11 May "Tosh's 'Youth' Recalls His Father"
The Washington Post
May 11, 1990
by Mike Joyce
“WHY DID YOU take another brother’s life? Why did you do it?”
That bitter refrain, directed at reggae star Peter Tosh’s murderers, is chanted over and over again by his 22-year-old son, Andrew Tosh, on his new album “Make Place for the Youth.” Like Julian Lennon and Ziggy Marley, Andrew has a voice that’s eerily reminiscent of his late father’s at times, especially when the song calls for a defiant or admonishing tone, which is precisely why “Why Did You Do It?” is the album’s most compelling performance.
But apart from that tune and and the vaguely foreboding opening track, “Stop What You Doin’,” the mood here is mostly upbeat and optimistic. The proverbial positive vibrations are generated not only by Tosh’s youthful, spirited voice but also by three former members of his father’s band Word, Sound and Power, including bassist Fully Fullwood, drummer Santa Davis and keyboardist Keith Sterling.
Now dubbed the Soul Syndicate, the band is rounded out by guitarists Vince Black and Tony Chin, who help keep the melodies and rhythms rolling even when Tosh has little new to say, a problem which surfaces repeatedly on the trite “Come Together” and “One Step to Happiness” and the routine Rasta anthem “Message From Jah.” Of course, the more frothy songs are likely to be the very ones that get Tosh the airplay he’s clearly looking for.
ANDREW TOSH – “Make Place for the Youth” (Tomato). Appearing Friday with the Wailers at Kilimanjaro.