Phillip Fraser;
Phillip Fraser was
born on 12th February 1951 in Whitfield Town in the area of Kingston. During his late teens he felt the inspiration
of Rastafari and began to grow his locks. In the hometown of Greenwich Town, where he grow among greats such as; Herbert
Chang, Earl Zero, Sammy Dread and Bertram Brown just to name a few.
Phillip was inspired
by the late Slim Smith, which lead to Phillip’s first single called “This Time” which was produced
on the Libra label. He and Bertram Brown founded the legendary Freedom Sound label; which took a toll on the
world and produce singing legends such as Earl Zero, Michael Prophet, Sammy Dread, Prince Allah, Rod Taylor and Soul Syndicate.
Phillip also was the founder of other labels such as Root Tradition for Don Mais, Cornerstone which was also
founded with Michael Chin and Tyrone Hailey; but Phillip decided to create his own labels called Razor Sound and S&J
Sound.
Razor Sound and S&J Sound started to produce
songs that were done by artist like; Eeka Mouse, Tristan Palmer, the late Ranking Toyan, Scion Success and also the debut
of his son Ras Fraser.
Phillip’s career
gradually started to take notice in 1980 when he recorded songs such “Blood of the Staints” on the Real
Rock Rhythm which was produced by Cornerstone (12’’ was later distributed by Silver Kamel). “Never Let
Go”, “Watch this Sound” which both were done in the memory of the late Slim Smith. He later recorded
"Mr. Wicked Man” and “Come Ethiopian” for Freedom Sound and Roots Tradition
respectively which had a great impact in Europe. In Jamaica he also recorded for Henry "Junjo"
Lawes and Barry Clarke with the hit, "Please Stay" and "When I Run Out" which both featured heavily on U Roy's
Stur Gav Sound System throughout the 80’s and 90’s where he worked with Joesy Wales and Charlie Chaplin.
Phillip had later began
to produce his own albums, which includes; ” Loving You”, “Roots Man Time” which was
a combination of Phillip and his son Ras Fraser, “Never Let Go” and “Come Ethiopian”
which was produced by Roots Tradition.
Other recording include:
<!--[if !supportLists]-->· <!--[endif]-->“Don’t Close the Door” recorded for King Jammy’s Label.
<!--[if !supportLists]-->· <!--[endif]-->“Bad Boys” recorded for Corner Stone Label.
<!--[if !supportLists]-->· <!--[endif]-->“Come Away” recorded for Freedom Sound Label.
<!--[if !supportLists]-->· <!--[endif]-->“Good Morning Mr. Officer” recorded for Razor Sound Label.
<!--[if !supportLists]-->· <!--[endif]-->“Raindrops keep falling” recorded for Razor Sound Label.
<!--[if !supportLists]-->· <!--[endif]-->“You’re No good” recorded for Roots Tradition Label.
<!--[if !supportLists]-->· <!--[endif]-->“It’s Raining” recorded for Junk Yard Records.
Fraser had performed on calendar events such as:
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<!--[endif]-->Sting (1999) – Kingston, Jamaica
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<!--[endif]-->Three the Hard Way (2001) – California, USA.
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<!--[endif]-->Legends of the Dancehall (2005) – New York, USA.
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<!--[endif]-->Father’s Day Extravaganza (2006) – New York, USA.
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<!--[endif]-->Legends of the Dancehall (2006) – Mississauga, CAN.
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<!--[endif]-->Dancehall Ram A Jam (2010) – New York, USA.
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<!--[endif]-->Sugar Minott Day (2011) – New York, USA.
Phillip Fraser has also done a recent
interview with United Reggae which can be found here http://unitedreggae.com/articles/n684/072611/interview-phillip-fraser
Phillip's small frame and gentle manner believe the power of
his voice, as you listen to him you can hear and feel the inspiration that guides him; as he will continue to bring the good
Reggae music that world has grown to love from him.
