Hugh Mundell is a teenage prodigy who makes one of the greatest reggae roots records of the “golden age of reggae” at the age of 16. “Africa Must Be Free” is produced by Augustus Pablo. Mundell writes all the tunes, thereby earning himself the nickname of “The Blessed Youth.”
Introduced to reggae by his neighbour, Boris Gardiner Mundell records his first session at the age of 13, and at the time of his death in 1983 had produced 5 LPs and numerous singles.
What seems likely to be one of the brilliant careers in reggae is cut short when Mundell is shot to death in a car while travelling with Junior Reid. Accounts of the incident are muddled, with some accounts reporting that it is over an argument about a refrigerator. Others assert that it is in revenge for a burglary, while others still say that it is over a woman. Whatever the reason, his death robs the world of a brilliant star in the making. He is 21 years old.
The included video footage is one of those rare beautiful moments in the history of Jamaican roots music. We find Augustus Pablo and a young Hugh Mundell meditating and reasoning in the hills. The highlight of this video is a rare acoustic performance which I won’t even try to describe with words.
THE DEATH OF HUGH MUNDELL
LEGENDARY REGGAE 