We are delighted to announce The London Intl Ska Festival and Phoenix City Rec. Co will be promoting not one but two Winter shows here at Under The Bridge:
Saturday 19 November 2011
STAGE/SHOW TIMES
7PM – DOORS OPEN
8PM BUSTER SHUFFLE
9PM THE SIDEWALK DOCTORS/DAVE BARKER
10.15PM THE HOTKNIVES
1AM – DOORS CLOSE
more info…
Friday 2 December 2011
THE DUALERS
THE DELEGATORS
plus very special guests & DJs tba
more info…
We thought we’d take the opportunity to offer our…
Bluffer’s Guide to Ska
So, the name?
Until the late 1950s Jamaica’s sound systems and bands largely played US r&b. Ska formed when producer-musicians such as Prince Buster and Duke Reid, and the jazz-schooled Skatalites flipped round the emphasis of the beat in r&b and added chopped horns and guitar to the offbeat, adding local Caribbean flavours too.
There are all numerous explanations for the origin of the name of the new music, from ska bassist Cluett Johnson’s catchphrase greeting ‘skavoovie’ to musos taking it from the distinctive chop sound of the instrumentation. Many argue that bandleader Byron Lee was the first to popularise the term, and a TV special introduced ska to the outside world.
Okay, that’s clear as mud. Next?
Next, this quirky sound from a small island became the new dance craze across the Caribbean and in Britain. Jamaican ex-pats set up in London and took the capital by storm. Mille Small had a massive ska hit in 1964, selling seven million copies of ‘My Boy Lollipop’. Other musicians such as the Skatalites’ Ernest Ranglin and Rico Rodriguez moved to Blighty to ride the ska wave.
The beautiful people went to sweaty clubs to listen to the music. You may even have seen this depicted in the 1989 film ‘Scandal’.
Ska was promoted by English labels such as Trojan, and earned a big following among soul boys and skinheads as cool, upbeat, underground music.
The simple joys of ska were woven into Britain’s music fabric forever.
So what happened to ska?
In 1967 The Skatalites had a UK hit with ‘Guns Of Navarone’ and ‘Train To Skaville’ was another biggie for The Ethiopians – though neither was strictly speaking ska.
Back in Jamaica people had wanted a slower beat, and the music morphed into the rolling rocksteady sound. Around 1969 it eased up even more to become reggae.
Still, Trojan’s ‘Tighten Up’ compilations helped keep the sound alive and a late-1970s ska revival underpinned the 2-Tone movement of Madness, The Specials, The Beat and other bands who became global acts.
But that was still all in the past…
Ha! That’s what you think. Ska has remained the ultimate good-time, underground music. It’s the blues to reggae’s soul, and has grown organically in the USA, Asia and Europe.
Look at California’s Sublime With Rome, who stormed Under The Bridge earlier this year, Brighton’s Hotknives who play bubbly, riffing ska, or The Sidewalk Doctors, who are as close to authentic 1967-69 rocksteady as is decent on a first date.
They all show that the music bloodstream worldwide still has ska as a low-lying virus.
You could say it remains as infectious as ever!
I won’t, thanks.
Please yourself.
Mi kinda get ah mention in de Jamaican Observer...lol
SIXTY-NINE-YEAR-OLD Leonard Dillon of the Ethiopians passed away yesterday at his daughter's home after suffering from lung and prostate cancer.
According to his daughter, Patrice, he was first diagnosed with a brain a tumour and he did an operation in February to remove it, returning home "quite well and okay".
In June, he fell ill again and this time he was diagnosed with lung, brain and prostate cancer.
His daughter says her dad was in the hospital for a week before he was eventually sent home.
Commenting on her father's death, Patrice says: "I was prepared, when I found him this morning, I knew I saw my dad for the last time. I am just happy that he died here. He will be missed, I know it will take one day at a time to go on," she said about the father of seven who has always been there for her.
He could be aggressive at times to us kids, but there was no doubting his love for us," said Patrice.
Singer Lloyd Parks found out about his friend's death after getting a phone call from a promoter in Australia wanting Dillon to perform.
He contacted Patrice intending to pass on the information when he got the shocking news.
Commenting on his colleague's death, Parks said Dillon will be missed. "He was really talented and had great ideas. A lot of people might not know it, but he was a
cornerstone internationally."
Parks shared that Dillon was a humorous person and always had him cracking up.
According to the bio posted on Dillon's Facebook page: The Ethiopians were one of Jamaica's most influential vocal groups. The duo, which featured Leonard Dillon and Stephen Taylor, was at the forefront of the transition from ska to rocksteady. Moreover, Dillon's style and use of Rastafarian-themed lyrics also paved the way for the socially conscious roots reggae era.
In 1964, Dillon met Peter Tosh, who admired his original material and introduced him to the other members of the Wailers. In turn, the Wailers brought Dillon to Clement "Coxsone" Dodd's Studio One, where he made his first recordings under the name Jack Sparrow.
Since these first recordings, Dillon has gone on to record with the likes of Vincent Chin, Prince Buster, Joe Gibbs, Bob Andy, Rupie Edwards, and Lee "Scratch" Perry.
In 2009, he returned to the studio with the legendary Jamaican vocal team The Silvertones to record his album Original Hitmakers From Jamaica, Volume 1: Leonard Dillon The Ethiopian.
The Ethiopians were known for songs such as Hong Kong Flu, Fire Deh A Muss Muss Tail, Everything Crash, Nyah Nuh Want Nuh Baptism, and I'm Gonna Take Over Now
Read more: http://www.jamaicaob...0#ixzz1ZMA905wP
- Problems In Ethiopia
Contact us: Schools, ActionAid, Leach Road, Chard TA20 1FR Tel: 01460 238000 Fax: 01460 67191 Em ail: deved@actionaid. org. uk Food and famine in Ethiopia Having enough food is ...
- Ethiopian Orthodox Christian
The Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria is the official name for the largest Christian church in Egypt and the Middle East. The Church belongs to the Oriental Orthodox ...
- Ark Of Covenent Ethiopia
Is the Ark of the Covenant Really in Ethiopia? Graham Hancock is convinced that the ark of the covenant today rests in a chapel at the ...
- Ethiopian Name Girl
Road to Ethiopia - My journey to Ethiopian Culture ... Search by letter: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P R S T U W Y Z. In this page you will find a list of Ethiopian names for boys and girls.
- Ethiopian Girls Online
ethiopian girls online's Page on Essence Community ... Relationship Status Single About Me. ethiopian girls online ethiopian girls online...