Rudy Grant

"The Mexicano" redirects here. For other uses, see Mexicano.
Rudy Grant
Birth name Rudolph Grant
Born 1950s
Plaisance, Guyana (then a colony of the United Kingdom)
Genres Reggae, Soca
Occupation(s) Musician
Years active 1969–present
Labels Ice, Ensign, RAK

Rudy Grant, also known as Little Brother Grant and The Mexicano (born Rudolph Grant, Plaisance, Guyana), is a reggae deejay and singer.

Biography

Born in Guyana, Grant settled in the United Kingdom with his family in 1960.[1] His brother, Eddy Grant, was a member of The Equals in the late 1960s, and Rudolph also recorded in this era, as Little Brother Grant, releasing the single "Let's Do It Tonight".[1] In the 1970s, he recorded as a reggae deejay under the name The Mexicano, releasing singles such as "Gorilla in Manilla", and "Cut Throat".[1] Grant had his biggest success in 1978, with his Starsky & Hutch-inspired single "Move Up Starsky", on which he deejayed over Bob Marley's "I'm Still Waiting" rhythm.[1] The single topped the UK reggae chart, with an album of the same name following it, and inspired the less successful "Move Up Hutch" by Superstar.[1] Grant followed this with several other singles, including "Lover's Conversation", but none matched the success of "Move Up Starsky".

By 1981, Grant had abandoned the Mexicano alias and began recording as a singer under his own name, recording cover versions of songs including John Lennon's "Woman", and, most successfully Stevie Wonder's "Lately", with which he had a minor UK Singles Chart hit in February that year.[2] The single's success led to a contract with Stiff Records, although he failed to score any further hits.

Grant's 1987 single "Mash in Guyana" proved a major success in his country of birth, and has been described as "the unofficial anthem of Mashramani".[3] He wrote the song on a visit to Guyana in 1986 and recorded it at his brother Eddy's Coach House Studios on his return to London.[3] Grant performed the song at the Notting Hill Carnival and it went on to top the first soca chart in London, published by the Black Echoes music paper.[3]

In 2002, Grant's version of "Lately" was included on the Dynamite Reggae Classics album.[4]

Discography

Singles

As Little Brother Grant

As The Mexicano

 "Gimme Litle Loving" 1977 (Golden age records)

As Rudy Grant

Albums

The Mexicano

Rudy Grant

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Larkin, Colin (1998) The Virgin Encyclopedia of Reggae, Virgin Books, ISBN 0-7535-0242-9, p.195
  2. ↑ Rudy Grant, Chart Stats
  3. 1 2 3 "‘Mash in Guyana’ turns 20", Stabroek News, 20 January 2007
  4. ↑ Rutherford, Linda (2002) "Guyanese artiste, Rudy Grant, inks deal with Deca Dance UK", Guyana Chronicle, 21 July 2002
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