Markus Cuff Photo Roger Steffens, a
reggae fan since 1973, is currently displaying his extensive
collection of reggae memorabilia at the Queen Mary in Long
Beach.
By Chris Moriates
Daily Bruin Contributor
Life changing experiences are commonly thought of as things like
a near-death car accident, marriage or transcontinental
relocation.
But how about reading an article in Rolling Stone magazine? In
1973, Roger Steffens’ entire world changed after he read an
article describing the art form known as reggae music.
The then 31-year-old Steffens had never been exposed to reggae
before he read the article and within a few days, after watching
the reggae documentary “The Harder They Come” and
listening to Bob Marley’s “Catch a Fire” album,
Steffens had became captivated.
Steffens still remembers the sentence from Rolling Stone that
changed his life.
“”˜Reggae music crawls into your bloodstream like
some vampire amoeba from the psychic rapids of Upper Niger
consciousness,'” he said without a pause in a recent
interview.
“Wow,” he continued. “After reading that, I
thought, “˜I gotta check (reggae) out.'”
This “vampire amoeba” truly did infect Steffens. He
has been avidly collecting every piece of reggae memorabilia he can
get his hands on since that fateful July of 1973. Many of
Steffens’ artifacts, which document his obsession with the
rich history of Jamaican music, are currently on display in
“The World of Reggae featuring Bob Marley” at the Queen
Mary in Long Beach, where they will be housed until Sept. 30.
 DANIEL WONG Karin Orange, right, and her
daughter, Jazz Girard, view "The World of Reggae
featuring Bob Marley" exhibit at the Queen Mary located in Long
Beach. The exhibit will run through Sept. 30. The exhibit
doesn’t just focus on Marley. Presented are countless album
covers (most of them signed by the artists), posters, concert
billboards, buttons, tye-dyed T-shirts and artifacts from Emperor
Haile Selassie I (the God of the Rastafarians), among many other
items of interest for both casual and die-hard reggae fans.
“This exhibit is just the tip of the iceberg,” said
James Snidow, a DJ for KUCI who has visited Steffens’ house.
“(Steffens) could do another five rooms easily.”
“The Reggae Mormon,” as Steffens’ has been
described due to his constant promotion and endorsement of what he
regards as “God’s music,” has many other
activities besides his work as one of reggae music’s biggest
supporters, promoters and fans.
Steffens is also an actor, author, lecturer, photographer,
editor, producer and chairman for the Reggae Grammy Committee. His
classic, smooth-sounding voice has appeared in everything from
narrations for the Getty Center and the Museum of Tolerance, to
Time Warner audio books and blockbuster movies like “Forrest
Gump” and “Can’t Hardly Wait.”
“The World of Reggae” exhibit features items that
come from around the world and from the decades since the fruition
of Ska in the early 1960s. Album covers can be found for bands as
diverse as the Skatalites, Jimmy Cliff, Sublime, Toots & The
Maytals, UB40, Madness and Shaggy.
 DANIEL WONG This cover of Rolling Stone magazine, on
display in "The World of Reggae featuring Bob Marley," features
Marley.
One wall features a concert billboard for a Peter Tosh show at
the Roxy Theatre in 1983, and across the room is another for the
1996 Smoking Grooves show at Red Rocks. This illustrates the
breadth of the exhibit and memorabilia that Steffens has
accumulated, which includes everything from rare, original
recordings, to Bob Marley’s business card (simply reading:
Bob Marley, Movement of Jah People).
One of the more interesting aspects of the exhibit is,
“Roger’s Room,” which has been designed to
resemble a room from Steffens’ home. Contained are some of
his most prized personal possessions, such as newspaper clippings,
the 1973 Rolling Stone article, pictures and awards.
Among the many pictures is a picture of Steffens at a piano with
Little Richard. The caption explains that Little Richard had said
to Steffens, “You look like Alan Freed, you sound like Alan
Freed! This man is ahead of ahead. Get him before he’s
dead!”
The connection to Freed, a white radiobroadcaster of rock
‘n’ roll in the ’50s, is quite natural.
Steffens’ radio program, the award winning “Reggae
Beat,” was syndicated to over 130 stations worldwide during
the 1980s, and he was awarded the First Annual Reggae Times Music
Award for “Readers Poll Most Popular Radio DJ.”
Steffens, however, feels that the medium of radio is not like it
used to be.
“American music and radio is in the worst condition ever,
right now,” Steffens, who witnessed the advent of rock
‘n’ roll during the ’50s, said. “It’s
pathetic.”
“The World of Reggae,” at the Queen Mary, is just
another accomplishment to add to Steffens’ extremely long
list. The positive vibe of the exhibit will leave viewers with the
same first impression Steffens had, as if they’d been
captured by that “vampire amoeba” known as reggae
music.
ART: “The World of Reggae featuring Bob
Marley” is now on display in the English Village at the Queen
Mary. Tickets are $10 per person. For more information call (562)
435-3511 or visit www.queenmary.com.