Tag Archives: collie

Smile Jamaica – Jah-cember 13, 2014 (Stream + Track List): Jah Rest Ye Merry Gentle(wo)men!

Leave a comment
dj_santa_claus_mixing_the_christmas_party_track_card-r62dc420e20d84fa7abec51c3b8c73ea3_xvuak_8byvr_512
Jah-cember to remember!

 Greetings,

<Smile Jamaica: Your college for musical knowledge!; 3 sec.>

Jump straight to the Smile Jamaica Ark-Ive Edition: Jah-cember 6, 2014. Annotated Playlist below

Tis the season to smoke collie! Fa la la la la la la dee dah. Smile Jamaica wishes you a Merry Christmas or substitute Sky Deity of your choosing. Praise Anu!

<Jahs-mas in Jah-cember; 7 sec.>

Here is my Gift to you: A Mutant Dub Christmas!

<Christmas Day 2014: Smile Jamaica Presents: 3 Hours of Mutant Dub. Online only Mixcloud Digital Dubplate; 27 sec.>

Smile Jamaica Mixcloud: Bobbylon Online only Mutant Dub Ark-Ive

Unknownaliens
Coming from O Little Star of Bethlehem

 

Here is what is on tap for the Jah-cember 13, 2014 Smile Jamaica Ark-Ive Edition; 73 sec.

  • Christmas or Jahs-mas Roots Reggae
  • 3 sets of Vinyl: Christmas, 7″ Jamaican Jukebox 45 RPM, Mutant Dub
  • Wailers Family Tree: Bob and Peter Live; Bunny – Rule Dancehall
  • Best of Smile Jamaica Year 1: 1989
  • Roots Dawtas, Seven Leaf, Disco Mix vinyl singles
WAMM Christmas Tree!
Deck the halls with boughs of COLLIE!

 Annotated Playlist for Jah-cember 13, 2014: Smile Jamaica Ark-Ive: photos, captions, Reggae History Lessons, soundbytes

*Xmas jam

Set 1:

  • Tyrone Evans – God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen; 12” (Clocktower) ’78*
  • Aba Shanti-Ites; The Warning; Jah Lightning and Thurder: Verse III (Falasha) ’99 UK: Dub Album of the Week; Mutant stylee
  • 10 Ft. Ganja Plant feat. Sylford Walker – My Roots; Shake up the Place (ROIR) 2011; Upstate NY w/ Jamaican roots singer
  • Big Youth – The Killer; Screaming Target (Trojan) ’73; over Horace Andy Skylarking riddim
  • Horace Andy – Poor Johnny; See and Blind (Heartbeat Europe) ’99; 4:20 Cannabis Service Announcement

<Poor Johnny: shoulda stuck to sensi not cocaine; 21 sec.>

  • Cedric ‘Im Brooks – Lambs Bread Collie; Light of Saba (Honest Jon’s) nyahbinghi instrumental herb tune feat. trombone; 17 sec.
Painting_of_Ethiopian_Christmas
God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen

Set 2:

  • The Wailers – Slave Driver; Live at Leeds (Tuff Gong); Burnin’ Deluxe CD 2: Leeds Polytechnic, UK 11/23/73

<Leeds UK: The Wailers – Bunny – Peter + I Threes = Bob Marley & the Wailers; 95 sec.>

  • Carl Bradney – Slippin’ Into Darkness; 10” (PK) ’75 Lee “Scratch” Perry prod’n; War soul cover
  • The Archives feat. Ras Puma & Lenny Kirlou – Ghetto Gone Uptown (ESL) 2012; Eric Hilton of Thievery Corporation DC mutant dubbers
  • Hollie Cook – Superfast; Twice (Mr. Bongo) 2014; mutant dubstress/lovers rocker; 25 sec.
Hollie_Cook_Twice
Smile Jamaica’s #1 of 2014. Dawta of a Sex Pistol; latter day member of female punk/reggae group: The Slits

Set 3: Best of Smile Jamaica Year 1: 1989-90

  • Mighty Diamonds – Kouchie Vibes; Trojan 12” Box Set (Trojan); ’84 herbtune rmx

<Kouchie: smoking utensil; 32 sec.>

  • Yellowman – Strong Mi Strong; King Yellowman (Columbia) ’84; Bill Laswell mix

<Yellowman + Bill Laswell = dancehall classic; 14 sec.>

  • Naturalites – Picture on the Wall; Rub-a-Dubble Reggae vol. 1 (CSA) ’85 UK; HIM tribute

<the UK Rastas not the American  near beer; 23 sec.>

  • Albert Griffiths & the Gladiators – Gone Already; Country Living (Heartbeat) ‘85
Lenroy Bassie Guiste - Bass Player & Dub Artist - naturalites
Naturalites; not Natural Light

Set 4:

  • Peter Tosh – Equal Rights; Talking Revolution (Pressure Sounds); One Love Peace Concert; 4/22/78: Kingston, JA

<Peter Tosh murdered on 9/11….1987; 25 sec.>

  • Michael “Scoobey Doo” Powell – Christmas Time; 12” (Hot Stuff) ’83 Maryland*

<Christmas in Jah-maica; 15 sec.>

R-4189409-1407945844-6765
Xmas in Jah-maica: Riding on a Kingston minibus; not dashing through the snow inna one horse open sleigh

Set 5: Christmas: Vinyl is V-Ital; 18 sec.

  • Johnny Osbourne – Christmas Stylee; Christmas Stylee (Studio One) JA
  • Tennessee & the Silvertones – Little Drummer Boy; Christmas Time (Studio One) JA
  • Joe Gibbs Family – We Three Kings; Wish You a Merry Rockers Christmas (Joe Gibbs) ’79 Fl.
  • Hortense Ellis – Black Christmas; African Christmas (Top Ranking) ’79 Fl.
R-3314245-1384479910-1813
Bing has White Christmas; Hortense Ellis, Alton’s sis, wants a Black Christmas

Set 6: Jamaican Jukebox 7″ 45 Vinyl

  • Sharon Black – Struggling; 7” (Clintones) ’77 JA 7” 45 vinyl set
  • Lacksley Castell – Babylon World; 7” (Rockers) ‘78 JA; Augustus Pablo prod’n
  • Junior Dan – House is Not a Home; 7” (Danites) 2009 UK
  • Jah Walton – D.J. Christmas; 7” (Black & White) ’83 JA*
R-5380532-1411510497-9698
From when the Two Sevens Clashed: A+ single

Set 7:

  • Bunny Wailer – Trash In a We Bes – Rule Dancehall (Shanachie) ‘86
  • Derrick Harriott – Jesus Was Born Today; 12” (Crystal) ’82*
  • Janet Lee-Davis & Tippa Irie – Baby I’ve Been Missing You; Fashion in Fine Style  vol. 1 (Reggae Archive); ’94 UK lovers rock/toaster combination
  • Dillinger – Buckingham Palace; CB200 (Mango) ’77; smoking spliff with the Queen; 7 sec.

R-537797-1141739523

Set 8: Mutant Dub Vinyl

  • Singers & Players feat. Sister P – Holy Scripture; Vacuum Pumping (ON U Sound) ’88 UK

<Holy Scripture; 9 sec.>

  • Zulu Warriors – Lion Dub; Zulu Warrior Dub (Mr. Modo) ’89 UK
  • Gussie Ranks & Alcapone – Bully Bwoy + Herbal Affair; 10” (Digital Conscious) 2010; herbtune
  • The Outsider Meets the High-Tech Roots Dynamic – Rumours of War; Meets High-Tech Roots Dynamics at Channel One U.K. (Jah Works) ’93 UK; melodica
  • New Age Steppers feat. Bim Sherman – Dreamers; Foundation Steppers (ON U Sound) ’82 UK
  • Wareika Hill Sound – Kumina Mento Rasta Version; 10” (Honest Jon’s) 2010 UK instrumental
thumb2-3
E.T. loves Mutant Dub. Better than Reese’s Pieces

Happy Birthday His Imperial Majesty: July 23, 1892

Leave a comment
selassie
Portrait painted by University of Utah Art Professor Alvin Gittens. This hangs in the Marriott Library where I work

Greetings,

Happy Birthday to the inspiration of tens of thousands of Roots Reggae songs. Born July 23, 1892

Haile Selassie (born Tafari Makonnen Woldemikael)

I work in an Academic Library (The Marriott Library at the University of Utah). Part of my duties is to assist patrons at the Help Desk on Level 2.

It is really quiet in the Summer. I thought I would work up a little birthday posting on account of His Imperial Majesty.

I went to the Marriott’s webpage and found a copy of the above photo: Drawn by Alvin Gittens. Hanging on the fifth floor of the Marriott Library.*

*Alvin’s son Chris trained me at KRCL 90.9FM. His father was flown in to Addis Ababa to paint an impatient Emperor. HIM was only willing to sit for about the half the time Gittens’ usually devoted to his portraits. Chris passed away about a decade ago of cancer.

As I was finishing the caption above, a dapper black gentlemen approached my desk. This is a case of serendipity or synchronicity or kismet. The patron wanted to know, in a crisp African accent,  where the Library kept its History books on Ethiopia. The Zion of Rastafari. The Kingdom of His Imperial Majesty. Goosebumps!

Ethiopia_shaded_relief_map_1999,_CIA
East Africa. Capital is Addis Ababa (New Flower)

The Library of Congress Classification for Ethiopian History  (or its former name Abyssinia) is in the DT 371-390 shelves.

While I walked this gentleman and his wife to the section, I asked him if he knew today (July 23) was Haile Selassie’s Birthday. His eyes lit up. “How did you know that!”. I told him about Smile Jamaica and my 26 years of devotion to Ethiopian-esque and especially paying tribute and respect to His Imperial Majesty.

He was amazed. I recommended several books I had read. This man is a Physician who was writing a novel set in his home country. We chatted about our mutual admiration for Selassie. He was proud that his country had come out of 25 years of Civil War and repression to be the fastest growing economy in Africa.

It was really nice to know that my admiration of Selassie could be of use in my professional job. And even better: I recruited another soldier of Jah’s Army by virtue of the Rastafari Gospel that I “preach” for 26 years doing Reggae Radio. I let the music function as hymns to HIM.

music
Go on the Google and search for Ethiopian Angel images. Love their art

A suggestion: It is preferred to call believers in HIM: Rastafari. Singular and plural. As Bob Marley said, “Don’t bother me with your isms and schisms”

<Carlene Davis – Isms and Schisms; 4 min>

That said there are two important caveats: The Rastafarians – the  Reggae group out of Rasta Cruz, Collie-fornya. And Leonard E. Barrett’s crucial academic book The Rastafarians

yhst-52168224453511_1900_4558226
Vinyl outta Rasta Cruz, Collie-fornya. Featuring the greatest performer name in the history of Reggae Music: Herb Daly

Barrett’s book was a huge influence on me. Some of the lessons learned were how important Hinduism was to early Rastas. When Jamaicans threw off the yoke of slavery, British plantation owners imported Hindu laborers from Britain’s India Colony. Blacks and Indians worked side by side.

Hindu influences include:

  • Reincarnation: Some sects of Rastafari believe that HIM is the embodiment of Christ returning to Earth.
  • Ganja – Hindus brought Cannabis from India to Jamaica where blacks partook of the Seven Leaf as well
  • Kali – The Hindu Goddess of destruction where the ritual consumption of cannabis was part of worship. Rastas also ritually smoke cannabis or Collie. “Collie gives you wisdom.”
  • Dreadlocks – Hindu Sadhus flashed dreads as a physical manifestation of belief. Rastas adopted the practice and modified it with the Old Testament Nazarite Vow
51SMLZcvDIL._SL500_SY344_BO1,204,203,200_
Bookdigging in San Francisco, 1987

<Invoking Amharic; 45 sec.>

From the line of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba (Ethiopia)

  • Ras Tafari Makonnen – He Who inspires Awe, The Angel
  • Jah Rastafari
  • His Imperial Majesty
  • Light of the World
  • Negusa Negast (King of Kings)
  • Lord of Lords
  • Power of the Trinity
  • Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah
  • Elect of God, Everliving God
  • Earth’s Rightful Ruler
  • Iyesos Christos (Jesus Christ)
  • Gedamawi –  First among the Holy
  • Kibir Am Lak – The Great God
  • Igzaibeher Yimmasgan – Let Jah Be Praised
  • Ababa Janhoi – Father Majesty

bless, robt

2006-3-9lg