Howie Abrams - Finding Joseph I

Copyright 2017 by Paul D. Hudson, Howie Abrams and James Lathos

first published in the united states of america in 2017 by:

Lesser Gods, 15 W. 36 th Street, 8 th Fl., New York, NY 10018,

An imprint of Overamstel Publishers, Inc.

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first edition January 2017

isbn : 978-1-944713-11-9

library of congress control number : 2016939175

Greetings in the name of His Imperial Majesty, Selassie I the first, Jah Rastafari, Almighty One, King of Kings, Lord of Lords, Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah, Elect of Himself, Earths Rightful Ruler, Holy, Jesus Christ the Messiah.

-H.R.

Back in the day, H.R. used to have a staff and walk around with a rod. So H.R. meant Hunting Rod before it developed into Human Rights.

-Earl Hudson
Bad Brains, Human Rights, H.R.s BrotheR

In the 12 Tribes of Israel, every man is born a month, and each month has its own tribe. The significance of Joseph in the Bible ... That love for everybody. Him get the name Joseph from that.

-Ras Michael

SONS OF NEGUS

Prologue

The following excerpts are taken from interviews conducted by filmmaker James Lathos with H.R. in Jamaica between February 4 and 14, 2012.

James Lathos: Tell us who you are.

H.R.: Okay. Im Mr. PhD, more commonly known as Mr. Paul D. Hudson. My friends call me H.R., short for Hunting Rod or Human Rights, and formerly I was called Ras Hailu Gabriel Joseph I. I want to thank you again for believing in I and I, and for just everything. Its been most approvable. We find your peace offering approvable, and your love, and also your words of inspiration most acceptable. Thank you again. Jah Love, Rastafari.

James: I want you to explain some things to me, because I care about you. I filmed you that one week in Baltimore and you painted your face ...

H.R.: (Laughs knowingly.) James:... and you wore a robe out in public. I dont know where you are sometimes and cant connect with you. A lot of people say youre just being an artist. Other people think youre sick. Can you explain what happens to you when these things that people talk about happen?

H.R. : I think it was, more or less, trying to be as awesome and unpredictable as possible. At timesI did not really know how I would be received and what the response would be, and the only way I could find out was by doing itand so thats what I did. It had some very interesting responses to it. It was a bit unpredictable and a bit unadulterated, and some people didnt even recognize me. They had no idea who it was, and I could hear their opinion on what was going on. And so, for me, it was interesting to hear. I dont know if people were telling the truth or not, but they said some pretty wild things. And once I knew what they were saying, I just took my wig off and put it aside, and didnt use as much makeup, and eventually, it got kind of put away and I dont know where it went. That was that.

James: So, youre just trying to fuck with people? Going out like that to see how people might react. Is that what it is?

H.R.: No, no. I knew I had to lighten up. I was given an objective.

James: So, are you trying to shock people by dressing like that?

H.R.: No. I wanted to be more of that kind of person that I felt inside, or what I knew inside, and was given to me to lighten up the idea. One of the former managers said, Spruce yourself up and lighten up, dude. Dont slap people in the face, because your dreads are so gnarly. I said, Okay, let me see what I can do, and I went over to the place where they had hairpieces and got me this blonde hairpiece, and got me some makeup. I had gotten the idea from Dennis Rodman. I learned later through experience in life that you cant fool all the people all the time, and you cant make everybody happy, but if you try, sometimes you get what you need. Dont look back; keep moving forward, and thats what I did. I kept on moving forward. Thank goodness, because to my surprise, people loved me. They didnt love the hairpiece, and they didnt love the makeup. They loved me and they loved the music, and now they wanted to know who I was. Where was the band coming from? Who were the Brains? Who were the mighty Brains? Who was Human Rights? Who is that individual inside that individual? Am I pretending to be H.R., or am I really, truly, you know, Dr. PhD? And so that is basically where its coming from.

James: Well, who are you? Paul Hudson, Joseph I, Dr. PhD, H.R.?

H.R.: I am what I am. I do love to be happyand at one with God and the audience, and I dont want to be a threat to anybodys existence, so for that reason, we became more in tune with a universal love and a proper understanding.

James: Tell me about your brother. He has to be your best friend.

H.R.: I wanted him to be my drummer and I wanted to be his vocalist, and nobody else would play those songs with me except for Earl. I remember telling Earl he was massive, he was just incredible, but he worries about everything. I mean, he sees A through Z. Hes always been an inspiration and always a very direct individual. Conscious, clean, upright. He does have different ideas. Some of his ideals are more majestic rounded.

James: Do you pretend a lot?

H.R.: Oh, thats my second name: Mr. Exaggeration.

James: Is this just all a big act for you?

H.R.: Absolutely!!! When I go on that stage, Im not bad at all, but I have to pretend, you know. Youve got to pretend to be somebody. Just like in wrestling.

James: Do you pretend to be H.R.?

H.R.: As a matter of fact, yes!

James: Well then, who are you really?

H.R.: Who am I truly? Well, actually Im the King of England, but shhhhh, its a secret!

James: Is Paul Hudson still in there?

H.R.: I dont know, lets see. Wheres my towel? Are you in there, Paul?

James: So, when youre onstage, its just an act?

H.R.: Oh, yeah. Im acting, man. Thats what Anthony Countey said: You better go out there and entertain, and if you walk off that stage, were through. I said, No, its not fair.

James: Is it too much pressure sometimes?

H.R.: No. Its not too much pressure, but sometimes the girls are rather tempting, you know.

Introduction

I am a die-hard Bad Brains fan and have been since first lending my ears to their game-changing, self-titled, cassette-only debut album released on Reachout International Records in February 1982. The groups reputation had already ascended to legendary status in their adoptive home of New York City, where I, too, resided. In OG fan terms, I was late to the game; having first become aware of the Bad Brains and their incomparable vocalist and front man, H.R., a year after the ROIR release in 1983. I would not witness one of their renowned live gigs until the summer of 1985 at the newly launched, muggy-as-hell Jane Street Rock Hotel, when they reunited after a brief hiatus. I was unaware theyd ever left.