Brinsley Forde and Ciyo Brown celebrate Aswad

British reggae legend Brinsley Forde unites with guitar man Ciyo Brown plus a full live band for a truly unique celebration of the 40th anniversary of the iconic, self-titled, debut album ‘ASWAD’.

Featuring exclusive new arrangements of of the album tracks (including ‘Back To Africa’, ‘I A Rebel Soul’ and ‘Ethiopian Rhapsody’) plus the occasional cover (hand picked by Brinsley, naturally!) of songs that ‘provided the inspiration behind the perspiration’, this is set to be a wonderful celebration of a British Roots Reggae band that always carried some jazz in its soul.

Brinsley Forde best known as the founding member of the British super Reggae group Aswad.

Aswad was formed in West London in 1974 with Brinsley fronting the original five piece on both vocals and rhythm guitar, Angus Gaye (Drums/Vocals), George Oban (Bass), Courtney Hemmings (Keyboards), Donald Griffiths (Lead Guitar). The group quickly became recognised among reggae fans for their rich melodies and compelling harmonies, woven over hard rhythm tracks and inspired horn riffs. Aswad first gained national attention in 1976 when their debut single release Back To Africa hit #1 in the UK Reggae Charts.

Aswad earned international acclaim with their reggae version of Don’t Turn Around, a song previously covered by both Luther Ingram and Tina Turner. Don’t Turn Around, released on Island in 1988, went to #1 on the UK National charts and was the most-played record on French radio. In 1994 the band were nominated for a second Grammy for Best Reggae Album of the Year for Rise & Shine which spent four weeks at the #1 slot on the CMJ New World chart and got a Top 10 slot on the Billboard reggae chart. The album was also a major hit in the UK and Japan, where it produced a #1 single Shine, boosting worldwide sales to more than 600,000. Later, Love Fire, Aswad’s popular anthem released in 1981, and Warrior Charge have become part of the reggae canon and both are still covered today by many Jamaican record producers.