Dreadlocks and Payes,
From Marley to Matisyahu,
The Beat Goes On
Elliot Rothpearl

Several weeks ago, my brother sent me a video clip of a Hasidic Reggae performer called Matisyahu. It really caught my attention and the next day I was describing it to a musician friend of mine. I could not recall the name, but just then, my friend pulled out a poster of Matisyahu and asked me, “Is this the guy?” I said, “That’s him, where did you get the poster?” He said, “I’m doing the sound for him Saturday night at the J.C.A. right here in Jacksonville.” I got the phone numbers off the poster and came home. The concert was being co-sponsored by The Jewish Community Association and The Chabad Lubavitch Congregation with tickets on sale at both places. It was to take place at the J.C.A. in their large auditorium. Since nobody answered the phone at the J.C.A., I called the second number where I made immediate connection with Schmuel, the rabbi of that small but very religious congregation. I bought a bunch of tickets and proceeded to make phone calls to all sorts of people who I thought would both appreciate and learn from the concert. That’s the story of how and why this article came to be written. Now to the story itself.

I must admit that I knew a lot more about Rastafarians, (Rastas) and Reggae than I did about Hasidic Judaism. Although I was brought up in a Jewish household, went to Hebrew School and was Bar-Mitzvahed, (as did all my three sons), I knew very little indeed about the followers of the Lubavitch Rebbe.

My knowledge of the Rastas came from being a musician, having heard and seen Bob Marley and while in Jamaica having had the extreme pleasure of playing with Peter Tosh and getting to know a bit more about the Rasta culture than just the fact that they smoked marijuana, (ganja). I became friends with a Rasta named Blace Samuels who was a drummer and found that most Rasta’s were kosher, refraining from eating shellfish and pork products. I further discovered that they considered themselves Hebrews and direct descendents of the line of King David through Haile Selassie, the Emperor of Ethiopia. (Selassie was originally named Ras Tafari, hence the name Rastafarians.)

Dreadlocks and Payes

The Dreadlocks were grown and worn as a word of mouth tradition having its roots in Leviticus 19:27-28, the same passage that commands Moses to tell the Jews “Don’t cut the hair on the sides of your head or trim your beard.” The beards and side locks of Hasidic Jews come from this passage as well, but the Dreadlocks have two additional meanings. The first is the belief that you should not cut your hair until you return from the Diaspora to the land of Zion. The second is the Dread part, fear of the Lion of Judah that the Dreadlocks represent as well, appearing as a Lion’s mane. As a matter of fact, when a Rasta would pass by, other Jamaicans would usually greet them with “hail me dread” to which the Rasta would answer “Ayree” in a gruff voice representing the Lion’s roar. Another slight difference in interpretation of the Old Testament is the meaning of “The Fruit of the Vine”. While Jews and Christians alike interpret this to mean grapes, (which are turned into wine for use in certain sacraments), Rastas interpret it as GOD given ganja to be used in the same way.

I also discovered that the Rastas looked upon Haile Selassie in the same manner that followers of the Lubavitch Rebbe look upon him. Both men were here to proclaim the coming of the Messiah who would take the people out of the clutches of Babylon, out of the Diaspora and back to Zion. The big difference is that for Jews, Zion is Israel, while for Rastas, Zion is Ethiopia. Pretty amazing stuff, isn’t it? I should have suspected something like this a long time ago since the very first Reggae song ever heard in the United States was by a band called Desmond Decker and the Aces and was entitled The Israelites.

From Marley to Matisyahu

Bob Marley started out as a punk, a bad boy always getting into trouble. Then he discovered music and finally the Rastafarian movement. He set out to write and sing about the trials and tribulations brought on by bondage in Babylon. His message was that of the hope of the coming of the messiah and the return to the land. Matisyahu, (born as Matthew Miller) started out the same way in White Plains, New York. A troublemaker who found that he liked music, mainly Rap and Hip Hop. Later on he found a real affinity for Reggae, and most likely didn’t really know why. He discovered the Hasidic movement and joined the ultra orthodox Lubavitch movement, moving from White Plains to Crown Heights, Brooklyn. His lyrics speak of the trials and tribulations of the Jews and the hope of being free from captivity in Babylon, the end of the Diaspora and returning to the land with the coming of the messiah. Both Marley and Matisyahu borrowed and paraphrased verses from The Book of Psalms. Wow, what an amazing set of coincidental circumstances!

The Beat Goes On

Showtime.
The show was set to start at 8:00 P.M. It was too early to allow a sound check of any sort as the Shabbot had just ended and Matisyahu will not break the laws concerning the Shabbot. In spite of the fact that the sound didn’t really settle in until 8:30, it in no way detracted from the talent and energy present on stage. (Also, the 500 seat auditorium was only about two-thirds filled at 8:00, but by 8:20 it was standing room only. I guess the 8:00 time was really a Jewish 8:00). The show kicked off with Matisyahu calling Rabbi Schmuel up on stage to make Havdullah, (the prayer, lighting of the braided candle and spices which officially ends the observance of the Shabbot). Then the music began.

A little bit about the trio who back up Matisyahu. They are Aaron Dugan on guitar, Josh Werner on bass and Jonah David on drums. They are all accomplished musicians and have no trouble playing the rock-steady reggae style of “riddum come forward”. Aaron Dugan fits in lots of tasty licks between his constant plink-plink of rhythm and is allowed to do so because of the complimentary playing of both Josh Werner and Jonah David. David also shone brightly during an approximately five minute long drum solo.

After some time the band took a break and Matisyahu was alone on the stage. His display of vocal diversity was amazing to me, and I am a musician. It must have seemed like total magic to others in the audience. His drum sounds rivaled those of the drummer as he wove deep bass licks and soulful guitar sounds with only his mouth and at times did them simultaneously. (Kind of reminded me of a friend who could hum and sing at the same time.) He then launched into a really soulful rendition of the Shema Yisrael, “Hear Oh Israel”.

The show wound up with the complete band back onstage for some more upbeat reggae and it was amazing to see Jews, (from Hasidic to Messianic), Christians, young and old, believers and non-believers all dancing around together in front of the stage. The Joy of The Lord was definitely present that night in Jacksonville.

Matisyahu being Hasidic and a reggae artist is not just a gimmick. He is a serious performer who happens to be an Orthodox Jew. Seeing the way he brought all people together gives us all hope for the future, and that is what Bob Marley sang about and Matisyahu still sings about.