The Jamaica Star :: Entertainment :: Kingston 12 rocks Kingston 10

Mel Cooke, Freelance Writer

The mostly mature patrons at the Collectors Spin-selectors swing, held at The Deck, Trafalgar Road, on Saturday night were not afraid to 'drop legs' during a mellow round of music. - Winston Sill

The numbers that designate the areas of Kingston may be close, as often the physical areas are, but socially they can be very far apart.

However music can, even fleetingly, bring the numbers and the areas closer and that is what happened on Saturday night, as Marley's Trench Town Rock had the full house at The Deck on Trafalgar Road, Kingston 10, grooving along to the sounds of Kingston 12.

The Marley cut came well past midnight at 'Collectors' Spin', billed as a pre-Mother's Day Party, after the party had been through a round of rockers, followed by disco and soul. The revving of a motorcycle heralded the return to Jamaican music with Big Youth's S-90 Skank.

With mostly mature patrons at the party, a few older men sporting the slender, curvaceous evidence of their deep pockets and attempts at youth retention on their arms, the songs were played at length. And when Trench Town Rock hit all duly sang along that "you feel no pain".

It was restarted at that point, but on the second go-round it was played as far as Marley singing "brutalise me with music" before being restarted yet again, the party people singing along with the Gong about Kingston 12.

Drop forty leg

More rockers followed with Dennis Brown's version of Silhouette, Junior Byles' Fade Away bringing whoops of delight from a dancing crowd. Skylarking was followed by the Crabwalking version, Forty Leg coming hard on the heels of Zion Gates as THE STAR hit the exit.

In the earlier round of rockers, though, going past 11:00 p.m., there had not been that much dancing to the "no no no" of Dawn Penn. There was as much talk as there was dancing, the music loud enough to be heard effectively but not so loud as to impede the numerous conversations which were taking place at several tables, as well as among those clustered by the bar. An intense pool game was on at one side, while some of the few dancers close to the selectors worked their way around those seated in the general area.

There were two versions of Left With a Broken Heart, first Johnny Clarke's and then Dennis Brown's. It was a 'double version' moment of sorts, as after Marley's Waiting in Vain, a cover of Marvin Gaye's Sexual Healing was played on the same rhythm.

However, when the music went uptempo with Oh What a Night the legs did more talking than the lips, Rock the Boat bringing more out onto the dancing deck at The Deck.

Shame on You and Rock On rocked the house, while a visually-impaired man, with his hand on a woman's shoulder was being led into the men's bathroom as many chortled along to "shame on you".

Young and not so young hearts ran free before the beat slowed for couples to clutch, as the slow music took over. Bet You By Golly Wow and Living For the Love of You were among the selections. One woman who had been standing on a raised area clutching onto her partner below, stepped down to twirl with him in true slow-stepping fashion.

And then it was a return to rockers with the S-90 Skank.