THIRD WORLD Stewart and Cooper Leave Band After Nearly 25 Years by Howard Campbell - Reggae Report Vol. 15#4 1997 The decision of co-founder and keyboardist Ibo Cooper and drummer Willie Stewart to leave Third World one year shy of the band's 25th anniversary is viewed as a sign that the group's final days are near. That's not how Stephen "Cat" Coore, the band's guitarist sees it. Coore, who formed the group with Cooper in 1973, shortly after the duo split with Inner Circle, savs Third World will live on with the injection of new blood. "We are looking for a fresh vibe," said the 41-year-old Cat, who will remain in the hand along with stalwarts, bassist Richic Daley, and vocalist Bunny Rugs. Cooper, who has in recent times tried his hand as a stand-up comic, was less upbeat in his assessment of the whole episode, saying long-standing differences led to the inevitable split. "It's something that's been going on for a long time," said Ibo. "One would have hoped Third World would have gone a bit longer, but such is life." The word split is not new to Third World. in the mid-'80s, percussionist Irwin "Carrot" Jarrett, one of the group's original members, was booted due to what one member described as "creative differences." Cat insisted that was not the case this time around, saying, "There is no ill-will on our part; Willie and lbo have decided to do something different." Both Cat and Cooper dismissed talk of the failure of the group's last studio albums as having any bearing on the parting of ways, though, Cat admitted that band members were disappointed with the response to "Live it Up", which was the first album released on their Third World label. "It didn't get a chance," said Cat. "We were trying to compete with the bigger labels and lost." Live it Up's failure to make a mark followed in the footsteps of other relatively weak Third World offerings. Previous efforts, like the album "Committed", which contained the hit "Forbidden Love," were panned bv critics, who charged that the band had abandoned their trademark Roots sound for Pop in an effort to break into the US market. Those observations were partially confirmed when the band broke from its contract with Polygram Records to concentrate on rebuilding the distinct sound on which it had made its name during the '70s and '80s. That sound, a fusion of Reggae, World Beat and Jazz, was a stark difference from the hardcore Reggae of the Marley-dominated '70s. Cooper and Coore are graduates of Jamaica College, one of Jamaicans leading schools. Both were founding members of Inner Circle, along with brothers Ian and Roger Lewis, but broke away after one album to form Third World. Third World's self-titled debut in 1974 fared well enough to catch the attention or Island Records' head man, Chris Blackwell, who signed the group to his London-based label in time for its second album, "Ninety-Six Degrees", which included the hit song of the same name. By that time, Rugs had replaced original vocalist Prillv Hamilton, and the group's lineup had the right gel to make its third album arguably their best ever. "Journcy to Addis" featured "Now That We've Found Love," a cover of an O'Jays hit that has come to be regarded as Third World's signature song. The album's success also inspired the group's entry into the film world with the documcntary-tvpe "Prisoners in the Streets". Although the group found a receptive audience in Europe and Asia, successe - as it has been with many Reggae acts - proved elusive in the United States. When the band parted ways with Island and moved onto Columbia, then onto Polygram, their music begin to take on a commercial feel. "A lot of those companies were trying to make us sound like a Rhythm and Blues group, and we are not that," Cat has said. "We are a world group." Cooper was just as keen to get away from major labels in light of the scant attention strong products such as "Forbidden Love" was given. "We want to do our own thing," he said at the time. The result was the direction-less "Live it Up", which is widely believed to be Third World's poorest effort, and one which many thought signaled the group's curtain call. Solo projects bv Rugs and Coore's recent "Uptown Rebel" seemed to support that notion. The announcenient of Cooper and Stewart's departure in March confirmed the rumors. Third World, with its new lineup, is expected to be making appearances soon. According to Cat, the new unit has some "really good ideas." Ibo, on the other hand, was not saying much about his future. "Where I go from here is left to be seen," was all he would say.