On what would have been his 85th Birthday, Large Up take a look at the little-known Caribbean roots of Malcolm X.

Check out the full feature here: Large Up » Caribbean Roots: Malcolm X.

An interesting piece on the life of the chief engineer at one of Jamaica’s most successful studio, via Babylon Falling and SEEN. Check out an excerpt below…

Sylvan Morris worked as a recording and mixing engineer at the forefront of the development of Jamaican music in the 1960s and 1970s. Equipped with a pitch perfect ear, a naturally inventive spirit, a hands-on approach and an intense work ethic Morris not only managed to create a sound of his own, but also was highly sought after by the musicians of the era, to whom he was affectionately known as ‘My Operator.’ Over the course of a quarter century Morris worked closely with such luminaries as Bob Marley and the Wailers, Jacob Miller, The Heptones, U-Roy, Augustus Pablo, Alton Ellis, Gregory Isaacs, Dennis Brown and many more….

Check out the full interview here: Via Babylon Falling: An interview with Sylvan Morris.

Via The Heatwave, comes this hour-long starter kit on Dancehall Reggae for all those who may need it. This follows up their celebration of Sleng Teng’s anniversary a few weeks back. Great way to start the week, I say.

Check out the mix and details below…

I couldn’t quite keep it to one tune per year as I was also trying to make sure that all the key artists from this period were represented. I think I did pretty well in the end but I’m sure I left out some notable vocalists. I KNOW that there are hundreds of BIG TUNES that didn’t get featured.

I suppose there’s always someone who gets left out at a birthday party. Big up Lady Saw, Kiprich, Cecile, TOK, Terry Ganzie, Serani, Spice and all the other artists whose invites got lost in the post.

So here’s The Heatwave’s history lesson aka bashment birthday party. 25 years of dancehall. As Benjamin points out at some point, this is one for the iPod.

Download it here: Via The Heatwave: 25 Years of Dancehall.

Tracklisting after the jump…

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With 2010 World Cup just 99 days away, ESPN has reopened an old topic about Joe Gaetjens the hero during the US victory over England in the 1950 World Cup. The article tries into kill all the misconceptions that were portrayed about Joe Gaetjens and show him as he truly was. In the movie “Game of Their Lives”, he was portrayed as a voodoo fanatic when he was actually Catholic. There are mangled facts about Gaetjens family origins and the English media trying to call his goal a fluke as well as his mysterious demise.

Joe Gaetjens was not Belgian. And his father wasn’t, either.

His name sounded Flemish. The Flemings are the Dutch-speaking half of Belgium. Considering the tidal wave of Flemish immigrants that washed over North America in the 19th century, the assumption that Gaetjens was of Belgian descent held credence. But Gaetjens, in spite of the ‘-jens’ suffix, is not a common name in Flanders.

Genealogic research shows that Joe’s great-grandfather, Thomas, migrated to Haiti from Bremen, in northern Germany, where the Gaetjens name is rather common. (A close variation on Gaetjens — Gätjens — is also oft-heard just north of there, over the Danish border.) Thomas arrived in Haiti shortly after 1825 (when France officially recognized Haiti’s independence) and married Leonie Dejoie, whose father was a general and had played a part in Haiti’s self-determination. That connection opened a path to prosperity for the Gaetjens family…

Joe Gaetjens did not practice voodoo.

“Absolutely not!” shouts his indignant younger sister, Mireille, reached in Puerto Rico.

“The Game of Their Lives,” the 2005 movie about the historic upset, had been ludicrously inaccurate. The film made light-skinned Gaetjens, played by dark-skinned Jimmy Jean-Louis, out to be some sort of voodoo nut.

The Gaetjens family was appalled. In real life, Gaetjens was Catholic, like most Haitians, and went to church every Sunday…

After the U.S.-England game, a barrage of excuses was blasted from the England camp. It had been too hot. Travel had been strenuous. But this one would stick: Gaetjens’ goal had been a lucky one.

All Americans and most English present on the scene dispute that.

Read the full article here

Here is some vintage footage from the England USA match.

Gotta give The Heatwave Blog their due for this one….classics never die….check the details below…

…Yesterday was 25 years to the day since Wayne Smith’s anthem Under Mi Sleng Teng was first played in a dance.

The tune was built at Jammy’s studio in Waterhouse before being unleashed during a clash with Black Scorpio at Waltham Park Road on 23rd February 1985. It flattened the dance and dominated the scene for months, with dozens (and later hundreds) of artists and producers rushing to record their own versions of the rhythm track.

Generally acknowledged as the first fully computerised dancehall riddim, Sleng Teng completely revolutionised Jamaican music and paved the way for all the ragga, bashment, dancehall or whatever you want to call it that I love so much….

Check the original below and peep a video medley after the jump….

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Rex Nettleford performing in 1965; photo by Maria LaYacona

I made the mistake of not getting this out last week, when The Hon. Rex Nettleford, OM, FIJ, OCC passed. For that, I apologize. For those unfamiliar with Rex Nettleford, and the legacy he leaves behind, see the passage below…

Jamaica lost one of its most revered cultural figures last night when Professor Rex Nettleford, vice-chancellor emeritus of the University of the West Indies (UWI) and founder of the National Dance Theatre Company (NDTC), died, just hours before he would have celebrated his 77th birthday…

…”Jamaica and the entire world have lost an intellectual and creative genius, a man whose contribution to shaping and projecting the cultural landscape of the entire Caribbean region is unquestionable,” (Jamaican Prime Minister Bruce )Golding said….

In the time since his death, numerous pieces have come up all over the net, a few of which I’ve compiled below…

• BBC Caribbean: Rex Nettleford: Death of a cultural icon.
• Jamaica Gleaner: Icon lost - Golding, Simpson Miller mourn Nettleford.
• Jamaica Observer: Nettleford ’soars like an eagle’, says former UWI head.
• Yahoo! News: Jamaican scholar, choreographer dies in US at 76.

For more on the life of Mr. Nettleford, see the video below, courtesy of The Jamaica Gleaner…

Not too much to say about the man that hasn’t already been said.

For some vibes to spin throughout the day to remember him by, check this out…

For more Bob Marley on Burden, click here.

Joell Ortiz spits a quick history lesson on Haiti over the instrumental of the moment nowadays, Jay Electronica’s “Exhibit C”. Check out the audio below…

Download it here: Joell Ortiz - “Exhibit H”.

…via RapRadar.

DONATE: Text ‘Yele’ to 501501, ‘Haiti’ to 90999 or directly through yele.org and redcross.org.

This past Saturday in DC Nas & Damian Marley sat down with other luminaries to discuss the African origins of both Reggae and Hip-Hop.

Weren’t able to catch the live webcast? Then you’re in luck. Check out the video below…

…via Asho.

Through the music blog Ears Of Green, I stumbled on this video documenting the history of reggae music. Check out part one of this 5+ hour documentary, “Revival,” below…

‘Revival’ is the first episode of the six part series ‘Deep Roots Music’ - 1982. All of the episodes are narrated by Mikey Dread and are focused on the history and culture of reggae music. ‘Revival’ contains extremely rare footage of Toots and The Maytals, Count Ossie and The Skatalites. There also are some interviews with cultural historians which make it more interesting.

Check out the rest of the episode after the jump. For the full documentary, with all six episodes, click here.

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