Ardie “Cuban” Wallace Chronicles 50 Years of Reggae History
Originally published by South Florida Caribbean News Read the original
SOUTH FLORIDA – On June 22, 1975, Bob Marley and The Wailers stepped onto the stage at what was then the Bushnell Auditorium in Hartford, Connecticut. The Jamaican singer was promoting Natty Dread. That was his sensational album, released the previous year by Island Records.
That show marked the promoter’s debut for Ardie Wallace, a Jamaican from Montego Bay. He recalls that historic night in The Legendary Reggae Promoter: Ardie “Cuban” Wallace. This book is scheduled for release on October 3.
The 300-page piece is published by Dr. Davies Chirwa, a Zambian businessman based in Washington. It focuses on 1975, Wallace’s first year in the music business.
Known as Cuban because of his signature cigar, Wallace wrote the book with Yevette Ann Wallace. He believed that after five decades in the music business, the time was right to tell his story.
“The most satisfying aspect of this book to me is highlighting reggae at its start because 1975 was the start of global reggae and I am part of that history,” said Wallace. “This book will teach many people, mainly the youths and promoters.”
A cousin of legendary rapper The NOTORIOUS B I G, Wallace moved to Hartford in the early 1970s. The city had a small Jamaican community at the time, and unlike the New York boroughs of Brooklyn, Queens and The Bronx, there was no reggae presence.
Since the Marley gig, Wallace has promoted shows by the biggest names in reggae-dancehall. Jimmy Cliff, Dennis Brown, Gregory Isaacs, Ziggy Marley and The Melody Makers, and Super Cat are just some of the acts. He has brought them to Connecticut.
Wallace has seen the reggae industry in the United States evolve over 51 years. Moreover, he feels it is his duty to let fans know he played a major role in that transformation.
“I was grown in the music from the roots up, I am the tree with branches of reggae that is now bearing and producing food for many artists. If there are no promoters, the artists die of hunger,” he said.
The Legendary Reggae Promoter: Ardie “Cuban” Wallace is available through Amazon.
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