REGGAE RUNNINGS -- 9 November 2006

By Jesse I

 

Firstly, a massive big-up to Sydney's Nasty Tek crew for a wicked set at last month's More Fire session. Prince Andrew and Mikey Glamour gave Melbourne a taste of the true bashment dancehall vibes, and managed to keep the energy levels at a crazy level for three hours of hype - respect! For those that missed it, audio of the night is available for download from audio section of the Chant Down website at http://www.chantdown.com .

This month's More Fire session will keep the Sydney connection going with special guest Josie Styles, plus residents Chant Down, Tempa, Maruza, and Night Nurse, Kilroc and Humbug upstairs in the chill-out. Come and see why this night has built a reputation as the biggest monthly reggae/dancehall night in the country - this Saturday 12th November at the Mercat LG (formerly known as Deep 11).

The other major gig of note this month is Tippa Irie's first Melbourne show, together with selector Mikey Boops of the UK 's legendary Saxon soundsystem. Born in Brixton to Jamaican parents, Tippa was inspired at a very young age by the original toasters like U-Roy, Big Youth, and Dennis Alcapone, and soon began performing his on his father's "Musical Messiah" soundsystem. By the age of 17, Tippa was performing with King Tubby's sound (run by a cousin of the original dub-master King Tubby) and regularly winning local talent contests - it was at one of these that Dennis Rowe and Musclehead of Saxon sound saw Tippa, and invited him to join their crew. As part of a roster including the likes of Maxi Priest, Papa Levi, and Smiley Culture, Tippa was soon touring the UK and abroad, as Saxon sound became a veritable phenomenon. People still refer to Saxon as the greatest ever UK soundsystem, and as part of this crew Tippa shares credit for the creation of the "fast-chat" style of ragga MCing that emerged in the late 80s. Together with Mikey Boops and a few serious crates of original Saxon dubplates, Tippa Irie will be performing at the Prince of Wales bandroom on November 30 - plus support from Chant Down, Natty Sistren Sound, Rastafari Rhythms, and more.

November also sees the introduction of a new weekly reggae/dancehall night, "High Tide" at the Espy in St Kilda. Ras Crucial and I will be holding it down every Thursday night over summer in a couched-up Gershwin "lounge", plus special guest selectors each week. The first session takes place on November 24 (with guests Sista Itations and Bass Bin Laden), and entry is free all night from 9pm .

Looking abroad, Sean Paul appears to be proving his mainstream success to be more than just a fad. Trinity (the follow up to his multi-platinum Dutty Rock album) created history last month when it sold over 107,000 copies in its first week, making it the highest ever reggae debut and single week sales for a reggae artist in SoundScan history. It's good to see the first single from the album "We'll Be Burning" on the Australian charts, but it is sad to see that the lyrics have been changed substantially from the original 7" release - what was a wicked ganja tune has become a dumbed-down club cut. Let's face it, "just gimme the trees and mek we smoke it yo" wasn't exactly poetry, but "just gimme the g's and we be clubbin' yo" is pure cringe material! Still, it's great to hear the Stepz riddim getting out there commercially, even if it is a good year old now.

Even more exciting for the less dancehall-minded reggae fans was the debut of Damian "Jr Gong" Marley's latest album, "Welcome to Jamrock". The title track has undoubtedly been the biggest song in reggae over the last year, and it has even managed to make it onto the JJJ airwaves (not a bad feat for a song with a heavyweight roots riddim and a relentless patois delivery). Obviously this helped, as the album debuted at number 7 on the US album charts, and sold over 85,000 units in its first week (a record until Sean Paul's release). "Khaki Suit" (with Bounty Killer and Eek A Mouse) is the second single to be released from the album, and it's already doing serious business in the reggae underground.

Lastly, I have to mark the passing of the Jamaican deejay Baby Wayne (born Wayne Parkinson, 1968). Wayne died from pneumonia-releated complications on October 28, and will be remembered for early 90s hits such as "Mama", "Caa Live So", and "Mi Know Mi Fren". RIP.

Last month I promised to take a look at the 7" vinyl single, but this will have to wait til next time... til then, you can reach me at chantdownsound@yahoo.com, or check out www.ozreggae.com for Australia's only reggae message board.