African Bush Doctor

Emerson Njawah, a.k.a. Bush Doctor, hails from Bo in Sierra Leone. At age 21, he wanted to become a doctor, but his my father could not afford the fees, so he decided to become a musician. He recorded his first two albums, Shine and Who Like Me, at home, in the early 90s. He was in the midst of recording his third album, Serious Times, when war broke out in Sierra Leone, which meant the album had to be completed in Conakry Guinea. A deal with EMI in the Ivory Coast followed.

In 1999, Bush Doctor relocated to London, England, where he recorded the album Jah Way, at Room In The Sky studio in London with musicians Kush and Lerwies and members of the London Afro-Jazz ensemble Soothsayers. The album has twelve vocal tracks of ‘old skool’ roots reggae with Bush Doctor’s vocal delivery being strongly reminiscent of Joseph "Culture" Hill on 'Too Serious'. But there are also other strong influences like Burning Spear in tracks like 'Waiting', 'Warrior' and 'Jah Way'. Peter Tosh has also been an inspiration for Bush Doctor.