Stony Hill Damian "Jr. Gong" Marley

• 1 Intro 01:38
• 2 Here We Go 04:44
• 3 Nail Pon Cross 03:25
• 4 R.O.A.R. 03:24
• 5 Medication 03:42
• 6 Time Travel 02:52
• 7 Living It Up 04:00
• 8 Looks Are Deceiving 04:38
• 9 The Struggle Discontinues 04:40
• 10 Autumn Leaves 05:05
• 11 Everybody Wants To Be Somebody 03:40
• 12 Upholstery 03:50
• 13 Grown & Sexy 04:05
• 14 Perfect Picture 05:21
• 15 So A Child May Follow 04:23
• 16 Slave Mill 04:48
• 17 Caution 03:58
• 18 Speak Life 05:06
• Total Runtime 01:13:19

Info for Stony Hill

Jr. Gong has returned, and here we go. It’s been over a decade since Damian Marley’s last solo record, Welcome to Jamrock (2005), was a worldwide hit. Marley’s put out some memorable music in the interim- namely, collaborations with Nas and Skrillex- but the full-length follow-up is finally here with Stony Hill. At a running length of 18 cuts clocking in at 75 minutes, essentially, this is a double-album, and a monster, at that.

After a short, spoken word intro, comes Here We Go, a pulsing opener that dovetails nicely into the single, Nail Pon Cross, invoking the Golden Rule among the many of its incisive and provocative comments about the actions of a judgmental mind. R.O.A.R. follows in form; assertive, even aggressive before the cannabis valentine, Medication (feat. Stephen Marley), that deals a firm rebuke of cocaine as it slips in a nod to “What a Wonderful World.” This is but prelude to a string of songs that will soon sit among Marley’s finest, with each showcasing its own unique quality, yet making up a mini-set of soon-to-be classics.

First-up is Time Travel, with Jr. Gong rattling off recent world history in a dizzying array of names and places, ceding to the party pick of the summer, Living It Up, whose velvet disco-soul balances struggle and success and the perils of each. On the duo of hardened reggae- Looks are Deceiving and The Struggle Discontinues- Marley’s impressive vocal range shows an understanding of structure and melody that repeatedly affect, not just infect, with hooks and turns that actually mean something substantial, and still lodge in the brain, just the same. There is even, perhaps, a passing melodic resemblance to father Bob’s Ambush in the Night on the latter.

The midpoint of Stony Hill transitions on the orchestral power ballad Autumn Leaves, that, again, demonstrates Marley’s depth as a singer, climbing in the chorus effortlessly from low to high. There are warnings, subtle and explicit, throughout the collection, as on the pursuit of fame on Everybody Wants to Be Somebody, and its swelling horn lines. A trio of tracks with South American subtleties are next in line, starting with the darting Latin-colored R&B of Upholstery, that features Bounty Killer scion Major Myjah, and the nylon-stringed guitar tinges in Grown and Sexy.

Marley gives a passing wink to brother Ziggy, namechecking his Lee and Molly within Perfect Picture, ironically also a song on Stephen’s 2016 outing, Revelation Part II; one of a trio of tracks Ragga makes an appearance. More acoustic guitar adorns the stripped-back, gather ‘round So A Child May Follow, offering encouragement for the future, only to be pulled back to present reality on Slave Mill. It’s a sharp commentary of the darkness of the evil institution set against percussive African rhythms. There is then the thumping Caution, before a final humbling prayer of Speak Life lowers the curtain on this magnificent effort.

There has been a long wait for this album, and given the triumph of its predecessor, one could forgive Marley for taking his time. Stony Hill not only marks the work of an artist that has, almost inconceivably, maintained the Jamrock momentum from a dozen years ago, but has reloaded with jet fuel along the way. This is set of songs that are as powerful as singles in the digital download age as they are within the complete thought of an album. In fact, it is as an album on which the scope and sensation must be experienced in sequence, from start to finish, in order to be fully appreciated. Let’s only hope that we don’t have to wait another 12 years for more from Jr. Gong.

Damian Robert Nesta Marley, vocals, guitar

Damian Robert Nesta Marley
also known around the world as “Junior Gong” and more recently as “Gongzilla” was born in 1978 to parents Bob Marley and Cindy Breakspeare, Miss World 1976. As a young adult, he developed a passion and a gift to speak for those who cannot always speak for themselves. A self-proclaimed ‘Spiritual Revolutionary’, Damian has worked assiduously to carve his own niche in music history and to add a new perspective to the Marley legacy for the 21st century.

At the age of 13, Damian began performing in a group called “The Shepherds” which comprised of Shiah Coore (son of Third World guitarist Cat Coore) and currently a member of his band, and Yashema Beth McGreggor, daughter of reggae singers Freddie Mcgreggor and Judy Mowatt and then began touring with his brothers, Stephen, Ky-Mani, Julian and Ziggy.

By 1996, Damian had already made his stamp as a different kind of Marley when he released his first solo album “Mr. Marley”, a heavily dancehall-influenced album produced by his brother Stephen Marley. His second album “Halfway Tree” was released in 2001 by a major record label and showcased Damian’s unique gift for blending dancehall, reggae and hip-hop styles. This album won Damian much recognition and remained on the Billboard Top Reggae Album Charts for 158 weeks and earned him his first Grammy for Best Reggae Album in 2002.

While honored by this recognition by the global music fraternity, Damian continued to work in the studio, laying the groundwork for the tracks that would become his highly anticipated album, “Welcome To Jamrock”. The lyrics in this album presented Marley as a true spiritual revolutionary, as he used his talent to evoke a spiritual change while trying to enforce a better way of thinking. He is described as “rhyming with the conviction of a street preacher with the intellect of a university economist”.

Damian’s hit single “Welcome to Jamrock” was listed as one of the Top 100 Songs of the Decade by Rolling Stone, and at the 2006 Grammy Awards, he won Best Reggae Album and Best Urban/Alternative Performance for Welcome to Jamrock. Damian is the only Jamaican reggae artist in history to win two Grammy Awards on the same night. He is also the only reggae artist to win in the Best Urban/Alternative Performance category at the Grammy Awards. The New York Times called Welcome to Jamrock the “best reggae song of the decade.”

Welcome to Jamrock led the pathway to Damian’s critically acclaimed collaboration with Nas for 2010’s much lauded album “Distant Relatives” – a project which explored the relationships between reggae, hip-hop and Africa. The album title refers not only to the bond between the artists, but the connection to their African ancestry, which inspired the album both musically and lyrically. USA Today referred to the album as a “potent and often provocative collaboration” and by Rolling Stone as “an Afrocentric winner.” The album debuted at Number 5 on the Billboard Top 200 Album Chart and Number 1 on the R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, Rap Albums and Reggae Albums charts, with Billboard heralding the album as “a dynamic hybrid.”

The Distant Relatives Tour kicked off in May 2011, and saw Damian traveling and performing for thousands of fans all over the world, including South America, Europe, The United Kingdom, The Caribbean and North America.

Damian continued to cross musical boundaries in 2012, as he went on to partner with Skrillex for their groundbreaking track “Make It Bun Dem”, which Rolling Stone called “a monster mash up of dubstep and dancehall” and has led to several remixes of the original version. Damian recently released two other singles; “Set Up Shop” and “Affairs of the Heart” which both received widespread airplay.

Damian continues to tour with his band all over the world as a way of entertaining and healing as he continues to spread the message for those whose voices cannot be heard. He is working with his brothers Stephen and Julian under their Ghetto Youths International Label, to discover, develop and sign gifted artistes by applying their musical talent and vast experience to create new and different styles of music.

This album contains no booklet.