{"id":21889,"date":"2022-08-14T12:12:30","date_gmt":"2022-08-14T16:12:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/?p=21889"},"modified":"2022-08-30T18:50:03","modified_gmt":"2022-08-30T22:50:03","slug":"episode-625-reggae-music-at-dusk-at-benares-friday-august-12-2022-thanks-to-the-riddim-riders-reggae-band","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/?p=21889","title":{"rendered":"EPISODE 625 REGGAE MUSIC AT DUSK AT BENARES, FRIDAY AUGUST 12, 2022 (THANKS TO THE RIDDIM RIDERS REGGAE BAND)"},"content":{"rendered":"
EPISODE 625     REGGAE MUSIC AT DUSK AT BENARES, FRIDAY AUGUST 12, 2022<\/p>\n
                          (WITH special thanks to the Riddim Riders Reggae Band)<\/div>\n
alan skeoch<\/div>\n
Friday august 12, 2022<\/div>\n

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I really did not understand reggae music until this night.  The softness of this summer<\/div>\n
evening was accented by the softness of the trio of reggae musicians.  What little  I did<\/div>\n
know about Reggae was that its most well known leader was Bob Marley who grew<\/div>\n
up in the violence prone Jamaica of the 1960\u2019s.  I assumed the music would reflect its<\/div>\n
origins.  Wrong! Wrong! Wrong!  The music and lyrics lamented the racism, corruption,<\/div>\n
power seeking life in 1960\u2019s Jamaica. Reggae urged people to Rise Up and rid their<\/div>\n
society of the negative and to seek the positive. To choose love over hate.  I know<\/div>\n
that is hard to do.  Bob Marley also found it difficult to do.<\/div>\n

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On Friday, August 11, 2022, about 100 people sat on lawn chairs at Benares and<\/div>\n
were mesmerized by the soothing reggae music that evening.  Much to my surprise<\/div>\n
one of my favourite Bill Withers songs was part of the evening performance\u2026\u201dAin\u2019t <\/div>\n
no sunshine when she\u2019s gone.\u201d  <\/div>\n

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Amazing how soothing a drum can sound when it is played softly.<\/div>\n
Specially let me credit the Riddim Riders Reggae Band\u2026Franklin Joseph on drums,<\/div>\n
Carl De Souza on bass, Jonathan Rattos on keys, Mike Rajczak on percussion (one<\/div>\n
of  whom was absent).<\/div>\n

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REGGAE MUSIC AND REGGAE MUSICIANS OWE MUCH TO BOB MARLEY<\/div>\n

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Who Is Bob Marley?<\/h2>\n

In 1963, Bob Marley and his friends formed the Wailing Wailers. The Wailers’ big break came in 1972 when they landed a contract with Island Records. Marley went on to sell more than 20 million records throughout his career, making him the first international superstar to emerge from the so-called Third World.<\/p>\n<\/section>\n

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Early Life<\/h2>\n

Born on February 6, 1945, in St. Ann Parish, Jamaica, Marley helped introduce reggae music to the world and remains one of the genre’s most beloved artists to this day. The son of a Black teenage mother and much older, later absent white father, he spent his early years in St. Ann Parish, in the rural village known as Nine Miles.<\/p>\n

One of his childhood friends in St. Ann was Neville “Bunny” O’Riley Livingston. Attending the same school, the two shared a love of music. Bunny inspired Marley to learn to play the guitar. Later Livingston’s father and Marley’s mother became involved, and they all lived together for a time in Kingston, according to Christopher John Farley’s Before the Legend: The Rise of Bob Marley<\/em>.<\/p>\n

JAMAICAN GANG VIOLENCE IN 1960\u2019S<\/div>\n

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REGGAE MUSIC is based on the concept of love \u2026 Love thy neighbour.  But it flourished in an atmosphere of gang violence<\/div>\n
in Jamaica in the 1960\u2019s where two rival gangs were prepared to kill in order to seize power.  Bob Marley tried to<\/div>\n
quell the violence and his initial reward for being a peacemaker was to be shot at a Jamaican concert.  He sustained<\/div>\n
a minor wound but insisted on continuing his concert.  All risks taken in an effort to bring the gang leaders together<\/div>\n
He was partially successful.  Marley called the gang leaders to the stage and forced them to shake hands.  Which they<\/div>\n
did.   Hope for peace followed.   But violence was never eradicated much to the disappointment of Bob Marley who<\/div>\n
was given a United Nations award for his efforts to bring about peace in Jamaica and his efforts resonated through<\/div>\n
the Third World where  climate of violence tore societies apart.<\/div>\n

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Bob Marley died young.  He was only 34 years old.  His influence however endures.<\/div>\n

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LYRICS TO ‘GET UP, STAND UP’<\/div>\n

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Get Up Stand Up<\/span><\/div>\n
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Song by Bob Marley and the Wailers<\/div>\n
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Get up, stand up<\/span>
Stand up for your right<\/span>
Get up, stand up<\/span>
Stand up for your right<\/span>
Get up, stand up<\/span>
Stand up for your right<\/span>
Get up, stand up<\/span>
Don’t give up the fight<\/span><\/div>\n
Preacher man don’t tell me<\/span>
Heaven is under the earth<\/span>
I know you don’t know<\/span>
What life is really worth<\/span><\/div>\n
He said all that glitters is gold<\/span>
Half that story ain’t never been told<\/span>
So now you see the light, hey<\/span>
You stand up for your right<\/span>
Come on<\/span><\/div>\n
Get up, stand up<\/span>
Stand up for your right<\/span>
Get up, stand up<\/span>
Don’t give up the fight<\/span>
Get up, stand up<\/span>
Stand up for your right<\/span>
Get up, stand up<\/span>
Don’t give up the fight<\/span><\/div>\n
Most people think<\/span>
Great God will come from the sky<\/span>
Take away everything<\/span>
And make everybody feel high<\/span><\/div>\n
But if you know what life is worth<\/span>
You would look for yours on earth<\/span>
And now a you see the light<\/span>
You stand up for your right<\/span>
Jah!<\/span><\/div>\n
Get up, stand up (Jah, Jah)<\/span>
Stand up for your right (oh-hoo)<\/span>
Get up, stand up (get up, stand up)<\/span>
Don’t give up the fight (life is your right)<\/span>
Get up, stand up (so we can’t give up the fight)<\/span>
Stand up for your rights (Lord, Lord)<\/span>
Get up, stand up (keep on struggling on)<\/span>
Don’t give up the fight (yeah)<\/span><\/div>\n
We’re sick and tired of your ism-schism game<\/span>
Dy’n’ and go to Heaven in-a Jesus’ name, Lord<\/span>
We know when we understand<\/span>
Almighty God is a living man<\/span><\/div>\n
You can fool some people sometimes<\/span>
But you can’t fool all the people all the time<\/span>
So now we see the light (watch you gon’ do?)<\/span>
We gonna stand up for our rights (yeah, yeah)<\/span>
So you’d better<\/span><\/div>\n
Get up, stand up \u2026.<\/span>Source: <\/span>Musixmatch<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Songwriters: Peter Tosh \/ Bob Marley<\/div>\n

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ON Friday August 12, as mentioned, I was surprised to hear the reggae trio play<\/div>\n
and sing the great Bill Withers song titled \u201cAin\u2019t no sunshine when she\u2019s gone\u201d\/<\/div>\n
Two weeks earlier a different band, a Rhythm and Blues Band, played the same<\/div>\n
Bill Winters song.  Song writer Bill Withers died in 2020.  He spent his early years<\/div>\n
as an aircraft mechanic on an aircraft carrier off the coast of Viet Nam. He was<\/div>\n
black and familiar with the racism of his time. I think he<\/div>\n
would be pleased to know his song was softly played<\/div>\n
 under summer skies at Benares in 2022.<\/div>\n

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Ain’t no sunshine when she’s gone<\/font><\/span><\/div>\n

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Lyrics BY BILL WITHERS<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Ain’t no sunshine when she’s gone<\/span>
It’s not warm when she’s away<\/span>
Ain’t no sunshine when she’s gone<\/span>
And she’s always gone too long<\/span>
Anytime she’s goes away<\/span><\/div>\n
Wonder this time where she’s gone<\/span>
Wonder if she’s gone to stay<\/span>
Ain’t no sunshine when she’s gone<\/span>
And this house just ain’t no home<\/span>
Anytime she goes away<\/span><\/div>\n
And I know, I know, I know, I know<\/span>
I know, I know, I know, I know, I know<\/span>
I know, I know, I know, I know, I know<\/span>
I know, I know, I know, I know, I know<\/span>
I know, I know, I know, I know, I know<\/span>
I know, I know<\/span>
Hey I oughta leave young thing alone<\/span>
But ain’t no sunshine when she’s gone, woh woh<\/span><\/div>\n
Ain’t no sunshine when she’s gone<\/span>
Only darkness every day<\/span>
Ain’t no sunshine when she’s gone<\/span>
And this house just ain’t no home<\/span>
Anytime she goes away<\/span><\/div>\n
Anytime she goes away<\/span>
Anytime she goes away<\/span>
Anytime she goes away<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Source: Musixmatch<\/a><\/div>\n
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Songwriters: Bill Withers \/ Kajeem<\/div>\n

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WHO WAS BILL WITHERS?<\/div>\n
Ain\u2019t No Sunshine When He\u2019s Gone\u2026 A Farewell To Navy Veteran And Soul Singer Bill Withers<\/font><\/a><\/div>\n
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Bill Withers died earlier in the week from complications from heart disease at age 81. Withers was known for his amazing vocals, soulful songs and was one of the best soul singers of all time. He was also a veteran of the United States Navy.<\/span><\/p>\n

His death has resulted in an outpouring of mourning and grief from singers, artists and fans cross the world.<\/p>\n

Regarded as one of the best songwriters of his generation, his influence has been seen in multiple genres of music and generations of artists. Withers gave us such classics as \u2018Lean On Me,\u2019 \u2018Ain\u2019t No Sunshine,\u2019 \u2018Grandma\u2019s Hands,\u2019 \u2018Just the Two of Us\u2019 and \u2018Lovely Day.\u2019<\/p>\n

But there is one song that really resonates with veterans. In 1973, Withers released a song he had written while America was still involved in Vietnam.<\/p>\n

Withers was born July 4, 1938, in Slab Fork, West Virginia. He was afflicted with a stutter from the time he was a child. He enlisted in the Navy at 18 where he served as an aircraft mechanic. He had good reason for wanting that field.<\/p>\n

Withers told Rolling Stone, \u201cMy first goal was, I didn\u2019t want to be a cook or a steward. So I went to aircraft-mechanic school. I still had to prove to people that thought I was genetically inferior that I wasn\u2019t too stupid to drain the oil out of an airplane.\u201d<\/p>\n

While he was in the Navy, he was able to do speech therapy so he could stop stuttering. In fact, he stayed in the Navy as long as he could so he could work on his speech. He overcame his stutter using various techniques while also developing an interest in singing and songwriting. After nine years of service, he was discharged in 1965 and moved to Los Angeles to try and break into the music business. Withers worked for the aviation industry during the day while playing local night clubs at night trying to get noticed. His hard work paid off, when in 1970, he was signed to a record contract. His first album came out a year later and his career took off shortly thereafter.<\/p>\n

After a couple of years of hits, Withers would write and perform a song that would be hailed as one of the most poignant songs about veterans and the war in Vietnam.<\/p>\n

\u201cI Can\u2019t Write Left-Handed\u201d was written from the perspective of a wounded warrior. It wasn\u2019t a political statement, it wasn\u2019t self-righteous, it wasn\u2019t inflammatory. It was simply what he thought Vietnam Veterans went through and what they were going to go through. It was one of the first songs to touch on the mental anguish and post traumatic stress many Vietnam Veterans experienced in the years after the war.<\/p>\n

Withers opened the song with a spoken intro\u2026.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe recorded this song on October the 6th. Since then the war\u2019s been declared over. If you\u2019re like me you\u2019ll remember it like anybody remembers any war: one big drag. Lot of people write songs about wars and government \u2026 Very social things. But I think about young guys who were like I was when I was young. I had no more idea about any government, or political things or anything. And I think about those kind of young guys now who all of a sudden somebody comes up, and they\u2019re very law-abiding, so if somebody says go they don\u2019t ask any questions they just go. And I can remember not too long ago seeing a young guy with his right arm gone. Just got back. And I asked him how he was doing. He said he was doing all right now but he had thought he was gonna die. He said getting shot at didn\u2019t bother him, it was getting shot that shook him up. And I tried to put myself in his position. Maybe he cried, maybe he said\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

The lyrics then tell us the story of the man with a missing right arm.<\/p>\n

I can\u2019t write left handed<\/em><\/p>\n

Would you please write a letter to my mother
Tell her to tell the family lawyer
Try to get a deferment for my younger brother<\/p>\n

Tell the Reverend Harris to pray for me, lord, lord, lord
I ain\u2019t gonna live, I don\u2019t believe I\u2019m going to live to get much older
Strange little man over here in Vietnam, I ain\u2019t never
Bless his heart I ain\u2019t never done nothin\u2019 to, he done shot me in my shoulder<\/p>\n

Boot camp we had classes
You know we talked about fightin\u2019, fightin\u2019 everyday
And lookin\u2019 through rosy, rosy colored glasses
I must admit it seemed exciting anyway
But something that day overlooked to tell me
Bullet look better I must say
Rather when they comin\u2019 at you.
But go without the other way<\/p>\n

And please call up the Reverend Harris
And tell him to ask the lord to do some good things for me
Tell him, I ain\u2019t gonna live, I ain\u2019t gonna live, I ain\u2019t gonna live to get much older
Strange little man over here in Vietnam, I ain\u2019t never seen, bless his heart I
Ain\u2019t never done nothing to, he done shot me in my shoulder<\/p>\n


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A SURPRISE VOLUNTEER \u2026REMINDS US THAT OUR WORLD IS STILL VIOLENCE PRONE<\/p>\n

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One of the volunteers with the Museums of Mississauga summer concerts<\/div>\n
is this young lady.  She would understand what Bob Marley tried to do\u2026when<\/div>\n
he tried to negotiate peace between the two rival gangs in Jamaica.  Why?  Because<\/div>\n
she is a refugee from the senseless violence currently occurring in Ukraine, her<\/div>\n
former homeland.<\/div>\n

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BELOW IS A COLLECTION OF PHOTOS TAKEN THAT EVENING AT BENARES<\/div>\n
(ALL ages present and even one very large dog called Roxy)<\/div>\n

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