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Max Romeo was a great social commentator, railing against inequality and discord
The reggae singer best known for War Ina Babylon and Chase the Devil was most productive in the febrile political climate of 1970s Jamaica, but his influence remains undimmed
Max Romeo, who died on Friday aged 80 from complications related to a heart condition, was one of Jamaica’s most celebrated vocalists; critiquing the island’s pervasive class divides and wealth disparities with a distinctive tenor, he denounced punitive US foreign policy and detailed the turbulence of world affairs. Best known for War Ina Babylon, a playful commentary on the factionalism that blighted Jamaican society during the mid-1970s, and Chase the Devil, on which he vowed to banish Satan to outer space, Romeo enjoyed repeated chart success in Jamaica during his long and varied career. Photograph: Paul Natkin/Getty ImagesHis determined courtship of a local girl earned him the nickname Romeo and after the Emotions disbanded, he got his first taste of international fame through the ribald Wet Dream, produced by Bunny Lee, which hit the UK Top 10 in November 1969, despite a BBC ban for its suggestive lyrics.
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