Greetings ghouls ‘n’ gals!
<All trix, no treats!>
Smile Jamaica loves Jah-loween. Here is the Monster Menagerie from the Ark-ives:
- Anti-christ/Mark of the Beast/666 – 7
- Bats – 2
- Bermuda Triangle – 1
- Black magic – 9
- Cemeteries & graveyards – 7
- Demons – 6
- Devil, Lucifer, Satan – 59
- Dungeons – 6
- Duppies & Jumbies (Jamaican ghosts) – 14
- Exorcist – 1
- Frankenstein – 5
- Ghosts – 19
- Halloween holiday – 5
- Haunted houses – 2
- Hell hounds -1
- Loch Ness Monster – 1
- Monsters – 4
- Mr. Brown who rides around Trenchtown in a motorized coffin – 2
- Mummies – 2
- Obeah (Jamaican Black Magic) – 13
- Skeletons – 2
- Undertakers – 3
- Vampires, Dracula and soap opera vampire Barnabas Collins – 63
- Voodoo – 5
- Werewolves – 4
- Witches – 4
- Zombies – 14
By my Liberal Arts math, that tallies up to over 260 Jah-loween gems. Plus all my horror soundbytes and movie trailers. (New additions in between the horrorfest such as The Exorcist, Planet of the Vampires,nNight of the Living Dead, Phantasm).
All mixed into one bubbling cauldron of grimness. Perfect for this era of The Covid. I don’t listen to a lot of new Reggae releases but next year I’m sure to add some ghouly Covid delights.
There was once upon a time when I ‘n’ I never said a word and only played station ID’s during the 3 hours. It was truly 180 minutes of drum, bass and Afternoon of the Living Dead.
But since this is Smile Jamaica, I ‘n’ I tell you some stories to embellish the tunes:
- Annie Palmer – the evil Jamaican wife of a slave plantation owner who used to whip her slaves mercilessly and continued to haunt them after she died
<Annie Palmer; 26 sec.>
In Jamaica police informers were referred to as Vampires:
<Vampire = informer; 27 sec.>
Peter Tosh always felt there were hell hounds on his trail. One night he was paralyzed from the forces of a demon. He prayed to Jah to save. Jah told him, “son, use the word and you will be as free as a bird.
That word? Bumba klaat. In Jamaica, that is as rude as saying Mother F’er in the US. Bum for vagina. Klaat = cloth. Rastas want nothing to do with their queen’s “monthly visitor”. So the epithet shocked the duppy (Jamaican ghost) out of Peter’s soul.
<Oh Bumba Klaat; 1 min. 22 sec.>
And how about the corpse who put a transmission, engine and four wheels on his coffin to terrorize the denizens of Trenchtown ghetto. His names was Mr. Brown.
<Mr. Brown rides around in a coffin; 21 sec.>
curse, Bobbylon
Smile Jamaica Jah-loween Monster Bash, 10/31/2020 Annotated Playlist: 85 sec.
Set 1:
- Ini Kamoze – Hole in the Pumpkin; Shocking Out (RAS) ’87 3 Hours of Jah-loween
- Scientist – The Voodoo Curse; Rids the World of the Evil Curse of the Vampires (Greensleeves) ‘81
- Black Uhuru – Anthem; Anthem (Island) ‘83
- Ijahman Levi – Devil Disciple; Forward Rastaman (Jahmani) ‘87
- The Toyes – Monster Hash; The Toyes (CD Tunes) ‘96
- GG All-Stars – Haunted House; 12” (GG’s Hit!) ‘78
Set 2:
- Crucial Bee – Mark of the Beast; Just a Sting (All-Starr) US Virgin Islands vinyl
- Sinead O’Connor – Vampire; Throw Down Your Arms (That’s Why There’s Chocolate & Vanilla) 2005 Devon Irons cover
- The Ethiopians – Obeah Book; Slave Call (Rohit) ’74 Obeah – Jamaican black magic
- Ghetto Priest – Dungeon; Vulture Culture (ON U Sound) 2003 Singers & Players cover
- Clint Eastwood & General Saint – Talk About Run; 12” (Greensleeves) ’81 UK duppies in the cemetery
Set 3:
- Lone Ranger – Annie Palmer; Barnabas in Collins Wood (Wave) ’79 JA vinyl: Jamaican witch/ghost
- Pablo Gad – Blood Suckers; Blood Suckers (Celluloid) ‘78
- Chalice – Back Weh Evil Forces; Stand Up! (CSA) ’85 UK vinyl
- Sky High & the Mau Mau – Cemetery Robbery; Origination (Sky High) 70’s
- Moses – When the Vampire Comes to Your Neighborhood; 12” (Wackies) ’82 Bronx
- Leo Graham – Voodooism; Magnetic Mirror Master Mix (Anachron) 70’s Dutch vinyl; Lee “Scratch” Perry prod’n
Set 4:
- Capleton & Big Youth – Mark of the Beast; I-Testament (Def Jam) ‘97
- Jimmy Cliff – Satan’s Kingdom; I am the Living (MCA) ’80 US vinyl
- Easy Star All-Stars feat. Mikey General & Spragga Benz – Thrillah (Easy Star) 2012 Michael Jackson/Vincent Prince
- Carl McDonald – Satan Soldiers on the Run; 12” (Makdon) ’87 Brooklyn
Set 5:
- Peter Tosh – Oh Bumba Klaat; 12” EP (Rolling Stone) ’81 UK fight off demonic possession
- David Lindley – Werewolves of London; Very Greasy (Elektra) ’88 Warren Zevon cover
- Pluto & Trinity – Vampire Year; Ire Mas Rockers Carnival (Top Ranking) ’81 FL vinyl
- Laurel Aitken – Witchdoctor from Amsterdam; Eskapade en France (Blue Moon) ’90 Fr. Vinyl
Set 6:
- Future Pigeon – The Mummy; Echodelic Sounds (Record Collect) 2005 SoCal
- Dennis Brown – Black Magic Woman; Black Magic Reggae (Trojan) ’72 Fleetwood Mac/Santana cover
- Don Carlos – Night Rider (In Danger); Deeply Concerned (RAS) ’87 DC vinyl
- The Wailing Souls – Face the Devil; Face the Devil (Jah Guidance) ’81 JA vinyl
- Bob Marley & the Wailers – Mr. Brown; Black Magic Reggae (Trojan) ’70 rides around in a coffin
Smile Jamaica 