Many of us love reggae and listen to it daily, so it is good to see the BBC continuing their practice of dedicating an entire night to reggae on BBC4. Those of you who tuned in last night will have learnt a little about the history of reggae and some interesting facts. Personally, I was astonished to discover that Desmond Dekker was living locally in Thornton Heath when he died from a heart attack. More importantly we were made aware of Desmond's contribution to reggae, which is that Desmond's popularity and chart success arose early on thereby paving the way for Bob Marley, Aswad and other significant performers... did you know Aswad is the Arabic for black?
Sadly, during recent years we have lost many top reggae artists yet their legacy is phenomenal and their music will play for ever. At the same time it is good to know that many of the stars who appeared in the show are still performing, such as Janet Kay and as those of you who follow ~IB~ are aware, Dennis Bovell performed at 'Reggae in da City' earlier this month with other well known artists; in fact the show is hosted by Peter Hunningale. I would encourage you to come along next month and if you're a good singer and can sing reggae style you might be able to take the stage! Another good recent event was Reggae Showcase, an annual television series hosted by Savana which attracts world reggae stars, both legendary and current, often fresh from Jamaica! ~IB~
There are more reggae award ceremonies and festivals springing up in the UK including our own ~IB~ Baby the Heritage of Ska, currently being planned and hosting regular events... check search for details...
The good news~ Reggae is mixing and merging but above all reggae is moving towards a brighter future!
Jaz McKenzie
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