Judge Dread Rock Steady

by Dave Thompson One of Prince Buster's most enduring creations, the irascibly authoritarian Judge Dread would also prove his most controversial. Rude boy society was one of the staple themes of Jamaican music, the subject of records as disparate as Buster's "Johnny Cool," Desmond Dekker's "007 (Shanty Town)," "Lawless Street," summed up by journalist Johnny Copasetic as "Heartbreak Hotel" and "Desolation Row" in a nutshell"; and Derrick Morgan's "Rougher Than Rough (Rudies in Court)." "Judge Dread," however, saw them all brought to book. Up before the magistrate on the usual litany of rude boy charges -- looting, shooting and, strangely, mooning -- the rude boys sit through the opening remarks, then respond: "your honor...RUDIES DON'T CARE!" But that was before they encountered Judge Dread. "I am the rude boy now," he announces, "...and I DON'T CARE!" He then proceeds to live up to his own nickname (and the song's subtitle) of "Judge 400 Years" by sentencing everyone in sight to the most extended sentences he can think of. Appeals for clemency were rewarded with an extra century in jail; and behind his harsh pronouncements, the barristers glumly chorus, "you're rough, you're tough...."It was only a record, but the real-life rudies were stunned. They were the untouchables, above the law, beyond the law, and here was one of their own, the Prince himself, lyrically condemning them all to the slammer. Immediately, other artists leaped to the defense of the Judge's Victims, before Buster, astonished at the ludicrous uproar he'd created with one single, simple, song, agreed to continue the saga himself with a new release, promisingly titled "The Barrister."Few records, or actual legal verdicts, come to that, were so eagerly awaited. The results of the rudies' pending appeal dominated street corner conversation; the wiles and ways of the forthcoming barrister were conjectured in coffee bars; the imminent release of the 400 Year Four even made the radio news. But Buster had a surprise in store for everyone. Judge Dread wasn't about to be swayed by overwhelming public opinion. He jailed the barrister.Again, the uproar was tremendous; more so, perhaps, than even Buster could stand. Or maybe he was simply bored with the whole surreal affair. Either way, a few weeks later he brought out the final installment in the saga, in which the Judge has a change of heart, summons the foursome back into court, turns on a record player, and they all dance the pardon. "Judge Dread Dance (The Pardon)" became one of Buster's biggest hits yet. All three tracks appear on the Judge Dread album, together with the remarkable home-thoughts-from-abroad "Ghost Dance" and "Dark Street." Sadly, however, the rest of the album struggles to match those same standards, being largely comprised of the space-filling ballads and instrumentals with which Buster habitually padded out the breaks between his classic singles. But that handful of classics is enough to render Judge Dread Rock Steady one of Buster's best loved albums, and ensure that the Judge himself remains one of Jamaican music's most mythic icons.