Blue King Brown- Worldwize part 1 North & South

The politically charged Blue King Brown began as the duo of Natalie Pa'apa'a and Carlo Santone.  Having toured with John Butler, Cat Empire, and Michael Franti, Blue King Brown, now nine strong, have metamorphosed into one of Australia’s finest roots/world bands.

Blue King Brown’s latest release, the two disc Worldwize part I North & South, features a list of guest performers which includes Jamaican singer Queen Ifrica who sings in the reggae tradition of resistance on “Women’s Revolution”.  A great single, if you don’t mind a bit of Marxism mixed in with your ska.  Reggae legends Sly & Robbie, prolific producer/performers who have worked with Bob Dylan, Joe Cocker and Mick Jagger, produce mountains of musical energy without ever working up a sweat on the instant classic “Mo’ Truth”. “Our Word is Our Weapon” quotes perhaps the world’s most literary revolutionary, Mexican Rafael Guillen Vincente, better known as ‘Marcos’. 

American reggae performer, Eliot Martin (John Brown’s Body) teams up with Blue King Brown for a newer sound on “Not Too Late”.  That’s the “North” part of the package.

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The “South” half of Worldwize part I North & South is devoted to Dub cuts including Dub versions of two tunes heard earlier- “Women’s Revolution, and “Say Peace”, on which Sly & Robbie’s find their groove. I am happy to report that Blue King Brown has not altered their collective persona one iota in response to their international success.  The band’s website still has a tab marked ‘activism’.  Click and read the one about the campaign to end child sex slavery and you’ll find you are more ‘Worldwize” indeed!

More at: www.bluekingbrown.com