Mel Cooke, Freelance Writer

Left: Mutabaruka in performance at 'A Night of Strictly Culture' held in honour of Joseph 'Culture' Hill on the lawns of the Ranny Williams Entertainment Centre, St. Andrew, last Friday.   Right: Etana in performance at 'A Night of Strictly Culture' held in honour of Joseph 'Culture' Hill. - Photos by Colin Hamilton

It was not 'A Night of Strictly Culture' in the sense of only songs delivered by the late Joseph 'Culture' Hill being done at the Ranny Williams Entertainment Centre on Friday, but there were sufficient to maintain the theme of the night.

It was also not a matter of the Culture songs being done strictly Culture style, as Ken Boothe put jazz into Addis Ababa and Cherine Anderson wove the chorus of Conquerer into the slow tale of her own encounters with violence in Nannyville.

However, Hill's son Kenyatta, long-time partner Albert Walker and Kenneth, band member, substituted for Culture in delivering Love Shines Brighter as the band took the stage to honour their dead lead singer.

Very strong turnout

There was a very strong turnout for the free concert which started well past its slated 6:00 p.m. and went much later than the scheduled midnight end, Mutabaruka, one of the concert's MCs, saying "a de fus me see inside ya so full. All when de Prime Minister keep him ting it no so full. A so me know de power of reggae music."

In the early going, Jahmel did an extended version of This Train. Coming on after Jahmel, Lovindeer entered with Conquerer and brought the house down.

Lymie Murray held onto a lock of his hair as he sang "I'm not ashamed to shake my natty dreadlocks" substituting "Culture, Culture, Culture" for "tra-la-la-la-la-la" as he sung his way off stage. It was a long time before a full Culture song was done by someone other than the original outfit that night, as coming up to the closing stages, George Nooks had the audience dancing along to Zion Gates. "Culture and Prince Mohammed do dis one way back," he said, dropping in Forty Leg as he left the stage.

In between, though, there were snippets of Culture songs, as Sharon Tucker started with a line of Everywhere She See I Am and Tarrus Riley sang "dem a boas' sey dem capture Rasta" before hitting Stay With You, while Richie Spice slipped a piece of Two Sevens Clash in as he crooned "there is a whole barrage of righteous youth man out there."

Culture's widow

Culture's widow was not left out, as in the relatively early going, Etana dedicated Live and Love Life to Mrs. Hill and, just before 'A Night of Strictly Culture' ended, closing performer Bunny Wailer did No Woman No Cry for her.

"I know that Sister Pauline, she is feeling very lonely, she is going through a lot of stress. She needs a lot of understanding. We have to give her encouragement to go on," Wailer said.

The C-Sharp, Gully Bank and High Symbol bands, as well as a band with Chris McDonald, Sly Dunbar, Dean Fraser, Nambo Robinson and Lloyd Parkes which Mutabaruka dubbed the Joseph Hill All-Stars played on Friday night, with Denise Miller and Tommy Cowan sharing in MC duties.