Roots Reggae at its Best

LAST Sunday evening the Bob Marley Museum on Hope Road came alive with The Root of the Music. The show featured live Reggae music from the likes of Jah 9, Raging Fyah, C-Sharp, Uprising Roots Band and Chinna Smith Band.

Set to begin at 6:00 pm, the show kicked off about an hour later as die-hard Reggae lovers and soldiers of the music militantly marched on to the grounds of the museum. After blessings were bestowed and homage and credence was paid to the most High, the show began.

Janine 'Jah 9' Cunningham took the stage first, whetting the appetites of the reggae-hungry patrons with her forceful, but sultry tone, delivering hard-hitting lyrics. Backed by the Raging Fyah band, Jah 9 performed original songs Warning and My Own Designer, bringing an interesting mix of contemporary and conscious poetry to the stage, captivating her audience.

Raging Fyah remained on stage to carry on the musical flame and delivered a vibrant and attention-grabbing performance. Their set included Long Time, Judgement Day (Music for the Rebels), Far Away and a social commentary in the form of Cyaan Cool -- which brought many in the audience to their feet. After the band had ended its set, the patrons screamed for an encore, which brought the band back to perform Blue Diamond. This impressive performance opened the stage for more beautiful music; the audience asked for more and C-Sharp came on to oblige.

The band opened with a cover of Third World's Clown Inna Circus¸ before jumping into their original What A Day. Their cover of Bob Marley's Rebel Music was captivating but even moreso, their track What's the Matter with the World, which saw the grounds of the museum reacting positively to the vocals of lead singer Chevaughn Clayton and a scintillating solo from lead guitarist Lamont Savory. This performance earned them and encore as well.

Uprising Roots Band was next to take the stage. Highlighting the theme of the band -- 'the brightest light', they performed tracks like SkyFiyah¸ Shines From Within, Fireplace and Know Yourself. Their performance created somewhat of a frenzy, as many of the patrons found various ways express their delight in the music. This performance acted as prequel to their a man who Uprising Roots call their mentor, Earl Chinna Smith and the Idrens, who many came and waited to see. By the time Chinna smith and the Idrens had finished performing the captives were indeed set free.

The organisers promised an intimate evening of authentic soul-stirring roots music and this was exactly what patrons received. They gave their patrons a great show and in spreading the Reggae movement, proceeds from the event will go to support of a contingent of young artistes who have been invited to represent Jamaica at the Manifesto Festival of the Arts in Toronto, Canada.

BY CHIEFTIN CAMPBELL
Source jamaicaobserver