By Mel Cooke, Freelance Writer 
Abijah
WESTERN BUREAU:
ABIJAH HAD tons of fun as he put in a 'Command Performance' at Club Juice in New Kingston on Thursday night, when he performed after fellow singer and primary school mate Imara.
He transmitted the joy to the small audience at the New Kingston entertainment spot, as they responded to the banter that he interspersed his music with, and he was not too big to have a chuckle at himself.
There was a slight pause after he did Where Is The Love, which was quite a way into his stint on-stage. "Where is the love?" he asked and chuckled as he asked himself what the next track was. "This is like when I used to rehearse in the living room -- my settee was the crowd, the table was from Atlanta, the chair was from Japan. It was fun time," he said, grinning.
"You never do it in the shower? And believe the water was the audience? Chhhhhh," he said, linking the sound of the water with cheers, as the people inside Club Juice laughed. "An' spin an' nearly drop on the soap? I used to do that. That's where Abijah come from."
'AFROMANCING'
As he moved on to Forever Love You, 'afromancing' a young lady who he plucked from the audience and seated on a chair on-stage in doing so, Abijah showed that he has certainly come a long way. In fact, plucking at his guitar and singing with a plaintive touch but firm timbre in his voice, it was clear from the moment he opened with Children of Love. The song was inspired by an incident during one of several visits to a children's home and is, in fact, the opening track on his debut album Abijah.
No More War followed on tracks, as Abijah allowed the microphone to stay on its stand, but was very active around it.
I am a loving man, and you are a loving girl, he crooned on the next number, then going into a militant stance with No Bag A Mout', which he had to 'pull up'. This was followed by Where Is The Love, which went out to all those who had lost a loved one violently.
After escorting the lady off-stage and they exchanged some patter about a ring he had tried to put on her finger, Abijah spoke about turning bullies at schools he visited into peacemakers. Revelation was tremendous both times around as the audience demanded, Abijah getting people seated in front of the stage to sing a word or two into the microphone. Rastaman Chant followed, done to clapping from the audience, and he chanted Babylon yu days are over, Rasta come fi tek over to wrap up a heartfelt set.
Imara also put his all into the songs he performed, his eyes often closed and his big arms bulging under his black short-sleeved tunic as he flexed muscles and vocal cords. He opened his set and the two-person show with Don't Take It Personal, a song of self-definition. Skanking nicely at all the right places, Imara continued in the same vein on his second number, as he chanted don't come programme.
TAKING IT EASY
The audience demanded a 'pull up' of Ten Feet Tall, and there was appreciative laughter as Imara said "We taking it easy. This is show business, not show-off business." With Abijah giving 'Yeahs!' of encouragement from the audience, Imara showed that he could illustrate his song facially, as he screwed into the caricature of a thug in Bad Boys, from his Voices And Dub album.
It was his final number, although he did return to say a little about himself and do Ten Feet Tall a capella.
As Abijah said as he ended his set, "We know is a small ting. An some of the people come with me. But we had a good time."
