Rockers: The Making of Reggae's Most Iconic Film

Rockers: The Making of Reggae's Most Iconic Film

Rockers: The Making of Reggae's Most Iconic Film

Rockers: The Making of Reggae's Most Iconic Film

Hardcover

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Overview

"An incredible reggae backstory; illustrated by spectacular unseen images." - MOJO Magazine

Set amongst the reggae scene of late 70s Jamaica, the film Rockers achieved instant cult status among music and cinema fans. Rockers’ director, Ted Bafaloukos has received many accolades for his work on the film, but the fact that he was also a fine writer and undercover photographer is often overlooked. Bafaloukos penned this vivid autobiography in 2005 and passed in 2016.

Beyond Bafaloukos’ fascinating story of the “making-of” Rockers, it tells the tale of a Greek immigrant from a family of sailors and his move to New York, eventually rubbing shoulders with the likes of The Velvet Underground, Robert Frank, Jessica Lange and Philippe "Man on Wire" Petit. But there's a twist to this 1970s' New York story: Bafaloukos fell in love with reggae when it was still just an underground facet of Jamaican culture in the City. His experiences in New York eventually led him to shoot Rockers, praised for the portrait it paints of Kingston's late 70s music scene along with its unique style, mentality and fashion.

The director’s intense experiences in Jamaica and New York between ’75 – ’78 provide the substance of the scorching stories within, including; gunshots at his first ever reggae concert in Brooklyn, the director’s bizarre arrest for suspicion of being a CIA operative, paranoia at the Bob Marley compound, musicians-turned actors' "rude boy" antics, and naturally, sympathetic, highly descriptive recollections of the music that first drew Bafaloukos into Jamaica's music and culture.

An invaluable collection of photographs taken during the conception, writing and production of the film captures the zeitgeist and breathes life into the book. Production stills and photos taken during the era by Bafaloukos form the visual, cinematic backbone of the tome, faithfully rendering the amazing people, styles, and locations in living, breathing color. Taken all together, the text and images within Rockers will uncover new facets of this all-important era in Reggae music for even the most seasoned reggae aficionados. Beyond reggae circles, this new anthology offers an unparalleled snapshot of a highly fantasized and sought after je-ne sais-quoi: the all-time Jamaican cool.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9783943330489
Publisher: Gingko Press, Incorporated
Publication date: 04/14/2020
Pages: 320
Product dimensions: 9.20(w) x 12.20(h) x 1.30(d)

About the Author

Ted Bafaloukos (1946 – 2016) – Ted was born in Greece and left Andros Greece at age 17 in the mid 60s to attend RISD (1964 – 1968). He served 2 years in the Greek Army. He then moved to New York shortly thereafter and eventually became fascinated by Jamaican Music after seeing an intimate live show in Brooklyn.

Seb Carayol – Editor, curator, writer for both films and books. Carayol curated both the Jamaica Jamaica! and Hometown HiFi Exhibitions, and authored the Agents Provocateurs book for Gingko Press.

Cherry Karou Hulsey – Cherry is the widow of Patrick Hulsey, producer of Rockers, the movie, and was on set for the filming. She conceived of the Rockers book and served as Senior Editor on the project.

Eugenie Bafaloukos – Eugenie is a costume designer and widow of director Ted Bafaloukos. Mrs. Bafaloukos lives in Andros, Greece.

Read an Excerpt

“Two and a half hours after leaving New York, we land. We are in Jamaica. I am in Jamaica. The shock is great. The moist, tropical heat hugs you as soon as you step out of the plane. It seems to soften up your muscles like a hot bath. Maybe this is why the people move the way they do, as if their bones were made out of some alternative, more flexible material.”

Table of Contents

1. Roots
2. To Catch a Fire
3. Don’t Get Burned Now
4. Creation Rockers
5. I and I All
6. More Time
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