Music

On Tour: Toots and the Maytals Honour UK Fan-base

Toots Hibbert could simply be a great musician making some great music. But no, he is surely more than that. The Maytals that he helped to form along with his friends Raleigh Gordon and Jerry Matthias, have been at it from 1961. So, believe it or not, it's been 50 long years since since their historic formation.Save and except for a brief disbanding in the 1980's, now that is still a hell of a machine when you really think about it. With that said, it is hard not to sing his praises.

The band began this year in celebration mode, starting with Jamaica's own Rebel Salute in January and then a historic first time Australian tour, wrapped up of course to rave reviews. The year long celebration continues as they embark on a massive UK tour this summer, but not before they hit the US and Canada for a completely memorable series of live shows which will run from June 5 to July 22.

A true 'rock of ages' that he is, Hibbert first took the ska sound to the UK back in the day, where it caught on like wildfire among London's punked-out youth, and spread well beyond the scope of imagination. Along with his contemporaries like Prince Buster, Wailers, Scratch Perry and Desmond Decker, Toots Hibbert brought forward a sound that invigorated audiences and soon began to define what is now largely accepted as the 'standard' for Jamaican music. Ska has grown into a more diverse, more robust genre today, taking on a life of its own in this digital era, much in the same way as dub continues to play change face.

The energy in the camp is undoubtedly high as the band has recently released their Flip and Twist (D&F Music), a brand new album that harnesses the usual 'delight' factor. What's beautiful about the Toots and Maytals sound is that there is a bit of something for everyone. For the purists they go hard on that foundational roots sound and for those less loyal to the genre they can count on influences such as gospel, soul and even country seeping in.

But by and large Toots Hibbert looks and sounds like a blues man trapped in a rock star's body. Sometimes it's a Robert Johnson kinda blues, other times its a Hammerhead kinda blues. Reasonably, yes reasonably, I am not sure if there is such a thing as a bad Toots Hibbert performance. Hibbert is pure charisma and delivers every song with The brilliant harmonies of the Maytals might be icing on a cake but they definitely fuel a fire.

The big ticket on the UK tour is the prestigious O2 Academy Brixton, London on Friday 9th September, as part of the longest UK tour of the band's existence. Whether its a compact club setting or a large concert hall, any Maytals performance is a good performance as it carries the singularly high energy seal. The rest of the dates are as follows:

29th August Cardiff The Great Hall
31st August Newcastle O2 Academy
1st September Glasgow O2 Academy
2nd September Leeds O2 Academy
4th September Wolverhampton The Civic
6th September Ipswich The Regent
7th September Liverpool O2 Academy
8th September Brighton Brighton Dome
9th September London O2 Academy Brixton
11th September Bristol O2 Academy
13th September Oxford O2 Academy