A little knowledge of your history\u2014whether current or past\u2014goes a long way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Michael Franti<\/strong> had been politically active long before most Spearhead fans had reached puberty. As the frontman of the Beatnigs<\/strong>, San Francisco\u2019s answer to Gil Scott Heron<\/strong> on biker swimming-pool chemicals, this onetime Davis resident made considerable headway in bringing politics into music without dulling the content.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After the \u2019Nigs demise came the Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy<\/strong>, whose first and only disc for the one-time, independentally distributed Island Records subsidiary label 4th & B\u2019Way neglected to dent the pop charts. However, the record got favorable press notices and landed the Heroes\u2014which included Franti, Rono Tse<\/strong> and guitarist extraordinaire\/future jazz star Charlie Hunter<\/strong>\u2014a national tour with Public Enemy<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, it wasn\u2019t until Spearhead<\/strong>\u2014a durable blend of hip-hop, reggae, soca and other world musics\u2014that Franti finally became an activist who could sell records.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A recent Sunday show at Harlow\u2019s turned out to be a gosh-darned swell homecoming for Spearhead, as the group parlayed that anticipation into a sweaty set that kept the 300-plus in attendance on their feet. Hot on the heels of Stay Human<\/em>, Spearhead\u2019s latest album on the San Francisco boutique label Six Degrees, the band\u2019s performance was incendiary, and its 6-foot-7 frontman rocked the mic like no other. Even Franti\u2019s a cappella raps on this particular evening salted any underground rappers\u2019 material.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What makes Spearhead different from the typical reggae act, with its reverence to Jah and the Almighty I-and-I, are Franti\u2019s lyrics, which seem derived largely from current events and his interpretation of them. Franti has rewritten the way reggae music should be played, and his band helps him deviate even further\u2014with upbeat jams, jazzy breakdowns and hip-hop inflections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Fans of Canada\u2019s late, lamented Messenjah<\/strong>, Inner Circle<\/strong> or Bob Marley<\/strong>\u2019s latter years should investigate Spearhead\u2019s catalog and, most important, see the band live. If you\u2019re looking for intelligence and grace within a reggae context, any of these fine artists will do. Fortunately, Spearhead actively tours and promotes its albums, and local promoter Renegade Productions<\/strong>\u2019 Robby<\/strong> and Kaati<\/strong> always find a way to bring them to the area. Don\u2019t miss \u2019em next time, OK?<\/p>\n\n\n\n