There are interviews - and then there are moments that remind you why you fell in love with reggae in the first place. Sitting down with Glen DaCosta was exactly that. A cornerstone of Jamaica’s rich musical history and a key member of the horn section that helped shape the sound of Bob Marley and the Wailers, Glen doesn’t just tell stories - he lives them. From humble beginnings - where music first found him as a child and later at the legendary Alpha Boys School - to global stages, historic recording sessions, and unforgettable tours, his journey is woven directly into the fabric of reggae itself. Our conversation moved effortlessly through decades of music, culture, and lived experience, touching on everything from studio sessions and life on the road to the deeper spiritual pull of the music. What stood out most wasn’t just the legacy, but the spirit - humble, reflective, and still deeply connected to the power of reggae and its mission to uplift, educate, and unite.

Hunnypot: How did you first become interested in music, and what drew you specifically to the saxophone?

Glen: From a child, I was always attracted to music. You know, it resonated with me automatically. It just let me feel happy and calm as a kid from three, four years old. And what my parents were, when my father was okay, but my mom was very poor, a single mom with four kids, she couldn’t afford to send me to music lessons, and music lessons is expensive. You have to pay for it. It’s not like you’re going to a regular school, you know? And now sometimes, well, luckily for me, she couldn’t manage and she sent me to an orphanage. And I graduated from the orphanage at 11 years old to Alpha Boys School, where music was provided as part of the curriculum for the school, you know.

Hunnypot: And a lot of famous musicians came out of that school.

Glen: Yes, the best musicians in Jamaica came out from Alpha Boys School, especially woodwind instrument players, you know. Keyboard and ting. We never used to really play keyboards. Well, we play bass, but it was always standing bass, you know, the jazz bass, acoustic bass. But I mean, they can move from there onto any other kind of bass ‘cause the same fingering.

Hunnypot: Do you remember the moment when you realized music might become a lifelong path for you?

Glen: Yes, because at Alpha Boys School, I was thrown into the garden to be an agriculturist, where I should plant vegetables and food or whatever. But I didn’t feel comfortable there. When I’m supposed to be in the garden, I’m in the treetop. We’re listening to the band playing under the tree, a big monkey trambling tree. And they caught me one day, and I used to get punishment for being absent from the garden. And the bandmaster caught me one day. My foot shook the tree limb and he saw me and looked up and saw me in the tree and asked me what I’m doing up there. I said, I’m listening to music. He said, you love music? I said, yes. He said, which instrument do you want to play? I said the saxophone. He said, well, everybody want to play the saxophone, but we don’t have any vacancy for saxophone. What else would you play? I said, anything, sir. And he gave me a clarinet and said, if I get a sound out of it, I’ll be in the band. I was trying for half an hour. I couldn’t get a sound because I don’t know how to play it. So eventually, but then he just squeaked and he said, okay, you’re in the band.

Hunnypot: Who were some of the musicians or saxophonists that influenced your playing style early on?

Glen: Oh, well, I was listening to a lot of jazz players. I was listening to Coltrane, Sonny Rollins, Kenneth Ball Audley. So many of them, you know. And of course, I was impressed with some of our own local musicians from the Skatalites, like Tommy McCook and Roland Alfonso, and some of our own Alpha Boys musicians who went from there to the military band, which was the reserve army, which was the more progressive band at the time. But I didn’t want to join the reserve. I joined the West Indian Regiment at the time. That was the regular army with a lot of West Indians also. That’s why they called it West Indian Regiment, as we have people from Trinidad, Tobago, St. Kitts, Nevis, name it, you know, all the way to the Caribbean islands, they had people from there. And I spent one year in 1961 there. After independence, it was transformed to, converted to a First Battalion Jamaica Regiment, where I stayed for nine more years playing classical music as a clarinetist.

Hunnypot: You’ve worked with many musicians over the years. What do you enjoy most about collaborating with different artists in the studio?

Glen: Well, for me, it’s a privilege to be able to have your music in so many people’s living room playing, you know? And enjoying what you create, because I used to be a student musician playing. I don’t even get credit for 25% of the work I’ve done over the years, because in Jamaica we never had a credit sheet in the studio. People just come and play and go back to the next studio. You know, we used to, when they finished the rhythm, they were waiting on me, Dave Madden and Vin Gordon, we were on section together to come to the next studio. Sometimes we’re doing two albums for the day, or, you know, at least a couple more songs from Scratch (Lee “Scratch” Perry), we’re doing two or three studios for the day. I could be Duke Reid, Dynamic or sometimes Federal. And of course we had our own little demo studio also with Zap Pow where we used to have rehearsals for groups used to come in and use our equipment to rehearse and some of them we got recording to do with them, you know, Gregory Isaacs, name it, you know. As a matter of fact, Jacob Miller was one of our vocalists. Also Bunny Rugs with Third World, because Zap Pow was the model band for most Jamaican bands. Whenever we play out, we have more musicians and bands in front of the stage listening to us and wanting to join us. The vocalist, Prilly Hamilton, wanted to come and join us. We had to advertise for a lead vocalist because all of us play instrument and sing, and we wanted somebody to just concentrate on singing only. And we auditioned him (Prilly) and Beres Hammond, unfortunately we chose Beres. Beres is a very selfish guy. You know, he caused the group to break up. It would have been better to have chosen Prilly Hamilton because Prilly is a team person. But Beres is very selfish. He’s a narcissist.

Hunnypot: Is there a particular recording session or collaboration that stands out as especially memorable?

Glen: Well, our first album with Island Records, Zap Pow, just ZapPow on the thing, but we were doing other albums before that with so many producers, but we were in the studio and I was playing with so many other people, like Niney the producer, Lloyd Charmers, all the producers, Duke Reid, so many other people.

Hunnypot: What year did Zap Pow start?

Glen: Started from 1969. I joined them 1970 basically. While I was in the army, I didn’t leave the army yet. As a matter of fact, I went on tour with them. I think it was in The Bahamas. They had a hit song. The first hit song for all of us was “Mystic Mood.” Check out that song. “Mystic Mood,” you will love it. It’s a classic. That was 1970. I didn’t play on that song because Cedric Brooks, was my schoolmate also, he was a tenor saxophone who played with David for that sound. And they had some individual hits also called “Money Maker.” They were with Studio One with Coxsone Dodd. But I played on the other hits that they had because Cedric Brooks wasn’t a member of the band. He played saxophone to that particular song.

Hunnypot: Live reggae music often has a powerful energy between the rhythm section and the horns. What do you enjoy most about performing in that environment?

Glen: Well, reggae music for me is a very spiritual music, especially the conscious people who really brought prominence to the music, like Bob Marley, of course, Peter Tosh, Bunny Wailer, so many others, you know, Dennis Brown, I had so many people that I really enjoy listening to. Delroy Wilson, most young artists at the time were emulating him, learning from Delroy Wilson. A lot of people emulated him, you know, most of the artists like Dennis Brown, you know, all of them learned from Delroy Wilson. If you listen to the young artists in the ’60s, most of them sounded more like Delroy Wilson. He had a unique sound, and he used to play with a blues note there that makes it a little more fool-like, that he slurred on a lot. I liked him a lot, and he was one of my favorites. I really enjoy playing with him. Also, Bob Andy, Marcia Griffiths, of course. You know, she’s the queen of reggae music. I did play on her album also. Judy Mowatt, who was part of the I-Threes also. And I think I did a few things with Rita Marley. And most of the Jamaican musicians over the years, Max Romeo, I used to play with, I was one of the horn section for Scratch Perry at Black Ark Studio, a lot of artists, Junior Murvin, Junior Byles, The Gladiators, name it. All those artists were coming out of the studio in the ’60s, ’70s, early ’70s. I was playing horns for all of them. I don’t get credit for a lot of stuff, but ‘cause I didn’t actually document anything. You know, but you know, give thanks for the experience ‘cause it hold me as a musician to be creative and how to actually lend myself to the music to create what the particular song require. Yeah, I learned that art from doing studio music, as a studio musician.

Hunnypot: Is there a live performance or concert experience that has stayed with you as one of the highlights of your career?

Glen: I think my highest point then was that show with Bob Marley in Santa Barbara, Live with Bob Marley, where I played on saxophones. Live solo on “Wake Up and Live,” it really brought attention to me and made me famous internationally because of that solo. ‘Cause I didn’t play on the actual recording in the studio. So it was, I don’t remember who the guy is, but I think he’s from Montego Bay who played it, so the alto sax actually played, but I did the solo with the tenor sax on tour. And I had a little twist to it because I couldn’t get some of the high notes that he actually played, but I did my best. I improvised a bit and made it a little bit more exciting.

Hunnypot: You played saxophone with Bob Marley from the early 1970s until his passing in 1981. How did you first come to join Marley and the Wailers?

Glen: Well, I lived in the same community as Bob Marley. I used to see him pass sometimes. He’s in Trenchtown, just as a road separates us. I’m in Jonestown, he’s in Trenchtown. And I used to see him, sometimes with Rita, when I go to Studio One. You know, we brought up in the studio sometime and he was always at Scratch’s, Black Ark Studio in Washington Gardens. And he liked our group, Zap Pow. He liked the horn section. He actually handpicked us, David Madden and myself. And he sent for Vin Gordon, who was a trombonist for us. So, he would like us to come and record with him. That was 1973. From then on, we started doing the albums with him. But I only get credit for like two of the albums of about seven albums.

Hunnypot: What were your first impressions of Bob Marley when you started working with him in those early years?

Glen: Well, to be honest, it was just a regular studio job just working, you know, to survive, to make it. We were getting like, I think it was $5, then it went to $10. You could double your price so you should play another one. If you do harmony, you might get another five. But it was very cheap in those days. I can remember, especially working with Duke Reid. Sometimes we’d do 10 songs and the man would pay us in sometime a lot of silver and sometime he would give us wine to cover the expense instead of giving us the money. Because he had an establishment where we did retail wine and liquor, whatever. And sometimes he’ll give us a lot of $1.00. He wanted it to look a lot. So, he won’t give us big notes. He gave us small notes. We feel like we got a lot of money.

Hunnypot: During your time with the Wailers, how involved was Marley in shaping the horn arrangements or the overall sound of the band?

Glen: Well, Bob was very particular about, especially his horns line, because he would ask us to try something else, you know, turn the phrase upside down. You know, we would try maybe six, seven different phrase for the sound. And then he would choose, eventually end up choosing the first one. He was very meticulous when it comes to the horns because he wanted the best.

Hunnypot: You were part of the band during some of Marley’s most important recording years. What were those studio sessions like when the Wailers were creating music together?

Glen: Bob had a very impactful influence on me as an artist. I really felt his lyrical contents that it gravitated to me so much that sometimes I forget that I’m in the studio to help arrange the horns. I’m listening to this song and get lost in it. He would touch me sometimes and he would say, Zap Pow, because he knew I had a group named Zap Pow and he called me that. He said, Zap Pow, the horns, the horns.

Hunnypot: From a saxophonist’s perspective, how did the rhythm section - especially the Barrett brothers - shape the way you approached your playing in Marley’s music?

Glen: Well, most of the time, the horn section came in after the rhythm was finished. Sometimes we are in the studio with them. I can’t remember when we were in the studio, most of the Exodus and Kaya album in London at the time. Because, I mean, everybody was there. I mean, we didn’t get a chance to go home as such. And once we get a chance to be in the studio, we put in as much. I went from Jamaica to London to do that. So, we were always there together for the recording purpose, mainly. We didn’t have an individual home to go home to. We were just concentrating on those two albums. So, I think that’s one of the times when I did spend time with them doing the rhythm as well.

Hunnypot: You toured with Marley during the period when reggae was beginning to reach global audiences. What was it like watching that music connect with crowds around the world?

Glen: Well, it just was warming, you know, to know that the music is resonating with an international audience. And Bob Marley knew then, you know, that his music was powerful and he knew that it was commissioned for a specific purpose. He had a sense of responsibility to help to make this world a better place, you know? And he knew that his music would captivate his audience. He said his personality before he passed, you know, that this music will reach his people and the people will go out right across the world, you know, and resonate with them, you know?

Hunnypot: Are there any particular concerts or tours with Marley that stand out as especially memorable?

Glen: Well, the whole tour Bob Marley had such an effect on people. Everywhere we go. In Canada a guy, ‘cause Bob Marley has a stance where he would put up his finger like he’s touching the people spiritually with a cosmic vibe. And people would put up their hands as well, like throwing back the vibes to him, spiritually. I can remember this guy was far down in the back of the audience and he pushes right through the audience, come through the crowd, right up to the stage, jump on stage to just touch Bob Marley. He touched him because he felt the vibe so much that it was like the Christ, you know, come to deliver it to the voiceless and disenfranchised. And there were always a lot of hippies, you know, in the audience who sometimes would camp out for the night to make sure they get a chance to come in the show because most of the shows were being sold out.

Hunnypot: The world knows Bob Marley as a global icon, but you knew him as a bandmate. What was he like day to day while traveling and performing?

Glen: Well, Bob was a very humane person. You know, you feel privileged to be with someone who’s a superstar, who grew in front of your eyes. And stardom never went to his head. You know, it was just a homeful guy who never gave orders. He led by example. And because of that, we gave him the name Skip, which means skipper of the boat, you know, leader, you know, affectionately Skip, you know. He was the first one on the bus for us to make a move on the… The first one in the rehearsal room also, and the last one to leave. These guys sitting in the music and wanting to rehearse it, and they come to a dress rehearsal for the show, and they don’t really work with you and get it together like they should. Bob Marley was there all the way. It was not about to bring out the hyper-profiling. It was just about the job to be done to get this music, because in his own words, he said his weapon was the music. In the sense that even the guy who drove the car for his attempted assassination ended up on tour with us on the Survival Tour 1979. Spar is his name. I thought he was a retired policeman. He drove the vehicle the night when they tried to kill Bob and he ended up on tour with us taking care of Bob’s clothes and carrying his clothes and food. We got a call from Jamaica that that was the guy who drove the vehicle for Bob’s assassination, and Bob’s other bodyguard there on tour with us, from my community also Trench Town, who said, put him in the trunk of the car, let’s take him away. And Bob said, no, my weapon is the music. Or he would have maybe killed him then and there on tour. But when he came home, he got killed, but they couldn’t say it’s Bob. If he had died on tour while we were there, everybody would have known that it’s Bob, because the news was spread right across Jamaica that this was the guy who actually came and drove the car to kill Bob Marley.

Hunnypot: Were you there the night of the assassination attempt?

Glen: Yes, I was there! We all run away from the sound and the bullet and run in the bathroom, most of us. My saxophone flew off my neck because I was running so fast to save my life. And I never played that saxophone again. Bob Marley eventually bought me a saxophone to go on tour 1979 because I didn’t have a saxophone. I couldn’t play. And he bought the new Mark VII. That saxophone didn’t stay in the market. It was like a freak instrument. They pulled it back off the market and I sold it. He bought it for $4,500 at the time in New York. He picked it up right there at Manny’s in New York. I think it’s turned to a Guitar Center now or something.

Hunnypot: That night of the assassination attempt, I’ve heard and read some stories that there was almost like this eerie kind of feeling shortly beforehand that was just in the area. Did you feel anything or was it just a complete surprise?

Glen: No, it was a surprise for me because we were practicing, we were actually sound checking to do the lists for the Smile Jamaica concert. And Bob came in and said, what’s up? You guys don’t know the songs? He wanted us to do the songs instead of, we were warming up with a Skatalites’ song “Confucius,” was one of those instrumentals, you know, as we wanted to hear the songs also. And he was directing us to the list for the show. And he went at the back door in the kitchen with Don Taylor discussing maybe the show for the arrangement for the show the next day when the gunmen start shooting right there at the back of the kitchen. And they shoot at Bob and he got the first shots. Don Taylor turned to see where the shot was coming from, and he got five of the shots that was meant for Bob. Maybe if Bob got those shots, he would have died because Don Taylor is almost twice the size of Bob. He’s a six-footer guy and weighing over 200 pounds at the time. So, you know, he saved Bob’s life, but that was 1976. But Bob passed away 1981, not too long after because of the cancer that was actually given to him with a CIA operative who came and who actually got the people to come assassinate Bob and he had to change his statics according to him. He confessed on his deathbed in Maine, where I do my music and do my shows and sell my CDs and book and whatever. He confessed on his deathbed there in Maine. But I knew long before that no Jamaican would try to kill Bob Marley. But Bob was right. They were paid off to come and kill him because he was against the system that America wanted.

Hunnypot: And Bob knew who did it, right?

Glen: I’m sure that he suspected because he knew that no Jamaican would want to kill him. I knew then and there, you know, that it couldn’t have been a Jamaican. It wasn’t orchestrated from a Jamaican. They were saying things about some political rivalry, that’s bullshit. It’s the CIA that killed Bob. They denied it. You know, but the person actually admitted that, I mean, he was the person who did it. And what he did, he was disguised as a journalist and came to interview Bob and gave him a boots with a tack laced with a melanoma cancer on it. And when Bob put in his foot, he said, ouch. He said he knew that the job was over. That’s when Bob contracted this, start contracting the cancer that eventually took over his whole body. But he also was hastened because Bob loved football so much that everywhere we go would play soccer. And he was playing with a team, I think, in France at the time. I wasn’t there. And one of the guys stepped on his toe, the same toe, with a spike, which made it a little bit more malignant, and hastened death.

Hunnypot: For the Smile Jamaica concert then, after the assassination attempt, was there thought of the concert’s not going to go on? And then also, once you were there at the concert, what was that like?

Glen: But I personally wasn’t able to play because the saxophone was damaged, I couldn’t go. But Bob still went and performed that night. National Heroes Park in Kingston, where all the heroes are buried, including Marcus Garvey and Prime Minister Bustamante, and Manley also. The place was packed. The place was packed with so many people. Thousands and thousands of people.

Hunnypot: Having been part of Marley’s band for so many years, what do you think people most misunderstand about him as a musician or leader?

Glen: Well, the thing is that most musicians today, fame, it was never about the money or achievement. It was really about his commission to have this really better place. Well, normally if you’re doing a good job and your music resonated people, the money will come, but he never got carried away with it. You know, because even when people ask him, you know, how rich he is and he would ask him, what’s riches? What’s your interpretation of riches? Because he was never not a material person, you know? He would say, money, I mean, how much money have? He said, my riches not money, my riches is life. You know? He was a very conscious person, very, very witty, even with his musical, lyrical context, you know? He was very penetrative, he resonated with people and their suffering and everything.

Hunnypot: You spent nearly a decade performing with Bob Marley and the Wailers. Is there a particular moment on stage or backstage that captures who Marley really was as a person?

Glen: Yes, of course. I mean, even in the studio, sometimes the music have so much effect on you before you’re even reaching the audience. I see myself in the audience before it even happened, because I’m imagining that particular song was going to resonate with the audience before it even gets released, you know, because you feel the impact of the… the contents, the lyrical contents yourself, you know, as being a part of the messenger, then and there, you know, I get carried away sometime with the lyrical contents, especially like “Africa Unite,” those things, we know what was happening in South Africa with the apartheid system and killing a lot of, you know, brutalizing black people. It really, you know, it was a part of our mission to try and, you know, Bob felt a sense of responsibility to educate the people. As a matter of fact, his music was banned in South Africa, but it was underground and it really helped to revolt the people to overthrow Botha.

Hunnypot: Touring the world with Marley must have created many unforgettable experiences. Is there a story from the road that still makes you smile when you think about it today?

Glen: Yes, I can’t remember this. We were in California. I’m not sure exactly where, but there was this journalist, beautiful Afro girl. I know I like my Afro princesses at the time because that was a crazy hairstyle. And I was wearing Afro myself and I identified with her so much. And she was a journalist and I really liked her and was about to approach her and somebody said, oh, be careful, Glen, she’s spoken for already. She was there and Roger Steffens was there and toured with us too. He was following us everywhere in California taking so many pictures with us. As a matter of fact, one of the pictures that he took is the one that I put on my book, you know, Glen DaCosta, This is Reggae. We were in the dressing room somewhere, me and Bob playing soccer in the dressing room, playing football, ‘cause we don’t call it soccer. You know, people thought we were dancing because our hands were up in the air and we were playing catch up like, you know, and the ball went away and we were waiting for them to kick the ball back to us. So, me and Bob was waiting to receive the ball and me and him, they would kick it too. You know, a lot of people thought it was him and Jimi Hendrix playing, dancing or playing soccer. They said, that’s Jimi Hendrix and Bob Marley. But they didn’t know it was me. I didn’t know that I was never Jimi Hendrix. But Jimi Hendrix died in 1970 and that was 1979. So, it couldn’t be. I had to tell them on Facebook that is not Jimi Hendrix is Glen DaCosta, saxophonist for Bob Marley.

Hunnypot: I know you mentioned that you have three albums that you’re working on or completed. Can you tell me a little bit about those?

Glen: One of my albums was bootlegged by a guy called Bunny Lee. It’s some cover tracks for some classic songs like “Over the Rainbow.” So many, I can’t remember some of the name of the song, but it was a compilation album with various artists, Wilfred Edwards, so many other popular artists, then and there. I did the horns arrangement for the album. And then he suggested for me to do a all saxophone version of the album, which I did, and did a little bit of improvisation on it. You know, apart from the horn section, I did, answer some of the phrases that I did that made it very unique and different. But I never get a cent for that album. You know, he actually did distribution in so many places. He had a company in Canada called Puff Records and he released it also on a Third World label in America. And he released it in various places in Africa on different labels. I actually bought up on that album in New York as a friend of mine, Brad, who used to do distribution there. It was on the top shelf, you know, expensive price with all some other saxophonists. And he collected all the money for that. I never get a cent from it. But I can actually put it out now as my own, ‘cause my name is on the top, it’s me actually. It’s my intellectual property in the sense that the conversion of what I played on the songs, you know, I did a lot of improvisation. In one of the songs that I made my own in a sense, he called it “Mind Blowing Melody.” He liked the song so much and that’s the title of the album, Mind Blowing Melody. You can check it out. Bunny Lee put my name on the album, Glen DaCosta. And then I have Legendary Glen DaCosta and the Hit Makers also written all of those songs except two songs, there’s a song that I cover, a gospel song that I have in it called “Above All.” And I love it very much. And I had to play it, and it is the first on the album. And then I have also a Christmas album called Glen DaCosta Christmas Time. I wrote two other songs on that album. And one is a tribute to giving thanks to God for the gift of music. And another one is just like a Christmas song, you know? “Hear the little children singing a song. Pong, pong, pong, pong, bells ringing. Parents busy, buying a piece. Streets are crowded, lights are bright. Everyone is smiling, caring, showing love. Church bells ringing, cards are heard. Sorrows boiling, cakes to make. Oh, yes, it’s Christmas time again. It’s a child’s birth of Christ, child born of Mary in Bethlehem. All the righteous ones and sinners are together, singing songs and bearing gifts of every kind. There’s a ray of love and joy in everyone’s eyes.” (Glen singing!)

Hunnypot: I love that!

Glen: It’s a beautiful song, you know. As a matter of fact, when the minute it came to me, I wanted to give it to Stevie Wonder. It’s the kind of song that would fit Stevie Wonder. You know, there’s no way that wouldn’t be a big hit for Stevie Wonder. And for me also. The lyrical content, the melody. Stevie, I couldn’t think of anyone else doing it, but I ended up doing it myself because Stevie don’t take nothing from nobody. He does his own stuff.

Hunnypot: If you can only listen to one album the rest of your life, what would it be?

Glen: Oh, boy. You mean from everybody or from myself? Well, funny, out of the four albums, my favorite one is Global Glen DaCosta. I have quite a few cover versions on that song. I have three original songs on it, but most of the songs were from Max Romeo, one of my good friends who I’ve toured with also, who I did his first album at Black Ark Studio and at Bunny Lee. And he was very famous in Europe. All his shows are well sold out. And he’s a good friend of mine, you know, and I love his songs, you know, and I did… when people hear that album, you know, even when the album cover is tattered, they want it still. It’s just the musical content, you know. The improvisation with the saxophone is very, very outstanding. You know, I sort of surprised myself with the production, and it’s one of the most beautiful mix album I’ve heard, although it’s mine, not being, you know, boastful, but, and funny, that guy wasn’t even a renowned engineer. He was the guitar player for Max Romeo. We call him Yellow. I can’t remember his right name right now, but he had the same kind of complexion like Yellow Man. We call him Yellow. And he did a perfect job, but he left out one note on this, on a song called “Tell Jah Say” that I was upset about. But I still played when I played live, I put in that note because it was like a bridge to the next phrase. And he thought I made a mistake because it was one note stick out there. But it was really a bridge to the next phrase that I was going to, you know?

Hunnypot: That is wonderful. Well, thank you very much for this interview. This was amazing. This was amazing listening to just so, all the legends you’ve interacted with and played with. Is there anything else you want to add before we go?

Glen: Yes, well, for me, it was always a privilege just to, especially to play with some of the people that I admire, for instance, like Gladys Knight, Aretha Franklin, Four Tops, very good one. They were very popular in Jamaica and we all embraced those artists. And to have had the privilege to play on stage with them, accompanying them as a saxophonist or sometime I doubled up with clarinet or flute was a real, you know, for me it was a great achievement because to play with your idols is, you know, you can’t get any better than that.

Hunnypot: That’s wonderful. Thank you so much. It was nice meeting you on Saturday. And thank you for this interview. This was wonderful.

Glen: OK, my brother. And I think you did a good job with the review for the show.

Hunnypot: Oh, good. You saw it. It was great. It was a great show.

Glen: You did it, you know, and I’m saying what it was so eloquent and you really. I brought out the show in such a magnificent way. I mean, it made me feel jealous when I’ve been there, and it was so much even better than what the show was. By the way, I must tell you that Zap Pow is, in my estimation, the most creative group ever in the history of Jamaica. All of us individually were writing hits in the group. Not one person, except for Beres who joined us and never made a hit with us, you know, because he wasn’t writing with us. We were the ones writing for him then. And we were like 50 years ahead of our time, because if you listen to Zap Pow right now, you know, our latest album, check it out, Zap Pow Again. You can Google that and listen to the songs. It’s fantastic, you know? And that’s why Bob Marley was admiring my group over the years, and that’s why he asked me to come and join him, because we had the most progressive horn section at the time. Our music was fusion. We weren’t just playing layman phrases or the ordinary regular phrase that groups or artists would have from their album. It was a mix of jazz or blues, even classical, you know, and progressive. Our phrases were international, it wasn’t too contained, you know. We weren’t in a box, and that’s why he called us to perform with him, you know, because he liked our horn section.

Talking with Glen DaCosta wasn’t just an interview - it felt like sitting inside a living piece of reggae history. These aren’t just stories you read about in books; they are moments he lived, notes he played, and vibrations he helped send out into the world alongside Bob Marley and so many others. What stays with you isn’t just the legendary sessions or the global stages - it’s the humility, the gratitude, and the unwavering belief in the music’s purpose. You can hear it in the way he speaks, the way he remembers, and the way he still carries that same spirit today.

By the time the conversation ended, it felt like more than just an exchange - it felt like a passing of energy, a reminder of why this music matters in the first place. Because for Glen, reggae was never just sound - it was mission, message, and life itself. And after hearing him reflect on it all, you don’t just walk away informed - you walk away moved.

One Love - Todd M. Judd