Don Letts

Don Letts
Don Letts during his time with Big Audio Dynamite - San Francisco, 1987
Background information
Birth name	Don Letts
Born	(1956-01-10) 10 January 1956 London, England
Genres	Reggae Punk
Occupations	Disc jockey Film director
Years active	1975–present
Associated acts	1978 -Steel Leg v the Electric Dread 1984 - Big Audio Dynamite 1990 - Screaming Target
Website	Don's BBC6 show

Don Letts (born (1956-01-10)10 January 1956) is a British film director and musician. He is credited as the man who through his DJing at clubs such as The Roxy brought together punk and reggae music.

Biography

Letts was born in London, and educated at Tenison's School in Kennington. In 1975, Letts ran the trendy London clothing store Acme Attractions selling, "electric-blue zoot suits and jukeboxes, and pumping dub reggae all day long." Letts was deeply inspired by the music coming from his parents' homeland Jamaica, in particular Bob Marley. After seeing one of Marley's gigs at the Odeon in Hammersmith (June 1976) he was able to sneak into the hotel and spent the night talking to and befriending Marley. By the mid 1970s Acme had quite a scene attracting all the like of The Clash, The Sex Pistols, Chrissie Hynde, Patti Smith, Deborah Harry and Bob Marley.

Seeing the crowd at Acme, the then promoter Andy Czezowski started up the Roxy, a London nightclub during the original outbreak of punk in England, so that people could go from the store and have some place to party. As most bands of that era had yet to be recorded, there were limited punk rock records to be played. Instead, Letts included many dub and reggae records in his sets, and is credited with introducing those sounds to the London punk scene, which was to influence The Clash and other bands. As a tribute, he is pictured on the cover of the EP Black Market Clash and the compilation Super Black Market Clash. He was able to use the fame and money from DJing and the Acme story to make his first film, The Punk Rock Movie (1978).

Letts quit the retail business to manage the band, The Slits. He was able to get the Slits to open for The Clash during the White Riot tour. While on the White Riot tour he decided that management was not for him, but continued to shoot material for The Punk Rock Movie.

Letts went to Jamaica for the first time when, after the Sex Pistols broke up, Johnny Rotten decided to escape the media frenzy by going with Richard Branson to Jamaica. It was on this trip that Branson was inspired to start up Virgin's Frontline reggae record label.

“	I guess he thought that since I was black and Jamaican - well, sort of - he'd be in good hands. Little did he know that the closest I'd been to Jamaica was watching The Harder They Come at the Classic Cinema in Brixton.	”
	— Don Letts

Music

In 1978, Letts recorded an EP, Steel Leg v the Electric Dread, with Keith Levene, Jah Wobble, and Steel Leg. After Mick Jones was fired from The Clash, he and Letts founded Big Audio Dynamite in 1984. In 1990 Letts formed Screaming Target. As of 1 April 2009, Letts is presenting a weekly show on BBC Radio 6 Music.

Books

In 2006, he published his autobiography: Letts, Don; David Nobakht (2008). Culture Clash: Dread Meets Punk Rockers (3rd edition ed.). London: SAF Publishing. ISBN 0-946719-99-3. OCLC 181422771. 

Films

Since his first movie, The Punk Rock Movie, Letts has expanded to doing documentaries and music videos for multiple bands. In 1997, he travelled to Jamaica to direct, Dancehall Queen. While filming a history of punk in 2001, Letts was in New York when the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks occurred. His film Westway to the World won a Grammy Award in 2003.

Filmography (as director)

• Subculture (2012)
• Rock 'N' Roll Exposed: The Photography of Bob Gruen (2011)
• Strummerville (2010)
• Carnival! (2009)
• Soul Britannia* (2007)
• Rock It To Rio: Franz Ferdinand (2006)
• Tales of Dr. Funkenstein: George Clinton (2006)
• The Making of All Mod Cons: The Jam (2006)
• Brother From Another Planet: Sun Ra (2005)
• The Revolution Will Not Be Televised: Gil Scott-Heron (2005)
• The Right Spectacle: The Very Best of Elvis Costello - The Videos (2005) (V)
• Punk: Attitude (2005) (TV)
• Making of 'London Calling': The Last Testament (2004) (V)
• One Love (2003)
• The Essential Clash (2003) (V)
• The Pretenders: Greatest Hits (2000) (V) (video "Back on the Chain Gang")
• The Clash: Westway to the World (2000) (V)
• Dancehall Queen (1997)
• Dancing in the Streets:Planet Rock (1997) (TV)
• The Pretenders: The Singles (1988) (V) (video "Back on the Chain Gang")
• "Pass the Dutchie"* video for Musical Youth (1982)
• The Punk Rock Movie (1978)

External links

• Don Letts at the Internet Movie Database
• Don's Radio 6 Homepage
• Don Letts Homepage