reggae | The Bandulos | Funky NYC Party Band, Cover Band, Wedding Band

At the Richmond County Fair this year we performed an original reggae tune called “Let’s Stay Home Tonight.” Stay tuned for the official recording!

On Saturday, Aug. 15, 2009, we took the stage in the middle of Van Duzer Street and played a fun set to an appreciative crowd. Our good friend Milton Henry graced us with his presence and we launched into his classic tune “Good Old Days.” The folks at SiCoLab were kind enough to put together this clip:

Here’s a photo gallery.

We’ve seen a lot of creative spellings and many interesting pronunciations of our name over the years. Bandulous, Bandolous, Banduloos, ad infinitum. We sort of expected it, having picked such an unusual handle. But this post will (hopefully) set the record straight.

The Bandulos

Our name is a pluralization of “bandulo,” a Jamaican slang word which as a noun means “bandit,” “thief,” or “rude boy,” and as an adjective, “counterfeit,” “fake,” or “stolen.”

We first heard the word as the title of the first track on the classic 1979 Studio One record by Jamaican singer Freddie McGregor, Bobby Bobylon. Give a listen to “Bandulo”:

Freddie McGregor - Bandulo

That’s what you been doin’ all the time:
Playing bandulo on everyone’s mind.
Keep the people in utter darkness,
Don’t want them to see no fullness,
Let them go, make them try,
I’m sure there’s a way they’ve got to survive.

Go down, bandulo man, go down,
Go down, you’ve got to reach the ground.

Bandulo also appears as “bandulu,” which is the name of a North London techno trio. The Bandulus are a reggae outfit from Austin, Texas that came together in the early summer of 2008.

Bandulo, Hungary

Coincidentally, there’s a small town in Hungary called Bándůlő. Billy and Mike Levay have Hungarian roots, and the surname Levay is a fairly popular one in Hungary.

The Bandulos will be backing our favorite reggae singer, Milton Henry, at the historic St. George Theatre on Jan. 1 as part of Janet “The Kwanzaa Lady” Robinson’s annual Kwanzaa celebration. We go on around 9pm.

Here’s info from silive.com:

Annual Kwanzaa Celebration, St. George Theater, 35 Hyatt St., St. George. Noon-to midnight Kwanzaa event, will feature storytelling, singing, poetry, spoken word artist, praise dancers, musical performances and presentation by Janet Robinson. Admission is free. For information or reservations, phone the theater at 718-981-1717 or Ms. Robinson at 718-816-4909.

Live at the Knitting Factory!

We’re headlining the Version City Monthly ska/reggae dance party on Saturday February 2nd, Groundhog Day.