Toronto was LIVE on Saturday night; Sold out SATURDAY NIGHT ROCKERS KICK-OFF PARTY

BY SIMONE J. SMITH

Oh, what a feeling,

Wonderful feeling…

There is something about hearing the smooth, silky voice of Gregory Isaacs that sets my soul at ease. It brings back pleasant memories of Saturday rising.

You knew when you heard the music what it meant. It was time to start Saturday rising cleaning. Somehow it was always a little easier, because even though it was work, you were in a good mood, shoot, everyone was in a good mood.

It was the perfect way to start the weekend.

I know that Gregory Isaacs is more considered lovers rock, but this era of reggae will always be remembered by the uniqueness of its sound. It is a sound that immigrated with Jamaican’s when they immigrated to Canada in the 50’s and 60’s, and since then have somewhat determined the tenor of Toronto’s black community while spreading their music to a multicultural fan base in Toronto, all the while maintaining possession of it.

This long-standing, and beautiful relationship Jamaica has with Toronto has helped shape our unique, local sound and continues to do so to this day. You can find its fingerprints all over our: HipHop, R&B, EDM, Jazz, and even our Rock/Indie music.

This is a good thing. Something that the team at BSMT254 feel should be celebrated, encouraged, and preserved. I received an email from Jay Cleary inviting me out to BSMT 254 (254 Lansdowne Ave) on Saturday March 25^th, 2023. When I received the email, I was thrilled, a Saturday night listening to my favorite genre of music yes please. I also found out that my good friend Lord Fury was going to be there, so it was supposed to be a yes for me.

Well, life happened, and I could not make it to the launch of a new monthly live reggae music series SATURDAY NIGHT ROCKERS – that will feature the great torchbearers of this proud history on the last Saturday of each month. Rotating local bands will be presented on a proper reggae sound system – HIGHER HEIGHTS HI-FI – alongside some of the city’s finest record collectors and DJs.

Saturday was their opening night and they decided to offer up an extra-special, rare treat to set the vibe right – the legendary Jamaican crooner Mr. Carlton Livingston graced the stage with Toronto’s own trio of brothers The Dub Chronicles laying down the rhythms.

I was happy to hear that the local legend/vanguard of reggae history Lord Fury and his Sound Crew Supreme Genes would be holding down the DJ sets with Koolie Hi at the helm.

I had a chance to catch up with Lord Fury, and he took time to share his thoughts on the night.

“I was the opener for the night. I did a song and then I called up Ras Yunchie to do a song, and he flattened the place. I think he freestyle the song, but anyhow, it was called ‘Well run dry.’

Then I called up the legend Papa Levy (Barrington Levy’s cousin), and he tore down the place. The first intermission DJ Koolie Hi played a series of tunes to keep the crowd warm, and then myself, Yunchie and Papa Levy gave them the traditional sound system style live performance. The sound system was in the back and the band was in the front. It was crazy.

After we were done, we went back up to the front, and called up the legend Carlton Livingston who gave the crowd a history lesson on every song that he sang that night. What it was about, what he was going through when he wrote it, geez! BSMT254 was ram, and I must admit, I was in good form that night. I can’t forget to big-up the legend Lord Sassafrass who came through. Without him there would be no Chaka Demus, General Trees, Admiral Bailey, or Shabba Ranks. He is the godfather of their DJ style.”

Sigh, I wish that I could have made it; a night to lose myself in music would have been perfect, but then I took a look at the upcoming shows and felt a little better:

April 29^th – Junior Miller with Fulla Sound

May 27^th – Ammoye

June 24^th – Sattalites

July 29^th – Rayzalution

Aug 26^th – Reggadiction

I am not missing another one, and neither should you.

Oh, what a feeling