Manager, son remember Tosh

Krista Henry, Staff Reporter

It was a large crowd that came out to celebrate musical hero Peter Tosh on the anniversary of his 67th birthday at the University of the West Indies.

The university hosted a symposium titled 'Peter Tosh - The Man, The Music, and The Message: Celebrating the Life and Legacy of a True Musical Icon' last Tuesday at the Undercroft with tributes from Mutabaruka, Copeland Forbes, Miguel Lorne and Dr Clinton Hutton.

The symposium opened with a tribute from Mutabaruka followed by the viewing of the documentary on Tosh called Peter Tosh Up Pan Top by Kereen Karim.

Speaking briefly to the audience, Karim talked about her interview with Tosh's mother at their home in Westmoreland.

According to her, the documentary wasn't something she set out to do but after seeing the footage from the interview she was compelled to work on.

Karim has spent three years working on the documentary and is still in the process of finishing. She said, "there's lots of literal messages that I want people to take away from it but it also has lots of metaphors."

The documentary showed Tosh's mother and father speaking about their son, his early life, career and death. Footage from across the island. Footage of Tosh was also included.

Great memories

After a student presentation on Tosh, Copeland, Tosh's manager, took to the podium, speaking extensively on his many experiences with the late reggae singer.

Forbes fondly recalled an experience with Tosh in Africa which later contributed to his work.

Musicologist, and lecturer in the Department of Government Dr Clinton Hutton gave an analysis of some of Tosh's songs.

It was Peter Tosh's son Andrew Tosh that closed the night right alongside the daughter of Bunny Wailer with a little music.

The two sang original numbers with Tosh speaking about the release of his latest album Legacy, a tribute to his father.

The album was released on iTunes in late September.