Culture

ABC Glasgow, 24th March 2013

Culture; never were a group so aptly named, synonymous with reggae and encapsulated by the wisdom, talent and genius of the late Joseph Hill. I only saw the original Culture once*, but it is safe to say that his son Kenyatta has inherited much of his voice, eccentricities and charisma, while bringing a youthful humour and zeal of his own to the performance. He was joined by original member Albert Walker and long-time contributor Telford Nelson on harmonies, and backed, as stipulated by Joseph Hill, by a skilful band to play Jah music. Reggae lovers from Glasgow and beyond were out in force on a bitterly cold night to pay tribute to the legacy of the group that forever cemented the link between the followers of the Ethiopian emperor and a load of scrawny British teenagers with safety pins through their noses. As soon as they launch into tunes like ‘See them a Come’ and ‘Tell Me Where You Get It’, it feels like you have travelled back in time and the late singer’s spirit was moving in the place.

Inevitably there was a building air of anticipation for the track that stopped the world on its axis in 1977. They do not disappoint, and ‘Two Sevens Clash’ still sent shivers down my spine and sounded as fresh as when I first heard it. It also worked surprisingly well morphing into an extended, slowed down Philly soul style version to introduce the band. Kenyatta is not ashamed to change things up, throwing in some of his own compositions and a bit of dancehall and soca while staying true to his father’s roots. To everyone’s relief, this climactic track was not the end of the show, and they returned to keep the crowd skanking warm and easy with hits like ‘International Herb’ and ‘Stop This Fussing and Fighting’. So many classic tracks were a reminder of the golden age when reggae was king. It may not be the same now, but this is our culture and although the warriors are falling, there is always a new generation coming up to hear their music and be inspired to make their own. It’s up to the faithful to keep the fire burning and continue the Jamaican tradition of recycling and versioning everything from African drumbeats to old proverbs, as there would be no Alborosie, Sizzla or Luciano without Culture, no Culture without Bob Marley, no Bob Marley without Desmond Dekker, no Desmond Dekker without Jimmy Cliff, and on and on, all coming back to one small island and its unique history, people and…culture. We are very lucky to have a steady supply of reggae legends still with us, coming to Glasgow courtesy of JA Live, so make sure you are there for the next one.

13th March 1993, Manchester.  A very good friend bought me a ticket to see M-People, due to a slight misunderstanding about my feelings for Heather Small. But then the great Frontline Radio ran a competition to win tickets to see Culture that very same night at the Nia Centre, all you had to do was name the three original members. Well, easy for any true reggae fan, especially one who had a copy of ‘Strictly For Rockers’ handy with its extensive sleeve notes. So I claimed my prize with no regrets but my love of Culture has always been slightly tinged with guilt since that day. My friend forgave me but Heather never spoke to me again.