Biography of Judge Dread

A mutant hybrid of toaster and stand-up comic, Judge Dread drew equal influence from ska and musichall to become one of the most popular reggae artists of the 1970s; only Bob Marley and the Wailers charted more genre hits throughout the decade, an accomplishment made all the more remarkable given that Dread was in fact a white Englishman whose raunchy lyrics made radio airplay an impossibility. Born Alex Hughes in Kent, he fell in love with Jamaican music at the age of 16, lodging at a West Indian house in the Brixton area. An enormous man, Dread's size seemingly dictated all of his early career choices, which included stints as a debt collector, a stripclub bouncer and a security guard -- he was even briefly employed as a minder for the Rolling Stones.Inspired by London DJ appearances by legendary producers including Duke Reid and Coxsone Dodd, Dread adopted his stage name, set up his own sound system, and even began speaking in a Jamaican patois; to keep one step ahead of his rivals, he also traveled once a month to meet the banana boats as they docked, buying the latest reggae records long before they reached British retail outlets. In 1972 he cut his debut record "Big Six," a response to Buster's obscene hit "Big 5; " despite a ban from the BBC and Top of the Pops prompted by Dread's own lascivious lyrics, the record -- produced at a cost of only £6 -- was an underground smash, ultimately rising to number 13 on the British pop charts. Each of his increasingly lewd follow-ups, including "Big Seven" and "Big Eight," performed more successfully than the record before it; finally, after "Big Ten," he retired the theme once and for all.Dread's next hit was a reggae cover of Serge Gainsbourg's infamous "Je T'aime . . . Moi Non Plus," which like the original was banned by the BBC. "Up with the Cock" and "Y Viva Suspenders" followed, but by 1976 -- after a string of a dozen hits -- the harder-edged roots reggae sound began surging in popularity, leaving Dread's novelty appeal in the dust. While the chart hits dried up, he continued performing on a regular basis, and for a time worked as a newspaper columnist in the village of Snoodland. After a long absence from the spotight, in 1995 Dread made headlines when he attempted to sue producers of the Sylvester Stallone vehicle Judge Dredd, claiming that audience confusion over the picture was destroying his reputation. While performing with his backing band the Originals in Canterbury on Friday, March 13, 1998, Dread suffered a fatal heart attack onstage; he was 53. ~ Jason Ankeny-