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General Levy

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

General Levy, in full Paul Scott Levy, is an English raggamuffin deejay, born on 28 April 1971 in Park Royal in London. He has Trinidadian roots. He grew up in Harlesden and Wembley, in north-west London, and fell under the spell of dancehall there. He collected dancehall cassettes and performed at sound systems such as Java and Tippertone Sound. His first major releases came on the independent label Fashion Records, which struck a distribution deal with London Records for the reissues.

Music and breakthrough

His best-known song is Incredible, which he recorded with M-Beat. A remixed version reached number eight in the UK chart in 1994. The song was heard in the film Ali G Indahouse and in a TV campaign for Honda. His albums include Double Trouble from 1991, The Wickeder General from 1992 and Wickedness Increase from 1993. He also worked with Suggs of Madness and with the dub producer Joe Ariwa, and he can be heard on Only God Can Judge Me by Mark Morrison.

Influence

General Levy sings and toasts in a fast, sharp style above heavy basslines, and is often hired by drum and bass DJs for studio tracks. He belongs to the generation of British deejays who brought dancehall and ragga together with jungle and drum and bass. Incredible is one of the best-known examples of this, and shows how London club music in the 1990s combined reggae language, fast breakbeats and pop.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to Incredible and notice the fast, rattling toasting above a driving breakbeat. Which words or sounds stay with you, and how heavy does the bass sound underneath?

Discography

Studio albums

Categories: ArtistsJungle and drum and bass