Howard Campbell, Gleaner Writer

Roger Steffens (centre) with I-Three members, Judy Mowatt (left) and Marcia Griffiths at his archives in Los Angeles. - Photo courtesy of Roger Steffens' Reggae Archives

FAILURE TO agree on a price is the reason a Jamaican conglomerate pulled out of negotiations to purchase the archives of reggae historian Roger Steffens, businessman Wayne Chen tells The Gleaner.

Chen, principal of the Super Plus supermarket chain, said Steffens asked for over US$2 million for the collection which is at his Los Angeles, California home. That is when the Jamaican interest stepped aside.

"We agreed that he (Steffens) would bring in a valuator, someone who has done work with the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. I think the price on everything was US$1.6 but Roger wanted over $2 million and we couldn't go up to that," Chen explained.

Largest collection of Bob

Chen said the talks took place four years ago when he was in Los Angeles for talks with Steffens to buy the archives which contains the largest collection of Bob Marley memorabilia.

He said he represented a company that wanted to make the Steffens collection part of the proposed museum of Jamaican music. Four years ago, The Gleaner reported that a company, headed by Chen's brother Michael Lee Chin, had bought the archives.

But last week, Steffens told The Gleaner that his collection was again up for sale and had attracted 'major interest'.

"Dollar figures can be discussed by my representatives with all serious people but would obviously have to be in seven figures," Steffens said.

He added that discussions with the Jamaicans fell through because they did not meet certain requirements. One of these requirements, he stated, is that the collection 'should remain intact and be shared as much as legally possible with the public while respecting the rights of the artistes involved'.

Steffens, 66, has been collecting reggae pieces for over 30 years, many of which are in his home 'museum'. The items include concert posters, rare vinyl records and T-shirts.

The Vietnam War veteran says he was introduced to Jamaican popular music through the 1972 movie, The Harder They Come. Since the 1980s he has contributed to books and documentaries on reggae and has developed an international reputation as an authority on Marley and his band, The Wailers.

Chen, a lawyer, is also an admirer of Jamaican pop music from the 1960s and 1970s. He and Manchester businessman Kevin O'Brien Chang are co-authors of the 1999 book, Reggae Routes: The Story of Jamaican Music.

Wayne Chen