Reggae Taking Us Through Our Possibilities
Reggae Taking Us Through Our Possibilities
I once heard the great Marcia Griffith CD - perhaps it was 20 years ago – said that reggae music is like food, and she meant spiritual nourishment for the soul’s refreshment, rejuvenation and maturity. The nutrition of this musical food is in the lyrics and what they convey to the conscious mind and when the words tell a story, then a lifestyle can have meaning.
Memory has failed me to confidently name the interviewer – and I would not want to guess – but it was a Jamaican journalist and the Empress of Reggae was describing her artistic community as being a public service, with the sacred mission of spreading a musical banquet for listeners to grow in knowledge of good and evil and to conduct themselves with regards to their own salvation throughout life. “A person is a person through other persons; you can't be human in isolation; you are human only in relationships.” This is a wording of the African concept of Ubuntu by the late Nobel Peace Prize recipient, the Archbishop of Cape Town Desmond Tutu. He is on my mind as today, December 27, 2021 we learned of his passing and are reflecting on his life’s work, which had an impact on the world.
Released in December 2021 on the Mixcloud audio streaming platform, the Secret Service DJs Life and Love Riddims Volumes 1 and 2 are chock full of this reggae food within the measure of one drop riddims from the past 20 years. In this essay, I listened keenly to the package of lyrical messages and yearn for more storytelling in the music rather than be left with the deliciously delivered sentiments and hooks. Let us look at what I heard in the music.
The first track in the collection is fittingly a sonnet to Jamaica with Chronnix’s “Smile Jamaica”, and he performs a second track about romantic moments on a beach or at a riverside.
Having established an anthem for country, the songs expound on romantic love and longing. To extend the thought of spiritual food, this could be a mirror image of the biblical book Songs of Solomon which does not tell a story but anticipates amorous love.
A standout track for its musicianship qualities is Beres Hammond on “I Am Missing You” as a song of longing, but there are others including Peter Morgan on “Nice and Slow”.
Admiration, promises, tender touches and romancing are united within riddims, the sentiments divided by the individuality of voices. The grainy, gravelly Chuck Fenda and Sizzla, the plaintive crooning of Jah Cure. The vocal technician Wayne Wonder makes an appearance with “I Still Believe That You Love Me”. The crisp pop of Sean Paul, melodious Denique and Natel delivered all promises of love and devotion and happiness on the romance side of relationships.
Aside from these honey dipped entrancements, there are the starchy staples of relationships. Jah 9’s “Brothers” is an early salve to a man living under strain, a way to keep his spirits up and to reward him for being committed to the family while assuring him that his lioness is at his side, matching his best with hers. Etana and Queen Ifrica catch up later in the mix with “My Man” and “Lioness on the Rise” respectively.
In a dish sometimes there are cuts and pieces that are unwanted, perhaps a bit of gristle or in a vegetarian dish, maybe the item was not properly peeled, Tami Chynn speaks of “Forbidden Love” while Christopher Martin asks for strength not to cheat on his girlfriend while Ce’cile promises to wait on her boyfriend who is away.
When it is time to put an end to a toxic relationship Tarrus Riley kisses his teeth with the lyrics, “I won’t cry, I ‘ll be fine, gwaan, go, don’t turn back.” Romain Virgo also speaks to reasons for breakups with, “Though I know I need you more than you ever know, girl, I think it's time to let you go. Though I know I love you forever more. I'm for you, but you're for you. The lyrics of Jah Cure in “Nothing” hints at an imbalanced love affair that needs to be abandoned.
Ballads that extend one thought into a story are not plentiful in the genre and this leads to overreliance on a few committed to the format, and this is where the group TOK shone. They first appeared on the “Guardian Angel” riddim with their self identifying track and they feature throughout the collection, flitting in and out as a host of prophetic heralds. Their selection of social commentary topics varied from the plea for divine intervention, facing hardships in the song, “So Cold” which is a walkthrough of a life that seems to be out of control, but they will not sell out their souls. “Footprints” describes how to seek comfort from personal faith after a painful loss and also “Tears” urges a woman to carry on after ending an abusive relationship.
The baritone of “Lonely Days” with Fiji and J Boog is a torch song for admission of guilt, “I apologise for all those lonely days and restless nights without me beside your side when my insensitivity did not see the signs when all I wanted was to make you smile.”
Jah Vinci refers to “My Other Half” as his motivation although his lover’s father is trying to keep them apart and his daughter focused on her studies. His lyrics say, “She’s my motivation and I am her inspiration. Who am I without my other half and her love is God’s perfect creation.”
Self-affirming music came through Richie Spice who urges listeners to “confident yourself and motivate yourself’ on the track “Got to Make It” and Million Stylez sings “from a far we a see them a come, pray fi a brighter day.” Etana also affirms, “If a come dem come, let dem come cause I am not afraid, I am protected by the most high.”
Along with introspection are warning songs Chuck Fenda’s “Gash Dem” is the call to vigilante justice and Queen Ifrica’s “Keep It To Yourself” warns against committing iniquity and “Times Like These” describe ills in society. LUST reminds us that the society is “Bawling” for equal rights and justice.
The other group that featured prominently was Morgan Heritage, mostly about their life and times such as the track “Talk dem a Talk” about the dearth of useful information, again not enough nutrition for the soul when the lyrics say, “A bare almshouse and strictly negative dem live fi chat ‘bout inna the media…dem claims say good news nah sell no paper.”
Only one song in the mix that was dedicated to the Mamma musical sub-genre, and this was granted to Christopher Martin.
As lyrical vocalists go, Alaine had the edge in the number of romantic tracks that she carried, no doubt due to how her silky soprano contrasts with the deeper voices that were around hers. The featured singers are masters of diction and phrasing in the Jamaican language, but Alaine’s body of work performing in lead and backup roles gave her the edge for selection in this double volume.
The theme of the mixtape was Life and Love and the selector included enough sacred music for a dozen One Drop Psalms. To try and explore the Biblical origins of the tracks, Without any knowledge of what was in the minds of the songwriters, I have matched key lyrics with suggested scriptural parallels.
Most of these songs were to give encouragement but there was one that was an admonishment, Jah Cure “Mother Earth” about the negative effects of human exploitation of natural resources which can be matched with | Jer 2:7 “I brought you into a plentiful land to eat its fruits and its good things. But when you entered you defiled my land, and made my heritage an abomination.”
Here are the songs of spiritual help, nourishment and a call to holiness.
Jemere Morgan and Gramps Morgan “Try Jah Love” Psalm 34:8, O taste and see that the Lord is good; happy are those who take refuge in him.
Natural Black “Far From Reality”, Mos’ a the people dem livin’ in space and the spiritual one dem living by grace | 2Cor 12:9 but he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness. So, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.
Fanton Mojah, “Thanks and Praise” Thanks and Praise Jah Love is Here to Stay only Jan Love Bless me through my days. Seek Jah first and everything after | Matt 6:33 But strive first for the kingdom of God[l] and his[m] righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
Gyptian Is there a place where I can find true love divine? | 1 John 4:6-16 No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God lives in us, and his love is perfected in us.
Jah Vinci “Wicked Heart” I am protected just like the Hebrew boys in the furnace, touch not the Lord’s anointed | Psalm 105:15 Touch not mine anointed, and do my prophets no harm.
Pressure “Jah Love” once you got Jah love, nothing is greater | Ephesians 3:19-21 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
Ikaya “Flyaway” Jah make me fly away like a million sparrows | Matt 10:31 So do not be afraid; you are of more value than many sparrows; Ezekiel 13:20 Therefore thus says the Lord God: I am against your bands with which you hunt lives;[c] I will tear them from your arms, and let the lives go free, the lives that you hunt down like birds.
The sole ballad in this group of sacred music I would say is Sean Paul’s “Never Gonna Be The Same” But those who pull the trigger cannot take away the covenant the righteous have with Jah Jah | Isaiah 54v10 For the mountains may depart and the hills be removed, but my steadfast love shall not depart from you, and my covenant of peace shall not be removed, says the Lord, who has compassion on you.
These are the short list of what I identified, but there is a real argument that more songs would qualify as being for the purpose of divine reverence.
There was no music by Dexta Daps within the volumes, and he could be argued as the most expressive male singer of his contemporaries, not detracting from the established artistry of Christopher Martin, Romain Virgo, Tarrus Riley, and others. Hopefully, he and the UK based Dalton Harris will produce one drop recordings for future mixes.
All of the lyrics on these tracks use popular and Jamaican language, and writing this article has given me a challenge on how to keep the lyrics and my writing in English in good balance. It is a challenge to the advocates for the official use of Standard Received Jamaican. Words and phrases swirl out of usefulness, so to give them longevity, they have to be protected as a written official language. I am not an advocate for disappearing cultures, just stating that what you lef’ up, will be left behind, or claimed by a new, more organized and disciplined force. A culture’s existence is in direct proportion to the official use of its language in written form.
This body of music prepared by Secret Service DJs can be examined more deeply, along perhaps with other collections by other DJs to determine what they are seeing of society and its values and how we can see what is possible with what we have.
See listed mixtapes here on MixCloud: https://www.mixcloud.com/secretservicedjs/
Desmond Tutu 1999, No Future Without Forgiveness: https://www.librarything.com/work/616...
Resource for One Drop Riddims: https://riddimsworld.com/collections/best-ever-reggae-riddims/#
