Carnival Monday Pictures Page
I
Carnival
Monday Pictures Page II
06:00 Sunrise early in the morning and like the sun we were up early.Today is the day that most people from far and wide come to Aba and this being the 18th year that the sound system has been in existence was going to be a great day, but only if Aba had remembered to bring the 63 amp plug!
08:45 Stef, The Lioness and I jumped into the Dub Mobile and made our way via a few selected food and beverage stores (ice coffee for Stef) to Carnival.
09:55 We arrived at the footbridge as per yesterday and I deposited Stef and the Lioness and went to park the car where I had parked it the day before. But when I got there all the spaces had been taken. Car parking news travels fast. I then spent the next 15 minutes looking for a space. Just when I was about to drive even further out I doubled back and found a space only about 900 metres from the Harrow Road on the corner of Third Avenue which had been occupied when I drove pass it the first time. It seemed that the residents had been moving their cars to a safer location and the only reason the spaces had been occupied was the time of the morning. I knew, (well I hoped) the car would be safe, as the police would be taking up their position on this corner later in the day.
10:45 I arrived at our location and the setting up of the stall and the sound system was in full effect.I smiled as I saw Aba was sitting on a table wiring up a 63-amp plug. No sound quality problems today then.
Aba asked me to check the echo unit as they it was not echoing properly. I got out the tools and started dismantling it to give it a quick service. Well the best laid plans of mice and men, the tape was badly striped but we did not have a spare. So I had to reassemble it with the striped tape, albeit with the tape path cleaned.
The Policewoman in a blue car interrupted my re-assembly of the unit. She drove up and stopped and with her 'I am so powerful' attitude told us that we would have to move the truck, which she could see we were in the process of unloading. Then along with the council officials, (yes them again) who were also in the car started the same dialogue as yesterday in regards the stall and our allotted area and size.
After a one sided discussion where they gestured and postured along with waving redundant maps and plans they left.They promised to return and they were true to their word. They returned 4 other times between 11:00 and 12:30 and me ah tell you people, they were the height of irritability. Slap dem with a wet fish came to mind, seen.But the unfolding of the day was going to more of a revelation in regards to the authorities, then I could have ever imagined.
12:05 We started the sound check and the smile on Aba's face as the bass rolled and the right hooks and upper cuts coming from the mids said it all. The sound was awesome and if people yesterday were impressed, they were going to be blown away today. The bass was vibrating the ground, serious earthquake, seismic, shock scenario.
Today was the big day when all the regulars from very far and wide turn up. It was also the day when we were going to showcase our latest artistes, Sister Miriam, and Emmanuel Joseph, so it was going to be an interesting day.
Well the sound check brought out the people and the spot was filling up rather nicely.Charles and Gemi arrive on the scene to check out what a gwan.
 |
I introduced Stef to Mikey Gadd and Gemi to extend the vibes. Charles came up to me with a smile and nodded at the quality of the sound. 12:50 The gathering of the faithful was in full effect, but just as yesterday I noticed a lack of transient foot traffic from the canal end of the street. So with camera in hand I went in search of the problem. Guess what? Even after yesterday's assurances by the Police that the cordons were only there to protect the people from the floats and visa versa during the parade, the cordons were being used to corral the crowd and to stop the migration flow of the people to where they wanted to go. |
This is only the second time I have seen this at Carnival and the first time was yesterday.The Police were not being sympathetic to the people wanting access through them and in fact were downright hostile!
The pushing and shoving of the people as the Police tried to maintain their line was causing the temperature of the crowd to rise dramatically.
I could see nothing but problems later on if the Police maintained this stance. Great PR or what?
One
officer who noticed that I had a camera and was taking photos
asked one of the dumbest questions I have ever heard. "What
are you doing?" as if it wasn't obvious that
man with camera clicking away is taking pictures. I know that
the standard
of education is falling, but please!
On hearing his question a few of his colleagues who were standing
at the back of the cordon, and seemed to be directing it, turned to
look at me.
It is not racist to say they were giving me black looks even
though one was a black police sergeant.
"I am taking pictures of the parade" I answered
pointing at the parade passing by in front of them. But due to
them concentrating on holding back the crowd, I assumed that they
had no time to observe its passing.
Well reader what do you mean of course I was! Yes man I was taking
pictures of the parade, why would I want to take pictures of
the Police cordon. As
if!
Yeah, by the way; due to where the Police HQ was I got to observe
the patrols going out and I noticed a funny thing' the Tasor
was in a majority of
the cases being carried by the male ethnic minority officers.
Must be
that the majority of people being Tasored wouldn't mind being
shocked up by an ethnic officer as they were ethnic themselves.
Or was
it more that the Police couldn't be accused of using excessive
force and racism seeing it was an ethnic officer lighting up
an ethnic suspect; just a thought.
Well I walked back to the stall and I noticed two gung ho policemen (How did I know that? Well, short sharp haircuts, young and looking like they were well acquainted with the gym) who had approached two people, a man and a woman, who were partaking of the combustible vegetable matter. They then took them around the corner to question them.I followed at a discrete distance. The policemen then started searching these people in full view of all the people nearby. They took their names and addresses and then radioed for a van. Wha! I hear you scream. Yes a van. Well a van didn't turn up, but a police sergeant did. He spoke to the gung duo very briefly and then they followed him like sheep back to the Police HQ leaving a very shell shocked looking couple.The distress on the woman's face and the shock on the man showed me that their Carnival experience was ruined. Did I take pictures,was Samson a Rasta man?
I could
not believe that with all the violence and murder and ting that
the policemen did that. What about those people who get hyped
up with drink, pills and powders, you cannot smell what narcotic
they have imbibed, are the police going to blanket search / test
all Carnival revellers to
catch them. I have never heard of a riot or mass disturbance
being perpetrated by people on a 'medi' or 'lean up' due to the
combustible vegetable matter. People hyped up on drinks, pills
and powders on the other hand are another story.
Bwoy, I had to check the numbers on these policemen's lapel,
cos I thought they must have come from some rural farming community
where cattle
tipping and sheep worrying is the high light of their day. But
I was wrong!
They came from Lambeth. Or to those that don't quite understand
the significant of this…..........Brixton Police Station!
More great Police PR (sic).
I heard after Carnival that over at Channal One's spot at approx 12:40 on this day, the police surpassed themselves, and did an even greater PR exercise. I know that the latter comes across as a 'Lets slag off the Police', but that is not the case. It is simply an account of the events with some observations.
We at Falasha believe in the fundamental rights and justice for all peoples and if that requires a structured body, the Police, to maintain and uphold those rights against those young armed blinged up fools with MTV imagery and gangsta attitudes, that want to fight and kill their fellow man over a little piece of dirt (have they never heard Cyrus's speech in the film 'The Warriors'), and undermine, terrorise and bully law abiding citizens, then I for one have no sympathy for them. As my mother used to say, "Let the Police bus dem backside" and if she were still alive, with brick in handbag, she would be metering out justice against them fools too.
But to stop, manhandle and prevent people who only wanted to get to their usual Carnival spot to take in and give out some good vibes, smacks of overkill. All it did was to upset the good people to a point where their actions belie their normally good nature. Thus the Police did one of the worst PR jobs in recent times by alienating law abiding Carnival going citizens. Jah know!
14:20 Blood was getting inpatient as he waited for the artistes to arrive. He knew that the roads had been blocked off and that they would have problems getting to our spot. They were billed as doing their PA from 14:40 and time was running and passing. Phone calls to the artistes yield little results.
There is a strange phenomenon in regards mobile phones and carnival. They stop receiving calls as they constantly scan for a signal that is not there. Would the authorities have something to do with this, I leave it up to you to decide?
We had agreed to hold a 2-minute silence for one of the founders of Carnival at 15:00, without whom the carnival as we enjoy today would not be in existence.
14:50 I was standing by Aba waiting to observe the silence, as Sister Miriam came into view, I nodded and smiled. One down, one to go.
15:00 Aba announced to the crowd that we he was stopping playing for two full minutes and the respectful assembled took heed. Yes there was the odd one or two who didn't show the due deference, but they were in the minority.
15:02 The music started again and as I scanned the crowd, Emmanuel Joseph was approaching.
16:00 The delayed PA's started.
 |
Sister Miriam was first to perform her soon to be released song.The vocal was as sweet as honey; the crowd lapped it up. |
| The smiling reveller had an even bigger grin on his face. |
|
| The next up was Emmanuel and he delivered a great rendition of 'Road to Zion'.He then did a vocal of what as become a classic Aba Shanti-I dubplate 'Babylon Can't Hold Me'.The song got to him and in his own words "You know that dis tune has me a way" and he had to restart it three times. But it all added to the atmosphere and the enjoyment of the crowd. |
|
 |
Well the PA's well down a treat and the crowd was very appreciative.They were smiling, Aba was smiling, the artistes were smiling, I was smiling and Blood looked slightly less pensive. |
The rest of the carnival session was a ground-shaking groove.
Aba ran the original and dub cuts of 'Rastafari' by Prince Allah dedicated to Prof Natty from Jah Tubby's who was in the area, before linking them in to the new recuts of the same tune. I still prefer the original.
18:45 DJ Stryder and Didgee finally made it to the spot after trekking all round due to the friendly neighbourhood constabulary.
18:55 The final tune was played and we finished dead on 19:00.
Mikey Gadd came up to me and said that the session had moved him a way and that it was inspirational. That my dear readers summed up an Aba Shanti-I session. Strictly inspirational vibes.
The Police inspector came up to Aba & I and said and I quote " That was F**king loud then, wasn't it?" like we didn't already know. Told you, the standard of education these days is truely woeful.
Blessings goes out to: Mikey Gadd, Steflion, Didgee, Stryda, Natty, Benjahman, Jahorge, Babbs, Barber, Mark, Kojak, Sis Miriam,Lee Roy with camera, Sis Millie, The Blood Shanti Tribe, Sweet T, Ras Earl, Keety Roots, Lioness, Yuki, Gabriel, Sista From De Higher Regions, Rabb, Sista Nicole, Samira (Much Love), The Ras-Ites, Cool Tip, Claudie, Charles, Little Andy, The European and the Worldwide Crus.
So next year to all those people that were disappointed and frustrated by the cordons, you know the coup, COME EARLY! Jah know.
