Culture lives on

Last Friday marked the fifth anniversary of roots legend Joseph Hill's death. The former lead singer and songwriter of the group, Culture, died at age 57 after collapsing in Germany.

The power of Hill's message continues to reach fans, mainly through reissued albums and his son Kenyatta, who has taken up his father's mantle since his death.

Kenyatta Hill's latest album, Live On: Tribute to Culture, was released in March digitally by Zojak Worldwide. It was produced by Dean Pond, who has worked with many reggae artistes going back to the late 1970s.

Live On contains Kenyatta Hill's interpretation of several of Culture's biggest hits including the immortal Two Sevens Clash and International Herbsman.

Kenyatta Hill was his father's sound engineer on tour. He only took up singing after his father's passing.

In a recent interview with The Quad-City Times, the younger Hill spoke about the unenviable task of filling his father's huge shoes.

"The fans are like, 'We hear Joseph'. But for me, I'm doing what my dad would have wanted me to do," he said.

Born in Linstead, St Catherine, Joseph Hill was a percussionist at Studio One, playing on hit songs like Freddie McKay's Hanging On The Wall before forming Culture in the mid-1970s.

The trio was a hit almost immediately with Jah Jah (See Them a Come) for producer Joe Gibbs.

In 1977, the group really struck it big with the powerful Two Sevens Clash, which warned of chaos on the day (July 7, 1977) the sevens clashed.