Sly and Robbie at Metrotech Commons

Sly and Robbie with vocalist Bunny Rugs

Drummer Lowell "Sly" Dunbar and bassist Robbie Shakespeare are the most renowned and prolific rhythm section and production team not only in their native Republic of Jamaica, but perhaps throughout today’s music world. Since the mid-1970s, the duo has appeared on an estimated 200,000 recordings, the majority of them for reggae artists, but also for Mick Jagger, Bob Dylan, Madonna, Sting, Carlos Santana, No Doubt and many other non-reggae musicians. The duo changed the face of reggae several times: in 1976, Sly and Robbie introduced a harder beat called "Rockers", which quickly replaced the then-prevalent "One Drop" style. They then introduced the "Rub a Dub" sound in the early 1980s. They then innovatively fused the Jamaican dancehall tradition with Latin music and hip hop in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

The Manhattan Beat made a rare trip to Brooklyn today to see Sly and Robbie perform as part of the free Thursday noontime outdoor summer concert series sponsored by the Brooklyn Academy of Music on the Metrotech Commons. The first half of the 90-minute concert was largely instrumental, a low-key collection of smooth body-moving grooves with a few lines of vocals and an occasional blast from the guitar, keyboards or trombone. The second half of the performance introduced guest vocalist William “Bunny Rugs” Clarke of the popular Jamaican reggae band Third World. What songs did they perform? It did not matter. The public came to enjoy the sound and the vibe; at least a few fans brought recording gear in order to relive the music again later. Sly and Robbie perform again tonight at Irving Plaza.