The Tassilli Players embraced an inclusive approach built around a shifting roster of musicians orbiting Dave Hake, formerly of the Cosmics and Harare Dread. Raised in Coventry, England, Hake counted the 2-Tone ska outfits the Specials and Selecter among his peers. After moving to Manchester he encountered Coxsone Dodd’s Studio One label, an encounter that profoundly shaped his musical goals. A phase of personal exploration followed, encompassing time on a Kibbutz, time spent with a Bedouin group in the Sinai Desert, a swift departure from conflict-ridden Israel, and a calm stretch of renewal in Ireland. The Irish interlude directly prompted the formation of the Tassilli Players. Once in London, Hake collaborated with Zion Train, the group that oversaw his sequence of experimental dub recordings. The ensemble also appeared on various dub anthologies such as Dubhead and Lead With The Bass. Outside his own Tassilli Players ventures, Hake developed a close alliance with Zion Train and teamed with Chris ‘Forkebeard’ Hetter to form the outfit’s signature brass unit. The pair earned notice for their work on the group’s emblematic Homegrown Fantasy, particularly their playing on ‘Dance Of Life’ and their reading of the Gladiators’ ‘Get Ready’. By 1996 the duo maintained their Tassilli activities while maintaining an unbroken touring calendar. The Players were additionally enlisted to supply the memorable horn figure on Morcheeba’s reggae-inflected ‘Friction’, included on the widely praised Big Calm.
