Ring the Alarm!

Ring the Alarm, not because, "another sound is dying," as was the reason for the late singjay Tenor Saw's musical warning before he left us more than a decade ago. But you may, as Daddy U Roy (happily still with us), advises even from a longer time, "Wake the town and tell the people". For in this case you may want to "chica-bow, chica-bow, chica-bow, wow wow", whatever that means - "Ring the Alarm" - another musical initiative is rising.

Without any crescendo, vociferousness, or loud decibels, the new musical initiative dubbed "Booyaka" was unveiled on Wednesday evening, at the Devonshire, Devon House, in Kingston.

With its historical significance, it was an appropriate choice of venue for the birthplace of Booyaka, which will see its christening on Saturday, December 1, at the Mas Camp on Oxford Road in Kingston.

Unlike Wednesday's launch, on that occasion Booyaka will unfold with a bang. It will be the inauguration of a unique annual dance, featuring the music of all the departed legends of reggae music.

We are not quite sure what the literal meaning of the word Booyaka is, or what Shabba Ranks, who was perhaps the first entertainer to have used it, meant. In that regard, assistance may have to be sought from experts like Dr Donna Hope, Dr Carolyn Cooper, or Joan Williams (all women), who write extensively on dancehall lexicon.

Whatever the meaning, the defining moments will come in the form of the experience at Mas Camp when Kilamanjaro, Jack Scorpio and Merritone, three legendary sound systems, will feature only the music of all reggae artistes who now sing in the choir of the great beyond.

In other words, Booyaka is a night of memorial for all the singers and players of instruments whom we revered because of their musical works. But Booyaka is more than a dance, in its broader concept, it's about the preservation of Jamaican music.

"...It's so good to see the love, especially of the artistes who are well supportive, who understand the vision, the concept of Booyaka," compere Deon Mattis noted in her opening remarks at the launch. "We hope to take Booyaka outside of Jamaica across the world as more than just a word that means a salute," the former Irie FM announcer added. "We hope to take this name Booyaka and have it on the lips of everyone when they think of Jamaica, think of our music and the contribution that our artistes have given us. Those gone before deserve a salute.

She further explained: "There are so many people around the world, and unfortunately in Jamaica and the Caribbean, that when you begin to mention names like Slim Smith, more and more, you have young faces looking at you wondering who, what and why. Why Tommy McCook must be celebrated, the Alpha Boys School is there and so what?"

"So we show why. We will have the sound systems coming along, reminding everyone of the history of the music and from whence it came. There will be pictures, there will be sounds, there will be the power of the music. Moreso, it is going to be online. Booyaka.tv."

Richard Foran, the first speaker at the launch, who is also the director of Alpha Boys School, shared with the gathering the history of that institution from which came a number of our musical icons and which will be the beneficiary of the event.
"Alpha, in truth, has been the nursery for the development of musical forms and rhythms that are synonymous with the name of Jamaica," he said, reminding the gathering that Jamaican music on the world stage would not be possible without Alpha Boys School.

Three students whom he referred to as future legends played a short medley of Island in the Sun and Linstead Market on their instruments. They were 12-year-old Nevaldo Reid on flute; Jermaine Mitchell, 15, on saxophone and on trombone, Chenneil Christian, 17.

"The concept of Booyaka came about as a result of a documentary that I have been working on for a number of years about all the reggae singers that have passed on. and I said to myself, probably it could work as an event," the conceptuliser Sandra Rose told Splash. "The calibre of music that we have to pull from. all these great artistes, so it just came to me that we should try this as an event and just play those music of the deceased artistes who have left us such a legacy to be proud of here in Jamaica," added the public relations and marketing consultant.

"The purpose of Booyaka is to help to document reggae history in Jamaica. It's really to help in the development of reggae music in Jamaica," emphasised Sandra Rose.
Guest speaker, former CVM anchor Helene Coley-Nicholson, now into law and a copyright specialist, spoke on the business of music and called for record producers to organise more effectively, while unshackling the artistes and composers, who in turn need to educate themselves concerning their rights.

Legendary radio jock, Barry Gordon, bouncing back from recent illness, and who will be the emcee for the first Booyaka, told the gathering that he was looking forward to being back on radio soon with his syndicated show to be launched in London.

Visiting performer from Brooklyn, New York, Denison George, paid tribute to the late Lucky Dube, who will be also honoured at Booyaka. The Grenadian lawyer turned singer, who was celebrating his first visit to Jamaica, described himself as a Garveyite and a fan of Lucky Dube and Jacob Miller.

In the house also were Luciano, who endorsed the event, and the mother and sister of Tenor Saw, who was mowed down by a hit-and- run driver in Houston,Texas at age 22 (19 years ago). Representatives of the three sound systems, which will be featured, were also in attendance. Jack Scorpio boasted he could play such music for an entire week; Merritone's Greg Ross bragged about playing a whole night of Dennis Brown, and DJ Fred Cover for Kilamanjaro, welcome the event declaring that the names of the departed legends should be kept alive.



see jamaicaobserver.com and booyaka.tv for more