Soul II Soul

@ The Barrowlands Glasgow Saturday 9th December 2017

Well now, growing up in London in the eighties, hanging around Camden market at the weekends, finding my dancing feet, I was naturally drawn to Soul II Soul’s unique sound and style, their blend of reggae and soul and positive message. The bassline to ‘Keep on Moving’ was irresistible, shaking up the concrete, blasting out of tower blocks and car stereos in the street everywhere in 1989.  Within a year, everyone from Sinead O’Connor to The Chimes sounded like them, or were connected to their all-embracing collective vibe. Maybe I didn’t fully appreciate them, as I was becoming obsessed with reggae at the time, while Jazzie was moving in the opposite direction, after starting out in the roots sound system world of course, but building a new, more inclusive sound from the foundations. Plus, I just wasn’t cool enough to fully embrace them at the time, although I belatedly managed my own take on the funky dred hairstyle, of which all photos have now thankfully been destroyed. So when I heard they were coming to Glasgow, I wasn’t first in the queue for tickets, but as I realised they were playing at the Barrowlands, that tipped the balance, as this would be my first time in the Iconic Venue (I think Chakademus & Pliers in the 90s were the last reggae act there), with sprung dancefloor ideally suited to their thumping bass.  I even managed to enlist a babysitter and persuade her indoors (who apparently thinks there is a thing called 'too much reggae') to come along for this one, so it made a change not to look like a sad bastard standing in the corner. And yes, how wonderful and pleasant it was to see a joyful crowd in a decent-sized venue; the appeal of Soul II Soul is enduring, as the place quickly filled up with the good and beautiful music-loving people of Glasgow. Warmed up and ready to dance, the reaction was jubilant as the band blasted the cobwebs away with ‘Keep on Moving’, and Caron Wheeler sounding just the same as she did back then. I must admit I was hoping she would be joined on stage by Kofi (who also featured on ‘Move Me No Mountain’, of course) and they would do a little Brown Sugar revival, but I concede that would have been a change of pace from the funky workouts of ‘Universal Love’ and ‘Fairplay’. Jazzie B did remind us of his reggae roots, with a heavy dub version of ‘Zion’ sounding more like U-Brown on the mike. But this night was all about the unique Soul II Soul sound, which helped to shape the modern multicultural nation we live in today, with Charlotte Kelly taking a turn on vocals on hits like ‘I Care’ and 'Missing You', two fabulous violinists striking up those haunting hooklines, melodic keyboards and the power of the drum and the bass. All the while, Jazzie B mixing up the samples on the decks and chatting a mixture of personal reminiscences and his distinctive Holloway Road rap on tracks like ‘Get a Life’. Like anyone of a certain age, the band have been touched by tragedy, but keep everyone going with their life-affirming vibe and the therapeutic power of music and dancing, culminating with ‘Back to Life’. Jazzie B brought the sound system out of the ghetto and placed it at the heart of British popular music. One love.