Musicians
Paul Elliot Is The Chosen One
His style is reminiscent of classical reggae singers of the past. Moreover, Paul Elliot, The Chosen One carries a kind a of glory in his voice. He bellows with the intensity of revolutionaries like Tosh and then again, he croons with Dennis Brown. The idea of the musician as entertainer, whilst still bearing some social responsibility has not ever been lost on him either.
The spiritually uplifting themes and largely up tempo arrangements that form most of Elliot's works speak greatly of the quality of roots music that emerged in the mid to late nineties. Paul Elliot's work, with the likes of Everton Blender and such ilk, brought promise to a struggling genre, as it braced against the odds of the industry to bring the music full circle, as a vessel for positivity and spiritual renewal. This of course lands him squarely, somewhere in that half of reggae that has not often been told. Nonetheless, what has always been clear about Elliot is that he is a man that takes his own sweet time with his music. Against the grain of recycled riddim tracks and general mass production, albums have been slow coming but bless his ears - the quality has always stayed.
Paul Elliot's musical career kicked off in 1980 as Culture Paul. He cut his first track, Easter Sunday Morning for Jah Life International. Unwilling to contend with the lack lustre pace of things, Elliot soon moved on from Jah Life and began a series of fresh recordings. He teamed up with the likes of Black Scorpio and then King Jammy's, for who he recorded Religion on the memorable I Love King Selassie riddim, made classic by Black Uhuru with the track of the same name.
After settling in for some time as a producer, Paul Elliot the singer made his grand return in 1996 with a few distinct changes. In this his second incarnation, he would now be known as Paul Elliot, The Chosen One. By 1999 his aptly titled Save Me Oh Jah album was ready. It became an almost immediate hit in Europe and firmly stood as a sonic tour de force of all things Paul Elliot. Several European tour dates would follow, giving Elliot the chance to spread his wings as a musician and develop his already lively onstage persona into something of engaging storytelling and magnificence.
Years later, this album is still regarded as one stellar piece of work. Arguably one of the more memorable releases of that year, the album had Elliot's signature production touch all over. It gave us tracks like Seek Jah Blessing, Import Corruption, and of course the title track Save Me Oh Jah, which was the singer's own testimony of the grief caused by gun violence.
After having done the tours, given the interviews and put out some very promising collaborations (see Chat Dem A Chat w/Richie Spice), there is still a creative urge to feed. Without so much as a whisper, the artist has busied himself in the studio. More singles are in the works and surely these will amount to another album release.
Right now, Elliot is emerging with a classic, custom fitted sound for reggae's changing times. The songwriting is as reflective as ever and the raspy vocals have not tired, instead they have given way to a more thoughtful, and even more compelling Paul Elliot.