Don’t diss the dance hall

“I’m gonna kill them with music. It’s my only weapon and I’ve got to use it.”

-Gregory Isaacs

Lyrical murder at the hands of beloved Jamaican Dub-singer Gregory Isaacs could quite possibly be the funkiest departure from this earth that a person could ever hope for. Bringing the sunny sounds of Kingston to Berbati’s Pan this coming Monday night, Isaacs and company are calling for a return to the roots-reggae tradition that inspired an entire generation of convivial musicians and agreeable slackers. Prepare to dance your face off.

Born in 1951, Gregory Isaacs has been a witness to just about every trend in reggae music that exists, from Desmond Dekker to Shabba Ranks and everything in between, but his trademark style has remained relatively consistent in spite of the fickle nature of the international music industry. Nicknamed the “Cool Ruler,” he is known for overlapping enthusiastically mellow vocal tracks and tasteful instrumentals called riddims. It’s a characteristic of many artists in the genre to be sure, but one he has done particularly well for longer than almost any of his contemporaries.

Isaacs recently made news for his part in the Bob Dylan reggae tribute album, Is It Rolling Bob? Along with fellow old-school reggae cats The Mighty Diamonds, Don Carlos (of Congos fame) and several others, Isaacs put together a surprisingly decent interpretation of Dylan’s famous song “Mr. Tambourine Man.” It’s a feel-good version, a gentle cover that might be worth shouting out as a belligerent request at Monday’s show.

Ostensibly, reggae music is fairly digestible. The beats are rarely over-syncopated, the guitar often predictable and the lyrical content not far beyond the reach of a junior-high English student. But the same could be said of punk, pop or anything else–and there are always exceptions to the rule.

A strange but undeniably virtuous aspect of the 1970s Jamaican reggae scene lies in its incestuous nature.

Like a giant avant-garde Rastafarian beehive, record producers and MCs were incredibly prolific and creative, if not entirely monogamous. Gregory Isaacs’ black book is a veritable “who’s who” of superstar engineers.

In his long career, he has recorded albums with Lee Perry, collaborated with beat-makers Sly & Robbie, and even put out a couple of records under the late reggae-soul champion Dennis Brown’s DEB label. Signed for a brief time to Richard Branson’s Virgin Records, they dropped him right before he put out his biggest hit of all time, 1982’s Night Nurse, which was released independently and considered by many to be his best piece of work.

No stranger to controversy, reggae musicians have a long, storied history of scandalous behavior. Not wanting to be shown up by Bob Marley’s 20-plus out-of-wedlock children, or Buju Banton’s violent homophobia (whose last concert was boycotted in Eugene), Gregory Isaacs spent time in jail in the early ’80s as a result of a drug conviction. But you can’t feel too bad for him-controversy goes with the territory.

In Oaxaca, Mexico (where I wrote this story), there are many reggae clubs. There is even a reggae-themed Internet cafe. These days, you can go see live reggae all over the world, even in Siberia, and it is an undeniable truth that this wonderful fact can be partially indebted to the music of Gregory Isaacs and his talented band. Other artists may have greater name recognition, but his longevity and experience culminate into the form of a legitimate, Dub-fueled musical gem. Jah would be proud.

Gregory IsaacsMonday, Feb. 29Berbati’s Pan$20 advance, $23 day of show21+