roots

Black Roots were a powerful and potent force in the British reggae music scene throughout the Eighties and left a legacy of no less than ten albums and more than eight singles before bowing out of the public eye in the mid-90's. Hailing from the St Paul's area of Bristol, the original eight-member band were formed in 1979 and quickly gained a large following by touring almost non-stop around the country, playing their brand of 'militant pacifism' roots reggae in the nation's major colleges, universities and festivals.

Manley Augustus Buchanan (born April 19, 1949, Trenchtown, Kingston, Jamaica), better known as Big Youth (sometimes called Jah Youth), is a Jamaican DJ, mostly known for his work during the 1970s. Influenced by U-Roy, he started singing with Lord Tippertone's sound system in 1970. His first LP Chi Chi Run was produced by Prince Buster in 1971. The name of the band Sonic Youth is in part a tribute to Big Youth.

Don Letts’ came to notoriety in the late '70s DJing reggae music to punk crowds at 'The Roxy' club in London. He also started to document the punk rock movement in 'The Punk Rock Movie'. He continued to make documentaries across the spectrum of credible music including a celebrated film about Bob Marley. Musically, he was a founder member of Basement 5 and Big Audio Dynamite,the latter with The Clash's Mick Jones, managed the all woman punk group The Slits and collaborated with many post-punk outfits in the 1980s.