Events Calendar
In This Section
Beyonce makes history with six Grammys
Michael Jackson doctor charged with manslaughter
Judge rules Men at Work song copies classic tune
Lawyer: Michael Jackson doctor to surrender today
Attorney says Michael Jackson's doctor is talking surrender
Most Read Stories
Man robbed at Tallmadge Avenue eatery
Four teens restrain man, take items from his Akron home
Police: Ohio girl dies after fall into snow bank
Another winter punch heading toward Ohio
Complaints against officer keep coming
Cuyahoga Falls residents come home to find burning couch on balcony
Blogs:
First Bell - On Education:
No City of Akron basketball tonight
Pets:
Pet telethon re-airs
The Heldenfiles:
Chipmunks "Squeakquel" on DVD/BD March 30
Akron Zips:
Late surge gives Zips ugly road win
Tribe Matters:
Blogmail response on Hafner
Cleveland Browns:
Stallworth's contract terminated
Balanced Ledger:
QB in Browns future: another mock draft
Kent State Sports:
KSU Notes – February 9
Cleveland Cavaliers:
NBA Power Rankings from Around the Internet
Buckeye Blogging:
Buckeyes grab 18 players on signing day
Varsity Letters:
Garfield at Buchtel basketball
All Da King's Men:
Palin At The Tea Party Convention
Blog of Mass Destruction:
Republican Pre-Conditions
Akron Law Café:
Citizens United v. F.E.C. (Part 4): Kennedy's and O'Connor's Basic Approaches to Constitutional Decisionmaking – Top Down and Bottom Up
Car Chase:
Collector Car Hobby Loses One of the Best—Jim Roll
Let's Talk Real Estate:
Decisions Decisions: Credit Cards or Your Mortgage?
Ohio Travels with Betty:
Loucile is looking for a Lake Erie getaway in June for three kids, ages 1, 3, and 5.
Sound Check:
Talk of the Town – Top entertainment picks for the weekend
HRLite House:
Track HR Research
Akron Gamer:
'Tecmo Bowl' recreation of Super Bowl XLIV
See Jane Style:
Do IT this week: Layering
Promoter 'Packy' Malley brings local, national acts to three-day marathon at Nelson Ledges park
By Malcolm X Abram
Beacon Journal music writer
Published on Thursday, Aug 06, 2009
Bob Marley.
You can't talk about reggae without mentioning its biggest international superstar and the one reggae artist with whom much of the world is at least familiar.
Without Robert Nesta Marley and original Wailing Wailers Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer (and Island Records), reggae might never have reached the level of international popularity it now enjoys.
And without Robert Nesta Marley and torrential rains, there would be no Mid-West ReggaeFest, which will be Friday, Saturday and Sunday at Nelson Ledges Quarry Park near Garrettsville in Portage County.
Now in its 18th year, the three-day festival is the brainchild and labor of love of Patrick ''Packy'' Malley, 44, and heir to the Northeast Ohio-based Malley's Chocolate fortune/business. As a high school senior, Malley fell under the sway of the genre's most famous ambassador as part of a captive audience.
''In 1982, I went on a camping trip and it poured rain the whole trip and my brother bought a Rastaman Vibration tape and we listened to it over and over and that was my introduction to reggae,'' Malley said.
As many new reggae fans do, Malley quickly absorbed the Marley catalog and then moved on to other artists, becoming a dedicated fan and student of the music. Four years later while at Ohio State, Malley started a reggae show on the school's radio station called Crucial Reggae & Rub-a-Dub Music.
''Since nobody was playing reggae in Columbus, it was new and relevant and my love for it continued to grow from there,'' he said.
By late 1986, Malley had founded One Love Productions devoted to promoting reggae shows throughout the region.
A few years later, Malley found himself at a blues festival in Meadow Ridge Farm in Geauga County when the idea came to him.
''I thought 'Well, if they can do a blues festival out here, why can't we do it with reggae?' '' Malley said.
Thus, the first Mid-West ReggaeFest was born with only three acts — popular Cleveland reggae/rock act First Light, Identity and the Blue Riddim Band, which was nominated for a Grammy in 1986.
''I was worried, just like I'm worried this year,'' he said laughing, ''because I didn't know what to expect and it's always harder to start something, but it worked right out of the gate. It was successful from the very beginning.''
Festival expands
Three years ago, Malley decided to expand the festival to three days.
''I spent a year trying to put this festival together and I put so much time and effort into this thing just to have it be a one-day picnic,'' he explained. ''So I thought if we could stretch this out to a weekend and have camping and really start to attract bigger name bands and multiple headliners, it could really grow into a major festival.''
The move worked and now the festival draws fans from surrounding states and has become one of the biggest annual reggae festivals in the country and arguably the largest festival east of California.
This year's edition of the Mid-West ReggaeFest will feature a mix of Ohio-based acts with living legends. The lineup includes local and national acts such as Cleveland roots band Outlaws I & I; Cleveland reggae king Carlos Jones & the P.L.U.S. Band; the slick St. Lucian-bred, Columbus-based Ark Band; the Washington, D.C.-based Pocket Band; Maui, Hawaii-based reggae vocalist Marty Dread; and the Columbus-based Flex Crew.
The newest generation of Jamaican artists will be heavily represented with up-and-coming singers Tarrus Riley, Duane Stephenson and Lenya Wilks.
Each night of the festival will include a popular veteran artist. On Friday, 50 years of reggae music will take the stage with the Rastafarian group Culture featuring Kenyatta Hill, son of original lead singer Joseph Hill, who died in 2006. The evening's headliner will be Beres Hammond, one of the most popular purveyors of ''lover's rock,'' a smooth style of reggae that focuses on matters of the heart.
Hammond may not be a household name to the casual fan, but among the dedicated, his hits including Tempted to Touch and his easily recognizable aching tenor have made him a longtime favorite, particularly among female fans.
The lover's rock legends will continue on Saturday with headliner Freddie McGregor, another veteran singer, whose career began when he was 7 in the early 1960s. McGregor's career has thrived through many reggae styles from reggae precursors, ska and rocksteady through the 1970 Rastafarian roots movement, lover's rock, dub and dance hall.
Also on Saturday will be saxophonist Dean Fraser, who in his 30-plus-year career has played on literally hundreds of reggae records backing up most of the music's biggest stars including Bob Marley, Jacob Miller, Dennis Brown, Jimmy Cliff and many, many more.
Sunday will be headlined by the Original Wailers, which helps keep the music of their former friend and employer Bob Marley alive. The current version of the group contains guitarists Junior Marvin and Al Anderson, both of whom were part of the expanded Wailers band of the 1970s.
Popular misconceptions
Though the festival has been continually successful, Malley believes there are still people who have misconceptions about the music and its fans.
''A lot of people think it's going to be a marijuana festival and it's dangerous and that kind of thing but that really couldn't be further from the truth,'' Malley said. ''This is my 18th year doing the festival and we've never even had a fight.
''It is so mellow and our vendors and security people talk every year about how nice everyone is and it's kind of a conscious crowd and that's what the music implies — the universal vibe of one love and respect,'' he continued. ''And when people are out at the festival, they clean up after themselves and say hello to the security, and people who have never been involved with the scene are surprised by what a nice event it always is. I hear that every year and I'm like 'Well, of course!' ''
Malley hasn't missed a show in Cleveland or Columbus in 25 years. When he's not planning the festival or attending a reggae concert, he is the fundraising and corporate gift expert for Malley's Chocolates. His grandfather is company founder Albert ''Mike'' Malley and the business is now run by the third generation of Malleys. He also runs a DJ business under the moniker ''DJ Packy Malley.''
Details:
What: Mid-West ReggaeFest
When: Friday-Sunday
Where: Nelson Ledges Quarry Park, 12001 Nelson Ledge Road, Nelson Township near Garrettsville
Tickets: $85 in advance, $95 day of for a weekend pass; no Friday-only ticket; $75 for Saturday only; $75 for Saturday/Sunday; $30 for Sunday only. Free for children 12 or younger. Youth tickets available at the gat only: $25 for kids 13-17 on Friday and Saturday, $10 Sunday.
Information: www.midwestreggaefest.com
Performance lineups:
On Friday - DJ Carolos Culture, 3-4:30 p.m.; Outlaws I & I, 4:30-6 p.m., Flex Crew, 6:30-8 p.m.; Leyna Wilkes, 9-9:30 p.m.; Culture/Kenyatta Hill, 9:30-10:30 p.m.; Beres Hammond, 10:30 p.m.-midnight; Lucky Dube tribute film, 12:30-1:30 a.m., Saturday.
On Saturday - Yoga with Karen, 10:30-11:30 a.m.; the Pocket Band, noon to 1:30 p.m.; Carols Jones & the P.L.U.S. Band, 2-2:30 p.m.; Wailing Souls, 4:30-6 p.m.; Dean Fraser, 7-9:30 p.m.; Duane Stephenson, 7:30-8:30 p.m.; Tarrus Riley 8:30-9:30 p.m.; Freddie McGregor, 10:30 p.m. to midnight; Roger Steffens/Reggae Archives, 12:30-1:30 a.m. Sunday.
On Sunday - Yoga with Karen, 10-11 a.m.; Gospel Hour, 11 a.m. to noon; Deighton Charlemagne, noon to 1 p.m.; Ark Band, 1-2 p.m.; Marty Dread, 2:30-3:30 p.m.; Original Wailers, 4:30-6 p.m.
Malcolm X Abram can be reached at mabram@thebeaconjournal.com or 330-996-3758.
Bob Marley.
Get the full article here.
Comments
Click here to post your comments
Canton, oh
Posted 02:55 AM, 08/06/2009
wow looks like i am going to miss something!
Posted 08:18 AM, 08/06/2009
One!
Akron, Oh
Posted 09:39 AM, 08/06/2009
Jah live
Barberton, Oh
Posted 03:04 PM, 08/06/2009
Once again I have to thank Evan and Family for planning and putting on a much needed reggae show. NLQP is a terrific place full of extraordinary people. I hope everyone has a grateful time.
Peace, One Love and Eternal Happiness,
Alicia
Canton, oh
Posted 08:25 PM, 08/06/2009
I have become so excited about this show, Because I know How it will go, for I use to live in Houston Texas I did get a change to be a part of something great! Bob Marley fev , my husband also performed there band "WAZOBIA'ALL I can said is rock on!
