The attack happened Sunday outside the musician’s home in Brooklyn, N.Y. Mackerel, whose real name is Garfield Dixon, was hospitalized for several hours before leaving with bandages wrapped around his head, left hand, wrist and elbow, according to the New York Daily News.

“I don’t feel bad, Mackerel said after leaving the hospital. “These things happen,” he said, adding, “It’s a Jamaican thing.”

Mackerel denies ever harassing his neighbor’s wife. According to the Daily News, Mackerel was returning from the store when Oscar Joseph, 37, confronted the musician while holding a sword. The two men argued for a while then began “wrastling for the sword,” according to Mackerel’s girlfriend, Novia Watson.

“It was a big surprise,” Mackerel said. “I was trying not to get cut, not to get stabbed.”

Joseph, who was arrested minutes later still holding the blade, faces charges including assault with intent to cause serious injury with a weapon.

Mackerel scored a couple of reggae hits during the late 1980s- early ‘90s, including “Duffy Bungle” and “Sorry Fi Botha.”

Click here to read the complete New York Daily News article.

Click here for Major Mackerel’s MySpace page.