- CARLINGTON WILMOT/Freelance Photographer
Singer Luciano 'lights up' before performing 'Legalise It' at East Fest, Good Year Oval, St. Thomas on Saturday night.
Mel Cooke, Freelance Writer
WESTERN BUREAU:
RED LABEL Wine East Fest 2004 began in the golden setting sun of Christmas day and ended when it had risen again for Boxing day.
Over 12 hours of music at the Goodyear Oval in Springfield, St. Thomas, which began with the banjo and blown broken bottle of the Peacemakers Mento Band and ended with deejay Elephant Man, were witnessed by a crowd which grew from a handful to the many thousands who stayed to the very end.
Those who did not come for the 5:00 a.m. start missed out on not only mento, but also kumina from the Seaforth Kumina group, scary Jonkunnu figures on the infield, a lively display of Nine Night-style singing from the Duppy Band, drumming and chanting from the Nyabinghi and Boboshanti bands.
'CONSCIOUS' PERSUASION
With deejays Beenie Man and Elephant Man among the line-up of entertainers dominated by singers and deejays of a decidedly more 'conscious' persuasion, the women's mode of dress varied, with prints and long skirts co-existing with a few prints of a different sort. And after a well-received showing from singer Richie Spice, whose Marijuana was right at home, Red Label Wine East Fest 2004 left the straight and narrow of roots music and went on to the broad path of dancehall, Sizzla making an unscheduled appearance during Beenie Man's set which saw the two alternating lyrics to the crowd's delight and Sizzla being arrested after the show (See report on pg. 2).
There was also some impatience with British band Steel Pulse from those who wearied - for the younger ones in the crowd - of unaccustomed material. While 'pulsers' jammed happily to Rally Round The Flag and enjoyed the excellent musicianship highlighted in dub jams, there were many who wished them gone.
A slew of band changes down the home stretch also took their toll.
FIERY START
Pashon got the main segment of the show off to a fiery start at very close to the scheduled 8:00 p.m. with the Gumption Band, which handled major chunks of the night's support duties superbly. The cool approach of Jimmy Riley was the first extended set of the night, the large early audience appreciating Rougher Yet and Love and Devotion. Sister Carol was a study in lyrics and timing, building up to effective punch lines such as a treatment of Santa Claus ("the ghetto is no place for a fat white man") and leaving with the shoulder-wiggling "ganja seed" dance.
Lymie Murray's Conversation was appreciated, especially by the ladies, and Iley Dread employed assistance from Chrishinti, Rochelle and Jenie Slick. On home ground, Natty King added the meat of decent songs to the bones of hits Mr. Greedy and No Guns To Town, the muscle of his powerful voice hitting home.
NO-NONSENSE MOOD
Queen Ifrica was in a no-nonsense mood, her voice moving effortlessly between melodic singing and gritty deejaying.
Fantan Mojah had all and sundry hailing the king, also tipping in a Jah Cure plea with "divide and rule"; Morgan Heritage made a well appreciated, unexpected trip on stage on siblings LMS set; and Bushman rolled out a powerful voice to his home crowd with Lighthouse and helped "bun a fia pon a weakheart".
LONG-TIME FAVOURITES
Luciano dispensed with the customary scripture reading, long-time favourites Ulterior Motive and Sweep Over My Soul hitting home and lighting up a spliff on Legalise It. Tony Rebel delivered Jamaica's 'unofficial anthem', Sweet Jamaica, and a slew of hits; Coco Tea's combination of sweet voice, ad lib lyrics, hits and renditions of R&B favourites were a treat.
Natural Black's gritty voice, a spot-on Turbulence, who advocated safe sex with Roll Up had Sasha in for a cameo, while Chuck Fender and Richie Spice swore not to switch and observed "earth a run red" respectively, before Beenie Man took East Fest dancing down the dancehall trail.
