AUGUSTUS PABLO & THE ROCKERS BAND - LIVE IN LONDON -1989
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- čas přidán 3. 01. 2018
- AUGUSTUS PABLO & THE ROCKERS BAND - LIVE IN LONDON
Filmed and Recorded at the Astoria Theatre, Charing Cross Road on the 17th December 1989
1 - Intro - Rockers Meet King Tubby's Uptown
2 - Cassava Piece
3 - Rockers Rock
4 - Frozen Soul
5 - Java
6 - Africa Must Be Free By 1983
7 - Pipers Of Zion
8 - The Day Before The Riot
9 - Rising Sun
10 - Jah Wind
11 - Rockers Comes East
12 - East Of The River Nile
........................................................
AUGUSTUS PABLO (Horace Swaby 1954 - 1999)
Augustus Pablo died in 1999 leaving behind for posterity and future generations a vast quantity of original and distinctive roots reggae recordings. Most were self productions featuring himself as well as other singers and DJ's, some instrumental work for other producers, and a collection of some of the heaviest dubs ever mixed by the great King Tubby. Pablo defined himself from other reggae musicians of the day due to the distinctive minor key 'Far East' sounds of his production and their mysteriously mournful, meditative air given its most recognisable manifestation by his use of the melodica.
Live performances by him, particularly overseas, were rare due to his reluctance to tour and the continuing health issues that plagued him for most of his life. There was also the challenge of replicating his unique studio sound and accommodating it into the live performance environment. However, he eventually acceded to popular demand and travelled to Europe and the US in the 1980's to play a short series of concerts for a devoted and appreciative following that were eager to listen to and experience the man and his music first hand.
I’ll leave it at that for the biographical detail and discography as much has been written on Pablo by more eminent and knowledgeable writers than I - David Katz, Chris Lane and Dave Hendley to name but three - so rather than duplicate their authoritative work I recommend tracking down their excellent contributions to reggae history.
With the assistance and encouragement of the late Brent Clarke and the informed opinions of producer Dennis Bovell, 'ejr' were able - on a negligible or non-existent budget - to film Augustus Pablo and the Rockers band performing live at the Charing Cross Astoria, London in both 1987 and 1989. Unfortunately, only about 10 minutes of footage from the former gig exists due to a problem with the sole camera used.
The 1989 show was recorded on multiple cameras utilising both 16mm and analogue video formats, although the last two songs from the performance are missing, as is the footage of both Yami Bolo and Junior Delgado. Further gremlins, Obeah or Duppy's were at work as the mixing desk sound either never got recorded or went missing, so the raw, lo-fi, uncompressed soundtrack, recorded on one of the camera's microphones, is the only audio. Likewise the stage lighting where the red filters were meant to be substituted for white or cyan to allow less muzzy images to be recorded on the analogue video cameras.
Despite these technical issues which render the film less than perfect, it is still a rare filmic record featuring some of Jamaica's most talented musicians at the top of their game playing live in front of an enthusiastic audience filling the auditorium with appreciation, excitement and herb smoke. It could well be that this latter activity was, in part at least, responsible for the overall problems encountered on the night, not that any of the film crew were partaking, of course! If there was a haze of redolent smoke out front, backstage it was impossible to see more than a few metres, a contemporary London Fog which, like its predecessor has since been swept away with clean air legislation.
Even though her name has been unforgivably omitted from the credits, thanks and respect is overdue to Paula N Jordan who was passionate in her determination in getting me to finally commit and finish this film.
As a final comment on the film, the musicians who are in it and particularly the originators from Jamaica, people from every country in the world, many born after this concert took place and who discovered Roots reggae anew, have enthused about the infectious nature and inclusive cultural ideology of the music which in just a few decades has encompassed the globe and hits them in the heart and soul, body and mind.
Right on, Live on, Skank on. - Hudba
![Augustus Pablo - Live in Tokyo Japan [full album]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/1Z9wVnjWeZk/mqdefault.jpg)
Thanks for sharing....bless up
The quality is outstanding.
What a hidden jam!!
CZcams algorithm knows my taste.
Original Rockers
13:05 java
Thanks n praise brothers
Was there!
Respect , awesome
TECHNICAL NOTE
95% of this film was shot using now obsolete Hi8 video, an analogue tape format on a par with, or slightly superior to, VHS. The remainder was shot on a 16mm clockwork drive camera loaded with Kodak Ektachrome VNF reversal film, a stock commonly used for news gathering, which resulted in superior quality images when compared to the Hi8. It was originally intended to shoot entirely on 16mm, but due to budgetary constraints this option proved to be unfeasible. The Hi8 footage was deprecated by the predominance of red lighting that is obligatory at gigs and is the film maker’s major obstacle to achieving crisp pictures. The colour red has the unfortunate effect of softening, or de-focusing, the images as the camera's sensors were unable to process the combination of wavelength colour from the low frequency end of the visible spectrum and the erratic lighting that gives the visual dynamic to live performances.
Likewise, the sound is of a similarly inferior quality, low-fi and raw, due to the unavailability of the mixing desk recording, which left the only viable - or only, full stop - recording available being that from the main camera microphone. A huge debt of gratitude is owed to Ozou’ne Sundalyah, the keyboard player in the Rockers Band, for recently taking the time and working his technical refulgence to improve the audio quality of the original recording.
So, it is either a completed film containing these technical deficiencies or nothing; and if nothing is what the potential viewer would prefer and rather remember Augustus Pablo from his studio recordings, then so be it. What’s on offer here is an authentic, historic, vérité performance captured for posterity - one of the great Roots reggae originators supported by half a dozen top notch fellow Jamaican musicians.
Despite the technical difficulties in using inferior quality equipment and having very limited resources for such an iconic and important event - which, incidentally, no other media organisation was interested in covering - hopefully viewers of this film will be understanding in realising that nearly thirty years on, it has become a straight choice between what is seen and heard here, or nothing but the fond memories of the occasion if one was fortunate enough to be there. The film is warts and all, or not at all, the choice is yours.
ejrvane thankyou again, ♥♡
I clicked on the video and thought about the quality but then I read the full entirety of your post and I am completely humbled and have learned that no matter what it is as long as it’s a memory and you know what the true experience is in your heart, reggae music is sacred and universal to the point where we can enjoy the music even if the musicians instruments were half broken. The love that reaches through the speakers completely outweighs the quality in which it is presented. We should all feel blessed that we even have a video to see! LIVE UP!!
I appreciate it as someone who was there. Respect...
Yes I. Indeed
Thank you for sharing, great footage
Give thanks🙏🏻
Thank you thank you thank you .. vary nice dvd
Blessings from Brasil
Marabi?
P2p
Rastafari