Legends Of Ska

Legends Of Ska - Director - Brad Klein

A fantastic documentary built around the 2002 Toronto Reunion Concert. Featuring a whole heap of foundation greats.

Time as not been kind to reggae music in the eighteen years that have passed since the making of this documentary. 

So many greats have passed on. Some have been gone a long time, others more recently are victims of the corona bug.

The most remarkable thing is that forty years after most of the tunes featured here were made. These brothers of talent were able to play them like they were made yesterday.

Thanks and praise must also go to Brad for doing such a great job - just letting the people involved say what they want to say.

One of my favourite parts is when Derrick Morgan is calling out for the computer drum sound. It's incredible, he's got Lloyd Knibbs sitting behind his drum kit. And Derrick wants the computer!

Prince Buster talking about the early sound system days confirms once again what a innovator he was. "I Love R&B, but all the big sounds were playing it, and I wanted to be different, to give the people something different." So he played the tunes made in Jamaica - that had a different beat, The Ska beat.

Without Buster's militancy it's very possible that Coxsone and Duke Reid would have just carried on playing the Shuffle.

Another great insight into those days comes from Chris Blackwell. 

"I would go to New York, and buy these R&B records for cents and bring them back to Jamaica and sell them for a hundred pounds or more"

It’s that kind of thinking that made him a multi-millionaire. It would have been good if he had continued investing in reggae music - but thankfully he's not lost his interest in Jamaica - so something is better than nothing.

And talking of nothing. It would be good to see this documentary out and the people who invested in it - get what they paid for. 

Followers of reggae music are not fools - there is probably a very good reason for the problem. "Leaves On The Track, The Wrong Kind Of Snow. Any excuse is better than none.