Inner Circle (band)
| Inner Circle | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Inner Circle in 1976 | ||
| Background information | ||
| Also known as | The Inner Circle Band | |
| Origin | Kingston, Jamaica | |
| Genres | Reggae | |
| Years active | 1968–present | |
| Labels | Trojan, Capitol, Island, RAS, Atlantic, Big Beat, VP, Shanachie, Soundbwoy Entertainment | |
| Associated acts | Third World | |
| Website |
badboysofreggae | |
| Members |
Ian Lewis Roger Lewis Bernard "Touter" Harvey Lancelot Hall Errol "Skatta" Bonnick | |
| Past members |
Mark Castro | |
| Music sample | ||
| Inner Circle – Bad Boys | ||
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Inner Circle are a Jamaican reggae group. The group was originally called The Inner Circle Band and formed in 1968. The band achieved major success in the 1970s with Jacob Miller as their lead singer, but split up after his death in 1980. They reformed in 1986 and had a major hit with the 1987 song "Bad Boys", which serves as the theme song for Fox Network's long-running television program COPS.[1] The band is known for blending pop and rock with reggae.
Career
Early career
The band was formed in 1968 by the brothers Ian and Roger Lewis with then 12-year-old Stephen "Cat" Coore and Michael Cooper.[2] They appeared on record in 1970, backing The Chosen Few on the Derrick Harriott-produced single "Why Can't I Touch You", with the Inner Circle Band credited with the instrumental version on the B-side; This was one of several singles on which they backed the Chosen Few.[2] In 1970 the band was expanded when they were joined by drummer William Stewart, percussionist Irvin "Carrot" Jarrett, and the band's original singer William "Bunny Rugs" Clarke.[2] The band played on Eric Donaldson's hit single "Cherry Oh Baby" and recorded their own version as "Red Cherry".[2]
Jarrett left the band in 1972, with singer Clarke leaving the following year when he moved to New York.[2] Clarke's replacement was Milton "Prilly" Hamilton, but this line-up was short-lived as the band split in two with Coore, Cooper, and Hamilton leaving to form Third World in 1973.[2] Coore and Cooper were then students of the University of the West Indies, studying for various degrees. To replace them they recruited keyboard players Charles Farquharson and Bernard Harvey (aka "Touter"), and drummer Calvin McKenzie replacing Stewart (who would also go on to play with Third World).[2] The band played the hotel and club circuit in Kingston, playing a mixture of reggae, pop and soul hits, and released their first album, Dread Reggae Hits, in 1973 on Ian Lewis's Top Ranking label.[2][3]
The Jacob Miller years
After recording with singer Funky Brown, they recruited Jacob Miller as a permanent vocalist (although he continued to record as a solo artist), and had a hit single with a version of The Stylistics' "You Make Me Feel Brand New".[2] Some of Miller's work with the band was credited to Miller alone, including the "Tenement Yard" single.[2] The band were signed by Capitol Records, who issued the albums Reggae Thing (1976) and Ready for the World (1977).[2]They toured the United States with American guitarist, Ed Elizalde. In 1978 they moved on to Island Records who released the Everything Is Great album in 1978, which included the UK hit singles "Everything Is Great" and "Stop Breaking My Heart", and New Age Music the following year.[2][4] The band was joined by New York session guitarist Joe Ortiz, dubbed Gitzy by the band; who added the first touches of hard rock, jazz, and blues to the group. Ortize recorded at Compass Point Studios for the Everything Is Great album on Island Records, and later joined the group for their European tour in 1978–1980. Lester Adderley joined the group for the New Age Music album on guitar. Also released in the late 1970s were two dub albums based on Miller's solo albums Killer Miller and Wanted but credited to Inner Circle.[2] The band gained further exposure via their performance in the film Rockers, playing a hotel house band.[2] At his peak in the 1970s, only Bob Marley was more popular in Jamaica than Miller, and as a live act nobody equalled their popularity.[5]
Miller's death in car crash on 23 March 1980 led the band to split up, with the Lewis Brothers and Touter Harvey moving to Miami, where they opened a studio in a warehouse, later opening their own Circle House recording studio, and the band has been based in Miami since then. After Miller's death in 1980, the band had one more American tour, inviting Norman Grant from the Twinkle Brothers for vocals.[6]
Reformation and US success
In 1981, with Bay Area lead guitarist, Mark Castro, they recorded the album Something So Good. Due to the loss of Jacob Miller, the members asked Mark Castro to help them find a new vocalist. Mark brought Rick Hunt to the band. "Something So Good" includes the memorable signature lead guitar solos that only Mark Castro can produce, especially When a Man Loves a Woman and World 2000."Something So Good" was released in 1982. They reformed in 1986 with the Lewis Brothers and Harvey joined by singer Calton Coffie and drummer Lancelot Hall, and this line-up released the Black Roses album (1986, RAS Records).[2] The band's next album, One Way (1987), included one of their biggest hits, "Bad Boys", which was re-recorded for their 1989 album Identified and became the theme music for the Fox TV series COPS that year.[2][7] California guitarist Dave Gonzales, by Mark Castro's recommendation, joined the band for a tour in 1989. "Bad Boys" was reissued as a single in 1991 and charted in several countries in Europe, but it was its 1993 re-release in the US that achieved the greatest success.[7] The 1992 album Bad to the Bone was picked up by Atlantic Records and reissued as Bad Boys to capitalise on the success of the single.[2] It sold more than half a million copies in the US and more than four million worldwide.[8] The band received a Grammy Award in 1993 for 'Best Reggae Album by Duo or Group' for Bad Boys and the album also spawned the international hit single "Sweat (A La La La La Long)", which was a number 3 hit in the UK Singles Chart and topped the chart in ten countries, selling over a million copies in Europe, while "Bad Boys" peaked at number 52.[4][9] It was their second (and last) American hit, reaching number 16 on the Billboard Hot 100.[10] "Bad Boys" was used in the 1995 film of the same name starring Will Smith and its sequel Bad Boys 2, and a ringtone based on the song was on the Billboard Hot Ringtones Chart for over 110 weeks.[7][11] They received a second Grammy nomination in 1994 for the album Reggae Dancer, which included a cover of Joe South's "Games People Play" which was released as a single.[12][13]
Coffie left in the mid-1990s to pursue a solo career, and they were joined in 1994 by Kris Bentley who made his album debut on Da Bomb (1997), released on the band's own Soundbwoy Entertainment label.[2][14] In 1999 they released the album Jamaika Me Crazy on their own Eureka label.[15] The 2000 album Big Tings featured guest appearances from Mr Vegas, Beenie Man, Luciano, Anthony B, and Glen Washington.[16] In 2008, Jr. Jazz took over as lead vocalist.[17]
As well as running the Circle Sound studio, the band members also run the Circle Sound production company.[14]
The band's 2009 album State of Da World featured contributions from an array of reggae stars including Luciano, Damian Marley, Stephen Marley, Junior Reid, Mutabaruka, Bushman, David Hinds of Steel Pulse, and members of Slightly Stoopid.[17][18]
In 2012, the band launched the 'Saving The Reggae Music' campaign with the aim of promoting traditional reggae music over the increasingly US-influenced music coming out of Jamaica.[19]
The band's 2012 album Dubets featured collaborations with Peetah Morgan, Ken Boothe, Marcia Griffiths, Glen Washington, Ali Campbell of UB40, Gramps Morgan, A.J. Brown, and Marty Dread.[20] The group went on to record with several younger singers and deejays, including Damian Marley, I-Octane, Khago, and Chronixx, with whom they recorded an updated version of "Tenement Yard".[21]
Members
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- Current members
- Ian Lewis (born 1 November 1953 (age 61) – bass, vocals (1968–1980, 1982, 1986–present)
- Roger Lewis (born 29 June 1951 (age 63) – guitar, vocals (1968–1980, 1982, 1986–present)
- Bernard "Touter" Harvey (born 25 October 1955 (age 59) – keyboards, vocals (1973–1980, 1982, 1986–present)
- Lancelot Hall (born 7 February 1960 (age 55) – drums, percussion (1986–present)
- Errol "Skatta" Bonnick – vocals (2014–present)[22]
- Former members
- Mark Castro - Guitar (1979, 1981, 1982, 1993)
- Ed Elizalde - Guitar (1977-1978)
- Michael "Ibo" Cooper – keyboards (1968–1973)
- Stephen "Cat" Coore – guitar (1968–1973)
- William Stewart – drums (1970–1973)
- William "Bunny Rugs" Clarke – vocals (1970–1972; died 2014)
- Irvin "Carrot" Jarrett – percussion (1970–1972)
- Milton "Prilly" Hamilton – vocals (1972–1973)
- Charles Farquharson – keyboards (1973–1980, 1982)
- Calvin McKenzie – drums (1973–1980, 1982)
- Funky Brown – vocals (1973–1974)
- Jacob Miller – vocals (1974–1980; his death)
- Lester Adderley – guitar (1979–1980)
- Norman Grant – vocals (1980)
- Rick Hunt – vocals (1982)
- Michael Sterling – lead guitar, vocals (1982)
- Calton Coffie – vocals (1986–1994)
- Dave Gonzales – lead guitar (1989)
- Kris Bentley – vocals (1994–2008)
- Jr. Jazz – vocals, guitar (2008–2011)
Discography
Studio albums
| Year | Album | Label | US | US Reggae |
UK[4][23] | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1973 | Dread Reggae Hits | Top Ranking | – | – | – | issued in the UK as Rock the Boat (1975), Trojan |
| 1974 | Heavy Reggae | Top Ranking | – | – | – | issued in the UK as Blame it on the Sun (1975), Trojan |
| 1976 | Reggae Thing | Capitol | – | – | – | |
| 1977 | Barry Biggs and the Inner Circle | Trojan | – | – | – | split album with Barry Biggs |
| Ready for the World | Capitol | – | – | – | ||
| 1978 | Everything is Great | Island | – | – | – | |
| Killer Dub | Top Ranking | – | – | – | ||
| Heavyweight Dub | Top Ranking | – | – | – | ||
| 1979 | New Age Music | Island | – | – | – | |
| 1982 | Something So Good - Mark Castro on Lead Guitar | Carrere/Tonpress | – | – | – | |
| 1987 | One Way | RAS | – | – | – | |
| 1989 | Identified | Warners | – | – | – | |
| 1990 | Black Roses | RAS | – | – | – | |
| 1992 | Bad to the Bone | RAS | – | – | 44 | |
| 1993 | Bad Boys | Atlantic | 64 | 2 | – | reissue of Bad to the Bone, US R&B No. 41 |
| 1994 | Reggae Dancer | Big Beat | – | 2 | – | |
| 1996 | Da Bomb | WEA | – | – | – | Re-issued by Soundbwoy in 1997 with several new tracks and remixed versions of previously released tracks. |
| 1998 | Speak My Language | Universal/Republic | – | 7 | – | Re-issue of Da Bomb (1997 version) |
| World 2000 | Laserlight | – | – | – | ||
| Jamaika Me Crazy | – | – | – | Re-issued by Eureka in 1999 with a combination of tracks from Jamaika Me Crazy (1998 version) and Montego Bay | ||
| 1999 | Montego Bay | – | – | – | ||
| 2000 | Big Tings | VP | – | – | – | Includes tracks (some remixed) from Jamaika Me Crazy, Montego Bay, and Reggae Man, as well as some original tracks. |
| Reggae Man | – | – | – | |||
| 2001 | Barefoot in Negril | Soundbwoy Entertainment | – | – | – | |
| 2002 | Log On | – | – | – | ||
| Kool Operator | Soundbwoy Entertainment | – | – | – | Compilation album featuring remixed versions of songs from Reggae Man, Barefoot in Negril, and Log On | |
| 2009 | State of Da World | Shanachie | – | – | – | |
| 2012 | Dubets | Dubshot Records | – | – | – | |
| 2013 | Hawaii Sings Jacob Miller | Dubshot Records | – | – | – |
Compilations
- Reggae Greats: Jacob Miller and Inner Circle (1985), Island
- Rewind!, Pt.2: The Singers (1990)
- The Best of Inner Circle (1992), Mango
- The Best of Inner Circle (1993), Capitol
- Super Best of (1999)
- Big in Jamaica (2000), Music Club – Inner Circle and Jacob Miller
- Jah Jah People (2000), Metrodome
- It's Da Non Stop Best Of Inner Circle (2001), WEA Japan
- Kool Operator (2002)
- This Is Crucial Reggae (2004), RAS
- Forward Jah Jah Children (2004), Trojan
- Mixed Up Moods (2005), Absord Japan
- It's Da Best of Inner Circle (2007), WEA Japan
- Da Covers!! It's Da New Best of Inner Circle (2008), WEA Japan
- Blazzin Fire (2010), DubShot
- The Best of Inner Circle: Everything Is Great (2014), Island
Live albums
- Forward Jah Jah People: Highlights from the 5th Cartagena Festival (2006), Charly
Singles
1970's
| Year | Single | Peak positions | Album | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NED [24] |
UK [25] | ||||
| 1970 | "Why Can't I Touch You" | – | – | with "The Chosen Few" | |
| 1972 | "I See You" | – | – | Funky Brown and the Inner Circle Band | |
| 1973 | "Dog and Bone" | – | – | Hebrew Childrens & Inner Circles | |
| 1974 | "Duppy Gunman" | – | – | Rock The Boat | |
| "You Make Me Feel Brand New" | – | – | as Inner Circles | ||
| "Can You Handle It?" | – | – | Blame It on the Sun | ||
| 1975 | "Your Kiss Is Sweet" | – | – | ||
| 1976 | "Jah Music" | – | – | Reggae Thing | |
| "Tired Fe Lick Weed in a Bush" | – | – | split singles with Jacob Miller | ||
| 1977 | "All Night Till Daylight / Greater Light Dub" | – | – | single only | |
| 1979 | "Everything Is Great" | – | 37 | Everything Is Great | |
| "Music Machine" | 28 | – | Germany/Netherlands only | ||
| "Stop Breaking My Heart" | – | 50 | |||
| "Mary Mary" | 38 | – | |||
| "We a Rockers" | – | – | |||
| "-" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released. | |||||
1980's
| Year | Single | Album | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | "We Come to Rock You" | New Age Music | |
| "New Age Music" | |||
| "Discipline Child" | |||
| "Summer in the City" | |||
| 1982 | "Something So Good" | Something So Good | |
| 1986 | "Groovin' In Love" | singles only | UK only |
| "Computer Style" | Jamaica only | ||
| "Massive Girl" | |||
| "Reggae Beat Box" | US only | ||
| 1987 | "Never Can Say Goodbye" | ||
| "One Way" | One Way | ||
| 1989 | "Black & White" | Identified | |
| "Bad Boys" | US only (theme from the TV show "Cops") | ||
| There were no charting singles in this period. | |||
1990's
| Year | Single | Peak positions | Album | Notes | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [26] |
US R&B [27] |
AUS [28] |
NZ [29] |
NED [24] |
BEL (FLA) [30] |
FRA [31] |
GER [32] |
AUT [33] |
SWI [34] |
SWE [35] |
NOR [36] |
IRE [37] |
UK [25] | ||||
| 1990 | "Bad Boys" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 2 | 1 | – | – | Black Roses | Europe only |
| 1991 | "Black Roses" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | ||
| 1992 | "Sweat (A La La La La Long)" | – | – | – | – | 1 | 1 | 12 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 8 | – | 43 | Bad to the Bone | Europe only |
| "Rock With You" | – | – | – | – | 7 | 3 | 27 | 8 | 5 | 7 | 38 | – | – | – | |||
| 1993 | "Bad to the Bone" | – | – | – | – | – | 47 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | ||
| "Wrapped Up in Your Love" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 50 | – | – | – | – | – | – | |||
| "Bad Boys" | 8 | 58 | 25 | 5 | – | – | – | 35 | 21 | – | – | – | 26 | 52 | Bad Boys | reissue | |
| "Sweat (A La La La La Long)" | 16 | 73 | 2 | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 3 | 3 | |||
| "Rock With You" | 98 | – | – | 13 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |||
| 1994 | "Hit and Run" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | I Believe | Sandy Reed featuring Inner Circle |
| "Games People Play" | 84 | – | – | 4 | 8 | 12 | – | 27 | 11 | 7 | 7 | – | – | 67 | Reggae Dancer | ||
| "Summer Jammin'" | – | – | – | 12 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |||
| 1995 | "Whip It (With My Love)" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | ||
| "Black Roses" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |||
| 1996 | "Da Bomb" | – | – | – | 8 | – | – | – | 55 | 20 | – | 7 | – | – | – | Da Bomb | |
| "I Think I Love You" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |||
| 1997 | "Tell Me" | – | – | – | 19 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 38 | – | – | – | ||
| 1998 | "Ob-la-di Ob-la-da" | – | – | – | 6 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | single only | |
| "Not About Romance" | 92 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | Speak My Language | ||
| "-" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released. | |||||||||||||||||
2000's and 2010's
| Year | Single | Album | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | "Sweat (A La La La La Long) 2004" | featuring Lady Saw | |
| "Don't Quit" | |||
| "Forward Jah Jah Children" | |||
| 2005 | "One Day Christian" | ||
| "Girls Wild All Over The World" | |||
| 20?? | "Too Much Blood A Run" | with Junior Reid | |
| 20?? | "Beg A Little Piece" | with Mr Vegas | |
| 2010 | "Candy Girl" | State of da World | featuring Flo Rida |
| "No Cocaine" | Slightly Stoopid and Inner Circle | ||
| There are no charting singles in this period. | |||
References
- ↑ Moskowitz, David V. (2006) Caribbean Popular Music: an Encyclopedia of Reggae, Mento, Ska, Rock Steady, and Dancehall, Greenwood Press, ISBN 0-313-33158-8, p.148
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 2.9 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 2.17 Thompson, Dave (2002) Reggae & Caribbean Music, Backbeat Books, ISBN 0-87930-655-6, p. 121-4, 442
- ↑ Lane, Sarah (1980) "Florida Challenge for Jamaicans: Top Ranking Sounds Struggling for U.S. Recognition", Billboard, 6 December 1980, p. 27, retrieved 9 September 2012
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 269. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- ↑ Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter (2004) The Rough Guide to Reggae, 3rd edn., Rough Guides, ISBN 1-84353-329-4, p. 200, 242
- ↑ "Reggaepedia / Twinkle Brothers". Reggaelicious.pbworks.com. Retrieved 9 March 2014.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Walker, Klive (2005) Dubwise, Insomniac Press, ISBN 978-1894663960, p. 203
- ↑ Benarde, Scott (1993), "Reggae in music's inner circle: Boys of 'COPS' TV theme start to make it big", Austin American-Statesman, 16 December 1993, p. 14
- ↑ Bass, Debra (1994) "Inner Circle: Bad Boys are Back", Vibe, November 1994, p. 80, retrieved 9 September 2012
- ↑ "Top 100 Music Hits, Top 100 Music Charts, Top 100 Songs & The Hot 100". Billboard.com. 21 August 1993. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
- ↑ Schneider, Christopher J. "The Ringtone as an Identity Management Device", in Denzin, Norman K. (ed.) (2009) Studies in Symbolic Interaction: 33, Emerald Group, ISBN 978-1848557840, p. 42
- ↑ Nall, Jeff (2006) "Inner Circle has unique world view", Florida Today, 24 November 2006, p. G20
- ↑ Reynolds, J.R. (1994) "Inner Circle Had "Sweat" Success in Europe Before Copping a U.S. Hit", Billboard, 16 July 1994, p. 22, retrieved 9 September 2012
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Daley, Dan (1998) "When a Studio's All in the Family: Creating the Right Vibe with Inner Circle", Billboard, 25 April 1998, p. 44, retrieved 9 September 2012
- ↑ Martinez, Gerald (1999) "Reviews: Inner Circle – Jamaika Me Crazy", New Straits Times, 27 September 1998, p. 13, retrieved 9 September 2012
- ↑ Duperly, Howard (2000) "Inner Circle album getting South Florida concert launch", Caribbean Today, 30 September 2000, retrieved 9 September 2012 – via HighBeam (subscription required)
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 McCallister, Jared (2009) "'Bad Boys' band Inner Circle comes 'round with new album, 'State of Da World'", New York Daily News, 26 September 2009, retrieved 9 September 2012
- ↑ Campbell, Howard (2009) "Inner Circle in a 'State'", The Weekly Gleaner, 2 July 2009, retrieved 9 September 2012 – via HighBeam (subscription required)
- ↑ Campbell-Livingston, Cecelia (2012) "Bad Boys to Reggae's Rescue", Jamaica Observer, 21 August 2012, retrieved 1 September 2012
- ↑ "HEAR THIS: Inner Circle & Peetah Morgan "Broken Hearted"". Boomshots. Retrieved 3 December 2012.
- ↑ Campbell, Howard (2014) "Inner Circle Reaches Out", Jamaica Observer, 4 March 2014. Retrieved 5 March 2014
- ↑ "Inner Circle For Rebel Salute", Jamaica Gleaner, 15 December 2014. Retrieved 15 December 2014
- ↑ Inner Circle(Link redirected to OCC website), Chart Archive, retrieved 10 September 2012
- ↑ 24.0 24.1 "Inner Circle – Dutch Chart". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 12 April 2014.
- ↑ 25.0 25.1 "Official Charts Company: Inner Circle". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 12 April 2014.
- ↑ "Inner Circle – US Hot 100 Chart". billboard.com. Retrieved 12 April 2014.
- ↑ "Inner Circle – US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs". billboard.com. Retrieved 12 April 2014.
- ↑ "Inner Circle – Australian Chart". australian-charts.com. Retrieved 12 April 2014.
- ↑ "Inner Circle – New Zealand Chart". charts.org.nz. Retrieved 12 April 2014.
- ↑ "Inner Circle – Belgian Chart". ultratop.be. Retrieved 12 April 2014.
- ↑ "Inner Circle – French Chart". lescharts.com. Retrieved 12 April 2014.
- ↑ "Inner Circle – German Chart". charts.de. Retrieved 12 April 2014.
- ↑ "Inner Circle – Austrian Chart". austriancharts.at. Retrieved 12 April 2014.
- ↑ "Inner Circle – Swiss Chart". hitparade.ch. Retrieved 12 April 2014.
- ↑ "Inner Circle – Swedish Chart". swedishcharts.com. Retrieved 12 April 2014.
- ↑ "Inner Circle – Norwegian Chart". norwegiancharts.com. Retrieved 12 April 2014.
- ↑ "Inner Circle – Irish Chart". IRMA 2006–2008. Retrieved 12 April 2014.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Inner Circle. |
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