Misty in Roots

Misty in Roots are a British roots reggae band that formed in Southall, London, in the mid-1970s. Their first album, Live at the Counter Eurovision (1979), featured Rastafarian-themed songs and gained attention thanks to BBC Radio 1 DJ John Peel, introducing roots reggae to a wider, largely white audience. Initially a collective with five lead singers, the band later streamlined to three members. Alongside Steel Pulse, Aswad, Matumbi, Cimarons, and Black Slate, they became one of the most popular British reggae groups of the late 1970s. Throughout the 1980s, Misty in Roots released four studio albums and made two BBC Radio 1 “In Concert” appearances in 1983 and 1985. They were invited to Zimbabwe in 1982 for their support of the independence movement and became the first reggae band to tour South Africa, Poland, and Russia. After a recording hiatus in the 1990s, they returned with the mini-album Roots Controller in 2002 and continued performing live shows as of 2014. The band was closely associated with political activism, supporting Rock Against Racism and performing at several benefit gigs for anti-fascist causes. In 1979, band member Clarence Baker was severely injured during a protest in Southall against a National Front meeting, prompting the punk band The Ruts—affiliated with the same collective—to honor him in their song “Jah War.” Misty in Roots’ music and activism cemented their reputation as both cultural and political influencers in the British reggae scene.