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YELLOWMAN WITH CHARLIE CHAPLIN LIVE
Slackness vs Pure Culture
Release date :
10-01-2003
Label :
Ayeola Records / Sankofa Blackstar
Linked artists :
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REVIEW
Review written by Benoit Georges
on Tuesday, January 06th 2004 - 30 287 views
Let's say it straight away: this unexpected release is a little gem. Credit is due to the French label that had the excellent idea of remastering this 1987 live recording in full. An incomplete version (without Charlie Chaplin's set) circulated on cassette in Jamaica and across the Caribbean, before being issued on vinyl and then on CD (still the incomplete version) in 2000.
It is 21 February 1987 on the beach at Negril. On stage, the Sagittarius band, who still tour with Yellowman today, provide the backing. The sound, captured with a 24-track mobile studio, is clean, and that is a pleasure.
A quick look back at the artists. On one side, Charlie Chaplin "the principal", who began his career as a deejay on Stur-Gav Hifi (U-Roy's sound system) in 1980 and recorded a few hits for the Powerhouse label with conscious lyrics.
On the other, the man already known as King Yellowman, an albino, deejay of the Aces Disco sound system and then Gemini, the number one deejay in Jamaica from 1981 to 1984.
In 1987, then, two established figures of dancehall take the stage, two deejays used to sound systems who know how to work the crowd, improvise, chat and make people laugh when needed.
Their strengths: for Charlie Chaplin, his consistency in the cultural themes he treats in an incisive way. As for Yellowman, he relies more on his slackness and humorous lyrics in which he boasts of his sexual prowess (!) to get the crowd going.
The live album consists of a previously unreleased Charlie Chaplin set, followed by a Yellowman set. At the end of the latter, the MC calls Charlie Chaplin on stage. The two deejays then come together for a relaxed and friendly face-off that left its mark on its time.
Let's go back to the content. After a short introduction, the MC presents the principal to his pupils: "Students are you ready for the principal?"
Charlie Chaplin then comes on stage and mashes up straight away, stringing together short lyrics, interrupted by pull-ups, over the same riddim: he develops a lyric about "uptown gals" (girls from the posh neighbourhoods) and then one of the most hardcore anti-battyman lyrics: the crowd takes up the chorus, when Charlie Chaplin says "No battyman", they answer "No soddomite"; when he says "Nuff niceness" the crowd shouts "Dat we expect". He then goes back to the "town gals", criticising their materialism.
The band launches the Disease riddim: Chaplin toasts "A mi rule ina di DJ school" and pokes fun at deejays such as his pal Josey Wales, Burro Banton, Early B or Yellowman, to name but a few. The band mixes in one drop, the flow runs well and the lyrics are funny. Charlie Chaplin calms down a little and moves on to the classic "Fire down below".
The horns of the Answer riddim then ring out. Chaplin launches into a speech on the virtues of ganja that earns him a huge forward: he says that since he was decorated with the "Order of Distinction" (the Jamaican medal of merit) by the "governor general" (the island's highest authority), ganja becomes legal as soon as he is there!! The crowd is fired up and sings along with him the chorus of an anthem for the liberation of Nelson Mandela and Jamaican unity. He then ribs General Trees, taking up his style and a melody by Yellowman (Mi fraid of Negril): he leaves the stage to the crowd's applause. It is therefore a broadly conscious set, but in a pure dancehall style.
The MC then introduces Yellowman ("the reject has arrived") who, after a few gimmicks, launches into a lyric of pure slackness. He then urges the "business women" not to sell themselves (Don't sell yourself). The band moves on to the Punany riddim, and Yellowman explains: "Admiral Bailey says he wants punany ("want punany") but me, I've got some already ("get already")". In this way he manages to produce a parody even more slack than the original. He goes through a phase that may seem hardcore to some, asking women who have already had children to repeat in rhythm "Nah breed again" (I won't bear any more children). He then lists what you can find under girls' skirts (Under gal frock, which the crowd chants in chorus). He calms things down a little with a cover of Blueberry Hill (nicely sung!) which concludes his set.
Called for by the crowd, the MC and Yellowman, Charlie Chaplin comes back on stage to combine with the King. On the Answer, Yellowman announces that he is going to expose the "entertainers" (the deejays), by telling what they get up to in their hotel rooms. He hands over to Chaplin, who immediately delivers a lyric about Yellowman while quickly imitating one of his phrasings. Yellowman, a good sport, begins with Charlie Chaplin's room, also taking up one of his styles. It is the funniest moment of the live recording: the two deejays get carried away (you can hear them laughing into the microphone) and decide to take turns ribbing artists by imitating them. Charlie Chaplin turns out to be a peerless impressionist; Yellowman, doubled up with laughter, carries on visiting his hotel. The two pals tear down, pell-mell and without sparing their friends, Gregory Isaacs, Peter Metro, General Trees, Supercat, Josey Wales, Culture (three times because they are big, they say), Barrington Levy, Little John, Black Uhuru and even Lionel Richie. The crowd wants more and Chaplin says that with Yellow, he could carry on like that until morning.
Yellowman moves on to Galong, galong, galong and strings the rhymes together, criticising in passing the police, the army, Thatcher and Reagan. Chaplin seems to agree. The two artists come together to say that they fear only Jah (Jah mi fear). Yellowman then drifts towards a lyric about old women and fat girls. Chaplin enjoys setting his culture against Yellow's slackness ("culture versus slackness", he says so himself). So he checks the old and the ugly women. The two artists do agree, however, about women who know how to cook good dishes: they ask the crowd to sing "Same way it taste" (It tastes just as good) when they mention dishes and ways of eating. But Yellowman always manages to drift towards slackness, which makes everyone laugh, notably deejay Welton Irie, who happened to be passing. The band then picks up a calypso air and the artists lay down their verses over that melody.
Welton Irie finally proposes to sing an anthem for those who don't drop their trousers (Don't drop your pants) and who are therefore not battymen. The show ends with all three on "Don't drop your pants/No soddomite/No battyman" taken up in chorus. So, slackness and culture reconciled? It's up to you...
All in all, then, it is a very good CD: both sets are very effective, but as we have understood, it is the Yellowman/Charlie Chaplin combination that is the real pearl.
A historical document from one of the great eras of dancehall, this live album breathes good vibes even when it comes to competition. The only small flaw is that this CD deserved a booklet with photos. Let's leave the last word to Yellowman, whom it would be wrong to regard only as a slackness artist, since he defines himself rather as a "reality" deejay: "Nuff people think say Yellowman can't chat culture and some other things. Mi is a DJ mix everything when mi want get rude mi get rude." |
Ben, je pense que le M.C qui annonce king yellowman dit "the regent has arrived" et non pas "the reject has arrived".......
C'est un disque historique que j'ai découvert en 1990 en Es^pagne : un hollandais dans un camping m'avait filé cette k7 qui a du tourner des milliers de fois dans ma bagnole ! Sinon, dans la même série je conseille le sound system capturé à skateland Park (kingston 1982) où figurent, entre autres lascars, eek-a-mouse, smiley and micchigan, ranking Toyan, kojak et bien sur King Yellow !!
Big up all a de massive dem !!
La chanson est sorti apres le live ... sur ce skeud qud ils trippent tt les deux sur l'hotel, ils racontent qu'ils pourraient continuer jusquau matin et chaplin dis que le morceau est tellemetn big kil faudrai le poser officiellement .... Sinon bon live qui restitue bien ll'ambiance dancehall ...et srtout pour les pures imitations (celle de greg isaac et barrington levy sont BIG !!!
Big up Ben c'est mon pote...BOOYAKA SOUND MASSIVE...
il a l air bien big ce CD
pr le moment ou yellowman man parle de l hotel ou il va dans chak chambre et imite les chanteur c est une chanson ki est vraiment sortie et ki dechire... par contre j aimerai savoir si elle est sortie avan ou apres le live !
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