Last Chart for Feb - Laden, Bescenta on Top

JAMAICA MUSIC COUNTDOWN
By Richie B, host – “HOT MIX” on Hot 102FM

FEBRUARY 27, 2009

TOP 20 DANCE HALL SINGLES

TW LW WOC TITLE/ARTISTE/LABEL

01 2 10 Time To Shine-Laden-Big Ship(1wk@#1) U-1
02 1 8 Romping Shop-Vybz Kartel feat Spice-Adidjaheim Records/NotNice(2wks@#1) D-1
03 3 10 Dip Again- Elephant Man feat. Ding Dong – Big Ship NM
04 4 21 Ghetto Prayer – Shane-O-Jam II NM
05 8 5 Last Man Standing-Vybz Kartel – U-3
06 7 8 I’m So Blessed - Mavado – Big Ship U-1
07 5 24 Burnin, Burnin- Miss Triniti feat. Beenie Man-Unseen Lab (2wks@#1) D-2
08 6 11 Flying Dagger (100 Stab)- Idonia- Equinoxx (pp#6) D-2
09 9 23 Move-KK Alese- Ruby Sarah Music (pp#7) NM
10 12 5 Ben Ova - RDX- U-2
11 13 4 Head Caan Hot So- Prodigal Son-Main Street Records U-2
12 14 5 This Means Money – Konshens – Head Concussion U-2
13 15 4 Get Wild-Vybz Kartel- Not Nice U-2
14 10 27 Rolling Deep-Flippa Mafia-T J Records (pp#5) D-4
15 16 4 Bubble-Charly Blacks-Fresh Ear U-1
16 11 19 Sweep-Elephant Man-Scatta Productions/Kings of Kings (3wks@#1) D-5
17 17 15 Million By A Mawning-Vybz Kartel-Don Corleon (3wks@#1 NM
18 18 17 Yuh Know Fi Wine-Beenie Man- 357 Records (pp#7) NM
19 19 22 No Games-Serani- TJ Records (pp#2) NM
20 20 10 No Chorus (Real Killer)-Mavado-Big Ship(pp#16) NM



TOP 20 REGGAE SINGLES

TW LW WOC TITLE/ARTISTE/LABEL

01 2 18 Calm Down Yuh Nerves-Bescenta-Uplifting Music Int’l (2wks@#1) U-1
02 3 14 Jah Jah See Dem A Come-Sugar Roy/Conrad Crystal & Gyptian – Fireball U-1
03 1 17 I Love You Anyway-Barbee-It’s Not A Game Records (2wks@#1) D-2
04 5 11 Can’t Sleep-Romaine Virgo-Penthouse Records U-1
05 4 23 Nothing Change (Love Reigns)- Bugle/Tarrus Riley -Sons of Spoon Music(2wks@#1) D-1
06 6 17 My Jamaican Girl-Prince Pankhi-Otis Riddim Records (pp#5) NM
07 7 10 Missing You Right Now-Daville-Fashowzy NM
08 9 12 Good Morning Beautiful-Mark Ice-Big Lawd Records U-1
09 10 10 You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling-Noddy Virtue/Jodi-Ann Pantry-Reflection U-1
10 11 7 You’re My Inspiration –LUST- Born Music U-1
11 12 5 Bad Man Don’t Cry-Shaggy-Big Yard Music U-1
12 14 7 Another Bill Again-Tony Rebel-Penthouse U-2
13 15 5 Start Anew-Tarrus Riley-Juke Boxx U-2
14 8 27 A Better Man-Terry Linen-Uplifting Music Int’l Camp (2wks@#1) D-6
15 16 6 Music – Konshens – Tads Int’l U-1
16 17 5 Jah Jah Blessing –Etana feat Alborosie–Forward Records U-1
17 18 3 Cassava – Andrew Mistiq aka P. Zed –Inspire U-1
18 19 3 Save The Juvenile-Ruffian-Get Up Yute Records U-1
19 20 2 A Thousand Miles Away-Ras Penco-Uprize Music U-1
20 13 23 Tell It Like It Is-Stevie Face-Boot Camp (4wks@#1) D-7



TOP TEN ALBUMS/CD CHART


TW LW WOC TITLE/ARTISTE/LABEL

01 1 17 I Can Feel Your Pain- Gyptian-VP Records/Cannon (2wks@#1)
NM
02 3 7 Reggae Jammin Vol. 1-Various Artistes- Tads Record Int’l U-1
03 2 12 Yes We Can-Cocoa Tea - Roaring Lion/Tads Int’l (3wks@1) D-1
04 5 7 Stronger – Fantan Mojah–Greensleeves U-1
05 6 5 Waiting – Cecile – Dangerzone U-1
06 4 14 Greatest Reggae One Drop Anthems-Various Artistes-Greensleeves D-2
07 7 18 Riddim Ruler- Drop It – Various Artistes-No Doubt Records/Tads Int’l (2wks@#1) NM
08 9 3 Pull Up Selector-Jimmy Riley-Taxi U-1
09 8 15 A Moment In Time -Beres Hammond -VP Records (4wks@#1) D-1
10 10 19 Loaded-Busy Signal-VP Records (1wk@#1) NM

Good music still Counts

Count Ossie receives Lifetime Achievement Award from JARIA

Kingston; Jamaica: The Jamaica Reggae Industry Association will present the inaugural JARIA Lifetime Achievement award to veteran musician Count Osie on Sunday March 1, at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel. This as the stars gather for the first ever Jamaica Reggae Industry Association (JARIA) Honours Awards set to recognize eleven pioneers in the local music industry.

Facilitated by the Ministry of Information, Culture, Youth and Sports, JARIA, a non-governmental, non-profit organisation was formed by industry players who met over several weeks to plan reggae month 2009. As part of the celebrations during reggae month, JARIA will be presenting the following awards to eleven individuals: the JARIA Lifetime Achievement Award will be presented to Count Osie and The Mystic Revelations, the JARIA Engineers Honours Awards will go to Sylvan Morris and Sid Bucknor. The JARIA Producers Honour Awards recognizes Lesley Kong and Sonia Pottinger, the JARIA Sound Systems Honour Awards will be given to King Tubby and Jah Love, the JARIA Musicians Honour Awards to Lennie Hibbert and Ansel Collins and the JARIA Artistes Honour Awards will honour Dennis Brown and Pam Hall.

According to Junior Lincoln, of JARIA’s Honour Awards planning committee, all honourees have been pioneers in the music industry and have built the stepping stones for Jamaican music today. The Honour Awards Committee also comprises of Jackie Lynch Stewart, Steve Golding, Freddie McGregor, Paul “Computer Paul” Henton, Desi Young and Dwight “Heavy D” Myers.

Lincoln elaborated on some of the awardees, “Count Osie, he was an original niabinghi drummer who played a very important part in the early establishment of Jamaican music, he performed on the recording Oh Carolina, and was the anchor of the song when it was created. Count Osie is a member of the The Mystic Revelations of Rastafari who are still going strong after over fifty years. Sid Bucknor, was the engineer of many of the hits of the Skalities, the Maytals and other early Jamaican songs. He also played an integral role in the production of early studio one music. Sylvan Morris took over from Sid Bucknor at Studio One, he was then responsible for the reggae compilations at Studio One, Sid Bucknor was like the daddy and Sylvan Morris followed him.” he said.

Lesley Kong was an early producer who was responsible for music from the legendary Jimmy Cliff and Desmond Decker. Lincoln elaborates, “Our theme this year is ‘to the world’. Lesley Kong was responsible for international hits from Desmond Decker like Israelites, he was one of the first producers in the 1960s to have an international hit. The second awardee Sonia Pottinger was the lady of Jamaican music; she was the lady and still is the lady of Jamaican record producers.”

King Tubby, an early 1960s sound system operator was a pioneer when it came to dubs in the dancehall and can easily be referred to as the ‘dubmaster’ of Jamaican music while Jah Love was considered to be the first the Rasta sound system. Musician Lenny Hibbert is known for his contributions to the Alpha Boys School where he assisted countless boys to pursue careers in the music industry. Ainsley Collins is perhaps best known for the smash hit Double Barrel which helped bring Jamaican music to the world.

When it comes to pioneering male and female singers the names Dennis Brown and Pan Hall, the ‘crown prince of reggae music’ are often at the top of the list. Junior Lincoln describes, “Pam Hall, has been around since the seventies. Pam started as a backup singer, the good thing about her is she has been involved in every part of the industry, in the music and the well fare of Jamaican artistes. Dennis Brown, crown prince of reggae is in my view the greatest singer Jamaica has ever known.”

The Awards Ceremony will be streamed live on the JIS website as well as televised for later broadcasts

More E! for FREE

MUSIC UNITES!

in association with the Edna Manley College

cordially invites you to the



FREE Concert & Launch of the Jamaica Arts Endowment Fund
Monday, March 2 @ 7:30pm

Venue: School of Drama's Amphitheatre

Featuring: School of Music Jazz Ensemble, NEXUS & E- PARK BAND

Crack-Up Cross de Water Again!

MORE LAUGHTER COMING AS “PORTMORE CRACK-UP” CONTINUES


Mirth and madness continues across the causeway with the next staging of “Portmore Crack-Up” on Sunday, March 1, 2009. Doors open for a Taboo-sponsored, pre-show Cocktail Party at 5:00pm; and the joke-filled engagement will start promptly at 7:00pm at Klub Klymaxx (on the roof – Portmore Pines Plaza).

Lighting the fire of humour will be experienced A-list stand-up comic and popular actor, Christopher ‘Johnny’ Daley; the consistently exciting and irreverent Apache Chief & Sarge; high-riding, young, comic star Leighton Smith; and the innovative comedic-medic Michael Abrahams. The proceedings will be ably guided and audience interaction facilitated by Portmore’s prince, Pretty Boy Floyd; and the energetic, bubbly, and vivacious Miss Kitty.

Spot prizes, surprise cameo appearances; and giveaways will also be in store for the audience, courtesy of Courts Jamaica Limited.

“Portmore Crack-Up” promises gales of laughter in the ‘Sunshine City’ on the last Sunday of each month. Produced by Ellis International, the series is endorsed by the Portmore Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Patrons can enjoy the extra-special, free, ticket delivery service from Nice & Easy Tours by calling 898-6500 or 456-0505. At a cost of $1,000.00/each, pre-sold tickets are also available at: Western Sports, Liguanea; The Card Centre, 78 Slipe Road, Cross Roads; Genus Pharmacy, Shop # 25, Portmore Plaza; and Fuel Fashion, Shop# 64, Portmore Pines Plaza. At-the-door price will be $1,200.00/each.

“Portmore Crack-Up” is rated M for Mature. Sponsors are: Klub Klymaxx; FAME 95FM; HYPE TV; 876Radio.com; Courts Jamaica; Dr. Lushus; and Taboo.

No 'ifa' for Tifa: 2K9 is her year

2009 is off to a busy start for one of Dancehall's most promising young artiste, Latifa Brown, more popularly known as "Tifa". She has already kick started the year by being nominated for a total 5 awards in this years award season, namely, the Excellence in Music and Entertainment (EME), Youth View Awards and the RETV MVP Awards.

"It was an honour within itself to be nominated, even though I did not win any awards this year, it was still good to know that my work is being recognized within the industry and also by my fans," stated Tifa when asked about her recent nominations.

Although Tifa did not win the award for "Young, Hot and Hype Female", the dancehall diva gave a stellar performance at the 2009 Youth View Awards, which displayed not only her vocal talent, but also her skill in choreography. Tifa also recently performed to a sold out concert in Belize with the TNT crew, which consists of Tifa, Natalie Storm and Timberlee.

Tifa will be onboard a series of tours both Locally and Internationally and is currently going from parish-to-parish with RJR Cross Country Invasion, which will make it's final stop in Montego Bay at the end of the month. Other artists on the Cross Country Invasion include Konshens, Stacious, Cameal Davis, Chino, Laden, Romain Virgo, Sophia Squire, Kip Rich, Goddy Goddy and Nesbeth.

The dancehall artist will also be a part of the 2009 RETV School Tour, which is an Abstinence Awareness tour, which will visit 6 schools across the island over a 6-week period.

"I am thankful to the RJR Communications Group and RETV for giving me the opportunity to shine and spread my music to my existing fans and this also allows me to meet some new ones. The RJR Cross Country Invasion has been an amazing experience, and I expect that the RETV School Tour will be the same."

Tifa will be performing at the Dancehall Cares concert being held in Canada, which is a benefit concert in aid of the Bustamante Children's Hospital. Dancehall artist, Aidonia is also booked to perform at this charity event. After the concert, Tifa will also be performing at another show in Toronto. She has also been working on several projects for various producers that will be released next month.



-from Garrick Communications

"E is so very, very Extraordinary"

Not that we’re carrying a brief for the folks at the National Housing Trust (there was, after all, that statue, but that’s another debate), but they’ve made some fairly astute and beneficial choices in the way of culture.

One such was Emancipation Park, which revitalized the former ‘dust bowl inking the two major midtown thoroughfares (Oxford Road and Knutsford Boulevard). The other was commissioning composer-arranger-musician Peter Ashbourne to put together a large ensemble to play a Christmas concert in the aforementioned Emancipation Park, shortened, for practical purposes, to E-Park.

The band thus dubbed the E-Park Band, has proved itself to be nothing short of an absolute musical gift to the Jmaaican people (and other nationalities who may hear it), and Ashbourne & Co again vindicated themselves at Sunday evening’s Jazz in the Gardens, the first in the bi-monthly live series for 2009, at its familiar home in the Gardens of the Pegasus, a stone’s throw from the Park of the Band’s its conception.

That the programme was essentially a reprise of that performed in the Second City during the Jamaica Jazz & Blues Festival last month made it in no way less enjoyable. The high level of musicianship and –more importantly – the sheer joy amongst the 13-member ensemble and the instant rapport with the audience fuelled a great hopefulness for a return to the days when such bands were commonplace. This in spite of Ashbourne’s typically deadpan admission that “this is not an economic proposition; it’s a labour of love.”

the loving laboured and romped (yes, we’ll use that word) through a varied repertoire encompassing pop, reggae, the Great American Songbook, and a “dancehall instrumental piece, incorporating the sampled voice of a lady begging on the street among other things.

They were preceded by a group of which one hopes the market will also make room for, and which might be thought of as their successors, even at this relatively early stage. The Edna Manley Ensemble, comprising recent graduates –and one teacher – at the former Cultural Training Centre offered a similarly diverse repertoire delivered with no small measure of verve.

They started with a competent, if somewhat tentative “Autumn Leaves”. Violin soloist Rafiq Williams was hampered by indifferent sound levels (thankfully, the overall sound was much improved from previous Jazz in the gardens outings), with only bassist Alves Dean showing any noticeable assurance on his instrument.

The addition of two sparkling female vocalists changed that for the better. First Some Thomas who did a creditable job covering “Love Me Forever” by the late great Cynthia Schloss before taking things up a notch with vintage Jimmy Cliff – “The Lion Say.” Immediately following her, Abby Gaye Dallas confirmed that her fine showing at the Jamaica Jazz and Blues Talent Stage was no fluke, putting her sultry vocals – and a neatly restrained sensuality – to good effect on “St Louis Blues” and “Night In Tunisia” (the latter employing lyrics improvised by Chaka Khan to fit the Dizzy Gillespie original). Courtney Fadlin, no stranger to the Pegasus faithful blew sweet and mellow on the smooth jazz classic, Grover Washington’s “Just The Two Of Us”

In an era when even established players are being made subservient to technology and even the art of selecting records for play has been steadily dehumanized, the sight - and sound - of a six-man horn section, complemented by guitar, bass, drums and two keyboards is truly a refreshing change, not to mention the truly exemplary vocal stylings of Karen Smith, Michael Sean Harris and the aforementioned EMC grads.

Sunday’s jazz in the Gardens offered, amid economic downturn and potential political upheaval, a genuine sign of hope. Let’s see where it leads.

Blues & more @ Hope Gardens

“Blues on the Green”
U.S. Embassy hosts annual free concert

Feel the power of Blues on the Green on Friday, February 27, during the United States Embassy’s free concert featuring American blues singer and guitarist Deborah Coleman at Hope Gardens in Kingston.

The concert comes courtesy of the U.S. Embassy’s Public Affairs Section and many distinguished sponsors in celebration of African American History Month.

Deborah Coleman has been described by USA Today as “one of blues music’s most exciting young talents.” Along with a discography that spans a decade, she gives knockout live performances that have made her one of the hottest acts on the contemporary blues scene. Meticulous and focused in the studio and highly charismatic onstage, Coleman has developed a guitar style that reflects the influences of Jimi Hendrix, Buddy Guy, Freddie King, Albert Collins and Larry Carlton. Her vocal inspirations are as often found in the singing of Chrissie Hynde and Patti Smith as in the recordings of Bessie Smith, Janis Joplin, Memphis Minnie and Alberta Hunter.

The free concert will begin at 6:30 p.m. and include The Maurice Gordon Group, headed by talented Jamaican guitarist Maurice Gordon, and local jazz and blues singer Myrna Hague.

Parking will be provided at both the Jamaica College parking lot and Gibson Avenue, Hope Pastures entrance to Hope Gardens. Starting at 5:30 p.m., shuttle buses will transport patrons from both parking lots to the concert venue. Patrons are encouraged to carpool to avoid inconvenienc