tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4302909032100631102024-02-19T02:57:16.996-08:00Bye Bye BeatThe Beat Magazine, an internationally distributed publication covering reggae, African, Caribbean and world music, closes down after 28 years.The Minister of Informationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01730523790336943821noreply@blogger.comBlogger73125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-430290903210063110.post-61214889927395610432015-12-14T14:14:00.000-08:002017-11-04T13:35:50.196-07:00BEST OF THE BEAT ON AFROPOP: Reprints to date<a href="http://afropop.org/articles/best-of-the-beat" target="_blank">TO SEE ALL STORIES ON "BEST OF THE BEAT ON AFROPOP" CLICK HERE</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.afropop.org/25929/the-beat-goes-on-intro/" target="_blank">The Beat Goes (Back) On!</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.afropop.org/25937/best-of-the-beat/" target="_blank">Best of The Beat on Afropop: Youssou Ndour</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.afropop.org/26105/miriam-makeba-remembering-mama-africa/" target="_blank">Best of The Beat on Afropop: Miriam Makeba--Remembering Mama Africa</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.afropop.org/26142/best-of-the-beat-orlando-julius-ekemode/" target="_blank">Best of The Beat on Afropop: Orlando Julius Ekemode</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.afropop.org/25993/best-of-the-beat-rapso-stories/" target="_blank">Best of The Beat on Afropop: Rapso From Trinidad and Tobago</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.afropop.org/26320/best-of-the-beat-on-afropop-nelson-mandela-two-years-after/" target="_blank">Best of The Beat on Afropop: Remembering Nelson Mandela</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.afropop.org/26430/best-of-the-beat-on-afropop-remembering-tabu-ley-rochereau/" target="_blank">Best of The Beat on Afropop: Remembering Tabu Ley Rochereau</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.afropop.org/26301/best-of-the-beat-on-afropop-remembering-pepe-kalle/" target="_blank">Best of The Beat on Afropop: Remembering Pepe Kalle</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.afropop.org/26285/best-of-the-beat-on-afropop-manu-dibango/" target="_blank">Best of The Beat on Afropop: Manu Dibango</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.afropop.org/26303/best-of-the-beat-on-afropop-bonnie-raitt-a-blueswoman-in-mali/" target="_blank">Best of The Beat on Afropop: Bonnie Raitt--A Blueswoman in Mali</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.afropop.org/26598/botboa-sekouba-bambino-diabate/" target="_blank">Best of The Beat on Afropop: Sekouba Bambino Diabate</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.afropop.org/26673/botboa-reggae-in-africa-part-one/" target="_blank">Best of The Beat on Afropop: Reggae in Africa, Part One</a><br />
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<br />The Minister of Informationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01730523790336943821noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-430290903210063110.post-24777563586350463262015-11-08T13:07:00.001-08:002015-11-08T13:07:31.479-08:00The Beat Goes (Back) On!<div class="entry-content">
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We are very pleased and proud to announce
a new feature at <a href="http://www.afropop.org/category/blog/botb/" target="_blank">Afropop.org</a>: reprints of selected articles from the
late, lamented magazine <em>The Beat</em>, which documented the emergence of reggae, African, Caribbean and world music on the international level. <em>The Beat</em>
began publishing in 1982 as a handmade fanzine for the radio program
“The Reggae Beat,” broadcasting from KCRW-FM in Santa Monica, CA. Over
the 28 years of its existence, it grew into an internationally
distributed glossy publication, until 2009, when the collapse of the
economy coupled with that of the music and publishing industries forced
it to close. <em> </em></div>
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<em>The Beat</em>‘s run encompassed a very exciting period
in the growth and development of African and world music, when it seemed
like every day a new artist or band would appear from one of the four
corners of the world, and new music would be explored in the magazine’s
pages. <em>The Beat</em>‘s time frame also corresponded with that of
Afropop Worldwide, and we worked in tandem, with their radio programs
often mirroring our articles, and APWW founders Banning Eyre and Sean Barlow also
often contributing stories to the magazine as well.</div>
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As editor and publisher of <em>The Beat</em>, I always greatly
admired Afropop’s productions, and I am now thrilled to be part of the
team as Editor in Large for Afropop.org. This series of reprints of
essential articles from <em>The Beat</em> will add historical
perspective and background for Afropop’s coverage of current musical
developments, with the advantage of now being able to enhance the
stories online with music and video clips.<br />
<br />
<em>The Beat</em> also goes on at Facebook. "Like" the pages of <a href="https://www.facebook.com/The-Beat-Magazine-43494346076/" target="_blank">Beat Magazine</a> and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/afropop/" target="_blank">Afropop Worldwide</a> to stay abreast of new feature articles as they are posted.We invite you to check in frequently to see what treasures we have unearthed from the Golden Age!<br />
<br />
CC Smith, Afropop Editor at Large<br />
</div>
The Minister of Informationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01730523790336943821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-430290903210063110.post-16767790333110817522014-11-23T15:12:00.000-08:002014-11-23T15:19:18.798-08:00Shame and Scandal in the Family<br />
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Commentary by The Beat's intrepid columnist Steve Heilig in The Gleaner
about the latest dismaying development in Bob Marley's legacy, in which the Marley family has licensed Bob's name to a company marketing legalized marijuana. The news was reported last week: <a href="http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/legal-pot/stir-it-bob-marley-headline-corporate-cannabis-brand-n250286">http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/legal-pot/stir-it-bob-marley-headline-corporate-cannabis-brand-n250286</a><br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Reprinted from Jamaica Gleaner, published Nov. 23, 2014: </b><a href="http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20141123/focus/focus4.html" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1416771028281_10835" rel="nofollow" shape="rect" target="_blank">http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20141123/focus/focus4.html</a><br />
<b>Shame on family for peddling patriarch as brand</b><br />
<b>Steve Heilig, Guest Columnist</b><br />
<br />
Dear Rita, Cedella, and Rohan Marley:<br />
Congratulations
on last week's very visible launch of your forthcoming Marley Natural
brand of marijuana. As no doubt intended, you received worldwide media
coverage.<br />
But I am also compelled to ask: Have you no shame?<br />
Don't
get me wrong. As a longtime reggae fanatic and journalist, I have long
revered Bob Marley's music and messages. I went to his concerts and even
met him once - where I was in awe of his presence. <b>The BEAT</b> magazine, a leading world music journal and my primary publisher for many years, devoted entire issues to him every year.<br />
Collectively,
we, too, loved the man. And as for cannabis, I, too, favour
legalisation and have even contributed to major medical policy papers
advocating that - if carefully done.<br />
But contrary to what Cedella
has told the press, Bob Marley is not a brand. The businessmen you have
partnered with to sell cannabis make no bones about their motivations -
money, and money only. They are what Bob Marley referred to as "pure
Babylon".<br />
As you know, herb to him was a sacrament, not just
another product to be marketed for profit by capitalists. Anti-herb drug
warriors are already using your product launch as an example of Big
Cannabis practices that will prove that marijuana should remain illegal.
I strongly believe that rather than smiling about this latest attempt
to cash in on his image, your father/husband is spinning in his grave.<br />
Letter to Bob<br />
You
may have a way to redeem this looming debacle, however. Back in 2005,
Stephen Davis, who knew Bob Marley and wrote one of the best books about
him, penned a scathing open letter to him in <b>The BEAT</b> magazine.
Davis lamented the infighting, greed, and scandal that ensued among your
family after his death, and asked, very pointedly:<br />
"Where is the
Bob Marley Hospital for the Poor that should be operating in Spanish
Town? Where is the Bob Marley Orphanage that should be the pride of St
Ann's Bay? What about the Bob Marley Home for the Aged in Negril, or the
Bob Marley Early Childcare Centre in Sligoville and Port Antonio? These
non-existent institutions don't exist because your family has other
priorities, which seem to be mostly themselves."<br />
So here is your
challenge, and your opportunity - which should be a relatively easy one
to fulfil, as I very much doubt any of you are truly in need of more
money. I note that there is a Healing of the Nation page on your new
product website - which is so far blank. If you will now make a public,
binding pledge to devote all profits from Marley cannabis to an
independent, audited foundation that will provide the sort of essential
human services Davis proposed, Bob Marley might indeed smile from
beyond. Otherwise, many of us who remember his message will continue to
believe that his family is defiling his memory.<br />
And finally, in
the same edition of the magazine where Mr Davis' open letter appeared,
there was a 1936 speech by Emperor Haile Selassie, whom Bob Marley
himself revered, of course. Its title: 'God and history will remember
your judgment'. I humbly suggest you think about that before you attempt
to cash in again on the name you have been so fortunate to inherit.<br />
<br />
<i>Steve Heilig is a health-care ethicist and ethnomusicologist based in
San Francisco and Marin. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and
heilig@<a href="http://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fsfms.org%2F&h=BAQEmDvUL&s=1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">sfms.org.</a></i>The Minister of Informationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01730523790336943821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-430290903210063110.post-73387281225142420482012-11-16T15:04:00.000-08:002012-11-16T15:17:44.437-08:00I & I ah de roots.....<span class="userContent">From the Where Are They Now Dept.: Chuck Foster, author of The Beat's
longest-running -- and longest -- column, "Reggae Update," has become a music
producer, and here is his new production: <i>We Roots</i>, with contributions from 5 lovely ladies and one duet, mostly from Southern California. It's already on the CMJ chart and available online and on CDBaby and Amazon. Congratulations, Chuck, and
bravo! <a href="http://catchmetime.com/19-sample-data-articles/joomla/8-newalbum" rel="nofollow nofollow" target="_blank">http://catchmetime.com/19-sample-data-articles/joomla/8-newalbum</a></span><br />
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<span class="album-page-album-note" id="cphContent_lblAlbumNotes"><b></b><i>Catch
Me Time Records presents a varied set of reggae music from a diverse
group of female artists. The CD, recorded at Mystery Man and Rough
Sounds studios in Los Angeles and produced by Chuck Foster, long-time
host of Reggae Central on KPFK-LA, features vocals from Universal
Speakers, Shayna Dread, Jessica Burks, Jordan Mercedes, Zema and Queen P
inna showcase-style with each song followed by a full-length dub. All
of the artists brings their own individual background, experience and
quality to the mix. </i></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span class="album-page-album-note" id="cphContent_lblAlbumNotes"><b>We Roots</b>
gathers some of Southern California's finest musicians drawing on
Jamaican styles from rock steady to roots and adding non-traditional
elements for a unique sound. Women have always made a great contribution
to reggae and this collection brings together a group of artists and
styles that keep positive music moving forward in this crucial time. </span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<i>After writing about music for over
twenty years in the Reggae Update column of Beat Magazine and as author
of the books Roots Rock Reggae: An Oral History of Reggae Music From Ska
To Dancehall (Billboard Books, 1999) and The Small Axe Guide To
Rocksteady (Muzik Tree, 2009) Chuck Foster has returned to his roots
producing an all female vocal and dub collection out now on the Catch Me
Time Records label.</i>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i>The cd is presented "showcase" style,
with each song followed by a corresponding dub. Recorded in various
studios utilizing the talents of different singers and players, the
styles range from rock steady and roots to cutting-edge contemporary.</i></div>
The Minister of Informationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01730523790336943821noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-430290903210063110.post-43014932942000671412012-03-08T14:07:00.000-08:002012-03-08T14:07:29.553-08:00The mysterious Jah BizzareIn September 1982, an envelope arrived at KCRW's Reggae Beat program, containing the images you see below. The artist was an extravagantly talented Englishman who called himself Jah Bizzare, who was living in Costa Mesa, CA and evidently listened to Roger and Hank's radio broadcasts. Mr. Bizzare became a contributor to the early Beats, creating the Ducky Dred comic strip, and also illustrating the first two color covers: the Lee "Scratch" Perry and the Reggae Radio issues. I wonder what ever became of him.....<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLOibTdfZZuXAunuwc1Re9LOX0UKH802wdt3tRsG0jpHi7WePHoLbGgrpcoSafjczovsXgwuiKBvLDhLc7irWauxAGe3pkWGb5rj_D7eMwfkP8xYVB3GjrSSsNuA-yaFbo6apnX19DkBFE/s1600/JahBiz2small.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLOibTdfZZuXAunuwc1Re9LOX0UKH802wdt3tRsG0jpHi7WePHoLbGgrpcoSafjczovsXgwuiKBvLDhLc7irWauxAGe3pkWGb5rj_D7eMwfkP8xYVB3GjrSSsNuA-yaFbo6apnX19DkBFE/s400/JahBiz2small.jpg" width="308" /></a></div>The Minister of Informationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01730523790336943821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-430290903210063110.post-2994868148743108032012-02-04T10:40:00.000-08:002012-02-04T10:40:28.240-08:00Zine Archive: The Beat // July 1983 « Shimmy ShimmyWhat a lovely treat to discover this on a blog from UK! Give thanks guys!<br /><br /><a href="http://shimmyshimmy.co.uk/2011/06/30/zine-archive-the-beat-july-1983/#comment-5409">Zine Archive: The Beat // July 1983 « Shimmy Shimmy</a><br /><br /><p><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-2475" title="beat" src="http://shimmyshimmy.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/beat.jpg" alt="" height="800" width="600" /></p> <p>Before The Beat magazine turned into a fully-fledged, full colour glossy magazine, it was a proper black-and-white one page one dollar newsletter. It was started in 1982, by C.C. Smith and Roger Steffens – who is the world’s foremost authority on Bob Marley (and has <a href="http://vimeo.com/10572213">the most amazing memorabilia collection, including an amazing Bob bead curtain</a>). It was the only reggae/african/world music dedicated magazine in the US, and sadly shut its press last year.</p> <p><span id="more-2474"></span></p> <p>I have this copy of July/August 1983 issue, which features an interview with Lee Scratch Perry, talking his usual nonsense:</p> <blockquote><p><em>My name is King David, I love to fling stone. Right? My papa is King Solomon Emperor Haile Selassie I the black gorilla king, Super Ape right? He can change into a lion, a monkey, a leopard, any thing. He has the power to do anything, right? He is the capricorn right? He is the sagittarius right? He’s the every-fucking thing</em> (p17, interview with Doug Wendt)</p></blockquote> <p>Aside from the Scratch feature, there are some amazing adverts for different reggae shops, mostly in California, complete playlists from Steffens’ Reggae Beat International radio show, on KCRW, columns like ‘Collector’s Corner’, ‘Reggae Ramblins’, an interesting piece addressing whether ‘reggae really wants commercial success’ and the chronic mishandling of reggae as a business, a comic strip based on a rasta called Ducky Dred, a feature on Chicago reggae bands, and this reggae game, for the hardened reggae stoner: Roll up 3 spliffs and start here!</p> <p><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-2487" title="Picture 4" src="http://shimmyshimmy.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Picture-4.png" alt="" height="600" width="600" /></p> <p>My favourite outtakes from the issue:</p> <p><img class="size-full wp-image-2482 alignleft" title="Picture 2" src="http://shimmyshimmy.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Picture-2.png" alt="" height="420" width="290" /></p> <img class="size-full wp-image-2489 alignright" title="Picture 5" src="http://shimmyshimmy.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Picture-5.png" alt="" height="420" width="290" />The Minister of Informationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01730523790336943821noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-430290903210063110.post-21247160694833177762011-12-20T15:01:00.000-08:002011-12-20T15:01:47.916-08:00Roger Steffens' World of Reggae exhibit at the Queen Mary, Long Beach CA 2001I just came across these photos from Roger's triumphant exhibition of his Reggae Archives. He may still have the gorgeous catalog available: it was selling for $25 a few years ago, but may be a collectors' item by now. Contact Ras Rojah at rasrojah@aol.com.<br />
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This display shows many of The Beat's Marley issue covers along with other magazines featuring Bob collected by Roger over the years.The Minister of Informationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01730523790336943821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-430290903210063110.post-50029522772773132802011-10-17T16:32:00.000-07:002011-10-17T16:35:48.143-07:0028 years of musicIt's been over a year now, but I just saw this report on the donation of my music collection to UCLA's Ethnomusicology Archives: <br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.ethnomusic.ucla.edu/archive/ear/20110201-cc-smith/#comments">http://www.ethnomusic.ucla.edu/archive/ear/20110201-cc-smith/#comments</a><br />
<br />
<div class="post-headline"><h1>NEW ACQUISITION:Collection from Former Radio Host and Publisher of ‘The Beat’Magazine</h1></div>The Ethnomusicology Archive has recently acquired a collection of nearly 10,000 commercial recordings featuring music from Africa and the worldwide African diaspora. The collection comes from CC Smith,a well-known radio host of world music shows on local stations KCRW,KPFK,KCSN and KXLU since the early 1980s. She was also publisher of “The Beat,”a world music magazine that grew out of the early radio shows to become a major international publication. After “The Beat”ceased publication in 2009,Smith contact prof. Jackie DjeDje and arranged the donation of her collection of CDs,LPs,cassettes,artist promotional materials,and other materials relating to her long-running radio shows. The collection includes nearly 5,000 recordings of reggae,ska,dub,and related Jamaican and Caribbean musics.The Minister of Informationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01730523790336943821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-430290903210063110.post-89819134688103242312011-06-28T14:19:00.000-07:002011-06-28T14:26:31.887-07:00Peace. Love. Music. Tacos: Review of 2011 Sierra Nevada World Music Festival<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxISrm8DFF-tHA8O82c6UDwSWdn8yZtl4_pCSfcywN-fdRwjjNhQdXnk73nJsHCz1o3Tp428ZPWNl0i7KXkX1t-u9U2tH94_qMhcHTjp8AoJynRM6A1mn8fdz4ZCvYFL9Oz1qlqulCtvl6/s1600/snwmf2011indeximage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="134" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxISrm8DFF-tHA8O82c6UDwSWdn8yZtl4_pCSfcywN-fdRwjjNhQdXnk73nJsHCz1o3Tp428ZPWNl0i7KXkX1t-u9U2tH94_qMhcHTjp8AoJynRM6A1mn8fdz4ZCvYFL9Oz1qlqulCtvl6/s200/snwmf2011indeximage.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>Beat contributor and columnist Steve Heilig covered Boonville, CA's SNWMF for many, many years, always infusing his account with his own unique backstage perspective as a volunteer at the annual festival. This year his report was published by the Anderson Valley Advertiser, the local newspaper, which hopefully paid him more for this article than The Beat ever did (i.e., zilch!). Thank you Steve, keep those tacos flying! <br />
<br />
<a href="http://theava.com/archives/11295">Sierra Nevada World Music Festival 2011</a><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri,Verdana,Helvetica,Arial;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Late on Friday afternoon, winding carefully towards Boonville through the lovely hills on Highway 128 near metropolitan Yorkville, we saw a car upside down next to the road. There were plenty of people standing around and they looked strangely calm, so we did not stop, figuring nobody was hurt too bad — unlikely though that seemed. But before we pulled into town, multiple ambulances and police had sped by in that direction, lights flashing. We hoped for the best.<br />
<br />
Good thing I don’t believe in omens, as this one would have been wrong — the rest of the weekend, at the Sierra Nevada World Music Festival, went off without a single negative deed nor word witnessed by anybody I talked with. Even the climate was ideal — just beating this week’s heat wave. <br />
<br />
The music is the main draw, of course, and one can’t catch it all between the two stages and dance hall barn and lawn, so herewith are a few highlights seen and heard. <br />
<br />
South African singer Vusi Mahlasela, aka “the voice,” spellbinding a too-small crowd on the smaller stage Saturday evening with just his singing and guitar — so beautiful that a rough and tough Texan I was listening with was moved to tears. Zimbabwean Thomas Mapfumo, exiled former ally of the despotic Mugabe, looking rather frail but chanting hypnotically over a spellbinding band. <br />
<br />
Toots Hibbert channeling Otis Redding, 45 years after he coined a term with a song titled “Do the Reggay.” But The Cables, four singers reunited onstage here for the first time ever, predated even Toots and sang sweet ‘rock-steady’ — a brief but sweet form of 1960s Jamaican song that bridged the 1950s jazz-based ska and reggae itself — backed by the very fine Expanders, a Los-Angeles-based retro band of reggae faithful. But a yet even older group, The Jolly Boys, played mento, a musical form that predated even ska and features a banjo, likely a first at SNWMF. “These guys have been together since 1956 and they are not tired yet!” said the MC, but they updated their signature sound with cover versions of Steely Dan, Sade, even the talented train wreck that is Amy Winehouse (“Rehab”!). Even the guys from The Cables were dancing and singing along out front. <br />
<br />
There was more fine roots reggae from 1970s stars Horace Andy, Brigadier Jerry, and Pablo Moses, a hypnotic set from relative newcomer Taj Weekes, a tough roots offering from and a superb show by pioneering chanting star Dennis Alcapone, accompanied by the sweet singing of British star Winston Reedy and a very fine band. As festival founder and honcho Warren Smith noted in these pages a couple weeks back, it gets tougher to find and bring the old guys back, and beyond that worthy effort he strove to bring in some acts that appeal to a younger demographic, which seemed to work. They did sell more tickets than ever, and the crowd seemed even more youthful overall — although it certainly is an all-ages event, and the perspective could just be through my aging eyes.<br />
<br />
There was stirring African drumming and dancing, and the annual parade of Brazilian percussionists and dancers on stilts. And much more, including lots of Latin-flavored music on Sunday afternoon but by then I was toast and had to go back to the swimming holes at Hendy Woods, even though the river and banks were overcrowded with families and noisy partiers — the water still felt very fine and even the non-swimming dog dipped.<br />
<br />
If there is any fault to find with the people who come to SNWMF, it might be that some of them still leave litter. But early Sunday morning, there was Gretchen Smith again, be-gloved and picking up trash along 128 in town. This seems akin to a CEO doing the company composting. I heard of only a few altercations and arrests — in fact, maybe fewer than on a usual non-festival summer weekend — it would be ironic if bringing a few thousand music lovers into town cut the crime rate? In any event, a couple of uniformed law enforcement authorities sat sipping coffee outside the Mosswood where we started each day, drinking fine coffee, reading the news of the melting-down world that seemed so far away, and watching the groggy human parade. And it can be a fetching one — one attendee was heard to remark that somebody could make money selling a “Girls of SNWMF” calendar. We searched out the fine food at Mis Potrancos for a third time, eating in the next-door saloon with the local brew on tap — a sweet arrangement that even the dog appreciated on a hot early evening. And late one night, even though not really hungry, we had to seek out the fresh and tasty tacos outside the Redwood Drive-In — at $2/per, a superbly sabroso deal.<br />
<br />
A more smiling and polite gathering you will not find, anywhere. A posting on the SNWMF.com open ‘phorum,’ commenting on my AVA interview with Warren Smith re-posted there, said the festival “brings out the best in humanity.” Another, a first-timer, said, “It really goes a long way towards restoring my faith in humanity.” Is this asking a lot from a music festival? Maybe. Anyway, the wristband they gave me to allow access to the show read simply “Peace. Love. Music.” <br />
<br />
Can’t argue with that. <br />
</span></span>The Minister of Informationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01730523790336943821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-430290903210063110.post-17305109863704798652011-05-01T07:07:00.000-07:002011-05-01T07:07:11.985-07:00Word from an old friend & Beat columnistI was delighted to discover our former African Beat columnist Robert Ambrose has begun a music blog to share his magnificent collection of African albums with us:<br />
<a href="http://rhythmconnection.blogspot.com/">Rhythm Connection</a><br />
<br />
Thank you Robert!The Minister of Informationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01730523790336943821noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-430290903210063110.post-61530101655845737692011-04-26T08:44:00.000-07:002011-04-26T08:47:44.984-07:00The First Rasta: French documentary about Leonard Howell<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2C-vZmoSlryMbulaO8IUHr5lRzHhToDz2Pb2W3guh5upifuF8FbwdDo8wXPoF9GVh1gdtYG_4mRvPxUbyWti9kyWY5Dn3a-6zvKuH2ejfeihk_hmq0KEGtAUgY4kQGXMWIAmI5a4zfLop/s1600/19697260.jpg-r_760_x-f_jpg-q_x-20110318_110825.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2C-vZmoSlryMbulaO8IUHr5lRzHhToDz2Pb2W3guh5upifuF8FbwdDo8wXPoF9GVh1gdtYG_4mRvPxUbyWti9kyWY5Dn3a-6zvKuH2ejfeihk_hmq0KEGtAUgY4kQGXMWIAmI5a4zfLop/s200/19697260.jpg-r_760_x-f_jpg-q_x-20110318_110825.jpg" width="150" /></a></div><a href="http://www.africa1.com/spip.php?article10704">See trailer for the film here</a><br />
<div id="synopsis_visible_part" style="height: 198px; overflow: visible;"><div id="synopsis_full"><span class="bold">This documentary was produced by Helen Lee, a well-respected long-time French music journalist who published an excellent book, <i>The First Rasta: Leonard Howell and the Rise of Rastafarianism</i> (Lawrence Hill Books), in 1999, English edition 2003. </span><br />
<span class="bold">If you don't speak French, don't worry. It looks on the trailer like most of it is in English or Jamaican patois, with French subtitles. </span><br />
<span class="bold"><a href="http://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm_gen_cfilm=191450.html">More info (French website) here</a></span><br />
<i><br />
</i></div></div>The Minister of Informationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01730523790336943821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-430290903210063110.post-25874367462968481162011-02-23T06:08:00.000-08:002011-02-23T06:12:06.988-08:00Bye Bye Buju | Los Angeles Times<a href="http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/gossip/2011/02/buju-banton-guilty-convicted-cocaine-reggae-singer.html">Buju Banton convicted on cocaine charges, faces at least 15 years | Ministry of Gossip | Los Angeles Times</a><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/.a/6a00d8341c630a53ef014e5f664315970c-300wi" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/.a/6a00d8341c630a53ef014e5f664315970c-300wi" width="193" /></a></div><strong>Buju Banton</strong>, the Grammy-winning Jamaican reggae singer, was convicted Tuesday in a Florida court on three of four federal drug charges. He faces at least 15 years in prison. <br />
"Obviously, we are all upset and disappointed and emotional," said Banton's attorney, <strong>David Markus</strong>. "The only person who seems to be OK is Buju. He told us he was happy that he fought, knowing he was innocent."<br />
Banton, whose real name is <strong>Mark Myrie</strong>, was arrested in a Drug Enforcement Agency sting operation in Miami in December 2009. He attempted to buy cocaine from an undercover officer, police said at the time. A mistrial was declared when the case first went to trial in September.<br />
"Our life and our destiny are sometimes pre-destined and no matter where this journey takes me, remember I fought the good fight," Banton said Tuesday in a <a href="http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/I-fought-the-good-fight---Buju" target="_self">statement</a> read by his lawyer, the Jamaica Observer reports. "It was a great man that said my head is bloody but still unbowed I love you all thank you for your support."<br />
In Banton's native Jamaica, radio stations played his songs nonstop Tuesday, especially "Untold Stories" and "Not an Easy Road." Markus, who said Banton will appeal, will try to get his client out on bail in the meantime.<br />
The jury deliberated for 11 hours on the cocaine-related charges, acquitting Banton of attempted possession with the intent to distribute, but finding him guilty of conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense and using a telephone to facilitate a drug trafficking offense.<br />
<a href="" id="more" name="more" type="button_count"></a> <div class="entry-more"> In one videotape made by an informant who was party of the sting, Banton could be seen tasting cocaine in a Sarasota warehouse on Dec. 8, 2009 -- but he was not present during the actual drug deal on Dec. 10 that led two others to be arrested. Those two men later pleaded guilty. Banton testified that the informant badgered him after they met on a trans-Atlantic flight in July 2009 and insisted that they meet to set up a cocaine purchase. He said he was so uninterested in the informant's proposals that after they met twice, Banton didn't return the man's phone calls for months.<br />
Banton won a Grammy on Feb. 13 for "Before the Dawn."<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>A sentencing date has not been set. </div>The Minister of Informationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01730523790336943821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-430290903210063110.post-85209922810752927242010-12-18T14:58:00.000-08:002010-12-18T14:58:11.279-08:00Archeological artifacts<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9p4TD-ZC5GE86LjPii9Red36UQET7NFi2hVvQseP_QwzoPGIh91yG_ChvhXDtinyz38vJHIA0wRve2pCYtJbHJ6ygQ23Ixu6rE_KLKuLQLaZenj5-u2r_NPq8SlPR38kimhhLGvma4hg6/s1600/BenefitFlyer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9p4TD-ZC5GE86LjPii9Red36UQET7NFi2hVvQseP_QwzoPGIh91yG_ChvhXDtinyz38vJHIA0wRve2pCYtJbHJ6ygQ23Ixu6rE_KLKuLQLaZenj5-u2r_NPq8SlPR38kimhhLGvma4hg6/s320/BenefitFlyer.jpg" width="249" /></a>Here's a bit of Beat history that was unearthed while I was moving. Somewhere around 1984 or 85, the nascent Reggae Beat newsletter decided to hold a benefit concert for itself to raise funds needed to help it grow and expand. I don't remember if we actually made any profit, and it was such a difficult undertaking that we never attempted it again, but I recall we had a good turnout, and nice performances by some of our local reggae outfits and of course the indispensable Ron Miller Hi Fi. This was at the good old Kingston 12 at its original location on Crenshaw Blvd. I wonder what happened to Barry, the club owner? The clubs, the bands, the sound systems and the Reggae Beat radio show all made the synergy and the energy that created the vibrant reggae scene in Los Angeles in the '80s. Ah yes.....<br />
Here is the flyer, handmade like the Reggae Beat was at that time, and the Minister of Information MCing at the microphone stand. Ras Rojah Steffens is just visible behind her on stage, just as he has always been behind her since! (and I do believe that's Jill Taylor in the corner on the left-- another one of the crucial cornerstones of the newsletter at that time.)<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOvyVhUIbcVOcyaCrky2Z8s4DlR14d0LVYX-ksmnXraUAo9AOXzcuYPV1OUCdGhRkslFcsdQpIm9oSYBOGt_EOxjlShJdfcbJja2aBiePhMVerWqZOw3RoIb3hbjFuki6YrfSOIsokTXU1/s1600/CCS-RBbenefitK12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOvyVhUIbcVOcyaCrky2Z8s4DlR14d0LVYX-ksmnXraUAo9AOXzcuYPV1OUCdGhRkslFcsdQpIm9oSYBOGt_EOxjlShJdfcbJja2aBiePhMVerWqZOw3RoIb3hbjFuki6YrfSOIsokTXU1/s400/CCS-RBbenefitK12.jpg" width="286" /></a></div>The Minister of Informationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01730523790336943821noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-430290903210063110.post-46568923111544153482010-12-13T14:38:00.000-08:002010-12-13T18:31:20.487-08:00Remmy Ongala passes away in Tanzania<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3S0rEX-lelLrdqK5BIfXRb-xwUMTeDGRMC6KYFFZWcZ2btvzskDbSMWoh0ug-59NPEh49DGc8foMU34OW6_A0IXPtwyMNqlkqJs1HI-XNM1Fuugv30RshQNz3UssJPqYOzh3dbaj0onjP/s1600/cover9-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3S0rEX-lelLrdqK5BIfXRb-xwUMTeDGRMC6KYFFZWcZ2btvzskDbSMWoh0ug-59NPEh49DGc8foMU34OW6_A0IXPtwyMNqlkqJs1HI-XNM1Fuugv30RshQNz3UssJPqYOzh3dbaj0onjP/s1600/cover9-2.jpg" /></a></div> One of my favorites from East Africa. Gary Stewart and I drove all the way to Toronto to interview him and see him perform at WOMAD Harbourfront. He was a real original character, and gave us so much wonderful music. Great songwriter with a voice that came straight from his heart, and played guitar just like Franco. He had been in poor health for some time. Such a pity to lose another cornerstone. Pole sana!<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-11984676">http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-11984676</a>The Minister of Informationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01730523790336943821noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-430290903210063110.post-28035069417987196852010-10-25T16:18:00.000-07:002010-10-25T16:25:06.046-07:00Tributes pour in for Gregory Isaacs - JamaicaObserver.com<a href="http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/Tributes-pour-in-for-Gregory">Tributes pour in for Gregory Isaacs - Breaking & Current Jamaica News - JamaicaObserver.com</a><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWfhsDU-bOLZvMm7HhE_LEwvUUdjb_aEGO9vZkJxI3pt4T61HjqM6myKhfjEHZrdxmv_Gzco1ve6GnL_YAdcCVgdPaHxG9-o9uPqEHNObzrfWz_wanbR2N_MPyuTGww-aeJVad1AOMqsrz/s1600/isaacs_370x278.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWfhsDU-bOLZvMm7HhE_LEwvUUdjb_aEGO9vZkJxI3pt4T61HjqM6myKhfjEHZrdxmv_Gzco1ve6GnL_YAdcCVgdPaHxG9-o9uPqEHNObzrfWz_wanbR2N_MPyuTGww-aeJVad1AOMqsrz/s200/isaacs_370x278.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br />
<div id="story_title">Gregory Isaacs dies</div><div id="story_byline">Jamaica Observer</div><div id="story_date">Monday, October 25, 2010</div><br />
<a href="http://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=20" rel="nofollow"><img alt="Bookmark and Share" height="16" src="http://s7.addthis.com/static/btn/lg-share-en.gif" style="border: 0pt none;" width="125" /></a> <br />
<div id="story"></div><div id="story">REGGAE singer Gregory Isaacs has died.</div><div id="story">The singer, 59, passed this morning after a long illness.</div><div id="story">He died in London.</div><div id="story">Earlier this year, Gregory Isaacs' road manager Copeland Forbes stated that his charge was, "in the UK doing some medical tests. As you all know, he had some problems with his legs from last year which resulted in cancellation of tours, and in the last 12 months he had a very hectic year travelling all over the globe doing performances".</div><div id="story">Isaacs has been a constant presence on the reggae music scene for some time. The singer has released a number of hits including Night Nurse, Tune In, My Number One, Love Overdue, Rumours and The Border. </div>The Minister of Informationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01730523790336943821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-430290903210063110.post-52292211272615923862010-09-16T06:31:00.000-07:002010-09-16T06:33:23.820-07:00Soca singer Alphonsus 'Arrow' Cassell dies at 60<a href="http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/afterword/2010/09/soca-singer-arrow-cassell-dies-at-60-on-montserrat.html">Soca singer Alphonsus 'Arrow' Cassell dies at 60</a><br />
<br />
Alphonsus "Arrow" Cassell, a soca musician who won global fame with his 1982 hit <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o1QhjTfLn40&feature=related" target="_self">"Hot Hot Hot,"</a> died Wednesday. He was 60. <br />
He died of complications from brain cancer at his home on the Caribbean island of Montserrat, said his brother, Justin Cassell, a singer-songwriter who often collaborated with him.<br />
The highlight of his career was "Hot Hot Hot," Justin Cassell said, adding that his brother also gained fame because "he took soca to all corners of the world."<br />
"Arrow" Cassell was among the best-known artists of Caribbean-born soca, a music derived from soul and calypso that emphasizes music over lyrics.<br />
"Calypso is political, tropical, slower," the musician said in a 1996 interview. "Soca is dance. ‘Feeling Hot Hot Hot' ... makes you forget that there's a volcano and (remember) there's fun to be had."<br />
At the time of the interview, Cassell was producing music that aimed to reassure Montserrat residents who had been forced to leave their homes when the Soufriere Hills volcano erupted in 1995.<br />
"Arrow" Cassell was born Nov. 16, 1949, into a family that produced two Calypso Kings at Montserrat's annual Christmas carnival. In the 1970s, he was influenced by the Trinidadian musician the Mighty Sparrow, considered by many the international king of calypso. Cassell was crowned Monterrat's calypso king four times before focusing on his international career.<br />
In the 1980s, he performed on tours throughout Africa, Europe, Japan and the United States.<br />
-- Associated Press<br />
via LA Times.comThe Minister of Informationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01730523790336943821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-430290903210063110.post-42738360467989336452010-09-10T17:06:00.001-07:002010-09-10T17:07:31.161-07:00A Random Act of Courage: Taking A Stand at Ground Zero, by Ken BraunI used to manage a record store on New York City’s Warren Street, right around the corner from the Burlington Coat Factory that is now the proposed site of the Cordoba Center, widely (but inaccurately) called “the Ground Zero mosque.” Four short blocks north of the Twin Towers, my colleagues and I used to jokingly call our store the World Music Trade Center. <br />
<br />
On the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, as I was on my way to work, pieces of airplane fell on the roof of our building and a tsunami of ash and grit got inside and ruined almost everything. Four customers I knew, and possibly others I had seen in the store or talked to, were killed that day; at least two of them were Muslim. <br />
<br />
My staff comprised three Christians, two Jews, one Muslim, one atheist and my agnostic self. When we were able to reopen our store just before Christmas, we set up a display near the entrance, with a sign reading "Islamic Music from Around the World," which was exactly what we offered on that center rack. We also gave a prominent place in the Asian section, along one wall, to secular Afghan music that had been banned by the Taliban, especially a CD by a singer whose death in a car crash his fans believed to have been engineered by Al Qaeda. <br />
<br />
Like many of the small businesses in the neighborhood, our store got a lot of people coming in after their pilgrimage to Ground Zero, wanting to spend some money to help repair a small part of what had been wrecked. We were glad to see them, but many of them turned around and walked out as soon as they saw the first word on our sign: Islamic. "O my God, can you believe this?" was the most moderate exclamation we heard. Other visitors looked through the CDs on display and perhaps picked up a few, some headed for more familiar sections, and some approached my colleagues or me to say "I don't know anything about Islamic music. Can you recommend something?" We were glad to; Islam has inspired a lot of fascinating and beautiful music. One gentleman, a delegate to the United Nations, having heard about our display, came to our store just to thank us for it. And then there was the guy who strode in and tried to overturn the center rack. When he couldn't (it was too big and heavy), he scattered some CDs on the floor, stomped on them, and walked out shouting "Burn in hell!" <br />
<br />
We had actually been planning to move the Islamic music back to one side next to the Judaica section, but after losing some CDs to a jackboot, we decided that we had to hold our stand against fundamentalism and Islamophobia. We kept the display front and center. In the end, neither terrorists nor reactionaries but music pirates and internet freeloaders closed our store. <br />
<br />
It was much smaller and far less significant than the Cordoba Center, but I think of that record store when I hear the calumnies hurled against "the Ground Zero mosque." Like its visionaries and supporters, my colleagues and I were trying to counteract ignorance and bigotry and hatred in whatever way we could. Because it was ignorance and bigotry and hatred that had fallen on us – all of us, everywhere – on 9-11. Remembering the days and weeks that followed, I admit to feelings of pride at having done a little something to defend our American freedoms of religion and expression. But sadness overwhelms the pride. After nine years and hundreds of thousands of violent deaths since 9-11, we still haven’t learned that day’s lessons.<br />
<br />
- Ken BraunThe Minister of Informationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01730523790336943821noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-430290903210063110.post-89982582825522445332010-06-14T17:53:00.000-07:002010-06-14T17:55:43.736-07:00Jamaica music lyrics — trigger of violence? - latimes.com<a href="http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-jamaica-dancehall-20100613,0,3981690.story">Jamaica music lyrics — trigger of violence? - latimes.com</a><br />
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<h2><span style="font-size: small;">The debate has intensified since lethal police raids in a slum that is the home turf of an alleged drugs and arms trafficker whose violent lifestyle is glorified in lyrics of a music called dancehall.</span></h2><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHZA4Ic7lA7kBIJ_sdHoNX0VBLoLIqnwFa0QP7UQ3HpgbvPfwj6U0KFp6g0N4zgDpons6WlP2-X8wmTAE4O4SVlER1J6kbeh9yjcqBGFXXQVO1_IH87hBzah9BMD-Oe-AAssPYK1a4euMw/s1600/LAT54287230.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHZA4Ic7lA7kBIJ_sdHoNX0VBLoLIqnwFa0QP7UQ3HpgbvPfwj6U0KFp6g0N4zgDpons6WlP2-X8wmTAE4O4SVlER1J6kbeh9yjcqBGFXXQVO1_IH87hBzah9BMD-Oe-AAssPYK1a4euMw/s320/LAT54287230.jpg" /></a></div><br />
By Chris Kraul, Los Angeles TimesThe Minister of Informationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01730523790336943821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-430290903210063110.post-48836692418793516352010-06-02T17:38:00.000-07:002010-12-18T15:14:19.448-08:00The Beat souvenir T-shirt: Sorry, too late!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX5S3JXFdEeto2oSSKx3wKI9PC5oteBML6KmGPk0XfVruajyCFlTcNd6eJ4hgFxlYZwCUS0GLXfmcGsfHIRovIzmDXpYl44OAkk5sPZJFthFUx2RBaB_HL2q570U-JJHS3xx2QZ6Idhp-T/s1600/BeatTShirt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX5S3JXFdEeto2oSSKx3wKI9PC5oteBML6KmGPk0XfVruajyCFlTcNd6eJ4hgFxlYZwCUS0GLXfmcGsfHIRovIzmDXpYl44OAkk5sPZJFthFUx2RBaB_HL2q570U-JJHS3xx2QZ6Idhp-T/s200/BeatTShirt.jpg" width="194" /></a></div><br />
In 1996 The Beat celebrated its 15th anniversary, producing a CD compilation <i>The Sound of The Beat</i>, a special 15th anniversary issue of <i>The Beat</i>, and a spiffy black T-shirt.<br />
These items are no longer available, sorry to say. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnHVCNW_wWhSlPF2ArQ5G5pPAED9rbEtBxgybxTho3orsg85z23FQp-UBDG5R63Sjdzi5A2JtERmAHeObj2A7sRIf0wPQHiCyE3t_LiiAaPP6O_pmH8y-WUgnVBoAvjUfGhGDnb5SjE6NL/s1600/cover15-4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnHVCNW_wWhSlPF2ArQ5G5pPAED9rbEtBxgybxTho3orsg85z23FQp-UBDG5R63Sjdzi5A2JtERmAHeObj2A7sRIf0wPQHiCyE3t_LiiAaPP6O_pmH8y-WUgnVBoAvjUfGhGDnb5SjE6NL/s200/cover15-4.jpg" width="150" /></a><br />
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<form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post"><input name="cmd" type="hidden" value="_s-xclick" /><br />
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<img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="https://www.paypal.com/en_US/i/scr/pixel.gif" width="1" /></form>The Minister of Informationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01730523790336943821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-430290903210063110.post-84098641091978159242010-05-29T15:57:00.000-07:002010-05-29T15:57:54.180-07:00Italy kicks out Reggae Festival, Cites Ganja Use : Kilimanjaro Entertainment<a href="http://kilimanjaroentertainment.com/2008/?p=1269">Italy kicks out Reggae Festival, Cites Ganja Use : Kilimanjaro Entertainment</a>The Minister of Informationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01730523790336943821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-430290903210063110.post-60988216541820983722010-05-27T08:06:00.000-07:002010-05-27T08:10:36.967-07:00Drug War in Kingston -- JamaicaObserver.comA drug kingpin named Coke? is that his real name?<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibWe90tCv3NZUFc6w8qzymxFHt6PI27lCq4HYDhfY-0cU52J007cgfRm0o6tE2vPG1UlZgRGxaFbdEVh2mZlsAvuqekamkGM3ipyCG94JCM2rJ8k31ZJ3xMR-9j-F8CJflSsC9MgbxB3H2/s1600/DSC_4324_w370.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibWe90tCv3NZUFc6w8qzymxFHt6PI27lCq4HYDhfY-0cU52J007cgfRm0o6tE2vPG1UlZgRGxaFbdEVh2mZlsAvuqekamkGM3ipyCG94JCM2rJ8k31ZJ3xMR-9j-F8CJflSsC9MgbxB3H2/s320/DSC_4324_w370.jpg" /></a></div><br />
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<a href="http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/Kingston-breathes-again_7652192">Kingston breathes again - Breaking & Current Jamaica News - JamaicaObserver.com</a>The Minister of Informationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01730523790336943821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-430290903210063110.post-42882653102474678992010-05-26T12:48:00.000-07:002010-05-26T14:49:38.722-07:00From Robert Ambrose: Endangered Music | Rhythm Connection"African Beat" columnist Robert Ambrose discusses the present digital dilemma facing music lovers.<br />
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<a href="http://rhythmconnection.org/?p=490&cpage=1#comment-39">Endangered Music | Rhythm Connection</a><br />
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Not so long ago I was a columnist for a great magazine devoted to “world music,” called <a href="http://getthebeat.com/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview('/outbound/article/getthebeat.com');" target="_blank">The Beat</a>. I put world music in quotes because it was a marketing phrase coined in the early 1980s to cope with the explosion of music being published from Africa to the Caribbean to Bulgaria. It’s a nearly useless label because it includes such diversity, but it is also a tad xenophobic because it lumps all music not from “America.” Absurd, when you think about it; but I digress.<br />
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My <i>Beat</i> column covered music from Africa, an immense source of diverse culture and, for me, the foundation for almost all of the world’s music. I usually wrote about the latest developments in African pop music, often highlighting important innovators who captured global interest and fame. Frequently, though, I would receive traditional or historic field recordings to review, and I would write about how important they were because they preserved music that was extinct or barely surviving the onslaught of globalized commercial culture.<br />
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Today I am writing about endangered music at a different scale. I believe <b><span style="color: blue;">ALL MUSIC IS ENDANGERED</span></b>, at least music as most of us have enjoyed it since before iPods were invented. How can I say that, when today it is easier to acquire music than ever before, with a few clicks on the computer, and when any music talent can create complex recordings at home?<br />
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The emerging problem with commercial music is the way it is distributed. Technological change continually revamps how musicians (and their marketers) deliver their music. A century ago strictly live performances were recorded onto records, and music distribution was revolutionized. Everyone who could afford it, could listen to their favorite music in their homes. The vinyl LP record evolved to become the dominant distribution medium, withstanding challenges from reel-to-reel, eight-track, cassette and digital tapes, until compact discs became the world’s favorite musical consumable. Compact discs did not eliminate LPs, however, because many audiophiles and others recognized that despite surface noise, something about the analog music on LPs seemed more real than the same music digitized. Often this rather esoteric debate has centered on <i>musical space</i>, something impossible to describe beyond saying that with headphones on and eyes closed, it is easier to believe you are in the room with the musicians when listening to an LP. Digitizing removes some essence of music.<br />
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Yet digitizing of music has improved over time, and the convenience of digital music has outweighed the slight audible compromise for most music enthusiasts. Many have abandoned libraries of LPs, while building collections of CDs. Today many people are <i>ripping</i> their CDs onto their computers to put onto iPods or cellphones, and new music purchases (if there are any) are most likely made through iTunes or Amazon online stores.<br />
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The result has been dramatic in two ways. First, as online purchases and especially music piracy have grown ubiquitous, many independent music publishers have closed their doors; huge music corporations are on the ropes. The market for CDs is evaporating, causing profound repercussions for musicians throughout the world.<br />
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The second aspect of digital online music is that almost all of it is <i>compressed</i>. You are aware that you are buying an MP3, <span style="color: blue;">but did you know you were purchasing only </span><i><span style="color: blue;">part</span></i><span style="color: blue;"> of the music? <span style="color: black;">This is how compression works. Digitally recorded sound is routinely sampled at around 1400 kilobits/second. CDs conserve all of that data, and when you listen to a CD you hear the complete mixed recording. A full “CD quality” recording uses about 600 megabytes of space on a hard drive, which used to be a considerable percentage of a hard drive’s memory. So when people began ripping CDs onto their computers, their ripping software (iTunes, etc.) would by default compress the music into 128 kbps MP3s (or AAC), in order to fit more music onto the computer (or iPod, or whatever), shrinking an album to 50 megabytes. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: blue;"><span style="color: black;">Compression of a sound file basically removes part of its data. <span style="color: blue;">In the case of 128 kbps MP3s, about 91% of the musical information is discarded.</span> Even those with diminished hearing should be able to hear the difference between a typical MP3 and the CD version of the same song. Listen to cymbals! Lossy MP3s in general sound <i>dead</i> to me, a muted parody of the original music. The slight musical space lost when going from analog to digital recordings becomes a universe of space lost when compressing digital files. Imagine removing 90% of the essence in a glass of wine. How would it taste?</span></span><br />
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Online music distribution began with rampant piracy enabled through file-sharing software like Napster and LimeWire, and most people who shared their music shared compressed MP3s. When the iTunes store was developed to compete with <i>illegal</i> file sharing of music, it distributed music as compressed MP3s. <span style="color: blue;">iPods were marketed by the number of songs that they held. </span>Low quality MP3s became the standard and dominant music product exchanged or sold throughout the world, and it is the only music that most children <i>ever hear</i>.<br />
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Unsurprisingly, the marked for CDs has collapsed. As a result, like 8-track and cassette tapes a generation ago, CDs are becoming an endangered species. Now many recordings are available only online. Recently I tried to find the newest release from one of my favorite African musicians, <a href="http://akendengue.com/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview('/outbound/article/akendengue.com');" target="_blank">Pierre Akendengue</a>, but I did not find one anywhere in this country. I might have purchased the album through iTunes, but I could not stomach paying for his music, degraded. Eventually I found a CD through Amazon UK, and had the disc shipped from England. That event convinced me to identify holes in my music collection, the handfuls of CDs I’ve lusted for, and collect them before they are gone. The way things are going, they may be the last copies of the rich, full music that musicians create.The Minister of Informationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01730523790336943821noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-430290903210063110.post-78017369500901113792010-05-24T15:41:00.000-07:002010-05-24T15:49:41.491-07:00From Steve Heilig: MS. BUSHTAFARI<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzThBVeYi4iZS3zWi-JOoSoS44JenZWvPp6Hco7uljKP-rzfWVmN0Dw3X5_8umkc6_Q2UsxQhXhNvGtGYJWAdsLWjWnJyXrc5aIIcNfC-2xEnrYdsPsNzgcfhD_Cyy3Hl6-RhKvifmtHci/s1600/laura_bush_psycho.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzThBVeYi4iZS3zWi-JOoSoS44JenZWvPp6Hco7uljKP-rzfWVmN0Dw3X5_8umkc6_Q2UsxQhXhNvGtGYJWAdsLWjWnJyXrc5aIIcNfC-2xEnrYdsPsNzgcfhD_Cyy3Hl6-RhKvifmtHci/s320/laura_bush_psycho.jpg" /></a>MS. BUSHTAFARI<br />
(no I did not make this up – Sunday NY Times book section, 5/23/10:<br />
<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/23/books/review/InsideList-t.html">http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/23/books/review/InsideList-t.html</a><br />
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JAMMIN’: Laura Bush, whose new memoir, “Spoken From the Heart,” enters the hardcover nonfiction list at No. 1, once cited the “Grand Inquisitor” section of “The Brothers Karamazov” as her favorite work of literature. But in a cute mother-daughter moment in an otherwise tightly orchestrated press rollout, <b>Jenna Bush let it slip on “The Oprah Winfrey Show” that her mother is also a “secret Rastafarian” who listens to Bob Marley around the house.</b>The Minister of Informationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01730523790336943821noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-430290903210063110.post-6382349129967698702010-05-04T16:32:00.000-07:002010-05-04T16:32:04.831-07:00Roger Steffens' "Life of Bob Marley" at The GRAMMY Museum in LA, May 11<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img class="floatright" height="137" src="http://www.grammymuseum.org/images/interior/images/lifeofbobmarley_detail.jpg" width="200" />Commemorating the 29th anniversary of Bob Marley's passing, The GRAMMY Museum is proud to welcome Roger Steffens' critically acclaimed "Life of Bob Marley" to the GRAMMY Sound Stage. The live multi-media presentation has been hailed as "the definitive history of the reggae king" and "the next best thing to seeing Bob Marley live." Steffens, recently designated by the <em>Jamaica Observer</em> as one of "The Top Ten Most Influential People in Reggae," owns the internationally acclaimed Reggae Archives, containing the world's largest repository of Marley memorabilia. During the evening, Steffens will screen rare and unreleased video footage and photos while recounting Marley's legendary life story.</div><br />
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<a href="http://www.grammymuseum.org/interior.php?section=programs&page=publicprograms#lifeofmarley">The GRAMMY Museum :: Programs :: Public Programs</a><br />
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<h4>Roger Steffens' "Life of Bob Marley"</h4>Tuesday, May 11, 2010; 7:30pm<br />
<div class="admissioninfo">Doors open at 7pm. On sale Thursday, April 22, tickets are $10 and can be purchased in-person at the <a href="http://www.grammymuseum.org/interior.php?section=tickets&page=ticketsindex#boxoffice2">Museum Box Office</a>, online at <a href="http://www.ticketmaster.com/cgi/outsider.plx?CAMEFROM=AEGGRAM_WMAINLAX010108AEG001&GOTO=http://www.ticketmaster.com/The-GRAMMY-Museum-tickets-Los-Angeles/venue/74504" target="_blank">Ticketmaster.com</a>, or by calling 1.800.745.3000.</div>The Minister of Informationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01730523790336943821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-430290903210063110.post-48861294701818543882010-04-29T15:49:00.000-07:002010-04-29T15:49:03.954-07:00Songlines - Music Awards 2010 - recognising outstanding talent in world music<a href="http://www.songlines.co.uk/music-awards/">Songlines - Music Awards - recognising outstanding talent in world music</a><br />
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<h1><strong>Songlines Music Awards</strong></h1>Following on from the success of last year's inaugural awards, <i>Songlines</i> magazine is delighted to announce the winners of the Songlines Music Awards 2010. The awards recognise outstanding talent in world music and are voted by <i>Songlines</i>' readers and the general public. There are four categories: Best Artist, Best Group, Cross-Cultural Collaboration and Newcomer - the results from the public vote generate the final nominees, the top four in each category. <br />
After much debate and deliberation, the <i>Songlines </i>editorial team have selected these four winners. They include some of the foremost artists on the world music scene, alongside an up-and-coming name to watch and some invigorating collaborative sounds. <br />
And the winners are…<br />
<b>BEST ARTIST</b><br />
<a href="http://www.songlines.co.uk/music-awards/best-artist.php">Goran Bregovic</a><br />
For the album <i>Alkohol</i> on Wrasse Records <br />
<b>BEST GROUP</b><br />
<a href="http://www.songlines.co.uk/music-awards/best-group.php">Staff Benda Bilili</a><br />
For the album <i>Très Très For</i>t on Crammed Discs<br />
<b>CROSS-CULTURAL COLLABORATION</b><br />
<a href="http://www.songlines.co.uk/music-awards/cross-cultural.php">Justin Adams & Juldeh Camara</a><br />
For the album <i>Tell No Lies</i> on Real World<br />
<b>NEWCOMER</b><br />
<a href="http://www.songlines.co.uk/music-awards/best-newcomer.php">Deolinda</a><br />
For the album <i>Canção ao Lado</i> on World Connection<br />
A compilation album, featuring all 16 nominated artists, is now on sale as a CD & download.<br />
<img alt="Music Awards 2010 CD" height="180" hspace="5" src="http://www.songlines.co.uk/images/music-awards/2010/cd-SLMA-2010.jpg" width="200" />The Minister of Informationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01730523790336943821noreply@blogger.com0