| Jason Wilson | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | John Jason Collins Wilson |
| Born | May 31, 1970 |
| Origin | Downsview, Ontario, Canada |
| Genres | Reggae, Jazz, Folk |
| Occupations | musician, author |
| Instruments | Piano, vocals, guitar, accordion |
| Years active | 1989–present |
| Labels | Wheel Records |
| Associated acts | The Sattalites, Jackie Mittoo, Dave Swarbrick, Michael Virtue |
| Website | [1] |
Jason Wilson is a two-time Juno-Awards nominee and Canadian Reggae Music Award winner from Downsview, Ontario. He is the protégé of Studio One keyboardist Jackie Mittoo[1] and the cousin of UB40's Michael Virtue.[2] Known for incorporating jazz and Celtic influences atop a reggae foundation, Wilson is a multi-instrumentalist, though is perhaps best known for his piano skills.[3] The singer-songwriter has also performed and recorded with UB40, Sly & Robbie, Alanis Morissette, Ernest Ranglin, Pee Wee Ellis, Dave Swarbrick, Ron Sexsmith, The Mighty Sparrow, Percy Sledge, Brinsley Forde (Aswad), David Francey and many more.
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Wilson was born in North York, Ontario, Canada to Scottish immigrants and performed his first night club show when he was only 14 years old with Canadian reggae pioneers Messenjah.[4] He later led the band Tabarruk, whose debut self-titled album included a duet with Wilson and Alanis Morissette.[5] With Tabarruk, Wilson performed over 2,000 shows around the world – more than any other Canadian reggae act in the last 20 years. Amanda Marshall was once a member of the band.[6] Following their debut, the act's name was changed to Jason Wilson & Tabarruk who released Dark Corners in 1998 (which included the song Icarus’ Lament), followed by the Juno-nominated Jonah (2000) and then the critically acclaimed Dread & Blue (2004) which spawned Wilson’s anthem ‘Keele Street’ which has been featured, inter alia, on the Canadian television show Da Kink in My Hair. Following this album, Wilson embarked on a solo career releasing the Juno-nominated and Canadian Reggae Music Award winning The Peacemaker's Chauffeur in 2008.[7] The album incorporates Wilson’s historical take on elements of war and peace.[8]
Wilson was awarded the Karl Mullings Memorial Award for commitment to reggae in Canada in 2007. Wilson's life story and music have been featured many times on radio and television, including a mini-doc entitled The Grateful Dread[9] http://www.youtube.com/user/wheelrecords on CBC's The National with Peter Mansbridge as well as a feature documentary on BBC Radio.[4] Wilson is also one half of the successful Marley/Dylan tribute act The Two Bobs, alongside Fergus Hambleton, the lead singer of the two-time Juno-Award winning reggae act The Sattalites.[10]
An award-winning author, Wilson co-wrote Lord Stanley: The Man Behind the Cup with Kevin Shea in 2006 that won the New York based Heritage Award for Outstanding Sports Research and Writing.[11] In 2003, Wilson received his MA in Canadian History at the University of Guelph, where is now finishing his PhD. Wilson has also been published several times on a wide variety of historical topics (see Books and Articles).[4] In 2009, Wilson was nominated by the Guelph Mercury for their "Top 40 Under 40" for his achievements in music and in academics.[12] In the summer of 2009, Wilson served as the lone professional musician on the advisory committee alongside Senator Pamela Wallin and others for the ‘Cantos at the King Eddy’ project in Calgary that will soon serve as the nation’s music museum.[13]
In 2011, Wilson is set to record a full-length album with the British fiddler and former Fairport Convention member Dave Swarbrick entitled The Lion Rampant.[14]
The improvisation element to Wilson’s style is not typical in reggae, but rather borrows heavily from the jazz tradition. Wilson has covered the music of many divergent artists both live and in the studio, a fact that speaks to the broad spectrum of his tastes. These artists include Kate Bush, Thelonius Monk, Wayne Shorter, Sergei Rachmaninoff, Oscar Peterson and Elton John.[15] The music of his Scottish heritage also has, at times, been incorporated into Wilson’s music.[16] Still, reggae is the key ingredient in Wilson’s art and the keyboard stylings of his mentor Jackie Mittoo can be heard throughout Wilson’s work. The British school of reggae has had perhaps the most profound influence on Wilson’s writing. In particular, Wilson has admittedly studied the sound of the bands Aswad, Steel Pulse, Matumbi and UB40. Wilson’s cousin Michael Virtue was the keyboardist for UB40 for twenty-eight years and appears on Wilson’s Jonah album.
Jason Wilson, The Peacemaker's Chauffeur (WR007B, 2008) Juno-Award Nominee/Canadian Reggae Music Award Winner
Jason Wilson & Tabarruk, Dread & Blue: A Canadiana Suite (WR006B, 2004)
Jason Wilson & Tabarruk, Jonah (WR005B, 2000) Juno-Award Nominee
Jason Wilson & Tabarruk, Dark Corners (WR003A, 1998)
Tabarruk, Tabarruk (WD001, 1994)
J.J. Wilson and K. Shea, Lord Stanley: The Man Behind the Cup, (Toronto: Fenn Publishing, 2006).
J. Jason Wilson, Squirrel Gangs, Streetlights & Bucket Trucks: The History of Waterloo North Hydro. Waterloo: Waterloo North Hydro, 2005.
J. Jason Wilson, ‘Skating to Armageddon: Of Canada, Hockey and the First World War’, The International Journal of the History of Sport, 22, 3. Oxford: Routledge, May 2005.
J. Jason Wilson, ‘27 Remarkable Days: The 1972 Summit Series of Ice Hockey between Canada and the Soviet Union’, Totalitarian Movements and Political Religions, 5, 2. Oxford: Taylor & Francis Ltd., September 2004.