Paul Is Dread

“I was like, ‘Wow, they really pushed it to the max, with the herb everywhere,’ he recalls, his mammoth dreads practically brushing the floor as he laughs. “But it’s good, because it’s like: ‘I get high with a little help from my friends’? Yeah, we really get high with a little help from my friends!”

Thanks to their Jamaican-flavored reinterpretations of rock’s most beloved LP’s, the All-Stars have developed a passionate following among both roots-reggae and classic-rock audiences worldwide. Originally conceived by Easy Star label heads Eric Smith and Len Oppenheimer and lead All-Stars music producer Michael Goldwasser as a means to expand reggae’s listenership, the All-Stars first took on Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon in 2003, pairing reggae greats like Frankie Paul and the Meditations with ingenious reworkings of the well-known source material. The band brought more star power (namely Toots and the Maytals, Horace Andy and Citizen Cope) as well as a greater musical range to bear on 2006’s Radiodread, their cover of OK Computer. Listeners responded by purchasing 250,000 cumulative units to date. In addition, the band has also landed gigs like Glastonbury, Fuji Rock and even the wedding reception of former pothead/NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s daughter. “We’re enjoying the ride,” Ras acknowledges modestly.

Given the band’s fondness for concept LP’s, their Sgt. Pepper redo appears inevitable in retrospect. ”From the time that we released Dub Side and people were talking about, ‘What are you guys gonna do next?’, Sgt. Pepper’s was being suggested – even from the audience,” Ras recalls. The production proved almost as grueling as the Beatles original, but resulted in some unique collaborations, such as the airy, dub-inflected Matisyahu showcase “Within You Without You” and Steel Pulse’s soulful “Good Morning, Good Morning.” All in all, it was a fitting addition to the All-Stars’ musical canon, as Ras observes: “It’s not as dark as Dub Side and Radiodread – more like light and happy and simple, but still saying something.”

Fans, take note: Though Ras generally speaks for the band, everyone has something to say when the interview turns to the subject of pot. On the EP Until That Day – the band’s only release of original material to date – both Ras and Jamaican-born DJ vocalist Menny More praise the sacred herb in all its forms in songs like “The Finest.” The band’s fetching female vocalist, Kirsty Rock, has even written a song called “High Times,” and later that night, the All-Stars will perform trombonist Buford O’Sullivan’s “The Vaporizer,” prompting a sea of lit lighters in response. Menny calls the band’s pot anthems “herb-an music,” and while each member has a preference when it comes to toking (Ras likes his Trainwreck, while Menny swears by Silver Haze and Grape Ape and O’Sullivan enjoys less aggressive strains like Purple Haze), Menny opines that the band retains an abiding love for marijuana in general. “Herb was made to smoke everywhere in the world,” he says. “[It’s] the healing of the nation, so whatever. You have apples in Jamaica and you have apples in America. They’re all apples.”

It’s possible that the All-Stars might one day devise a concept LP on the subject. Several ideas have already been kicked around: “Story of a band that goes into a van and tours the West Coast, plays a show … ” O’Sullivan jovially tosses out as an example. But Ras stresses that in the end, it’s all about the love of the music itself, for both the band and their audience. So in response to those who dismiss the group as a mere marketing gimmick, Ras insists that they’re looking at it the wrong way. “We don’t want to be pigeonholed as a classic cover band – because you can easily fall into that, basically doing the types of projects we’re doing,” he says. “Reggae is such a universal-type music that it transcends all boundaries. We’re just giving the people what they love – just reinterpreting it where the people can really accept it as something genuine.”

THIS ARTICLE WAS FEATURED IN THE JANUARY 2010 ISSUE OF HIGH TIMES 

Check out this video of Easy Star All-Stars performing at the 22nd HIGH TIMES Cannabis Cup in Amsterdam: