Steel Pulse -

Steel Pulse are an English roots-reggae band from Birmingham that released the 1978–80 Island albums Handsworth Revolution, Tribute to the Martyrs, and Caught You, scoring UK hits with “Ku Klux Klan,” “Prodigal Son,” and “Sound System.” Their 1982–83 Wise Man Doctrine albums True Democracy and Earth Crisis made further headway with “Ravers” and “Steppin’ Out,” followed by the international major-label releases Babylon the Bandit and State of Emergency.

Members: David Hinds (lead vocals, guitar), Basil Gabbidon (lead guitar, vocals), Ronnie McQueen (bass), Fonso Martin (vocals, percussion), Michael Riley (vocals), Selwyn “Bumbo” Brown (keyboards), Steve “Grizzly” Nesbitt (drums)

Background

Steel Pulse formed in 1975 in Handsworth, Birmingham, after singing guitarists David Hinds and Basil Gabbidon pulled bassist Ronnie “Stepper” McQueen into a schoolmate reggae group.

Hinds was born on June 15, 1956, in Handsworth to Jamaican parents who settled in Britain during the mid-fifties. Gabbidon was born Basil Glendon Gabbidon on October 29, 1955, in Buff Bay, Jamaica. His brother, Colin Gabbidon, preceded drummer Steve “Grizzly” Nisbett in the first lineup. Mykaell Riley added voice and percussion during the first stage; keyboardist Selwyn “Bumbo” Brown and percussionist Alphonso Martin completed the debut-album lineup.

Steel Pulse cut the McQueen original “Kibudu, Mansatta and Abuku” in early 1976 for Dip Records, backed with the instrumental “Mansastta.” In September 1977, they cut the Hinds sides “Nyah Luv” (b/w “Luv Nyah”) for Tempus, a London-based reggae label. “Nyah Luv” reappeared the following month on Anchor, a pre-wave label distributed by ABC.

Some venues within Birmingham’s Caribbean community declined to book Steel Pulse because of the group’s Rastafarian beliefs. The band found early dates at punk venues, including the Hope and Anchor in London and the Electric Circus in Manchester. On October 26, 1977, they opened for Jamaican star Burning Spear at the Rainbow Theatre in London along with fellow British rastas Aswad.

Steel Pulse impressed representatives of Spears’ label, Island, which issued their February 1978 third single “Ku Klux Klan,” a Hinds original recorded with Ultravox producer Steve Lillywhite. On April 30, Steel Pulse joined The Clash, Tom Robinson Band, X-Ray Spex, and punk poet Patrik Fitzgerald at the Rock Against Racism/Anti-Nazi League Carnival in Victoria Park, East London.

Handsworth Revolution

Steel Pulse released their debut album, Handsworth Revolution, in July 1978 on Island.

Handsworth Revolution contains eight Steel Pulse originals, with solo credits for “Ku Klux Klan” and “Sound Check.” The seven-piece band works through layered group voices, offbeat guitar strokes, organ traces, and lyric focus on Handsworth, police power, racial violence, repatriation, and Rastafari.

“Handsworth Revolution” rolls from layered percussion into a dark skank, with rattling effects around Hinds’s rasped declarations and whispered replies about Midlands hardships. “Bad Man” tightens repeated phrases into a mounting dread, while percussive accents break across the arrangement. “Soldiers” treads a dry beat under acoustic-guitar figures and Hinds’s account of sustained Black resistance. “Sound Check” drifts through dub space, with faint harmonica touches and a sharp guitar figure punctuating the mix.

“Prodigal Son” eases through light keyboard figures that suggest clavinet and flute timbres as Hinds weighs African return against British identity. “Ku Klux Klan” darkens beneath atmospheric synthesizers before sudden guitar feedback cuts through the solo passage. “Prediction” floats flamenco-styled guitar flourishes through echo and dub treatments. “Macka Splaff” loosens into comic band introductions and repeated ganja chants over an extended rhythm bed.

A1. “Handsworth Revolution” (5:23)
A2. “Bad Man” (5:39) – Gabbidon–Hinds–Nisbett
A3. “Soldiers” (4:40)
A4. “Sound Check” (3:30) – Nisbett

B1. “Prodigal Son” (5:10)
B2. “Ku Klux Klan” (3:44) – Hinds
B3. “Prediction” (5:25)
B4. “Macka Splaff” (4:20)

Sessions occurred during 1977 with producer Karl Pitterson and engineer Godwin Logie. Pitterson came to Steel Pulse after Jamaican production and engineering credits behind Peter Tosh, Bunny Wailer, Bob Marley & The Wailers, and Rico Rodriguez.

Handsworth Revolution appeared in a gatefold sleeve with the Steel Pulse logo by Martin Fuller and cover illustration by Andrew Aloof from a Basil Gabbidon concept passed through Bloomfield/Travis. The cover shows vegetation and earth forms around a built landscape under a red Steel Pulse nameplate.

“Ku Klux Klan” appeared in advance with a dub version and reached No. 41 on the UK Singles Chart. “Prodigal Son” followed in June (b/w “Prodigal Son (Dub)”) and reached No. 35, buoyed by a July 6 in-studio appearance on Top of the Pops. Island lifted “Prediction” as an October 1978 single (b/w “Revolution Dub (Take 1)”).

Handsworth Revolution reached No. 9 on the Official Albums Chart and No. 34 on the Swedish Albums Chart.

Tribute to the Martyrs

Steel Pulse released their second album, Tribute to the Martyrs, in July 1979 on Island.

Tribute to the Martyrs contains seven Hinds originals and the Brown contribution “Babylon Makes the Rules.” Riley left Steel Pulse before the sessions. The album features brass by saxophonist Godfrey Maduro, trombonist Rico Rodriguez, and ex-Trifle flugelhorn/cornetist Dick Cuthell.

“Unseen Guest” spins over undulating keyboard figures while Hinds traces a condemned prisoner’s cell vision. “Sound System” bristles as a dance piece with defiant sung force. “Jah Pickney — R.A.R.” bubbles on a percolating keyboard part and a lifted sung phrase. “Tribute to the Martyrs” edges through crosscut guitar lines, then breaks into a roll-call rap.

“Babylon Makes the Rules” surges with horns and exalted call-and-response. “Uncle George” darkens around percussive synthesizer, reverberating gongs, and short plangent lead figures. “Biko’s Kindred Lament” traces Steve Biko’s murder in a grave sung account. “Blasphemy” rises, falls, and rises through its rhythmic pattern as Hinds sets sacred argument inside devotional dance.

A1. “Unseen Guest” (6:04)
A2. “Sound System” (3:24)
A3. “Jah Pickney – R.A.R.” (4:33)
A4. “Tribute to the Martyrs” (6:46)

B1. “Babylon Makes the Rules” (4:48)
B2. “Uncle George” (4:42)
B3. “Biko’s Kindred Lament” (5:31)
B4. “Blasphemy” (6:52)

Steel Pulse recorded Tribute to the Martyrs with Pitterson as producer and Logie as engineer. Pitterson and Logie continued the production link from Handsworth Revolution. John Dent mastered the album at Trident Studios. Rodriguez and Cuthell worked concurrently as Specials auxiliaries.

Tribute to the Martyrs appeared in a sleeve designed by Bloomfield/Travis with illustration by Jene Hawkins. The cover shows a composite martyr image beneath a red Steel Pulse nameplate.

Island lifted “Sound System” as a May 4, 1979 single (b/w “Crampars Style”), which reached No. 71 on the Official Singles Chart. Tribute to the Martyrs reached No. 42 on the Official Albums Chart and No. 36 on the Swedish Albums Chart.

Caught You

Steel Pulse released their third album, Caught You, in 1980 on Island.

Caught You contains eight Hinds originals, the Martin title “Shining,” and the Gabbidon title “Higher Than High.” The album marks the final Island studio LP by Steel Pulse. Godfrey Maduro returns on saxophone after the brass role on Tribute to the Martyrs.

“Drug Squad” swings through jazz-tinted band turns and a loose skank stride. “Shining” lilts through lighter rhythm motion and a smoother sung lift. “Heart of Stone (Chant Them)” lingers in dubwise space, with chant phrases left for echo and extension.

“Rumours (Not True)” glides through a lighter skank under its romantic suspicion text. “Caught You Dancing” skanks through dance-leaning courtship material. “Harassment” and “Nyahbinghi Voyage” retain the message pressure of earlier Steel Pulse material, but the source detail does not support fuller musical description.

A1. “Drug Squad” (3:53)
A2. “Harassment” (4:18)
A3. “Reggae Fever” (3:26)
A4. “Shining” (3:55)
A5. “Heart of Stone (Chant Them)” (5:00)

B1. “Rumours (Not True)” (3:52)
B2. “Caught You Dancing” (3:25)
B3. “Burning Flame” (3:09)
B4. “Higher Than High” (3:18)
B5. “Nyahbinghi Voyage” (5:00)

Steel Pulse recorded Caught You at Rockfield Studios in Monmouth, Wales. Geoffrey Chung produced and mixed the album apart from “Reggae Fever,” a Del Newman production. Logie engineered and mixed the sessions with assistant engineer Stuart Henderson.

Caught You appeared in a sleeve designed by Island illustrator Bruno Tilley, credited on subsequent covers for Black Uhuru and Linton Kwesi Johnson. Mango issued the album in the United States as Reggae Fever.

Ahead of Caught You, Steel Pulse released the March 1980 non-album single “Don’t Give In,” a Hinds original co-produced by Newman and Island head Chris Blackwell (b/w “Don’t”). Island promoted the album release with the mid-May single “Caught You Dancing” (b/w “Caught”).

In 1981, Steel Pulse appeared with a live clip of “Ku Klux Klan” in Urgh! A Music War, a multi-artist new wave concert film and video with numbers by UB40, The Police, XTC, Wall of Voodoo, Toyah, Oingo Boingo, Klaus Nomi, Au Pairs, Gang of Four, Pere Ubu, Skafish, Gary Numan, Athletico Spizz 80, Echo & the Bunnymen, and Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark.

True Democracy

Steel Pulse released their fourth album, True Democracy, on March 1, 1982, on Wise Man Doctrine.

True Democracy carries the first Wise Man Doctrine LP credit after the Island contract. The album contains nine Hinds originals and the Martin dub “Dub Marcus Say.” Steel Pulse retained the debut-era sextet for the final album by Gabbidon and McQueen.

“Chant a Psalm” chants in an exalted rise, with Hinds’s prayer text set for broad concert carry. “Ravers” skanks through choral harmonies that give the song its own sung identity. “A Who Responsible?” darkens on a dour trombone line as Hinds calls judgment on Babylon.

“Leggo Beast” strips the one-drop to a lean moral warning on adultery. “Blues Dance Raid” cuts uptempo through sharp observation and urgent street detail. “Your House” glides as a love song, with keyboard figures bouncing off the beat before guitar effects cascade from a spare riff. “Man No Sober” lopes through a temperance warning with plain judgment in the sung address.

A1. “Chant a Psalm” (4:30)
A2. “Ravers” (3:56)
A3. “Find It…Quick!” (3:26)
A4. “A Who Responsible?” (3:54)
A5. “Worth His Weight in Gold (Rally Round)” (4:35)

B1. “Leggo Beast” (3:44)
B2. “Blues Dance Raid” (4:53)
B3. “Your House” (3:42)
B4. “Man No Sober” (4:29)
B5. “Dub Marcus Say” (4:41)

Sessions occurred during 1981 at Feedback Studios in Aarhus, Denmark, with producer Pitterson and engineers Ole Lauritsen and Dennis Thompson. Steel Pulse cut five New York demos with Pitterson before a Danish label opened Feedback Studios for the album sessions.

True Democracy carries a Steel Pulse cover concept with art direction by Ron Coro, design by Kathy Morphesis, and photography by Eric Watson. The cover shows Hinds reading to the group in a staged interior setting.

Wise Man Doctrine lifted “Ravers” as an April 1982 single (b/w “‘More Dub’ Marcus Say”). Elektra handled United States distribution, where True Democracy reached No. 120 on the Billboard 200 album chart. The album also reached No. 14 on the Record Business Independent Albums chart.

Earth Crisis

Steel Pulse released their fifth album, Earth Crisis, in January 1984 on Wise Man Doctrine.

Earth Crisis features Jimmy Haynes as producer, arranger, bassist, and lead guitarist after Gabbidon left Steel Pulse. Hinds and James C. Bracken co-wrote “Steppin’ Out,” and Hinds composed the remaining seven titles. Carl Atkins adds a saxophone solo to “Throne of Gold.”

“Steppin’ Out” steps into a bright opener, with a polished surface that softens the cover’s crisis imagery. “Tightrope” leans into unease through Hinds’s poverty text. “Throne of Gold” smooths the love-song setting with saxophone and synthetic gloss. “Roller Skates” brightens a stolen-radio lyric through a steady, sunlit skank.

“Earth Crisis” circles social alarm through a polished horn-and-synthesizer surface. “Grab Education” stretches a social-instruction text across the album’s extended second-side manner. “Wild Goose Chase” lectures against technological interference while the arrangement holds a long, stern skank.

A1. “Steppin’ Out” (4:02)
A2. “Tightrope” (4:10)
A3. “Throne of Gold” (4:25)
A4. “Roller Skates” (4:54)

B1. “Earth Crisis” (4:55)
B2. “Bodyguard” (4:26)
B3. “Grab Education” (6:12)
B4. “Wild Goose Chase” (5:40)

Steel Pulse recorded Earth Crisis at Jacobs Studios in Farnham and Horizon Studios in Coventry with Haynes as co-producer. NWOBHM soundman Dave Lester engineered the sessions in sequence with titles by Quartz and Witchfinder General.

Neville Garrick directed the sleeve design, with photography by Colin Brooks and Jimmy Ellis. The cover assembles images of Ronald Reagan, Yuri Andropov, Pope John Paul II, famine, nuclear conflict, and Klan violence.

Wise Man Doctrine lifted “Steppin’ Out” as a March 1984 single (b/w “Body Guard”). The single received a Grammy nomination in the reggae category at the 1985 ceremony. Earth Crisis reached No. 154 on the Billboard 200 album chart and No. 34 on the Dutch Albums Chart.

Babylon the Bandit

Steel Pulse released their sixth album, Babylon the Bandit, in 1985 on Elektra.

Babylon the Bandit contains eight Hinds originals and the Brown contribution “Don’t Be Afraid.” The album replaces the Gabbidon–McQueen guitar–bass axis with lead guitarist Carlton Bryan and bassist Alvin Ewen. Keyboardist Errol Reid and programmer Ian Ritchie expand the credit field around the Hinds–Brown–Martin–Nisbett core.

“Not King James Version” warns through an electronic skank as Hinds rejects Babylon’s scripture tradition. “School Boy’s Crush” glides into dance-leaning romance with the album’s polished machine surface. “Sugar Daddy” lectures through a finger-wagging address.

“Love Walks Out” smooths the romantic side of the album into a calm electronic glide. “Don’t Be Afraid” reassures in Selwyn Brown’s sweet sung manner. “Babylon the Bandit” strides through political-religious accusation, with fairlight-era sheen and guitar pressure folded into the skank.

A1. “Save Black Music” (4:17)
A2. “Not King James Version” (4:13)
A3. “School Boy’s Crush (Jail Bait)” (4:18)
A4. “Sugar Daddy” (4:35)
A5. “Kick That Habit (Cold Turkey)” (3:42)

B1. “Blessed Is the Man” (4:25)
B2. “Love Walks Out” (4:26)
B3. “Don’t Be Afraid” (4:56)
B4. “Babylon the Bandit” (5:08)

Jimmy “Senyah” Haynes produced and arranged Babylon the Bandit with engineers Dennis Thompson and Mark “Spike” Stent.

Carl Atkins designed the sleeve, and Carol Bobolts supplied illustration. The cover places the title character on an illustrated urban street under a yellow Steel Pulse nameplate.

Elektra lifted “Love Walks Out” as a 1985 single (b/w “Kick the Habit (Cold Turkey)”). Babylon the Bandit reached No. 35 on the New Zealand Albums Chart. The Recording Academy awarded the album Best Reggae Album at the 1987 Grammy Awards.

State of Emergency

Steel Pulse released their seventh album, State of Emergency, in June 1988 on MCA.

State of Emergency contains seven Hinds originals, two Brown titles, and the Martin title “Reaching Out.” The recorded band includes bassist Alvin Ewen, guitarist Derrick Johnson, keyboardist Errol Reid, and drummer Nisbett. Carl Atkins handles synthesizer programming and sequencing; Tyrone Downie supplies sampling.

“Steal a Kiss” flashes with guitar leads inside the album’s hi-tech production. “Hijacking” jitters through a blunt alarm text under shrill synthesizer cover. “P.U.S.H.” chants its acronym between peace entreaties. “Said You Was an Angel” sways through one of the album’s more coherent rhythm patterns and melodic phrases.

A1. “State of Emergency” (4:32)
A2. “Dead End Circuit” (4:48)
A3. “Steal a Kiss” (4:20)
A4. “Hijacking” (4:29)
A5. “P.U.S.H.” (4:44)

B1. “Love This Reggae Music” (4:22)
B2. “Said You Was an Angel” (3:57)
B3. “Reaching Out” (5:32)
B4. “Melting Pot” (4:25)
B5. “Disco Drop Out” (3:50)

Steel Pulse recorded State of Emergency in England with producers Steel Pulse and Godwin Logie. Russell Leahy engineered the album with assistant engineers Peter Hullah and Simon Osborne.

The sleeve carries photography by Richard Haughton. Timmy Regisford remixed “Reaching Out,” and Jose Rodriguez mastered the remix at Sterling Sound.

MCA lifted “Reaching Out” as a 1988 single (b/w “Reaching Out”). Videos accompanied “Reaching Out” and “Said You Was an Angel.” State of Emergency reached No. 177 on the Billboard 200 album chart.

Discography: