Kingston All Stars on Canada Day

Celebrating Canada Day-Yard Style- at Nathan Phillips Square in Toronto, here is a live performance by Kingston All Stars, filmed by Annalee Orr, supreme reggae fan. On drums, master musician Sly Dunbar with Jah T on bass, Mikey Chung and Hux Brown and Ansel Collins on keys. 

Also on the bill were Carol Brown and the legendary Stranger Cole and Noel Ellis.

JULION'S REGGAE LANE CELEBRATION REVIEW ON 19TH SEPTEMBER 2015

My friend Julion King will be describing for you the historical events of last Saturday when Canada became the first country in the world to acknowledge the cultural real estate value of a community that birthed conditions for the cultivation of true reggae artists. From his blog comes the following text. For photos and more detail, please visit him here: http://www.canadianreggaeworld.com/blog/julions-reggae-lane-celebration-review-on-19th-september-2015

Grateful

That is what I feel about how the Reggae Lane celebration on Saturday 19th September, 2015 went.  The greetings of long time brethrens and sistrens who travelled a long road together, some not seeing each other for over two decades hugged and greeted each other with such love!  Those moments trumped any thoughts that I might have had in regards to whether the RL initiative was a good idea or not as it pertained to the supposedly controversial location.

Reggae

Reggae won on this day!  I got to witness the pure LOVE these veterans felt and the fact that many were able to speak on the microphone and share their day in the sun.

Overcast skies, heavy downpour that threatened to hang around all day yet I knew that all was well.  Turned the corner in the parking lot and saw folks milling around under tents seemingly thinking that the day was lost.  The clouds relaxed and we had our reggae day.

Blue tarps covering all of the musical equipment and stage donated by Sunshine Sound, Mr. Warren Webley protecting his generous gift of equipment for the event as well as the labour to set up and pull down after the days’ festivities was over.  Lots of detractors flapping their gums yet efforts like Sunshine’s must be mentioned as he selflessly aided the event’s success.  Forever grateful Papa Shine!  Even though all of the politicking and stress you put the community and the music first.  Bless Jay  Douglas for taking the time and asking Sunshine for his support.

Honour

What must it feel like to be honored among your peers, Toronto reggae fans and even the world?  Couldn’t tell you what it feels like but I can show you what it looked like.  Look at the faces of the veterans!

Disregard-ism

The story of Reggae Lane got covered by The Metro News, The Jamaica Star, Tuff Gong Worldwide as well as The Toronto Star yet NO ONE from the Canadian music scene was there.  NONE!  They never are and never will be!

Who wasn’t there?  There were no music people!  Sony, Emi, Warner, Attic (don’t think that they still exist), Universal Music, Much Music, Juno committee, CRTC,  or any other relevant sources that lets one know that they are a part of the music industry.  None were present!  Their ability to discard reggae’s involvement, input, showcasing is normal Canadian music industry behavior.  On top of fighting the crabs within our own industry, we face disregard from the so called Canadian music industry.

Yet as I have always mentioned, we DO NOT NEED VALIDATION FROM ANYONE!  I already know my worth and that of reggae music worldwide so I respect and thank Councillor Josh Colle greatly for recognizing the importance of reggae’s contribution to Canada, preserving it through the naming of Reggae Lane and what we as the fans and participants do with it going forward is totally on us.

Another moment of glee was when Fergus Hambleton held the microphone and free-styled on a riddim.  The place went crazy!  Lots of folks went up to him afterward and asked him who he was....lmaooooooo!!!!  This humble lead singer of The Sattalites answered graciously and moved on to the next.  For those who don't know, The Sattalites have been performing at The Orbit Room, 580a College Street west weekly, for over a decade now.  EVERY TUESDAY NIGHT!

Reggae Futures

What do we do with Reggae Lane going forward?  How do we get an opportunity to use this leverage that has been bestowed upon us and promote the music properly from within colonial Canada?  How do we use the Lane and that parking lot effectively in the years to come?  Tourists from around the world are already headed to Reggae Lane to snap photos with the mural.  I challenge us the fans and the reggae participants to step up our game even in the face of blatant disregard from the powers that be,  Reggae music is needed more in this country and in this time on the planet as is evidenced by reggae's popularity worldwide

Reggae music does not care where the good hearts are...it just goes there.

Support Toronto / Canadian Reggae... Buy Reggae Lane

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The Memberz Explode With Reggae At The Cadillac Lounge Toronto

"Confused World" edited version featuring Mavriq

One Love Concert in Regent Park last Sunday, 22 February 2015

Thanks to Julion King and Lillian Allen, esteemed Dub Poet, long time deh bout.
Track one, "Reggae Night in Canada" Peter Burna Holung (IBADAN)
Track two, ``Rub A Dub Style Inna Regent Park`` (Lillian Allen)

I managed to kick the plug out of the direct box during my solo. Otherwise, a fine day with two and a half straight hours of music, in tribute to the great, no, extraordinary Toronto drumbeam Raffa Dean.

Raffa Dean

I spent two days on Governors Island in New York Harbour last weekend inviting strangers to come and play the Conundrum III, a 13 foot cedar strip canoe covered with rawhide which produces deep drum tones. I was attending the Figment Festival of Interactive Art with my friend, the designer of the drum, David Hynes and drum shaman Adele Passmore. I was so impressed by the participants, young and old, and their reactions to the feeling of drumming communally in an open space.

You can tell a lot about a person's character by the way that they drum. At the crest of a moment, you can choose to either settle in or swing forward. Those who habitually say "you can't push the river" or "it is what it is" will never develop the propulsive and gregarious character necessary to be a great drummer. In Brooklyn, especially, I learned, there is a specific culture of drumming, as there is in other blessed parts of the world, even in Toronto. The trip was illuminating. When I got home, there was an urgent message for me to call Roscoe Christie. It was some very bad news that he had for me.

About Raffa Dean now.

As a constant showman and exemplar of progress and forward energy, our city has benefited hugely from the restless impetus of this Jamaican born Canadian, a drummer, songwriter and singer. After a secret struggle with stomach cancer, he moved on from his earthly mission this past Monday. At the end of a life of creating so much cheerful harmony and rhythm here in Toronto and around the world, the breadth of his loss is still unfathomable to us.

Humourist of the highest order, dancer, Ashanti, father, social critic, Rastaman, raconteur, historian, counselor, spirit guide, fashion icon, musicologist, ventriloquist (he could speak quietly to you from across a noisy room), herbologist, peaceful warrior, significant Canadian ambassador, singer  and  joueur de batterie. Consider the French word: batterie.

Born in Kingston, on the seventh of November, 1959 to a musician father, Keeble, and his wife Marlin,the family moved to Malton in 1975. he grew up among tightly focused musical friends of Jamaican background; he at first  formed a dance group called United Soul with future reggae luminaries Roscoe, Devon and Chunky. The dedication and discipline of this outfit soon sparked an inspiration to play music. Everyone wanted to play the drums, but when they heard Raffa's style, each quietly decided to try some other instrument. His technical skills became so famous in the west end that he was soon called to Montreal, at the age of seventeen, to play drums for the crown prince of reggae, Dennis Brown.

Eventually, the great band Twentieth Century Rebels evolved from this scene, playing importannt Toronto venues and releasing a popular EP Rebelution. The band eventually came to an end, with  Raf choosing to form an ambitious super-group, One Love, featuring the outstanding talents of Tony Campbell, O.J., Charles Sinclair, Bobby Ruglass and a young Michael McClarty. Touring Quebec during the years of Rene Levesque's leadership, when Canadian revolutionary thought was at its peak, the band's liberating reggae message galvanized the Quebecois. 

The demands of the road life became too stressful, however, so Raf began to concentrate on local work in Toronto, backing visiting Jamaican artists with the bands Livestock and Hit Squad. In the mid-eighties, while nurturing Andru Branch's Halfway Tree project, he joined Boncongonistas. Originally formed to study African music, the band soon became a popular dance hall / hip hop attraction with the addition of Mister Metro, Devon Martin, Crash Morgan and the chance for Raffa to come to the front of the stage on lead vocals.                                           

 He continued to answer the occasional call of major Jamaican acts to perform worldwide. He was in Berlin in 1990, playing with Garry Lowe and The Itals, when the Berlin Wall came down. He brought in the nineties for CITY TV in sub-zero temperatures on New Year's Eve with Boncongonistas at Nathan Philips Square. His influence on the music of Big Sugar helped to solidify that band's  reputation as the first successful reggae crossover band in Canada.  When he opened for the Rolling Stones at Maple Leaf Gardens with them, he drew enthusiastic compliments from Charlie Watts for his intriguing command of both the reggae and blues rock idioms.  He went on to found and collaborate with bands too numerous to mention, including Dubmatix,  House Of David Gang, Dreamband, Resinators and most recently FreeDubStar.

As a friend and adviser to the community, he laid up many riches in Heaven, though very few here on earth. He always had an eye on the universal truths, practised humane judgement, reminding us constantly of the heroic context of our shared spiritual journey and quoting the  profound teachings of His Majesty King Haile Selassie I, known as the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords and The Conquering Lion Of The Tribe of Judah aka Rastafari, and all of his musical disciples.

While staying loyal to his friends, his philosophy and his family, Raffa also lived through some extremely difficult days. Eviction, financial disappointments, the heart-breaking loss of his son Sealand in 2010, a debilitating injury in a hit and run accident and mean-spirited rejection by many of his peers. The pain of his illness and circumstances would have crippled the faith and powers of any lesser mortal. It is part of his legacy that he remained  strong in performance and dignity until the end. I last heard him sing at the Cadillac Lounge in April roaring out the Delroy Wilson classic: "They're trying to conquer me / they never will conquer me."

At a funeral home too small to contain the throng last Sunday, and at a glorious memorial tribute later that day at Daniels Spectrum in Regent Park, his neighbourhood and musical community gathered to play, sing and talk about the great talents and love that he exuded. Every major local performer of Canadian reggae from the last forty years was there.

While his memory is still fresh in our minds, let us turn to his finer thoughts and cherish his example so that we can continue to live upfull and strong, and carry his lessons forward into the future. Go in blessings my brother, Paul Anthony White, aka Raffa Dean.

Reggae Britannia

Space Icicle Storms and Cosmic Snow Squalls Prorogued by Roots Music

Big Rude Jake made the studio ring live, Friday at 11 a.m., with the rush of his blues and his carnivorous lyrics. Freezin' Julian Fauth arrived early, carrying a biography of Earl Hooker and played us a quieter, more melancholy blues on his second instrument after the piano, an old Gibson f-hole guitar, evoking pre-war roadhouse intimacy. He selected a rare Memphis Slim / Roosevelt Sykes track from the Orbit Library to play, and sang a delta-style Happy Birthday to a friend who turns 90 today. Then Greg Lawson and the Governor General beamed up with some fine exotic reggae, paying respects to the late Lynn Taitt and Yabby You, in support of their monthly gig, ruling the Embassy in Kensington on final Saturdays. Informative background on the artists and songs sent out wow radiations back through the stratosphere, contributing to a climate change that brought out the sun in everyone tuned in.,