Reflections & 45 cure's
Publication date : Wednesday, November 07th 2007 - 27 666 views Curefest 2007
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Nearly sixty artists followed one another at Curefest in Montego Bay, in honour of Jah Cure's release. We were there.
Organised in honour of Jah Cure's release, then postponed because of the elections, Cure Fest was held in Jamaica from 12 to 14 October. Two months after he slipped quietly out of the prison walls, early in the morning to avoid the crowds, the enthusiasm surrounding Jah Cure seems not to have died down. On the island, you are struck by the scale of the festival's advertising and media coverage: there are posters everywhere in the streets, spots on radio and TV, and journalists who have come from all over the world.
 The first of the festival's three acts, on Saturday, took the form of a dinner in a lounge at the Starfish Hotel, a big resort on the north coast, near Falmouth. Titled Reflections, this night coincided with Jah Cure's birthday. But with supposedly unlimited food and drink, followed by a small showcase (Karen Smith and above all Etana, superbly backed by Live Wyya), the shindig remained reserved for an elite who could afford the ticket: 60 US dollars (4,000 Jamaican dollars). The result: a very thin crowd, made up mainly of journalists and guests. We did run into Jah Mason and Wayne Marshall. But what had been advertised as an "all-inclusive dinner" turned out to be... without dinner. In its place, a buffet, plundered within minutes by guests starved by more than two hours of waiting. During this night with the air of a wedding (everyone being dressed in white, as the dress code demanded), tributes to Jah Cure were not lacking. The man himself took the microphone only for a brief word of thanks.
 The following day, Saturday, it was the sound systems' turn at the Pier 1 site in Montego Bay, where Jah Cure spent most of his childhood. On arrival, the evidence was plain: we had come far too early. The night was advertised from 8pm and it was already well past midnight, but the site was almost empty and we were still in the middle of the warm up. We had to wait a good hour more before hostilities began. It was then MC Nuffy who seized the microphone to host the dance with his hilarious gimmicks. Titled 45 Cure's, this second night brought together many renowned sound systems around the Jah Cure theme, but no clash was on the programme. The selections were alike without really standing out. We heard a few good dubplates, notably at Black Chiney and above all an enormous Jah Cure/Munga duo at Digital Chris. We also often got the same artists and the same songs, in dubplate or studio versions: Vybz Kartel (Send fi me army, The scheme), Busy Signal (The days, Nah Go A Jail, Mavado and all his singles, or Bugle's What we gonna do and Demarco's Fallen soldiers. But the late hour imposed very short sets, not ideal for motivating the crowd. All the more so as it was rather hard to please, reacting mostly to the fashion of the moment. The flop of the night was GI Joe, a new selector sporting a full commando uniform who had to face the crowd's jeers and was quickly invited to leave the stage.
 With her red hair and effeminate patter, Nikki Z., presenter on Hype TV (and the only woman of the night), was the first to lift the atmosphere a little. DJ Wayne of Irie FM, for his part, turned the concept of the night on its head and announced that he was there to clash the others. There followed a stream of dubplates freshly recorded by the DJ containing a few nominatives against Renaissance, Stone Love, Black Chiney and all the prestigious participants in this night, which literally set the dance on fire. The only ones spared were DJ Liquid and Nikki Z.: they are his friends, he explained, in front of a won-over crowd. Despite the reception, DJ Wayne did not stay any longer than the others. The atmosphere fell palpably flat as day began to break. Jah Cure himself made only a fleeting appearance backstage. Needless to say, the third and last night, the biggest of all, was eagerly awaited.
Report written by Alexandre Tonus
Tags : Beenie Man (197), Bounty Killer (139), Sizzla (210), Jah Mason (72), Wayne Marshall (51), Baby Cham (36), Morgan Heritage (108), Capleton (135), Cecile (59), Cocoa Tea (58), Ninjaman (29), Jah Cure (86), Richie Spice (74), Chuck Fender (38), Gyptian (88), Mavado (170), Tarrus Riley (137), Munga (25), Etana (75), Demarco (51), Bugle (49)
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Longing for
Publication date : 11-07-2007 
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Sunday 14 October 2007
 The highlight of the festival, the Longing For Concert, boasts an impressive line-up (more than 60 artists in all) at the Trelawny Multi Purpose Stadium. History repeats itself: when we arrive around 11pm, the stadium is still half empty. As on the previous night, the line-up is so packed that the artists have little time to win people over, and the MCs introducing each of them are kept busy. The whole new generation follows one another on stage at breakneck speed: Duane Stephenson, Fire Lion, Mikey Pelpa, Martin X, Little Joe, Jah Mel, Mackie Conscious, Guidance, I Octane, without ever sending the crowd into a frenzy. Among all these youngsters, Jimmy Riley is very much the veteran, but that will not earn him any more recognition than the rest, except on a fine cover of Slim Smith's My conversation. Some, like Esco, Mr. Pepper or Mr. Easy, get a forward for the length of one song and it is already the next act's turn. Nitty Kutchie and Junior X (thanks above all to his hit Plead my cause) get a warm welcome, and the atmosphere lifts a little with the very energetic dancehall show of Captain Barkey and Wicker Man and their hilarious lyrics; the two partners even invite Lexxus to join them.
 It takes another change of band and Morgan Heritage taking the stage before things get really serious. From then on, the sets are a little longer and the level higher. The Morgan children give one of the best shows of the night, conquering the crowd from their opening on How come. While Lutan Fyah goes almost unnoticed, the island's latest hits follow one after another: Love and Affection (Pressure), Below the Waist (Queen Ifrica), I'm Waiting (Cecile)... Making the most of the hype generated by the remix of the song with Baby Cham, Junior Reid is acclaimed as soon as he walks on and still hits the mark with his anthology piece One blood. With several singles doing well at the moment, veteran crooner Richie Stephens gives a superb performance, while Cocoa Tea improvises, over his classic cover of Rastaman chant, a text complaining about how little time the artists are given compared with the time spent waiting backstage.
 As the sun casts its first rays over the horizon, without even being announced by the MC, Capleton appears and the crowd erupts. The Prophet, unleashed, delivers an essentially dancehall and super hardcore show, until Munga, the island sensation of recent months, joins him for two songs sung back in chorus by a far denser crowd than at the start of the night. Jah Mason will not have the same effect. Apart from Princess gone, the crowd remains unmoved. The sun keeps climbing in the sky as Gyptian, acclaimed by the female audience, bursts on, followed by Richie Spice, whose opener Earth a run red still has its little effect. The crowd explodes when he is very quickly joined by Chuck Fender, just like in the great days of Fifth Element. Each rolls out his most recent hits for a final on Brown skin and a beautiful Coming over.
 Next, Tarrus Riley sends the crowd literally hysterical for the length of his two hits Beware and She's royal. We have reached the heart of the concert. The euphoria goes up another notch when the Don Gorgon, Ninjaman, arrives on stage. His legendary reputation earns him a welcome worthy of the greatest and before he has even opened his mouth the crowd is already on fire. His performance, of breathtaking energy, will be short but faultless. A great moment is in the making: the Alliance taking the stage, in order Mavado, Busy Signal, Bounty Killer, Wayne Marshall, then Sizzla. With each new entrance, an even more powerful forward greets the artist and the show consists essentially of singing a line from a song, taken up in unison by the crowd, before passing on the mic. The artist of the moment, Bugle, even makes a brief appearance to sing the chorus of his hit What we gonna do, which also drives the crowd wild.
The party would not have been complete without "Doctor" Beenie Man, who gives an energetic show with no dead time, the real highlight of the night. He is even joined by Fambo, aka Future Troubles, for an explosive duet.
 The ground is now prepared for Jah Cure's entrance. It is broad daylight and the morning sun is already beating down. We get the same show as in Eindhoven two months earlier (and in the same outfit!), apart from his very recent track Freedom and Sunny day as he leaves the stage. Urged on by Beenie Man, who watches the show from the side of the stage, the legendary Lee Perry himself comes on stage for a moment, just long enough to take Jah Cure in his arms. Curtain call, abrupt: despite his efforts, Beenie Man cannot bring Jah Cure back. At the end of the three days, the verdict remains mixed. With 5 to 6,000 people on the last night according to the organisers, Jamaica did not exactly rush to Curefest.
Report written by Alexandre Tonus
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Publication date : 11-07-2007
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