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Pick it up tonight got musical originators, The Skatalites
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Times-Standard (Eureka), Pick it up tonight got musical originators, The Skatalites >>
Before the recent radio trend of ska bands No Doubt and the Mighty Mighty Bosstones, before the two-tone era of The Specials and English Beat and before Bob Marely and Peter Tosh went reggae, there was pure, dancehall ska. And at the height of the Jamaican scene in the early '60s were The Skatalites.
Rising as musicians wth training from church orchestras and school bands, The Skatalites and others belned jazz, calypso, and R&B to create a high-speed rhythm and tempo that became known as ska. Forty years and many releases later, The Skatalites have come out with "From Paris With Love," an infectious blend of classic dancehall classics.
Alto saxophonist Lester Sterling is considered to be "the leader." Drummer Lloyd Knibb and bassist Lloyd Brevett are the only other two originals from when the band started in 194, along with vocalist Doreen haffer. Although Shaffer does vocals on their latest recording, she'll be temporarily replaced on this tour by Deon Knibb. Other members incluse Greg Glassman, Cedric Brooks, Devon James, Ken Stewart, and Will Clark.
Manager and player Ken Stewart spoke in a phone interview from Long Beach about this involvment with the band.
"I went to see The Skatalites. I had been really into jazz and heard about ska. When I saw them I thought 'Man! This is the Crusaders gone reggae!' If there was any band that I wanted to be in, this was it," Stewart said. He said that six months later, he was in a Lloyd Knibbs side-band and the rest was history.
"I went from playing small clubs to playing Radio City Music Hall," Stewart said. "I was in shock over the whole thing."
Stewart's father was a jazz musician, so he grew up with the knowledge of syncopated rhythm, he said.
"I liked the improvisational part of it and really enjoy the various musicians I get to be involved with," Stewart said of the ska genre.
He shared a story of a 2001 tour to St. Petersburg, Russia, when the band was welcomed with overwhelming response. One pair of Russian musicians traveled over 8000 miles by train from Vladavirstock just to see The Skatalites perform. Members of the Latin American community have been known to travel to Europe to see the band. They're even big in Japan.
Lucky for local fans, you'll only have to travel a few miles to see the band, tonight at Six Rvers Bewery in Old Town. The show starts at 9 pm, doors open at 8:30 pm. 21 and over. Tickets are $15 in advance. For more info, call 268-3893. 05/01/03
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