Acclaimed reggae group Easy Star All-Stars return today with “Five Years,” the newest single + video from their upcoming album Ziggy Stardub. Out April 21 via Easy Star Records, the project is a reggae reimagining of David Bowie’s The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. Featuring vocals by Grammy-winning roots reggae band Steel Pulse, the soulful rendition of the track keeps the intergalactic flair of the original alive with the All-Stars’ signature reggae genius, as David Hinds’ magnetic vocals flourish with emotion – highlighting the soaring, apocalyptic attitude of the ballad. The video, directed by Emmy® Award-winner Robert Bartolome, portrays the end of the world on a miniature scale, along with a rebirth. It's a visual treat that fits David Bowie’s timeless lyrics.
David Hinds of Steel Pulse says, “The song ‘Five Years’ can easily be turned into a movie of epic proportions. I see it as the planet's apocalypse written in deep thought-out poetry and put to music. Therefore, it was a song that I had to interpret with great emotion, abandoning my form of syncopation while doing so. David Bowie was a visionary, a trend setter, a fashion revolutionist, who turned all heads the moment the Beatles’ and Hendrix’s era began to fade. It was the moment that art as we know it left the canvas to decorate and become human form. This man was thinking outside of the box in every dimension possible. It was a pleasure experiencing his experience with this project.” Selwyn Brown (original Steel Pulse member) continues, “I enjoyed (as always with Easy Star projects) working on this track…David Bowie’s work needs no introduction, an artist who reinvented himself several times over, always taking his audience with him. I feel he would have liked the reworking of the album, too; one of his classics.”
“Bowie’s version of ‘Five Years’ is in waltz time so I had to really re-think the phrasing of all the parts…while still keeping the vibe of the original,” Michael Goldwasser, producer, arranger, and multi-instrumentalist of Easy Star says. “One of the ways that I achieved that was by co-opting some of the other arrangement techniques from the Bowie version such as fading in with a drumbeat, holding chords with both a grand piano and a twelve-string guitar in the beginning of the song, and bringing in strings to help the song build as it moves along. David Hinds of Steel Pulse brought his great vocal sensibilities to building the emotion of the song as it moves along as well – I think that the other David would have appreciated that.”
“Five Years” ft. Steel Pulse: Listen / Watch
Easy Star All-Stars will also be playing an album release show to celebrate Ziggy Stardub on Thursday, April 20 at Sony Hall in New York City. The 420 show – an annual tradition for the All-Stars in their hometown – will also feature special guests Sister Carol and Cannabis Cup Band, with more to be announced. Tickets are available here. The band will also be performing at the Sea.Hear.Now music festival in New Jersey this September.
Ziggy Stardub features guest performances by Macy Gray, Maxi Priest, Fishbone, Alex Lifeson (Rush), Vernon Reid (Living Colour), The Skints, Mortimer, The Expanders, Samory I, and many others. Pre-order packages of the album are available here, including royal blue colored vinyl along with CD and exclusive t-shirt offerings.
Blending musical versatility, instrumental prowess, beautiful vocal harmonies, and a premier rhythm section, Easy Star All-Stars have established themselves as one of the top international reggae acts on the scene for over two decades. During this time, they’ve toured in over 30 countries on 6 continents, bringing together fans of reggae, classic rock, dub, and indie rock into one big family. Previous releases of the band’s long standing collection of tribute albums include Dub Side of the Moon (2003), a critically-acclaimed reggae re-working of Radiohead’s OK Computer, Radiodread (2006), Easy Star’s Lonely Hearts Dub Band (2009), and Easy Star’s Thrillah (2012), as well as the remix album Dubber Side of the Moon (2010). The All-Stars have also released two original collections, Until That Day EP (2008) and First Light (2011).
About Steel Pulse:
Formed in 1975 in Birmingham, England, Steel Pulse have established themselves as one of reggae's major forces through their ability to merge their politically conscious lyrics with funk and groove, spanning across their twelve studio albums. Steel Pulse was the first reggae band to perform for a presidential inauguration and were the first non-Jamaican artists to win a Grammy for Best Reggae Album.
