Genre: Reggae, Dancehall
Period: 1977-1980s
Region: Ontario
Truths and Rights band has a special place in Canadian reggae music history as one of the most talented and socially significant bands in Toronto during the late 70s and 80s. Founded in 1977 in Regent Park out of a Black community project called ImmiCan, the group was comprised of Caribbean musicians whose socially conscious songs about racism and climate change were front and centre in their music. The band quickly made a name for themselves with a broad cross section of fans from reggae to rock and enjoyed radio play from various stations including CBC.
Highlights of Truth & Rights’ career include opening for Dennis Brown and Third World at Varsity stadium on August 2nd 1981 and opening for English Beat at the Concert Hall. The group’s first recording, “Acid Rain” released in 1980, was written by the band founder Mojah along with JUNO Award winning poet, Lillian Allen and Ato Seitu, the band’s graphic artist and manager. The song was very urgent at the time, following Environment Canada’s announcement in October 1979, identifying “acidic precipitation as the problem of greatest concern.” The song “Acid Rain” won Q107 Radio’s Homegrown contest.
Truths and Rights followed up that single with another protest, “Metro’s Number 1 Problem”, which denounced Police actions with respect to Black community along with other racial tensions in Toronto. That song came on the heels of Albert Johnson’s death in an interaction with the police. Peter Goddard, Toronto Star’s music critic hailed Truths and Rights as Toronto’s “Band of the Year”. Truths and Rights toured across Ontario and Quebec becoming the top paid reggae band at the time. They worked with Olivia Grange, who managed several artists during that period. She later returned to Jamaica, becoming a successful politician and is currently the Minister of Sports, Culture, Entertainent and Gender Affairs in the Jamaican government.
Despite their popularity and social importance, Truths and Rights got signed to a major label and disbanded. Almost 40 years later, the band’s lost music was rediscovered and brought back to life by Jaff Holdip, the band’s sound engineer. The result: a digital album titled, Time For Us to Unite.
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The Canada Black Music Archives is a non-profit digital archive established as a division of Word Media Group Inc.
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