica. Today Trench Town is t ...

, Jamaica, and moved to New York in 1967. He worked construction and bought the equipment for the studio at the nearby Sam Ash store. He started his studio at 4781 White Plains Road in

The Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

, as one of the earliest reggae studios in the country, with a record store named Wackie's House of Music nextdoor. Low on money, he had to be technically resourceful; his recording techniques added to the distinct quality of the sound. Barnes recorded upcoming and lesser-known artists, with a backing band called Wackie's Rhythm Force. One artists who released all his work on Wackies was Noel Delahaye, a roots reggae singer who released three albums. In 1979, Barnes recorded Solid C., Bobby D. and Kool Drop's "Wack Rap", an early hip-hop single. By that time, Barnes was recording established artists, including

Johnny Osbourne Johnny Osbourne (born Errol Osbourne, 1948) is one of the most popular Jamaican reggae and dancehall singers of all time, who rose to success in the late 1970s and mid-1980s. His album '' Truths and Rights'' was a roots reggae success, and featu ...

Wayne Jarrett Wayne Jarrett (born 1956) is a reggae recording artist born in Kingston, Jamaica, and raised in Allman Town, Jamaica. He currently resides in the US in Hartford, Connecticut. Biography Early life Wayne Jarrett was born in 1956 in Kingston, J ...

, and

Leroy Sibbles Leroy Sibbles (born Leroy Sibblies, 29 January 1949) is a Jamaican reggae musician and producer. He was the lead singer for The Heptones in the 1960s and 1970s. In addition to his work with The Heptones, Sibbles was a session bassist and arra ...

(after he left the

Heptones The Heptones are a Jamaican rocksteady and reggae vocal trio most active in the 1960s and early 1970s. They were one of the more significant trios of that era, and played a major role in the gradual transition between ska and rocksteady into ...

). The label also released songs by

Horace Andy Horace Andy (born Horace Hinds, 19 February 1951) is a Jamaican roots reggae songwriter and singer, known for his distinctive vocals and hit songs such as "Government Land", as well as "Angel", "Spying Glass" and "Five Man Army" with English tri ...

and others that are now considered classics. Jamaican musician Milton Henry moved to New York in 1976 and worked for Wackie's, and recorded his first album there, ''Who Do You Think I Am'' (1985). In the 1980s the White Plains Road building was sold, and Wackie's moved to

Englewood, New Jersey Englewood is a city in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, which at the 2020 United States census had a population of 29,308. Englewood was incorporated as a city by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 17, 1899, from por ...

, and around 1998 (when Barnes returned from a lengthy period in Jamaica) moved back, to Boston Road in the Bronx.

Wackie's sound

Wackie's record releases have a distinctive lo-fi sound.

Re-issue and legacy

Most if not all of the original (1970s and 1980s) Wackies recorded releases are out-of-print and in demand among reggae music collectors. Germans

Moritz Von Oswald Moritz von Oswald (born 1962) is a German record producer and percussionist from Hamburg and based in Berlin. He is a co-founder of the production duo and record label Basic Channel. He has collaborated with Juan Atkins, Carl Craig, and Nils Pett ...

and

Mark Ernestus Basic Channel is a German music duo and record label, composed of Moritz von Oswald and Mark Ernestus, that originated in Berlin in 1993. The duo have also worked under other names, including Rhythm & Sound and Maurizio, and have founded offshoot ...

, passionate devotees of the label's sound, have undertaken an extensive and ongoing 12" and LP re-issue campaign for the label through an exclusive imprint in the

Basic Channel Basic Channel is a German music duo and record label, composed of Moritz von Oswald and Mark Ernestus, that originated in Berlin in 1993. The duo have also worked under other names, including Rhythm & Sound and Maurizio, and have founded offshoot ...

record label family, bearing the Wackies logo and label design. To date, the imprint has put out work from artists such as

, Jerry Harris, Wayne Jarrett, Love Joys,

The Meditations The Meditations are a reggae vocal harmony group from Jamaica formed in late 1974. They have released several studio albums and are still performing in the 2000s and today. History The Meditations were formed in late 1974, when Danny Clarke le ...

, and

Sugar Minott Lincoln Barrington "Sugar" Minott (25 May 1956 – 10 July 2010)Campbell, Howard (2010)Reggae singer Sugar Minott dies at 54, Associated Press, 11 July 2010. Retrieved 12 July 2010Peru, Yasmine (2010)Godfather of Dancehall, Sugar Minott, dead at ...

, as well as several strictly dub releases by Wackies-sponsored bands. Christopher Coy directed a documentary on Wackie's in 1986, ''Bullwackie''. In 2013, Supreme skategear released a series of Wackie's-inspired t-shirts and other items.

References

External links

German reissue site

Discogs
{{Authority control German record labels Reggae record labels American independent record labels

History

Wackie's sound

Re-issue and legacy

See also

References

External links