Groundation
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Groundation | |
|---|---|
 Groundation performing at the 2006 Jamaican Reggae Festival in Kandel, Germany
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| Background information | |
| Origin | California, United States |
| Genre(s) | Reggae |
| Years active | 1998–present |
| Label(s) | Young Tree |
| Associated acts | Don Carlos Israel Vibration |
| Website | www.groundation.com |
| Members | |
| Harrison Stafford Marcus Urani Ryan Newman David "Diesel" Chachere Kelsey Howard Te Kanawa Haereiti Mingo Lewis Junior Kim Pommell Stephanie Wallace |
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| Former members | |
| Paul "Papa" Spina Jason Robinson James Stafford Shawna Anderson Adaria Armstrong Jeannine Guillory Ekua Impraim Kerry-Ann Morgan Ikesha Johnson Benjamin Krames |
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Groundation is an American roots reggae band with jazz and dub influences from Sonoma County in Northern California.
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[edit] History
The band was formed in the fall of 1998 by Harrison Stafford, Marcus Urani, and Ryan Newman. In 1999, Stafford teamed up with Kris Dilbeck to found Young Tree Records and release Groundation's debut album of the same name. In 2000 they added to the line up David Chachere, a San Francisco based jazz trumpeter, and Kelsey Howard, a North Bay trombone player. Saxophonist Jason Robinson was a member of the band for a time, and has since gone on to become the head of the jazz program at UC San Diego. Drummer Paul Spina (Les Claypool, Will Bernard’s Mother Bug) has been with the group since taking over for James Stafford in December 2001 ; he left the group in summer 2008.
Between 1999 and 2001, Harrison Stafford taught the first course on the History of Reggae Music at Sonoma State University.
[edit] Lineup
[edit] Members
- Harrison Stafford – vocals, guitar
- Marcus Urani – keyboards
- 'Iron' Ryan Newman – bass
- David "Diesel" Chachere – trumpet
- Kelsey Howard – trombone
- Te Kanawa Haereiti aka Rufus – drums (since summer 2008)
- Mingo Lewis Jr – congas, timbales, percussion (he took a break in 2007)
- Kim Pommell – chorus (since 2007)
- Stephanie Wallace – chorus (since late 2008)
[edit] Former members
- Paul Spina - drums (from December 2001 to July 2008)
- Jason Robinson - saxophone (on all albums but he's only occasionally on stage with the band during U.S. tours)
- James Stafford - drums (on the first two albums)
- Shawna Anderson - chorus (from 1999 to 2004)
- Adaria Armstrong - chorus (in 2004)
- Jeannine Guillory - chorus (in 2005)
- Ekua Impraim - chorus (in 2005)
- Kerry-Ann Morgan - chorus (from 2006 to august 2008.)
- Ikesha Johnson - chorus (in 2006)
- Benjamin Krames - congas, timbales, percussion (in 2007, during Mingo's break)
[edit] Discography
[edit] Studio albums
- 1999: Young Tree (Remastered in 2002)
- 2001: Each One Teach One
- 2002: Hebron Gate
- 2004: We Free Again
- 2005: Dub Wars
- 2006: Upon the Bridge
- 2008: Rockamovya (Groundation's three founding members project featuring Will Bernard and Leroy "Horsemouth" Wallace)
- 2009: Here I Am
[edit] Rockamovya - A Groundation side project
The three founding members of Groundation (Harrison Stafford, Marcus Urani and Ryan Newman) join forces with the legendary Jamaican drummer Leroy "Horsemouth" Wallace and the grammy nominated Jazz guitarist Will Bernard to form Rockamovya. The name comes from Leroy Horsemouth Wallace, Jamaican patios style and is meant to show the unity and power of the music. The sound is fresh and very different from the Groundation works, but it remains deeply rooted in Reggae and Jamaican popular music. The release has been scheduled for June 17, 2008.
---> Rockamovya's official website
[edit] External links
- Groundation official website
- Young Tree Records official website
- Groundation at MySpace
- Groundation album reviews at Reggae-Reviews.com
- Rockamovya official website
