Beenie Man Expands Reggae Without Abandoning Roots

Reggae is a pillar of modern pop music, not just for its Jamaican birthplace, but for its influence on worldwide rock, R&B; and hip-hop. Unfortunately, too much contemporary reggae is content to repeat the old formulas--which makes the presence of a charismatic artist such as Beenie Man so important.

At the House of Blues on Monday, Beenie Man--whose last album got a Grammy nomination and whose new one is due out in June--sang with a voice that was both forceful and musical. He could croon like Bob Marley, then dive into an abrupt, dancehall rap. And most important, he was willing to stretch reggae in exciting directions without abandoning his roots.

Dressed in black, with a bowler atop his dreads, Beenie Man sang a rendition of Marley’s “No Woman, No Cry” that was rich and moving, somehow both true to the original and made Beenie Man’s own. But it was just another flavor in an extraordinary range. The singer briefly slowed things down mid-show, snapping his fingers for something he called “jazz reggae.” He later sang a medley of scattered musical bits and pieces, from reggae to calypso to ska, declaring, “That is where my music is coming from!”

Between songs, the singer offered uplifting, if sometimes strange messages, such as: Don’t neglect your dad, even if he was a drunk who beat your mother, “because if it wasn’t for your father, you wouldn’t be here!” His backing quartet provided a tight blend of roots and modern urgency, as Beenie Man frequently joked with the crowd, rolling his hips in sometimes lewd but always playful directions.