soul II soul
back II life
Jazzie B Interview by Sarah Bentley from 2006
Sarah Bentley is a London based music and youth culture journalist. She frequently contributes to Touch, Blues and Soul, ID, Timeout, Adrenalin, The Times, Marie Claire, XLR8R, The Fader and Riddim/Juice magazines.
Jazzie B, Wednesday 3rd May 2009
Location: V.C. Bird International Airport, Antigua
SB: How do you think the events gone this year?
JB: Great. I know its quite cliché but it's got better every year and matured beautifully. There's been a gradual swell of people coming each year and the old timers show the newcomers how it's done and of course the new comers inject their own spirit into the proceedings. All different types of people have embarked on the journey. Even though they are all different I'd say everyone is open minded, adventurous, into the vibe and the music. Even in the chaos there's an air of maturity to the proceedings. It's fun without being infantile. Well that's how it looks to me anyway.
SB: Do you remember when you first met Norman Jay?
JB: We all knew Norman as a record collector. That's what he was known for in the early 80's. Rather than just having soul or reggae he had a huge selection of everything. I don't remember the exact time we first met but I remember the first gig of mine he came to. You used to invite all the guys in the record shops cos you wanted them to know about your sound but they hardly ever came. Papa - I call him Papa, came down one night on his own to some jam I was holding in the darkest ends of Finsbury Park under a bridge in what we'd call a shebbez. I remember him coming in with his huge car stereo stuffed up his jacket looking worried saying where can I put it. I stashed it in my record box and we was friends ever since. If I see Norman every month or once a year it's the same. We've got shared history. Shame he's a bloody Tottenham fan.
SB: And Trevor?
JB: I knew Trevor from back in the day when he was doing his two-step thing. In the early 80's he was doing a nightclub and it got double booked with one of our nights. We tried to do it together but it wasn't really working cos we was doing like a fashion thing and our crowd was like taking over which Trevor wasn't that pleased about and was stomping about a bit freaked out giving it large. You see Soul II Soul we represented an entire lifestyle. It wasn't just about the music but the fashion and the attitude to life. At the time we was developing our own fashion and the whole funky dread philosophy. Our followers were just as much into the fashion as the music and the music as the fashion. It wasn't like fashion in the traditional way but more fashion as a feeling if that makes sense. We looked like who we were, what we were. That was always very important to us. It took years to groom that soul II soul look. We had a market stall in Camden. It was crazy we was the only black guys doing that kind of thing. We were mistaken for punks, rockers - you name it people were confused about what we were. On the stall we sold everything from records to clothes we'd designed and made ourselves to weird electronics and stuff from our various world travels. Anyway all this was going on so I think in the end Trevor just chilled and took it all in and DJ-ed anyway and after that we started doing parties together we Trevor DJ-ing and I think that crossed a lot of bridges and brought Soul II Soul to people that might have thought us a bit too far out. Even though we was a soul soundsystem with this huge fashion aspect going on we had the mentality of a reggae sound. We was like predators. We was known all around London. When everyone else was representing for north, south, east or west we just went everywhere.
SB: How did you get to know Rodigan?
JB: I used to go to his club Gossips on Dean Street in Soho. He was our Trevor Macdonald of reggae. I was a proper fan before I met him or worked with him. We got to now each other in the early Kiss FM days 1991 - just before it went legal.
SB: What was the thinking behind the Back II Life Antigua event?
JB: To unite all my peers and people I can relate to in one big party. Music is so personal it's hard to find people who you truly feel and these guys are the one's I've looked up to, learnt from and been inspired by over the years. It's a beautiful thing when you hear your music and it's an even more beautiful thing when it's played by your peers, under the stars in your own back garden.
SB: How has the event grown?
JB: We started small - maybe 50-60 people. I mean I used to have people back to my house for gatherings and little parties form way back so you could say that was the start. I was in Antigua in '98 for new years eve. Nigel who put the event on with was working out here running a bar and he asked me to DJ at his New Years Eve party. It turns out our families knew each other but it so happens our paths had never crossed which was funny as Nigel was part of and into exactly the same scene as me.
SB: How long have you lived in Antigua for?
JB: Before I had the house built I used to stay in Eric Clapton's house on and off for about ten years. I'd say I've had the house for another ten years. My family are Antiguan and I've taken full advantage of my jewel nationality. I've been travelling back and forth since the 80's. I used to call myself a Blackman with a passport. Soul II Soul has been based here as a business for the past 13, 14 years. This way I get the best of both worlds. I'm an entrepreneur. I've made it work for me so that I can live like this. As much as I love the Caribbean Soul II Soul could only have come into fruition in England, specifically London. You don't get the melting pot of styles and cultures in the Caribbean at the same level as in London.
SB: What makes the event so unique?
JB: It's hard to put your finger on it exactly. It's probably more for the people that came to say but what I'm trying to do is put on a party with spirit. I don't want it to turn into no big thing, Sure I won't turn down a bit of money or the opportunity for growth but not if it's at the cost of the event loosing it's soul. For me it's always been about the challenge. I do this for the love of it. It's about music and fun. I'm trying to put a party on I'd like to go to myself. You can't beat playing records in your own back garden. I'm vibing and feeling good and that spreads to people partying.
SB: What have the highlights of the event been over the years?
JB: Every party I've held at my house has been really special. The highlight for me is being in the arrivals lounge and seeing everyone arrive. That's a huge relief. This year the Rodigan party was really special as it was attended by a lot of locals. They're starting to get it this year and want to be part of it. I've been stopped on the road a lot by people wanting to say how much they enjoyed the party so we must be doing something right. Caribbean's don't give praise lightly.
SB: What is it about the event that makes people come back each year?
JB: The combination of having a week of parties where they don't have to think about anything. It's all laid on - music, drink, transport, great venues, and having free time to explore the real Antigua for themselves or just chill in the resort. This isn't a package holiday where people are herded around like cattle. It's a gathering of like minded people that come together four times over a week to let their hair down to some quality music in sublime settings. People come here strangers and leave life long friends. It's magic.
