Artist: Messenjah, Album: Session, Song: Jam Session

"This is a jam session, rocking to the music and always rejoicing."  Messenjah were a reggae band from Kitchener, Ontario.  They were a six piece band that released their debut in 1982.  They were picked up by WEA following that initial release and followed it up with their major label debut in 1984 called, Session.  The  band had already done some touring in the U.S. and had developed quite a following in the state of California.  Perhaps that explains why the album was recorded in San Diego and not in Toronto (?).  The band landed the opening slot on the Clash's Combat Rock tour as a result of this release.  The lead off track on this album, is the infectious song, Jam Session.  It received some good radio play back in the day on alternative and college radio in Toronto and it was the first song that I ever heard from the band.  The band's bassist, Errol Blackwood, would leave before their next release in 1987.  The band continued on and has released six albums and are Juno winners.  They also appeared in the Tom Cruise film, Cocktail, in 1988.  Errol Blackwood is also a Juno nominee for his own work as a solo artist and you can purchase his music on Itunes.  The other founding member of the band, Rupert Ojiji Harvey, has also released albums as a solo artist.  Those are available at CDBaby.com.  Messenjah's work is a difficult find today.  Most of the albums are out of print and hard to find.  At the time of this blog, there was one copy for sale on Ebay for $10.  You can hear the song, Jam Session, on You Tube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NkyEWneDarg).  Thanks for reading and enjoy!