Dennis, The Crown Prince

Groundins

By: Charles H.E.Campbell

Today, the 29th of January, Reggae month activities commence with the staging of the Dennis Brown Symposium at Liberty Hall, to be followed by the Dennis Brown Tribute Concert on Orange Street. Dennis’ birthday actually falls on the first of February, however, because Orange Street has to be blocked off for the staging of the concert, each year it is held on the Sunday closest to his birthday.

The secret to Dennis Brown’s sustained success is not only his incredible voice, his incredible vocal range and stylistic ability, but he was easily the most charismatic of all the Reggae artistes of his era.

He was not bitten by the superstar bug, but remained a down-to-earth, approachable, jovial personality off the stage, who was humble, courteous and polite, and so, he easily won over fans of both sexes and they all remained loyal to him throughout his career.

As a Sunsplash partner, I can tell you that the first artiste on the Sunsplash lineup annually was Dennis Brown. He single-handedly built our singer’s night into being the ‘can’t miss’ night of Sunsplash for our local and international audiences alike, and each year, with or without current hits, he would literally and lyrically vanquish all competition.

Dennis Brown has a vast catalogue of songs that is second to none in Reggae music, and, whether he was doing originals or cover versions, he stamped all of his songs with his own inimitable style. He has become the most covered Reggae artiste, confirming the profound impact that he continues to have over listeners, over fans, over aficionados of the music.

During his career, one thing promoters were assured of was that, very few people would leave the venue before Dennis performed; therefore, making him the closing act on a show would extend the vibe through to the end, giving vendors and concessionaires the opportunity to ply their wares.

So many acts, George Nooks, Richie Stephens etc. pattern their singing style off Dennis Brown’s. His hits have stood the test of time, and are still popular in the dancehall, at parties and on the live entertainment circuit all over the world; no wonder Bob Marley said that Dennis Brown was his favourite singer!

Some people would argue that, on paper, the Rebel Salute lineup this year may not necessarily have been the best ever. However, it was truly magical, because all the artistes who performed were on the top of their game and delivered with such gusto and intensity that each one left the stage with the patrons wanting more. Leroy Gibbons, Johnny Clarke, Johnny Osbourne and Max Romeo were the showstoppers; Stephen Marley put on a very workman-like show, but when he was joined by his sibling, Jr. Gong, they really brought the house down.

The one downside of the show was the two MC’s who followed Jenny Jenny. It is my belief that, those of us who come to Rebel Salute, come to hear a certain type of Reggae Music that uplifts the soul and speaks of social issues in a spiritual and uplifting manner, and, unfortunately, the commentary from the MC’s did not compliment this.

While they have their place in the broad spectrum of events, I hope that Tony Rebel will be a bit more selective in his choice of MC’s for his next shows. Rebel Salute was the perfect event to choose to launch the Jamaica 50 calendar of events. The spiritual high that it gave us carried over into the first night of Jamaica Jazz and Blues.

The tribute to Reggae music in celebration of our 50th year of independence, staged on the first night of Jazz and Blues, was very successful. Within a lineup of some of Reggae music’s more significant luminaries, Derrick Morgan stood out, as did Marcia Griffiths, Assassin, Etana and Shaggy (with surprise guests Tarrus Riley and Ne-yo). The Jamaica Jazz and Blues Festivals should be congratulated for their initiative to devote a whole night of the festival to Jamaican music throughout the ages. Hopefully the night was a financial success which will encourage their consideration of making it an annual feature of the festival.

Given their stellar lineup of Jamaican acts and success this year, Rebel Salute, followed closely by Jamaica Jazz and Blues, are the perfect events to have heralded the launch of Reggae Month activities today.

The effort to continue the renaissance of Jamaican music in our 50th year of independence continues with the Dennis Brown Concert today, and the very popular Reggae Wednesdays, normally staged at Edna Manley, will be staged in Emancipation Park, with all the symbolism that it holds in terms of the role that our popular culture has played in defining who we are as a people, making Jamaica, its art and culture, the main plank of our brand Jamaica that holds such an enormous potential to transform our economy and our country into a modern, successful state, and making us the envy of the world.

Email: che.campbell@gmail.com

Read more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/entertainment/-D-Brown---the-crown-prince_10654723