Musician honoured by Dean Fraser Day; talks ‘Sax in Dub’

As a young musician, Dean Fraser had one musical dream, and reflecting on it decades later, the renowned saxophonist can only smile the smile of the grateful, having achieved that dream on repeat throughout the decades while also amassing a truckload of accolades along the way.

“The only thing I wanted to do in music was play on a record and hear that record play on radio. My only thought was to turn on the radio and hear my horns,” Fraser, who recently had a whole day named in his honour, told The Gleaner.

And he can still remember what he did on that auspicious day way back in the day.

“As a lickle youth inna Trench Town, I go fi all of my friend dem and seh ‘Listen to dat ... a my horn dat.’ Some of dem believe and others didn’t,” Fraser shared.

The song, he believes, was the Channel One version of the iconic Death in the Arena. “That was the first song that I played on that was a big song. It play at every dance, every radio station ... it mash up the place,” Fraser shared. “And that was it for me. Mission accomplished.”

But in reality, it was just the start of a monumental mission that would see the name ‘Dean Fraser’ decorating hundreds – if not thousands – of albums, whether as a supporting act or as the main character.

On August 10, six days after his birthday, Dean Fraser Day was proclaimed through a declaration issued by the Mayor of New York City, Eric Adams. The presentation was made to Fraser by US Congresswoman Yvette Clarke at the People’s Ball hosted by Jamaica Independence Foundation, Inc.

“I knew about it when I was standing there,” Fraser told The Gleaner with a chuckle. “It was a total surprise to me. To be honest, I didn’t even know how to react.”

He was also presented with a Lifetime Achievement & Living Legend Award at the New York City event by Jamaica Tourist Board’s Victoria Harper.

Fraser’s bio states that he started playing the saxophone at the age of 15, and in 1977, he joined Lloyd Parks’ We The People Band, backing Dennis Brown on several of his recordings for Joe Gibbs. His first album, 1978’s Black Horn Man, was produced by Gibbs, and this was followed in 1979 by Pure Horns and Double Dynamite, and in 1980, by Revolutionary Sounds for Donovan Germain. He appeared at the 1981 Reggae Sunsplash, performing an instrumental version of Bob Marley’s Redemption Song and went on to record two albums of Marley covers, Dean Plays Bob and Dean Plays Bob Volume II.

POWER OF DUB

Fraser recently released Sax in Dub, a 19-track Tad’s Records-production with songs such as Belafonte Ghost, Follow Me to Dub Land (feat. Bongo Herman), Rankinkong, Not Jazz Just Rockazz, Jack the Reaper and Blue Nile. The album cover shows him skanking with his sax as he joyfully plays dub.

He shared that with Sax in Dub, he was definitely in his element and was happy that he “was able to provide the sounds that people would love”. He spoke passionately of “dubwise” and “rub-a-dub” and whipped out his chalkboard, ready to teach.

“When yuh doing the music, yuh have to put it in a category,” Fraser said of the album. “Europeans are really into dub music. You would have to go to one of those dances ... like Jah Shaka dance ... to really experience it, to hear the dub playing with the horn phrase and all the effects ... people grooving like dem in a trance ... that’s the power of dub.”

Warming to a topic that fills his soul, Fraser added: “Give thanks to Tads [producer] for going with the idea and all the musicians who played with me, especially the young musicians Okeil [McIntyre], Oshabe [Love] and Randy [Fletcher]. It’s a pity that dub music has walked away from Jamaica. At one time, the flip side of the 45 [vinyl record] was the version ... the dub ... and that was a big thing in the dance. Because of the delays and echoes in the dub, the deejays started to toast on that.

He continued: “People are loving Sax in Dub. When I got to London recently, David Rodigon told me that he thought it was a masterpiece. Me, personally, woulda like the youth dem inna dancehall get back into a dub situation. Dub is a part of our culture. We made it. And because of producers like King Tubbys and King Jammy and Scientist, dub music has become a phenomenon.”

Already, he is planning Sax in Dub Pt II, which will be the very same songs but mixed differently.

“Trust me, dem going to love it,” Fraser promised.

A many-times-decorated musician, in 1993, Dean Fraser was awarded the Musgrave Medal; in 2010, he received the Order of Distinction from the Government of Jamaica for his services to music; and in 2020, the Jamaica Reggae Industry Association awarded him for Extraordinary Impact on the Reggae Industry in the field of Mentorship.

yasmine.peru@gleanerjm.com