The Boys Deserve Better

Some shows succeed in spite of themselves, while other, with the best of intentions, simply don't make the mark.

In that latter category file the Rotary Club 'Let's Do It For The Alpha Boys which unfolded on Saturday night (into the wee hours of Sunday morning) at th cavernous National Indoor Sports Centre.

The Alpha Boys School is as deserving of a tribute show as any institution in Jamaica - arguably the hemisphere - and the notion of combining jazz/big band showcase with a reggae/dancehall showcase must seemed a great idea to the organizers.  The outcome however, was largely a  case of reach exceeding grasp.

It started auspiciously with the Jamaica Military Band striking up the National Anthem and proceeding to spin out a mix of contemporary numbers. Thereafter, interspersed with video vignettes of legendary Alpha Boys  School alumni, the sparse crowd was treated to various iterations of Alpha bands - an Alumni group, the Omega element (opposite of Alpha) and a clutch of the current boys. Longtime Alpha Boys' Band director Sparrow Martin, nattily decked out in a dark suit and robin-red hat, figured prominently in these segments. The Alumni started off tentatively but gathered steam remarkably zipping through standards like "Satin Doll" and pop hits like Otis Redding/Aretha Franklin's "Respect" with notable gusto.

But the audience seemed largely unmoved throughout the demonstration and the first discernible rise came from the 50/50 band, who with noted psychologist Aggrey Irons as toast master, did a good job reminding the audience of the word, sound and power of another great Jamaican: Petr Tosh. "African" was followed by "Buckingham Palace" which, with its message of defiant marijuana consumption was a neat bookend to the Damian Marley hit "Welcome To Jamrock" (and Ini Kamoze's "Worl A Reggae Music" which it samples)

Dubtonic Kru, which is in preparation for its Summer "Victory Tour" gave a workman-like performance that justified its selection as the World's Best new Band in Malaysia earlier this year.

LUST  - sans Singing Melody - provided the first real sparks at the mid-point, delivering their known hits to the delight  of the audience, which by this time had gathered a measure of coherence and heft, but only because some of those in the rafters had accepted the off to come and populate the sea of white seats in the centre floor. They also made a neat reference to the "Rapture craze" by taking the audience to church with a medley of gospel favourites.

This writer left to the strains of D'Angel with the dancehall heavy hitters still to come.

The Indoor Sports Centre's acoustics are notoriously unfriendly to bands. The emcees Jodian Gray, Drew Lawence and Denise 'Ises' Miller performed creditably (although some more links could have been made to the video tributes). The Hospitality area in the foyer was barely up to par (but the Grace Foods brand manager as exemplary in pouring the selection of wines on hand), and despite stage designer Bert Rose's appealing tributary touches in the foyer (and outside) the show area was as stark and unattractive as a moonscape.

Wiser options might have meant a more intimate venue with better opportunites for presentation, or even a multi-venue roadshow over a prescribed period during which donations could be solicited and the message of Alpha's integral role spread more deeply and effectively.    At $4000 a pop, it was always going to be a tall order to fill the Arean in these times for a cuase, which while obviously worthy, has way less resonance to John Q Public today.

One has to think that both the legends of the past and the current students deserve better.

"Birthday Girls" get special treat at Quad

Its a Lotto picker's dream rake.

Three talented young ladies, singers all, and born literally within two days of each other. In fact, singers, Dasea, Chanti-I, and Yasmine celebrate their May birthdays on the 1st, 3rd and 5th respectively.: 1-3-5.

And, th the Quad nightclub in New Kingston this past week they, and a sizeable audience got a stirring birthday treat in the persons of Tony Rebel and Tarrus Riley, who dropped in on the cabaret presentation and combined for a scintillating night of impromptu entertainment. The "Rebel" and "Singy-singy" vibrantly ran through now familiar "tune-for-tune tag team" act, trading excerpts of well-known hits by a range of artists.

The audience, which included notables such as comedians Blacka Ellis and Ity  and Fancy Cat, could not get enough, and kept the two crooners - who came on at closing time - in the club well into the night. Not to be outdone, the three singing ladies also shone brightly, whether individually, in combination, or with the support of a raft of musicians. It was - in terms of personnel - one of, if not the biggest shows in he history of  the long-running, high-quality live entertainment series.

Live Jammin' at Christopher's as the series has become known, is presented by Mo' Muzyk Pros and happens at the Quad on Tuesday and Thursday nights each week, beginning at 7:30pm