Rest in Power, Nicky Dread.
We here at Royal Cat Records started listening to the great Nicky Dread’s reggae show “The Crooked Beat” on campus radio CFRU in the early 1980s! We are sorry to hear Nicky Dread passed away March 1st.
Born Nick Taylor in Guyana, Dread attended school in England before coming to Guelph for a wildlife management degree in 1977, and started at the station in 1979. His day job was working in data management but he will forever be remembered as one of the champions of reggae and Jamaican culture in Canada. Dread was on CFRU for 43 years, one of the longest continuous runs for a single dj in Canadian radio history. During that run he interviewed hundreds of musicians and cultural figures and promoted reggae shows locally and internationally. In the pre-digital days, he often hauled a carload of 20-or more crates of vinyl and cds to the station and to dj gigs, and he leaves behind a culturally significant collection of physical media (several thousand records, cds, and cassettes) and show archives. Nicky Dread was recognized around the world for his contributions and won the Peter Tosh Memorial Award at the 1997 Canadian Reggae Music Awards. Most recently, in 2019, Dread was honoured with the special event “40 Dread Years”, a concert and dance party with live performances by Guelph’s roots-Reggae band, Foundation Steppas and a who’s who of Canadian reggae royalty and djs.
According to Guelph musician Wayne Smythe, Dread’s passing was peaceful: “I was the last person from the Royal City to spend time with Nicky, on Monday night, and I can tell you that the lion heart and the spirit of the conquering lion was present in all its glory. He passed surrounded by love and family. With Reggae Music playing, food and celebrating with a taste of rum on his lips and a spliff in his pocket. Jah Rastafari. There will be no visitation but the family will be having a celebration of life with the community at large at a later date. Nicky Dread. Reggae Ambassador world wide. One of the largest Reggae Music Collection in the world. Second longest running Reggae radio show in the country. Juno winner and a beloved brethren, husband and father. Fire Man. So today all fires blazing and Reggae Music playing as we begin to celebrate the live of Nicky Dread. Rest in Peace my brother.”
You can read Nicky Dread’s history of Reggae, “The Loudest Island in the World”, here:
https://nickydread.tripod.com/history.html
You can listen to Nicky Dread’s last episode of “The Crooked Beat” for February 24 here:
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