Album Review, Welcome To Jamrock

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The whole mix from 'Junior Gong'

By Charles HE Campbell Observer writer Sunday, September 25, 2005

AT short notice, I was issued an invitation to attend the launch of Welcome to Jamrock - Damian 'Junior Gong' Marley's third and latest studio album - by his mother, Cindy Breakspeare.

I was glad that I went for a number of reasons. Firstly, I have not seen such a turnout of journalists and media practitioners for a press launch in many years. Secondly, I was impressed with Junior Gong's well-thought-out and eloquent responses to questions put to him by members of the press and others present.

Too often I have attended these press conferences, well organised by their handlers, only to sit through the question and answer sessions where the artistes' responses are mostly incoherent or nonsensical dribble. Thirdly, I have not seen such excitement on the streets and interest in the music fraternity for a Reggae/Dancehall single in many moons.

The last three occasions being Bob Marley's Rastaman Vibrations, Shaggy's Hot Shots and Sean Paul's Dutty Rock.
The New York Times has scored Welcome To Jamrock as the Reggae song of the decade and the Miami New Times deems it "one of 2005's finest releases".

Rolling Stones Magazine and Jane Magazine mark it highly, both giving it three out of four stars. I have since listened to the album and concur with the above international media assessments of the title track from the album.

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Junior Gong's latest album, Welcome to Jamrock presents the part of Jamaica not sold to tourists

As Damian himself told Observer staff writer Olivia Campbell in December 2004, "You have one vision of Jamaica, which is the vision they sell to the tourists - the beauty of the island, the waterfalls, that kind of thing.

Then you have what the majority of Jamaicans are facing which is Jamrock; which is not such a pretty vision of Jamaica. It's a completely different vision and a completely different life, so that's what Jamrock is, that life, that lifestyle, that part of Jamaica not sold to tourists."

This song has been out since 2004 and the people have spoken - there is no need for further comment. I do, however, have comments to make on the other songs included in this album.

The album starts in military fashion, with Damian Marley interjecting dialogue from Marcus Garvey and Haile Selassie I, while warning of the inevitable eruption of civil war and strife, unless the strong begin to protect the weak. "A slaughterhouse from Baghdad to Waterhouse".

He mellows somewhat for track two - There For You, singing and sounding reminiscent of his father's raspy voice in Jah Will Be Waiting There.

When I first heard All Night, it immediately grabbed my attention with its lively soca blend in a style similar to Chaka Demus and Plier's Murder She Wrote. The music and lyrics display a frolicking Junior Gong.

But clearly the strategy for Stephen and Damian was to save the best for last and so the album rises to a crescendo with the last five songs, especially track 14, Khaki Suit - sure to do well on local and international charts.

Hey Girl is in the same loving mood as All Night, with a real dance beat and lyrical treat from Junior Gong, complimenting his girlfriend on her virtues and in turn receiving compliments.

Road to Zion is a spiritual chant with Damian again employing his raspy singing voice over mellow music and haunting background vocals. On We're Gonna Make It, we get Junior in sing-jay style, using very optimistic lyrics to project Rasta livity. The drum beat is a rapid hard drive, constantly propelling his incantations.

In Too Deep is made for the dancehall. I can already foresee all kinds of new dance moves being created especially for this tune. The jerky stop-and-go style of the music and rapping is going to be a selector's thrill while it's on the turntable.

Khaki Suit featuring Bounty Killer and Eek-A-Mouse is my favourite other song on the album. Damian uses a rap style made famous by Super Cat more than two decades ago, with comic-screeching interludes by Eek-A-Mouse coupled with the usual gruff militancy of Bounty Killer's style.

Damian's lyrics are all flippant and dancehall hype and contains samples from Eek-A-Mouse's composition, Anorexol. I'm still dancing to this one. Damian Marley co-produced all but three of the tracks with his brother Stephen Marley.

What is significant and no longer the norm, but certainly plays a pivotal role in the quality of the songs, is that all the tracks are well-structured compositions, with choruses and bridges.

The liner notes are excellently done, listing the lyrics, the writers and producers, musicians, publishing credits, engineers, studios and even where appropriate, as in Khaki Suit, composers of music samples.

Other dancehall artistes and their managers should study the way this was handled and incorporate the strengths for their own international releases.

In summary, to quote Damian Marley referring to his new album, he says, "on this one, you have all kinds of tracks, you have some spiritual tracks, you have some tracks you'd probably call rude or so. But life is like that". "Dancehall, R&B, Hip Hop...it's all about feelings.

We are not just trying to do a segment of the mix. We're trying to do the whole mix." This album certainly accomplishes those stated objectives of Damian 'Junior Gong' Marley.

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Cultural Integration In Canada - Jamaicans In The Diaspora

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Jamaicans in the Diaspora

By Charles H E Campbell Observer writer Sunday, September 18, 2005

In Jamaica, I am brown. I get by because I am easy on the eye. In Toronto, Canada, I am black. Shee! Don't say that too loud now, even though I am.a proud black man that is.

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Damian 'Junior Gong' Marley's tune Welcome To Jamrock was all the rave while I was in Toronto

My family migrated to Canada between 1968 and 1971, because my parents and seven sisters surmised that Canada had an excellent public and welfare system, especially in the areas of education, health and retirement benefits. I have been visiting Canada from time to time since then.

I witnessed and participated in early protests and demonstrations against racism, but found Canada's breed of racism a little more subtle than the Americans- maybe because the country has always had genuine liberal (enlightened) leadership.

I watched the first two waves of Jamaican émigrés (1960s and 1970s) educate themselves and integrate (almost) completely in their various professions and communities. My father for instance, a priest, served in the Anglican Church in various parts of Toronto and Owensound, Even after he retired, he was given a tremendous memorial service in May when he passed away.

My mother became quite popular for baking wedding cakes, Easter buns and her special brand of pimento liqueur, for which, each year, I had to buy and export to her the ripe berries.

My mother's mother was a mixture of Portland Maroons (Taino/African interbred) and Irish settlers, while her father was a famous black pharmacist in Port Antonio, Charles Buckley. She married my father A C Campbell who was a mixture of Scottish and East Indian. She bore him eight children, encompassing a kaleidoscope of black/brown shades. Her family had the 'class'. She says quite proudly, "my mother only allowed me to marry him because of his colour".

In Canada, my father's profession allowed people to choose what colour he was- he could pass. Neither my mother nor my sisters could, so they worked doubly hard to gain promotions, saved all they could so as to buy nice homes, live comfortably and educate their children up to university level.

They all fraternised with other Jamaicans and West Indians in their community- if those Jamaicans and West Indians had arrived before 1980. There are so many other Jamaicans I know who have done well in their professions and have contributed to the uplifting of others in the society.

The new governor general designate for Canada is a black Haitian émigré. While I was there, our own Alvin Curling, former speaker of the Ontario legislature, was named Canada's new ambassador to the Dominican Republic. Also, Olivia 'Babsy' Grange's mother and stepfather, Raphaelith and Gifford Walker, were honoured for 43 years of service to the Jamaican Canadian Association.

The social and racial landscape in Toronto has however changed quite significantly over the decades. What with an influx of Asians (Pakistanis and Indians) in the 1980s, Pacifica Islanders and Chinese in the 1990s (Toronto now uniquely has two active China Towns), the whole racial mix has become quite complex- no longer straight black and white. Ironically, the only experience of racial prejudice I encountered while there visiting recently, was displayed by a Pakistani store clerk.

When I related the incident to Martin Mordecai, he informed me that my experience was not uncommon. "In fact", he said, "for blacks in similar encounters, the Pakistani make you feel as if your money is dirty or of lesser value. I have never been racist, but my recent business transactions with Pakistanis have provoked that reaction."

Social scientist, Joseph Mensch in his book, Black Canadians: History, Experience And Social Conditions, said, "many Canadians are reluctant to admit that racial oppression and inferiorisation persists in this country.

As Canadians, we have a tendency not just to ignore our racist past, but also to dismiss any contemporary racial incidence as nothing but an aberration in an essentially peaceful, tolerant, charitable and egalitarian nation."

Toronto's newspapers refer to this summer as 'the summer of the gun'. It was called 'one of the worst crime waves in the city's history'. Citizens were appalled by the violence and shootings. So far 15 people have been murdered. Last weekend alone, 12 people were killed here in Jamaica, but that is relative.

They say much of the brutal gun violence is gang related. The incident most reported on and discussed was the daylight killing on Thursday, August 25 of a Jamaican-Canadian, 41 year-old Delroy George Daring, as he stood surrounded by 20 neighbours and children on a Scarborough basketball court. This sparked a sudden flurry of political activity.

Read the ensuing for echoes of our local scene. The Saturday Star of August 27 said, 'there are two versions of Delroy George Daring, the father of 10 children with three women. The people who know him say that 'he was a good man, who pulled a troubled life together to organise 'No Drugs, No Violence' summer barbeques for low income kids. The group called themselves, the 'Out-Of-Pocket Club' because no one would help them raise money".

Meantime Toronto police detectives have a different take on the unemployed furniture mover who emigrated from Kingston 20 years ago. "I have reason to believe that the idea he was, say, a completely upstanding person, promoting non-violence, non-drugs and non-guns is not fair", said detective John Biggerstaff. Sounding familiar already? Well there is the rub.

The culture of the Jamaicans who migrated to Canada after 1980 is completely alien to the earlier immigrants and they do not harmonise or relate at all. These latter émigrés are more apt to depend on the state for dole and to reside in public housing schemes.

A Star newspaper reporter investigating the killing reports, "Yesterday, the building's stairways were littered with burnt newspapers and garbage.

They smelled of urine and, in the hallways, light fixtures dangled and carpets were stained with cigarette butts. Locks on the building's doors were broken and mice and roaches scurried about. Out front, young men milled about the entrance smoking, listening to music and watching passersby".

More shades of Jamaica? Read on. Some time ago, the Ontario government eliminated employment equity that sought to balance historical workforce injustice, cut welfare rates that provided a buffer against joblessness and cut social programmes that help the struggling.

The men at the building told the reporter that Daring was trying to make a difference- he organised barbeques (read dances) which began four years ago and which offered kids a day of bliss with 'bouncey-houses' for them to play, along with raffles, soccer and dance contests.

No need for anyone to pinch you. I am not talking about Jamaica here, but surely this is our donmanship exported- manipulating the real needs of the people whom the state has forsaken as a prerequisite of this new global economic "s(hit)stem" as Peter Tosh called it.

Damian 'Junior Gong' Marley's tune Welcome To Jamrock was all the rave while I was in Toronto. I heard the song playing frequently on car stereos, in restaurants and everyone was singing.

Amazingly it is mostly disillusioned white kids who are all caught up in the red, gold and green and other visible signs and habits of Rasta culture. To my dismay I have come home to find that there is controversy locally about the video images displayed. Don't worry Junior, you never created the social conditions that you rap about.

Those that are upset should set about ameliorating them immediately.
I wish to congratulate the team of artists, artisans and workers who must have created some kind of world record in constructing 10 major floats, four minor floats, 14 effigies and four costumed groups in five working days, two of which were almost totally lost to rain, to successfully stage the National Independence Day Float Parade this year.

Jamaicans from all walks of life came out in their numbers and showed their appreciation. Don't worry about the arm chair critics who are belittling our efforts- achievers are too busy doing what must be done, those who can't play, coach.

Larry Watson is a brilliant artist and gifted builder who lead the team with wisdom, humility, passion and non-ending energy and perseverance. His story and accomplishments are certainly deserving of public exposure and honour.

Get well soon Mama!

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The Heaviest Of The Heavy Weights

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Roger and Ian Lewis of the famed Inner Circle band pursuing new horizons as studio aficionados

By Charles H E Campbell Observer writer Sunday, September 04, 2005

The heaviest of heavyweights, fat man riddim duo, brothers Roger and Ian Lewis are the original members of Inner Circle - a band that was a central part of the pivotal movement of the 1970s young and burgeoning musicians, who would soon overtake Jamaica and the world at large with the weight of their popularity, music and musical accomplishments and successes.

Now the heavyweights have shifted their focus away from the performing stage and have built a highly successful studio/production business in Florida.

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ROGER LEWIS... 1C Oxford was were Inner Circle started (Photo: Karl McLarty)

In this special feature Roger and Ian speak frankly about their early involvement with reggae, the Inner Circle, Jacob Miller and their studio/production business.

"1C Oxford Road, which is now Mas Camp, was where it really all started. That was a place with a lot of vibes. It was a time (late 1960s, early 1970s) when vibes used to run through all of Jamaica. It's interesting that now Mas Camp still represents and is known for that kind of cultural and musical vibes that was prevailing then.

A whole heap of vibes - Yuh had the poets, like Mutabaruka, Kiddus I, Ras Michael, Jeffery Chung and Now Generation. Ruth Sherman had a restaurant nearby and Cindy Breakespeare used to be in there. Bob [Marley] used to come around with [Allan] Skill [Cole] and a bag a man, it was a vibes man," a reflective Roger Lewis said as he reminisced on the formative days of his involvement with music and the formation of the Inner Circle.

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IBO COOPER... given props for early direction of Inner Circle

Inner Circle, according to Lewis was an apt name for a working band that would have passed through its learning streams some of Jamaica's finest musicians including Stephen 'Cat' Coore, Prilly Hamilton, Funky Brown, Carl Barovier, Douglas Guthrie, Charlie Roberts and Michael 'Ibo' Cooper.

"I have to give Ibo (Cooper) his props, as a musician and the kind of musician who can lead a band or do anything musically. I can say that it was from him that I really learnt. Ibo was very disciplined, but moreover he knew the music. He had the training and was so able to teach many of us. He was fearless, because he knew the music. Musically, I must give him his props, big props," Roger Lewis said.

In 1971, Inner Circle took on the invitation to be a backing band on Michael Manley's PNP Bandwagon, which significantly aided Manley to reach the masses and gained him his landslide victory in February 1972. All along this islandwide showcase, Inner Circle backed many of the premier Jamaican artistes of the era including, the Wailers, Junior Byles, Clancy Eccles, Marcia Griffiths, Brent Dowe (of the Melodians), Max Romeo and Ken Boothe.

"The bandwagon was really the beginning of a melting pot, a fusion of the earlier music and the new music, as well as a bridging of the Jamaican society and Rasta.

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Tommy Cowan (left), Roger and Ian Lewis. (Photos: Karl McLarty)

The climate and the music were so free. The musicians weren't politically connected. It was not as though we were using the music to politically mastermind the people. It was just fun to be playing music, we never even thought about politics," Roger Lewis said.

A transition came for the band when both Cat and Ibo decided to leave Inner Circle to form their own outfit, Third World, in 1973. By this time, Inner Circle had steadily moulded itself into a show band, with the sole duty of entertaining.

They so perfected the craft of performing a barrage of dance hits spanning different genres that they were packing choice venues of the era like Witches' Hideaway (Holiday Inn), Casa Monte Hotel (Stony Hill) and Turntable on the famed Red Hills strip in Kingston. In addition, Inner Circle was running the north coast hotel circuit red hot.

"I always marvelled at the sight of the people who came out to the dance, having a difficulty dancing, when they wanted to watch the group," commented Tommy Cowan about the group's showmanship and influence at the time.

In 1974, the band flew off to San Francisco to work as a backing band for a series of shows with Fredrick "Toots" Hibbert among others.
"On that tour, we saw Dennis Brown a sing him own songs, Toots a sing him own songs, an' we seh but wait, this ting yah nuh hard.

People were excited and knew their tunes while we were playing someone else's tunes," Roger Lewis said.
The band made a qualitative leap forward when they linked with singer Jacob Miller.

"We really found ourselves with Jacob Miller and that was when we really draw a gear. That was when Inner Circle really began as Inner Circle.

That was when we got into the original music, the writing of songs and coming out with Tommy Cowan. When we used to play dance music, like top 40 hits at Drumblair dances and Casa Monte, all 'bout, Jakes (Jacob Miller) used to come as a likkle yute and cuss we and laugh after we and seh "yeah unnu a fight 'gainst me, but me a di greatest singer", "dem bwoy deh a eediat".

And we used to seh "dis likkle fat eediat breddah, everywhere we go the man come 'round and jus a trouble people and all dem ting deh". And he used to predict, "yuh can gwaan, unnu a go come fi me". And mi used to always a seh, "which eediat breddah dat? Everywhere we go this fat bwoy just come 'round and a give pure trouble.

Jakes was a prankster, a real trouble-making man. One day I finally said to him, "awright Jakes, come round, mek we do a likkle ting, see if you can really sing. Is twenty-odd man Jakes bring wid him - Jakes bring him band with drummer and horns section and everything," Roger Lewis with tears in his eyes said.

"Jakes evolved as a folk hero. He had such magnetism, a simple roots way that made him popular with the masses. Jakes used to always mek us drop him at the top of Rousseau Road, never at his house. One day I go to pick him up.

Yuh see when I turn into the yard, there was a house with no gate, I went up to the so-called verandah and front door, a likkle youth come out and point towards where Jakes was living, on the side of the house, a built-on section with no windows, a zinc roof, unrendered concrete walls and a single cot on which Jakes was sleeping.

And I said to myself, this youth walk around everyday, and laughing all the time, not a wrinkle on his face and this is where him sleep. And I seh come man Jakes, let's go, we a go a di house. Even though he was poor, he never had in his mind any element of criminality.

Jakes' mother used to be a bus conductress on a 'Jolly' bus. Jakes used to go on the bus, right where the driver is and sing and entertain the bus. Elvis Presley business and them ting deh. In his mind he never looked down on that. And him come back come sing 'bout Rousseau Road, 21A in the tune Jolly Joseph, Ian Lewis said
Jacob Miller's and Inner Circle's first major hit was Tenement Yard (1976).

"We sold over 70,000 copies of that song, pressing it ourselves. I remember when we started first, we gave it to Pat Cooper - Pat was the first person we carried that tune to. When we'd press 2,000 and give it to Pat on the Friday, by Tuesday those would be finished. To show you, when a man can seh him sell 4,000 records is a hit in Jamaica, back then when you can sell 100,000, that's how much people were buying music."

A number of other hits are credited to this group of musicians including Forward Jah Jah Children, A Chapter A Day and We A Rockers, the title track from the 1978 movie Rockers, which also featured the band playing an up-tempo version of Tenement Yard and most memorably Miller himself in an amusing acting role.
Even with these accomplishments, Roger and Ian feel that they have not received their just due, locally.

"The Peace Concert of 1978, which we put together ourselves along with Tommy - all the equipment, everything - nearly every piece of equipment on that stage was ours. We were bridging the gap between the classes, between uptown and downtown.

At that time, when a man a seh Rasta, at least 30% of Twelve Tribes were white uptown Jamaicans and Chinese. Everyone was actively weaving the social fabric of Jamaica. It was a lifestyle, it was every single day, it wasn't something that happened once in a while, it was a constant vibe."

Yet, another transitional period would ensue with the passing of the front man with the smooth voice. Jacob "Jakes" Miller who had endeared himself along with Inner Circle to the Jamaican masses had died and gloom descended.

"You have to live and understand who Jacob Miller was..everything was going magnificent. We had just signed to Island Records, which was home to Bob Marley and Third World after doing two albums with Capitol Records," Roger remembered.

"Chris Blackwell was marrying us together with Bob, but he was putting us out as a more edgier band. Chris met us in England and put us up, like we were his sons. That was 1979," Ian said.

In March 1980, after that initial meeting, Jacob died in a car accident.
The group was in limbo, coming out of Jacob's untimely passing and would take until 1986 to regroup. This time joined by vocalist Carlton Coffie, they would again make headway onto the international scene with their 1987 song Bad Boys.

"Bad Boys was a cut from the album, One Way. We were approached about using the song on the soundtrack of what we initially thought was a docudrama or a pilot for FOX television, Roger said.

That 'pilot' turned out to be a box office busting movie starring comedians Will Smith (Fresh Prince) and Martin Lawrence, of the same name (1993). The exposure spiralled the song to the top of the US R&B charts and subsequently earned them a Grammy. Shortly thereafter Sweat from the album Bad To The Bone became another big hit for the group.

Currently the brothers reside in Florida, running their Circle Sound Studios which are often utilised by some big names in reggae, dancehall and hip hop including Sly and Robbie, Shaggy, Elephant Man, Cash Money, Puff Daddy, Kanye West, Neptunes, Lauryn Hill, TLC, 50 Cent, Mariah Carey and Lenny Kravitz.

"It's more than a studio; it's a mixture of food and culture, among other things. It's the perfect way for us to establish working relationships with Jamaica, especially the younger generation and keep the continuity of the music," Roger Lewis said.

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