| Jamaica.
The word literally means "land of wood
and water". Originally, the island was
the residence of the Arawak people, and they
named their beautiful land after the blessed
situation they found themselves in.
A land of wood and water.
Then slavery and colonialism totally
destroyed the Arawak and now Jamaica is
occupied by mostly descendants of the people
who were stolen from Africa to work in the
plantation of the rich.
And where there was enough wood and water
while the Arawak were around, the current
situation is quite different. Poverty,
crime, hunger and thirst. Welcome to
Jamaica, where the true face of western
prosperity is known to every inhabitant.
The Rasta Reggae classic
"Rockers" is not only a perfect
movie to watch, it also gives a credible
picture of this situation in Jamaica during
the late 1970's. A situation which hasn't
really changed that much, and if it did, is
was for the worst.
In the movie, we are introduced to Leroy
"Horsemouth" Wallace. He is the
drummer for the legendary Burning Spear. But
that doesn't mean he's living in a big
house. Leroy lives in Trenchtown with wife
and pickney, and he's trying everything he
can to get around, financially.
Just like so many Jamaicans, the music
industry seems to be the only way to get
some decent bread for Leroy. He
manages to get his hand on a motorcycle
which enables him to work as a record
distributor.
Everything seems to be starting to roll
for Leroy, until he visits a dance in
Kingston where his motorbike gets stolen. He
freaks out, and then you'll see how the
Jamaican community deals with these kinds of
things.
So there's a storyline, and of course
Reggae Super Stars perform on some of the
hardest Roots riddims from around 1978. Sly
and Robbie playing the drum and bass in the
studio, for example. Or Kiddus I singing his
magnificent "Graduation in Zion".
Simply unforgettable is the scene where
Leroy Wallace and Big Youth commit a Rockers
Take Over and the police comes to take
them away.
It's an enrichment of one's cultural
luggage to be there on the scene, just like
it is Jamaica '78 again. Not only is it
simply a great joy to see all this Reggae
Music in the place where it originated, it
is also an educational movie in the sense
that the viewer learns about the runnings in
Jamaica considerably more then after looking
to another "Sunshine Reggae" video
clip.
Rockers should therefore be present in
the collection of every self-respecting
Reggae lover.
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