Toots Hibbert is one of the great voices of Jamaica -- a legend whose career spans every development in Jamaican music, from ska through rock-steady to reggae. Toots and the Maytals have helped chart the course of Jamaican music with unrivaled delivery and dynamism, setting new standards of excellence, and becoming the most enduring of all Jamaica's groups. Toots & the Maytals hold the current record of number one hits in Jamaica, with a total of thirty-one.
They will bring their Unplugged Acoustic Tour to The Ridgefield Playhouse on Tuesday, October 30, at 8 p.m. with special guest Anders Osborne. Osborne’s new release is Black Eye Galaxy with sounds that range from heavy electric mayhem to joyous acoustic melodicism. Between the sheer force and potent lyricism of his guitar playing, the riveting depth of his songwriting and the straight-from-the-soul conviction of his vocals, New Orleans’ Anders Osborne is among the most original and visionary musicians writing and performing today. Guitar Player called him, “The poet laureate of Louisiana’s fertile roots music scene”.
Described as “one of the true architects of Reggae”, Toots & the Maytals (initially just The Maytals) have been working together since the 1960s and are even credited with having coined the term reggae on their 1968 single Do The Reggae. The band won the 2005 Grammy ® award for best reggae album True Love, that includes re-recorded versions of their classics with legendary musicians such as Bonnie Raitt, Willie Nelson, Eric Clapton, and Keith Richards plus some of today’s most popular artists-- No Doubt, Ben Harper, The Roots, and Shaggy. Toots and the Maytals has made an impact on today’s global music scene with artists from Amy Winehouse to Sublime re-recording classic tracks. Toots received another Grammy® nomination for his 2008 release “Light Your Light". In recent years, he toured with The Rolling Stones, Dave Matthews, Sheryl Crow and Los Lonely Boys.
For tickets ($48), call or visit the box office at The Ridgefield Playhouse, (203) 438-5795, or order online at Ridgefieldplayhouse.org. The Ridgefield Playhouse is a not-for-profit performing arts center located at 80 East Ridge, parallel to Main Street, Ridgefield, CT.
