'Genuine Gold' to give life to live music

Howard Campbell, Gleaner Writer

Sunday's Genuine Gold show at Pulse's Studio 38 venue will be more than just another gig for bass player Lloyd Parkes. The veteran musician says he is on a mission to keep live music going in Jamaica, particularly Kingston.

"The main focus is to keep reggae alive and have fun at the same time," Parkes told The Gleaner. "Promoters look at the financial benefits but trus' mi, for a musician, that's not always important."

Parkes and his We The People band will back ska great Derrick Morgan and singer-producer Derrick Harriott in what he hopes to be the first in a monthly series featuring old school and contemporary performers.

To broaden its appeal, he said he has approached acts like dancehall heavyweight Cocoa Tea and rising star Romain Virgo to make future appearances.

"The response has been positive so far. It would be a good thing for the fans to see more of their favourite artistes in concert with a band an' not performing on tracks," Parkes stated.

Great acts

Pulse's Studio 38 series began positively three years ago with We The People backing rocksteady and roots-reggae artistes like Leroy Sibbles, John Holt and the Mighty Diamonds.

Recently, the venue has hosted dancehall acts Tanya Stephens and Lady Saw performing on tracks.

Parkes, who received the Jamaica Reggae Industry Association's Lifetime Achievement Award last Saturday, was part of Kingston's thriving live circuit during the 1970s when he played in bands such as The Thoroughbreds and Skin, Flesh and Bones.

He is the latest musician making an attempt to revive a dormant live music scene. Guitarist Maurice Gordon, trombonist Nambo Robinson and the Dub Tonic band are the forerunners of this movement, each staging events throughout the capital in the last four years.

A career musician, Parkes started out in the late 1960s as a member of The Termites' vocal group and also did a stint with The Techniques. In 1969, he played guitar on Dave and Ansell Collins' big hit, Double Barrel.

However, he is best known as a bassist with some of reggae's most influential bands, including The Revolutionaries and The Professionals which were house bands for the rival Channel One and Joe Gibbs studios.

In 1975, Parks formed We The People, which was singer Dennis Brown's touring band for 20 years. In addition to playing on numerous hit songs, Parkes has had hit songs as a singer with Slaving, Officially and Reservations For Two.