Roots manoeuvre

Dave Simpson on what happened when reggae and punk went head to head in the UK

It’s late autumn 1977, and the Stranglers are headlining a show in the Midlands. The support comes from the roots reggae band Steel Pulse. They know what to expect from a punk crowd: gobbing, cans being thrown. Steel Pulse are barely into their first number when a huge wad of phlegm shoots from the audience and lands on the hand of bassist Ron “Stepper” McQueen. The band’s nickname for McQueen was “Psycho” and they fully expected him to live up to his name. “We all stared at Ronnie and we stopped playing,” remembers Steel Pulse’s singer, Mykaell Riley. “So there’s this silence onstage, then eventually 4,000 punks went silent.” McQueen didn’t react, however. Instead, Stranglers bassist, Jean-Jacques Burnel, stepped out of the wings, waded into the crowd, identified the culprit, and knocked him out cold. Then he turned to face the crowd.

Beenie entertained, Cham was truly brilliant

Red Stripe Reggae Sumfest’s Dancehall Night on Thursday attracted the largest audience since its 15-year inception – perhaps an indication that dancehall is not entirely dead but has merely evolved, becoming more mainstream.
Cham gets into his act. “We cannot fight dancehall,” said MC Richard ‘Richie B’ Burgess, “it’s relevant.

Going batty

Yeah, I know reggae superstar Buju Banton has recorded a lot of great songs, but one day in reggae history, when the dust settles in the current years-long debate over anti-gay lyrics in dancehall, Buju will mostly be remembered for one song, Boom Bye Bye, his 1992 hit single advocating the killing of gay men with Uzis.

Cham gears up for big show

Dancehall star Cham expects his Red Stripe Reggae Sumfets performance to be one of the high points of what has already proven to be an extra hot summer. The artiste’s input on the remix of rapper Mim’s This Is Why I’m Hot (along with Junior Reid) maintianed it’s momentum from last year and continues to be a hot seller, as well as a party/dancehall favourite.

Jamaican troops serenade Queen with reggae

The Army is so heavily deployed on operations that soldiers of the Jamaican Regiment have been called on to protect the Queen outside Buckingham Palace, senior officers admitted yesterday. A company of 140 Caribbean troops have been called up to relieve soldiers of the Coldstream Guards who are preparing for deployment to Afghanistan this autumn.

311 fulfills mission to spread the reggae

There’s a growing crisis spreading through our youth faster than a clip on YouTube, that, if not checked and stomped out, threatens to destroy many lives, or at least make for a lot of uninteresting kids. That threat? Boring taste in music, created by a lack of variety, a de-emphasis on the great history of popular music and an overall case of the bland blah ickiness. Fortunately, our friends in 311, Omaha, Neb.’s own reggae/ska/hip-hop rockers, are doing their part to spread the gospel of their internationally inspired brand of music.

Matisyahu Tonight at Sound Advice Amphitheatre

At first glance, it´s easy to consider Matisyahu as a novelty act within reggae music. The tall, slender, and heavily bearded Jewish crooner seems about as far as you can get from Jamaica, and, in appearance, he´s unlike anyone else who´s ever made a living as a reggae singer. But spend some time talking to Matisyahu about his views, and it doesn´t take long to see how genuine he really is. Although he was fasting and coddling his infant son, Matisyahu took time out to get frank with New Times.

Low turnout at ‘Bad From Mi Born’

At 1:30 a.m. yesterday, it was different party, same story at Mas Camp, Oxford Road, New Kingston, as the tiny turnout for ‘Bad From Mi Born’ was a reminder of the weak support for ‘Retro Reloaded 2′, held there three weeks earlier.

The dancehall audience proved to be later comers than the retro crowd, though, and by the time MC Nuffy started just past 2:00 a.m. with two new performers, the crowd had improved from total embarrassment to major failure.

Da’Ville rocks Europe

The singer Da’Ville reportedly received an especially warm welcome from adoring fans who enjoyed every bit of his performances. Da’Ville also had to sign hundreds of autographs and take photos with just as many fans. He was bombarded with overwhelming phone calls when he visited radio and TV stations.

Alison Hinds – Soca Mama

A hectic touring schedule takes her all over the Western world and away from family in Barbados, as she promotes her popular single Roll it Gyal, but soca singer Alison Hinds has mastered being mommy and wife from a distance.

Hinds, popular in Jamaica and the rest of the Caribbean for her live performances and ragamuffin style, says that a spouse who trusts her also makes her four-year-old marriage work.