Brinsley Forde
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Brinsley Forde | |
|---|---|
 Forde in 2009 | |
| Born | Brinsley Allan Forde 16 October 1953 |
| Years active | 1970–present |
| Musical career | |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar |
| Formerly of | Aswad |
Brinsley Forde MBE (born 16 October 1953) is a British singer and actor of Guyanese parentage who is best known as the founder member of the reggae band Aswad and as a child actor in the children's television series Here Come the Double Deckers! (1970–71).[1][2]
Biography[edit]
Acting[edit]
Forde appeared as Herman in two episodes of the television sitcom Please Sir!.[3] He appeared as Wesley in the feature film of the same name in 1971. Forde's feature film debut had come a year earlier when he played a substantial role in the John Boorman film Leo the Last (1970), which was filmed in West London in the streets soon to be demolished to make way for the Lancaster West Estate.[4] Forde appeared in the James Bond film Diamonds Are Forever and the television programme The Georgian House.[5][6] In 1980, he starred in the drama film Babylon (directed by Franco Rosso), as Blue, a disenfranchised youth who becomes a deejay on a South London reggae soundsystem.[7]
Music[edit]
Forde presented VH1 Soul Vibrations, BBC's Ebony & Ebony on the road, and was one of the radio presenters to open the BBC's first digital station 6 Music with his radio show Lively Up Yourself and Dub Bashment. Forde can be heard presenting the radio documentaries Behind The Smile: The Real Life of Bob Marley and Island Rock to mark the 40th anniversary of Jamaican independence.[8][9]
A two-time Grammy Award nominee with the reggae group Aswad, Forde scored a British number-one chart hit with "Don't Turn Around" in 1988, followed by another top 20 chart hit, "Give A Little Love". The band continued to feature in the top 20 on the British charts with the album Distant Thunder, and the tracks "On and On", "Next to You" and "Shine".[citation needed]
In September 2009, Forde appeared with Dizzee Rascal performing "Can't Tek No More" from the latter's album Tongue n' Cheek on the BBC Two show Later... with Jools Holland. Forde followed this up with a repeat performance as part of the BBC Electric Proms in October 2009.
Honours[edit]
Forde was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2015 New Year Honours for services to the arts.[10][11]
Filmography[edit]
Film[edit]
| Title | Role | Year(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Leo the Last | Bip | 1970 |
| Diamonds Are Forever | Joshua, houseboy | 1971 |
| Babylon | Blue | 1980 |
| Goodbye Charlie Bright | Floyd | 2001 |
Television[edit]
| Title | Role | Year(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Here Come the Double Deckers | Spring | 1970–1971 |
| Please Sir! | Wesley | 1971 |
| The Georgian House | Ngo, Slaveboy | 1976 |
Discography[edit]
Albums[edit]
| Year | Album |
|---|---|
| 1976 | Aswad |
| 1979 | Hulet |
| 1981 | New Chapter |
| Showcase | |
| 1982 | A New Chapter of Dub |
| Not Satisfied | |
| 1983 | Live and Direct |
| 1984 | Rebel Souls |
| 1986 | To the Top |
| 1988 | Jah Shaka Meets Aswad in Addis Ababa Studio |
| Renaissance – 20 Crucial Tracks | |
| Distant Thunder | |
| 1989 | Crucial Tracks (Best of Aswad) |
| 1990 | Too Wicked |
| Next to You | |
| 1993 | Firesticks |
| 1994 | Rise and Shine |
| 1995 | Greatest Hits |
| Dub: The Next Frontier | |
| Rise and Shine Again! | |
| 1997 | Big Up |
| Roots Rocking: Island Anthology | |
| 1999 | Roots Revival |
| 2001 | 25 Live: 25th Anniversary |
| 2002 | Cool Summer Reggae |
| 2009 | City Lock |
Singles[edit]
| Year | Single |
|---|---|
| 1984 | "Chasing for the Breeze" |
| "54-46 (Was My Number)" | |
| "Need Your Love" | |
| 1985 | "Bubbling" |
| 1986 | "Kool Noh" |
| "Pull Up" | |
| 1987 | "Hooked on You" |
| 1988 | "Don't Turn Around" |
| "Give a Little Love" | |
| "Set Them Free" | |
| 1989 | "Beauty's Only Skin Deep" |
| "On and On" | |
| 1990 | "Next to You" |
| "Smile" | |
| 1991 | "Best of My Love" |
| 1993 | "How Long" (with Yazz) |
| "Dancehall Mood" | |
| 1994 | "Shine" |
| "Warriors" | |
| "We Are One People" | |
| 1995 | "You're No Good" |
| "If I Was" | |
| 1997 | "One Shot Chilla" |
| "Roxanne" | |
| 1998 | "Invisible Sun" (with Sting) |
| 1999 | "Follow '99" |
| 2002 | "Shy Guy" |
References[edit]
- ^ Perry, Kediesha (20 March 2019). "Brinsley Forde finally sees Babylon". Jamaica Observer.
- ^ Snow, Mat (5 March 1991). "Q&A". Q Magazine. 55: 34.
- ^ "Brinsley Forde". aveleyman.com.
- ^ "Leo the Last (1970)". BFI. Archived from the original on 17 August 2016.
- ^ "Brinsley Forde". BFI. Archived from the original on 19 December 2017.
- ^ Marcus, Laurence. "The Georgian House". Television Heaven.
- ^ Fear, David (8 March 2019). "'Babylon' Rising: The Resurrection of a Controversial U.K. Reggae Movie". Rolling Stone.
- ^ "BBC Radio 6 Music – 6 Music Plays It Again, Bob Marley: Behind the Smile".
- ^ "Island Rock ? 40 Years of Jamaican Musical Independence: 3: Uptown Top Rankin'". BBC Genome. 26 June 2002. p. 130.
- ^ "No. 61092". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 December 2014. p. N19.
- ^ "2015 New Year Honours List" (PDF). Gov.uk. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
External links[edit]
- Brinsley Forde at IMDb
- Brinsley Forde discography at Discogs
- Behind the Smile: The Real Life of Bob Marley at BBC's Radio 2.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
- 1953 births
- Living people
- 20th-century Black British male singers
- English male child actors
- English male film actors
- English male guitarists
- English male television actors
- English people of Guyanese descent
- English pop guitarists
- English Rastafarians
- English reggae musicians
- Members of the Order of the British Empire
- Military personnel from London
- People from Islington (district)
- Actors from the London Borough of Islington
- Singers from London
- British reggae singers