The oldest swingers: the Jolly Boys
Named by Errol Flynn in the 1950s, the Jolly Boys were once the toast of Jamaica. Now, after nearly five decades playing second fiddle to reggae, the band are enjoying a remarkable revival. Will the Jolly Boys finally have the last laugh?
Brooklyn’s ‘Irie Jam’ in limbo
A recent press release from organizers of the annual marathon, pre-Labor Day presentation of dancehall and vintage concert talents seemed more like a requiem to the festival than a one-year hiatus from revelry.
In announcing reasons for cancellation of this year’s Irie Jamboree, the organizers thanked vendors, the NYPD, patrons, media, for support they claimed abundantly helped their presentation. In addition, executives of the team also laid out specific reasons why the one, major, reggae concert of the year would not fill the weekend bill which usually is dominated by soca and calypso music.
The Japanese have been making reggae almost as long as Jamaicans have been exporting it. This phenomenon could have started as early as the mid-’70s, when the film “The Harder They Come” grafted the crime drama to Kingston’s reggae scene and became an international cult classic. Or, more likely, it began sometime around 1979, when Bob Marley landed for the first time in the Land of the Rising Sun. Since then, the reggae scene in Japan has cycled through several styles and sub-subcultures, but only in recent years has one crucial aspect of its identity fully emerged: Finally, Japanese reggae stars are singing in Japanese.
Dancehall artist Busy Signal’s music springs from his roots
“I still do gun songs and raw dancehall songs, but, at this point, I don’t need to do a gun song. After what Jamaica — and the world — has been through, I don’t need to sing another gun song my whole life.”
I’m in a famous recording studio at 23 Westminster Rd. interviewing Busy Signal, 28, a top dancehall artist, known for, among other things, the song Tic Toc, which made Rolling Stone’s list of best singles a couple years ago.
Reggae, Sugar Minott and Nahki — the Japanese experience
It would seam nothing short of divine providence, a week after the passing of reggae/dancehall kingpin Sugar Minott, that a Japanese professor in music presented a paper in Kingston, Jamaica on the birth and impact of reggae in Japan in which the role of the departed crooner was highlighted.
Under the theme ‘Locating the Japanese and the Jamaican in Japanese Reggae/Dancehall’, Professor Noriko Manabe’s paper, presented in the Neville Hall Lecture Theatre, UWI, Mona on Tuesday, focused on the indigenisation of the Jamaican music in Japan.
Howard “Flagga” Duperly Plays Reggae on Florida’s Serious Jazz Radio
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Jamaican Howard “Flagga”Duperly hosts a reggae show, The Reggae Ride, on predominantly jazz radio WDNA 88.9FM in Florida. The non-profit radio, known worldwide as South Florida’s premier jazz station utilizes two words, Serious Jazz, that, in a nutshell, brands its varied programming.
A product of the 60s music, Flagga brings a wealth of first-hand experiences to his now worldwide audience. He’s from the ‘old school’ who believes firmly that to effectively promote reggae it must be presented in all its forms–ska, rocksteady, roots, lovers rock, etc. He ignores quick profit fluffs that use rehashed rhythms, lewd and violent elements as a ploy.
Sugar Minott — a man for all seasons
The significance of Lincoln ‘Sugar’ Minott’s contribution as a critical innovator in the annals of modern Jamaican music will be commemorated at farewell showcase tentatively planned for July 29. It will form part of the tribute for the late reggae/dancehall maestro.
According to his widow, Maxine Stowe, if everything goes her way, the send- off for her husband into the choir of the great beyond will be nothing short of impressive.
Happy Birthday Buju | The Trinidad Guardian
A living legend. A dancehall-reggae icon. Incarcerated but still thrilling worldwide audiences with hits that range from GAL, Optimistic Soul and Let Dem Know—all songs unleashed since he was locked away. Today, Mark Anthony Myrie—the one and only, Buju Banton, celebrates his 37th birthday. As a Caribbean entertainer whose name stands firmly among some of the region’s finest performers, Buju must be given credit for his accomplishments over the years, this despite being arrested for the December 2009 charge of conspiracy to possess, with intent to distribute, more than five kilos of cocaine—a charge he has denied but one that has since left him incarcerated in the US.
It would be incorrect to think of Jimmy Cliff’s induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame earlier this year as the beginning of the reggae great’s wind down.
“That is just a stepping stone to more success,” said Cliff, 62, in a phone interview from a Michigan tour stop, of the March honour he shared with legendary groups, such as ABBA and Genesis.
Reggae Elder Sugar Minott Dies At 54
Reggae and dancehall pioneer Sugar Minott died Saturday at a hospital in Kingston, Jamaica, after suffering from a heart-related ailment. He was 54.
Lincoln Barrington “Sugar” Minott loved the music he helped create: When he’d perform, he’d shake his shoulders, bug out his eyes and then shut them tight with the music. When he smiled, which was often, an adorable gap would peek out between his teeth.