The Beat Volume 9 no. 6 1990 Bim Sherman: Sweet, Sharp and Unsung by Steve Hellig Sometimes there's no justice, even in reggae. The reputation (or rather lack of it) of Bim Sherman is a case in point. Even among reggae fans, he remains one of the more obscure and neglected veteran artists. With most of his recordings somewhat hard to find, and with live appearances even rarer, he has been all but invisible while other figures of less consistent quality and integrity gained fame. Nonetheless, a small but dedicated cadre of Sherman fans has developed over the years. And with good reason-his voice is one of the most distinct in reggae, and his choice of musicians and material consistently of the highest caliber. Little information is available about Sherman's life, although it can be surmised that he had his musical beginnings in Jamaica and continued in England in the 1980's. Judging from songwriting credits on his record label, his actual name is "J. Vincent." In England he became closely associated with Adrian Sherwood's ON-U Sound stable of artists, along with such other vocalists as Congo Ashanti Roy and Prince Far I. More recently he has been releasing music as a solo artist again. He's never had a "hit," even in the limited sense of the reggae charts. But over years of intermittent singles, albums and collaborations, Sherman has carved out a niche. At his best, Sherman's high voice (sometimes reminiscent of Gregory Issaacs') floats over deceptively uplifting rhythms, singing insinuating yet lilting lyrics of the pains of downpression and struggling, or the joys of love and-also- struggling. The following is a subjective yet hopefully comprehensive overview of Sherman's recording in roughly chronological order. Most of these records have recently become more available as imports from England or might be found in used record stores with good reggae stocks. Where indicated, any searching will be worth it. Solo Recordings: LOVERS'S LEAP (on both Revolver and RDL-U.K.). This seems to be a collection of six early (mid-1970s?) Jamaican recordings, with versions. It's solid reggae, with backing by the Roots Radics, but it lacks some of Sherman's unique stylings and is probably more suited for fans rather than those looking for a representative Sherman sampling. DANGER (Century - U.K.) Another collection of mid-late '70s cuts, this time backed by the Soul Syndicate or Gladiators bands. Some greatness here too, with Sherman's haunting sound firmly in place, sounding like nobody else in a variety of styles. ACROSS THE RED SEA (ON-U-U.K.) A 1982 Adrian Sherwood production and a very strong album, combining Sherman's light winging touch with hard rhythms and Sherwood's experimental touch at the controls. Recommended. CENTURY (Century). Bim Sherman's Motown album? Not quite, for this is very much reggae music, but with a smoothness and sweetness rarely found without a saccharine after taste in reggae. "Yes, We Will" steals the melody from the Supremes' "Someday We'll Be Together" and turns it into yearning for Zion; other tunes lean more toward romantic themes. Sweet backing vocals by someone called "The Voluntary." Quality, adventurous lovers rock. BIM SHERMAN MEETS HORACE ANDY AND U. BLACK IN A RUB-A-DUB STYLE (Jet Star or Original Music-U.K.) A loosely produced (by Jah Woosh, with Prince Jammy engineering), showcase-style album with one side of Sherman and full-length versions with some deejaying by Andy and U. Black on both sides. A strong spaced-out lp. HAUNTING GROUND (RDL). A mixture of late '80s Sherman and Sherwood productions. My favorite Sherman album with some wicked arrangements and, as the title indicates, haunting melodies. Excellent. EXPLOITATION (RDL). A new twist appears on this 1989 album - some hard-edged dance music mixed in with the roots riddims. Featuring Sly and Robbie on some cuts and the avant-funk Maffia gang on others, it all works. TOO HOT (RDL). This extended player is a 1990 release of five previously unavailable cuts (with versions), selected from a two-volume cd Crucial Cuts collection of Sherman gems. The cds might be the best way to get a sampling of his work with a wide range of musicians and material, including both his solo recordings listed above and the collaborations discussed below. Collaboratons: WAR OF WORDS, REVENGE OF THE UNDERDOG, STAGGERING HEIGHTS, LEAPS AND BOUNDS, and VACUUM PUMPING (all with Singers and Players on ON-U). These five albums span the '80s and are some of Sherwood's crowning achievements. Sherman sings at least a couple of tunes on each, and they are often high points even on these adventurous, yet deeply rootsy albums. My personal favorite is probably LEAPS AND BOUNDS. ON-U has recently compiled many Singers and Players cuts on two CLASSIC SELECTIONS cds. You can't go wrong with any of these. TUNES FROM THE MISSING CHANNEL, STRIKE THE BALANCE (both with Dub Syndicate on ON-U). More Sherwood productions, with Sherman providing one vocal on TUNES (the beautiful "Forever More") and a couple of less-interesting tracks on the latter. On the Dub Syndicate's 1989 CLASSIC SELECTION VOL 1 cd, Sherman appears on the excellent cut "Night Train," originally released on a 12" Italian single with another great cut "Dreamworld" (an alternate version of the latter is on the Singers and Players lp, VACUUM PUMPING). Other individual Sherman vocals appear on ON-U lps by the New Age Steppers and saxman Deadly Headly as well as a couple of earlier singles. Jah Shaka produced a Sherman cut titled "Happiness" on one Shaka lp, and Sherman has sung on a couple of non reggae songs with rock bassist Jah Wobble and Sherwood's artists, Fats Comet and Tackhead Sound System. My all-time favorite Sherman tune, however, appeared on an obscure compilation called BUGS ON THE WIRE (Skysaw- U.K.): The Sherwood-produced "The Need to Live" has one of the most haunting instrumental reggae arrangements ever, with a minimal but perfect Sherman vocal. I'd love to see a (very) extended mix of this one on a Sherman or ON-U lp. The Dub Productions: Sherman has also produced three dub albums in the last couple of years, including AFRICAN RUBBER DUB and GHETTO DUB (both on RDL). These feature rhythms selected from previous Sherman and ON-U albums, with deep bass, horns and those Sherwoodesque atmospherics that prove so addictive to many reggae listeners. Brand new is MATRIX DUB (Century), with tracks taken largely from EXPLOITATION. Like that vocal lp, this is harder -sounding but still melodic and uplifting dub with a technological edge. Of course, there's not much of Sherman's distinctive voice on these albums, but the dub is about as good as it gets. For those who may be looking to discover new pleasures in reggae, Bim Sherman is worth searching out.