Aston Barrett, the Jamaican bassist referred to as “Household Man” who served because the rhythmic architect for reggae legends like Bob Marley and the Wailers, Burning Spear, and Augustus Pablo, has died on the age of 77.
Barrett’s demise was introduced on social media Saturday by his son Aston Barrett Jr. “With the heaviest of hearts, we share the information of the passing of our beloved Aston ‘Familyman’ Barrett after a protracted medical battle,” Barrett Jr. wrote. “This morning, the world misplaced not simply an iconic musician and the spine of The Wailers however a outstanding human being whose legacy is as immense as his expertise. Our household is asking for privateness throughout this difficult time, as phrases can’t specific our profound loss.”
One in all Jamaica’s most famous, prolific and influential studio musicians, the Kingston-born Barrett, alongside together with his youthful brother and drummer Carlton, labored because the rhythm part for the near-entirety of Marley’s tenure as frontman of the Wailers, enjoying bass on a string of traditional albums spanning from 1970’s Soul Rebels to the group’s 1983 posthumous LP Confrontation.
“The drum, it’s the heartbeat, and the bass, it’s the spine,” Barrett as soon as stated. “If the bass just isn’t proper, the music is gonna have a foul again, so it could be crippled.”
Almost each now-Legendary track by Marley and the Wailers featured Barrett’s bass work: “I Shot the Sheriff,” “Get Up, Stand Up,” “Stir It Up,” “Jamming,” “No Girl, No Cry,” “Three Little Birds,” “May You Be Love,” “Is This Love,” and dozens extra.
Barrett — dubbed “Household Man” for his patriarchal position as bandleader and musical director of the Wailers — “performed a major position in introducing the sound of reggae’s one-drop rhythm to worldwide audiences,” Rolling Stone wrote in our listing of the 50 Biggest Bassists of All Time. “However the affect of the self-proclaimed ‘Architect of Reggae’ prolonged far past that style into pop, R&B, and funk: His strutting bass line on the 1969 instrumental observe ‘The Liquidator,’ by the Harry J. All Stars, would find yourself serving as a direct template for the Staples Singers’ smash ‘I’ll Take You There’ three years later.”
Whereas Barrett landed at Quantity 28 on the Rolling Stone listing, his friends held him in larger regard, together with legendary reggae bassist Robbie Shakespeare, who mentored underneath Barrett earlier than founding his personal formidable rhythmic duo Sly & Robbie.
“He needs to be Quantity One [on the list]. He’s the one who began all of it,” Shakespeare instructed Rolling Stone in 2020. “Folks suppose he performed on [Bob Marley’s] ‘Concrete Jungle,‘ however I performed ‘Concrete Jungle,’ I used to be simply enjoying a mode that was related [to Barrett, who with the Wailers performed on the rest of Catch a Fire]. However Household Man is the one who kicked my butt; he’s the one who instructed me to rise up and do that.”
“It’s with tears in our hearts and eyes that we share the information from Aston Barrett Jr. that his father our beloved pal, musical associate, bredrin Aston ‘Household Man’ Barrett has made the transition from the bodily world,” Bob Marley’s official social media wrote Saturday. “Anytime we hearken to the music pay shut consideration to the genius of Fams on the bass. A pioneer, distinctive, trendsetter, revolutionary within the musical area and most of all as his identify implies a real household man. Condolences to his household.”
Bob’s son Ziggy Marley wrote, “My trainer is gone. Aston Household Man Barrett his really feel & type has impressed me & so many others. We are going to proceed to check his genius for generations and miss his bodily presence nonetheless his religious power & teachings endures. Like to the Barrett household.”
UB40’s Ali Campbell added, “His legacy will eternally resonate by means of the timeless music he contributed to. Could he relaxation in everlasting peace, and will his household discover solace within the enduring affect he made.”
Along with his decade-long tenure with the Wailers, Barrett additionally had stints with Lee “Scratch” Perry’s the Upsetters, the Aggrovators, and King Tubby’s home band, and performed on acclaimed reggae albums by Peter Tosh (Equal Rights), Max Romeo (Revelation Time), Keith Hudson (Choose a Dub), and I-Roy (Reality and Rights), to call only a handful.
Barrett — who would later give “Household Man” a double that means by siring a minimum of 50 kids — sued Island Data in 2006, asking for £60 million in unpaid royalties from his work with the Wailers.
“Aston Barrett and his brother actually created the sound of the Wailers, although not for a minute to detract from the extraordinary songwriting capability of Mr. Marley,” Barrett’s lawyer Stephen Bate instructed the courtroom when the lawsuit went to trial. “It was the Barretts’ distinctive sound which introduced the Wailers worldwide success.” Nonetheless, Barrett in the end misplaced the lawsuit.
Regardless of not getting the monetary recognition he deserved, Barrett was routinely honored by his bassist friends, together with a Lifetime Achievement Award from Bass Participant journal. In 2021, Jamaica awarded Barrett an Order of Distinction for his position because the musical “spine” of the nation’s most enduring music.
“Aston’s music introduced pleasure to tens of millions, and his affect on reggae is past measure,” Barrett Jr. added of his father. “He was a person of few phrases, however his phrases carried knowledge, kindness, and love. His bass traces weren’t simply the muse of The Wailers’ music however the heartbeat of a style that has touched hearts across the globe.”
