Canadian reggae enigma R. Man Prince is getting two rare 45s reissued

"Funny Dream" & "Everyone Has Got To Go" by Prince Robinson are being reissued by Toronto's Shella Records in March.

Here's the scoop from Shella Records...

It's been hard keeping a lid on these but I'm thrilled to announce two dream reissues from Jamaican Canadian enigma Prince Robinson A.K.A. "R. Man Prince" - Everyone Has Got To Go" and "Funny Dream", a 45 so scarce it has spawned its own mythology among collectors. 

Fully licensed for the first time from Prince, both 45s feature extended vocal mixes straight from the mastertapes and a couple of insanely heavy dubs from Ernest Hookim and Barnabas at Channel One circa 1976.

Read the back story (below) behind what inspired Prince to record these edgy, apocalyptic roots steppers and why so few copies of "Funny Dream" were ever in circulation. The lost polaroid in the first slide, unearthed by artist Zun Lee was the key to unlocking the R.Man mystery. Special thanks to Prince, Jeanette and Angella Robinson, Brandon Hocura and Zun Lee. 

Shella Records' reissues of "Funny Dream" and "Everyone Has Got To Go" will be released in March but they're both now available for pre-order right here. 

R. Man Prince's Funny Dream

Funny Dream, an apocalyptic roots stepper from 1976 is a 45 so rare that it has developed its own mythology and folklore in the small circle of collectors who know of its existence. 

One rumour suggests that so few copies exist because Robinson’s Russian wife took all the records from Canada back across the iron curtain in the late 70s when they split up. Some suggested he had died. If you are lucky enough to find an original copy, it will set you back at least a month’s rent.

The truth behind  this song is perhaps stranger than fiction.

After years of searching for Prince, Chris from Shella Records saw an article about a lost polaroid from the early 70s of a dapper man holding a trumpet that was exhibited in artist Zun Lee’s exhibition of found photos about Black life in North America. 

Remarkably, the man in the photograph’s daughter, Jeanette, who happened to be visiting the gallery almost immediately spotted her father on the wall in an exhibit of over 500 polaroids of unknown family portraits. The man in the photo in question was called Prince Robinson but there was no mention that he was a singer. After contacting the journalist, Chris eventually spoke to Prince’s daughter who confirmed that her father was indeed the singer Prince Robinson aka R. Man Prince. He was very much alive, still in Canada and only 45 minutes north of Toronto in Pickering.

While the story of the Russian ex absconding with the 45s is not true, the truth is equally dramatic.  Almost all copies were destroyed shortly after they were pressed, tragically reduced to ashes inside an incinerator.

Prince would rather not get into specifics about the incident but offers:

“Somebody was angry and didn’t understand what they had.”

The fact that anyone has ever heard this track is a small miracle, as it never had a proper release. Recorded in Jamaica, it was pressed in Canada on Snowball Records as the follow up to the killer “Everyone Has Got To Go”. Only a handful were distributed in local Toronto shops and given to friends before the majority were obliterated. 

While Prince was a family man and always employed legally, he had some friends and acquaintances who were into a heavier lifestyle. Prince always dressed like a celebrity, rolling around Toronto in a nice car and outfitted in the latest fashions from New York, a man about town at sound system events, soul and reggae shows. He felt this made him a target from some of these more dangerous characters.

“If you’re rolling around people that’s hypocrites they smile in your face but all the time they wanna take your place” 

Funny Dream reflects his unease with this situation and is based on a real dream or as Prince sees it, a vision from God showing him another path. “God jus’ a show me say 'Yow, Step away from that crew, they don’t really love you. They’re just nice to you because..I drove a nice car, I took people anywhere they wanna go, I had a Lincoln continental, we’d pile up 8 guys and go the studio or the pressing plant, anywhere you wanna go.”

Luckily for all of us, Inside a now battered briefcase that he took to Jamaica in 1976, Prince has kept his mastertapes and promo photos in pristine condition, knowing that his music had value and biding his time. The new 45s Funny Dream and Everyone Has Got To Go feature extended mixes from the original mastertapes, backed by Sly and Robbie, recorded at Joe Gibbs studio and dubbed into oblivion by Ernest Hookim and Barnabas at Channel One.

Prince is a soul survivor, who has weathered the storms of life and  the music industry. He still performs on occasion as Prince Jahmerican and these days is much more of a soul R&B artist.  He is a dapper man in his 70s though he looks much younger, married to the daughter of a legendary Jamaican music producer. 

Prince’s daughter Jeanette feels like the interest in her father’s music close to 50 years later is “a little miracle.” 

Prince himself feels this reissue represents “a resurrection” It makes me feel great ‘coz you think you came and you passed... God is doing something in the background, I don’t know…but I’m letting it flow…”

Listen to R. Man Prince's "Everyone Has Got To Go" and "Funny Dream" below.