By KELVIN KACHINGWE
IT MAY have started late, but upon setting the stage, it was all systems go for the 32nd Bob Marley Memorial show at Mount Zion in Lusaka West last Saturday, where red, gold and green colours dominated the spectacle.
Yes, there were other Bob Marley tribute shows elsewhere, not just in Lusaka, but other towns such as Kitwe and Livingstone, yet the Mount Zion concert, organised by Shakarongo Music and Entertainment in conjunction with Holy Mount Zion, somehow remains the signature show.
Not surprising, it got the attention of the Drug Enforcement Commission (DEC), who the Weekend Mail understands, were almost cancelling the show because of what they believed was rampant substance abuse at the show.
In all fairness, though, the organisers have been doing their best to educate those in the habit of using the show to engage in drug abuse.
At the Saturday show, Brian Shakarongo went as far as taking to the microphone to appeal to those in attendance against using the memorial show to break the law.
In fact, he even appealed to those with ganja on them to surrender it to him, which they did, and he destroyed it in the presence of police officers.
Those efforts are paying off. There has been a reduction in drug abuse at the show in the last two or so years. The challenge though is to continue with the awareness messages, the reason why Shakarongo is asking DEC and police for a shared roundtable platform with reggae artists.
Going forward, the agency may want to use the Bob Marley show to raise awareness against substance abuse.
It is undoubtedly a good platform to use!
Anyhow, with the delay in starting the show, the audience, which is used to converging on the venue by 18:00 hours, was treated to some Bob Marley numbers through the blazing speakers.
And when the performances finally started, it was a familiar case of some captivating performances from the musicians on the ‘menu’, especially by the likes of the No Parking Band.
Yes, the No Parking Band!
Whichever way one looks at it, there is no denial that they, in a big way, defined the whole show in a way Bob Marley would have been proud. Yeah, they were not the only ones to add some complexion to the show; the Crucial Lions, with their vocal vampire the lead singer Ras Razzig were also in some element as they lit up the show.
Oh and how about that duet by London-based Robyn (Agatha Phiri) and ‘Sir’ Jones? Using only the guitar (Sir Jones) and keyboard (Robyn), they did justice to the Redemption Song, bringing a jazz feel to reggae music.
Comparisons with Jamaican saxophonist Dean Fraser, whose genres are reggae and jazz, should be made here.
Also impressive at the show, which ended around 08:00 hours with all the musicians on the cards coming together to perform One Love and Africa Unite, was (Them) I ‘n’ I, whose bass player Olivia Chanda was celebrating her birthday.
The way they delivered Bob Marley’s songs Lively Up Yourself and Roots Rock Reggae, was nothing short of inspiration.
And so was the whole show!
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