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Jun
24
2007
Stephen Marley Live At The Forum
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Reviews Hip Hop and RnB
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Sunday, 24 June 2007 |
Music Reviews Artist: Stephen MarleyTitle: The Forum Live ReviewWebsite: http://www.stephenmarleymusic.com/
  Of all the nights to nearly miss in June, in London, Thursday’s Marley night at the Forum in Kentish Town would have been very near the top. Stephen Marley was in town as part of the ongoing promotion for his debut album, ‘Mind Control’. Falling close to the 30th anniversary of their father Bob ‘Tuff Gong’ Marley’s critically acclaimed ‘Exodus’ album also led to this becoming an amalgamation of the old with the new, fitting tributes alongside uptempo contemporary offerings.
After the support from 1Xtra’s Seani B had got the crowd warmed up, Damian Jr Gong Marley and Stephen Ragamuffin Marley, holders of numerous musical accolades and Grammy’s, ran on to the stage with the shout of ‘ay yo’ and the solitary waving Rastafari flag that has been an omnipresent figure in the reggae scene since time began. They were also joined by younger brother Julian, who features on the Ragamuffin’s LP and played a part in a number of the tracks tonight.
With both Damian and Stephen standing shoulder to shoulder up on stage, timeless classics like the hard hitting ‘Buffalo Soldier’ were merged effortlessly with more recent tracks like ‘Lonely Avenue’ and ‘Pimpa’s Paradise’ from Damian’s ‘Welcome To Jamrock’ album.
Never a dull moment in the club, the atmosphere hit boiling point and beyond on a number of occasions, not least when the intro’s to ‘Traffic Jam’, ‘Welcome To Jamrock’ and ‘Khaki Suit’ came in to play. Whilst Stephen’s album is a very solid offering, it’s difficult to deny that the true party antics were applicable to Damian’s vocals, but considering they were production of his brother one can be forgiven for slightly overshadowing reception.
It was however a time when the legacy of the deceased comes in to play and somewhat steals the show. The encore, featuring 3 of the Tuff Gongs tracks from ‘Exodus’, undoubtedly caused melodic ruckus on both stage and dancefloor, showing that even 3 decades on from their release, and considering half those present were younger than the tracks themselves, singles such as ‘One Love’, ‘We Jammin’ and ‘Exodus’ are still capable of mashing up any dance when performed right.
With a father of this stature, it would have been easy for this night to have been a re-hash of old and new, but not once did it ever feel as though it was ‘the same old’. The Marleys have a remarkable knack of paying homage whilst reinventing and adding their own influences to everything they do.
In a genre that is so regularly breaking down social barriers, and considering the truly diverse 'clientele' in the Forum that night, the vibes can best be summed up by a simple, yet heartfelt message from the Marleys: One love. Using politics, violence, race, we are one people, one human family. One love my sister, one love my brother, we are one family.
Rating: 5/5
Useful links: http://www.stephenmarleymusic.com and http://www.myspace.com/stephenmarley
Words By: Andrew Milner
Editor review : Stephen Marley Live At The Forum
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
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Overall rating
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4.6 |
| Originality
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4.0 |
| Lyrics
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5.0 |
| Memorability
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5.0 |
| Melody
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5.0 |
| Production Quality |
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4.0 |
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