Notting Hill Carnival 2020 Brochure

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Notting Hill Carnival 2020: Access All Areas

Notting Hill Carnival 2020: Access All Areas

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STAY SAFE & ENJOY #NHCatHome

www.craftrumbox.co.uk @craftrumbox

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Notting Hill Carnival 2020: Access All Areas

foreword For over 50 years Notting Hill Carnival has been uniting and empowering communities both locally and beyond. From its humble beginnings, Notting Hill Carnival has become the largest communityled Carnival in the world. NHC is in the hands of the people and this year we faced the ultimate challenge of being unable to gather on the streets to celebrate our Carnival.

Now, more than ever, it’s important to keep the spirit of Notting Hill Carnival alive, giving an outlet to the thousands of people that spend all year creating incredible costumes and music for Europe’s largest event. We will have a full programme of online activities taking place on Aug 29th, 30th and 31st.

This year’s unique Notting Hill Carnival has been filmed over a month-long period. This collaborative process brought together artists, sound systems, steelbands and mas bands of the Carnival community who make NHC so amazing every year. There will also be live performances and food and drink sessions to bring the taste of NHC to your homes.

Carnival is such an important part of people’s lives and a key celebration of Caribbean culture that welcomes all, and as such is inclusive and diverse, we all have a responsibility to our community and pioneers to honour that tradition. We also have a responsibility to protect the black community and our elders by respecting social distancing and taking

Carnival away from the streets for this year. So, the team at Notting Hill Carnival Ltd. have been working on an alternative for 2020. This year we may not be able to come together to celebrate on the streets of Notting Hill, but we can all still come together to celebrate one of the world’s greatest cultural events online via our website (www.nhcarnival.org).

Another ‘first’ this year is that all the profit from the sales of the Notting Hill Commemorative Brochure will go toward supporting St John Ambulance (a long term partner of NHC made up of volunteers) and Carnival Arts Development Fund. You can also donate via our website too. Proceeds from the sales of our limited-edition Carnival Essential Boxes from Craft Rum Box will also go toward supporting these two causes.

On behalf of myself, the board, our advisory council and the team here at Notting Hill Carnival Ltd., I hope you have an amazing time safely celebrating the spirit of Notting Hill Carnival 2020 at home this August Bank Holiday Weekend! We look forward to welcoming you back to the streets of Notting Hill in 2021.

With very best wishes,

Matthew Phillip CEO, Notting Hill Carnival Ltd.

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Notting Hill Carnival 2020: Access All Areas

Š 2020 The Coca-Cola Company. All rights reserved. COCA-COLA is a registered trade mark of The Coca-Cola Company.

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12 Ambassadors NHC Ambassadors are individuals who have strong ties with Notting Hill Carnival and have a deep-rooted love of it

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19 Access All Areas Behind the scenes of the 2020 digital Carnival 24 The History of NHC Carnival is so much more than just a party 30 Darcus Howe Excerpts from the Notting Hill Carnival archives

33 Vintage Carnival A look back at Carnival over the years, photos by Adrian Boot 36 Mas Means Masquerade The origins of mas come from ‘masquerade’ 46 Steel Pan Kevin Joseph looks at the history of the Steel pan since it first rang out in the UK 50 The Windrush Generation Nina Kelly looks at what we owe the Windrush Generation

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54 The Sound Systems Introduced to NHC in 1973, today there are over 30 static sound systems for all tastes 66 Norman Jay The Notting Hill Carnival veteran selects five classic tracks that have graced his Good Times Sound System over the years 70 Live Stages Capturing moments from the live stages of Carnival

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76 Ian Burrell The Global Rum Ambassador on why we shouldn’t be overlooking Rum

Notting Hill Carnival 2020: Access All Areas

82 Set The Trend: NHC special The popular podcasters bring you the story of unsung heroes and document an alternative history of the Sound System’s presence at NHC 86 Remembering Grenfell A message from Grenfell United 88 Calypso Calypso makes Carnival complete 92 NHC 2019 A look back at Carnival 2019 by photographer Keleenna Onyeaka

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Lets GoDo is proudly powering Notting Hill Carnival 2020: Access All Areas. The partnership will see this iconic annual event, for the first time in its 54 year history move online. This will culminate in a groundbreaking, free of charge, global experience across the 29th, 30th and 31st August.

The Let’s GoDo platform will enable people around the world, to celebrate the culture of Notting Hill Carnival like never before, through an Access All Areas concept made up of four unique ‘Experience’ channels: Culture, Parade, Soundsystems and MainStage.

Once registered with a login to LetsGoDo via www.letsgodo.com, users will be able to access each of the channels: allowing them to enjoy experiences of their choice across the three days.

With a phenomenally diverse schedule planned, Access all Areas will host both pre-recorded and live-streamed content that incorporates the Music, Food & Drink, Costume, History & Culture and Voices integral to the spirit of Notting Hill Carnival.

Alongside the four Access All Areas channels, Let’s GoDo will host an array of additional free of charge experiences that are dedicated to embracing the Notting Hill Carnival spirit. These will include, Food & Drink workshops true to the tastes of Notting Hill Carnival, Dance Classes across Brazilian Samba and Afrobeats, and much more.

Access All Areas, combined with the additional Let’s GoDo experiences, promises a not-to-be missed weekend, that will reinvent the landscape of online events, and define a new-age expectation from cultural experiences.

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Notting Hill Carnival 2020: Access All Areas

Notting Hill Carnival Team CEO Matthew Phillip Consultant Tara Hobson P.A. to CEO Kiana Williams Head of P.R. & Comms Mia Maugé Stewarding Operations Manager Tristan Haslock Programme Co-ordinator N aomi Fitzsimmons Collin Hills Anthea Husdon Advisory Council Trustees Board Adunni Adams (Chair) Ian Comfort (Chair) Ansel Wong Paul Anderson (B.A.S.S) Sonny Blacks Pamela Baker Debra Ann Eden Imani Douglas-Walker Fiona Hawthorne Debi Gardner (B.A.S) Everslie Mills (B.A.S) Linett Kamala Barbara Nyarko (C.A.M.F) Haroun Shah Clive Phillip Allyson Williams Katie Segal Ansel Wong Glen Falconer (B.A.S.S) Heather Elliott (C.M.A) Alexander Lowenthal (A.C.A.S.A) Notting Hill Carnival offices The Tabernacle 34-35 Powis Square London W11 2AY +44 (0) 20 7221 9700 office@nhCarnival.org

Front Cover Notting Hill Carnival 2019 Photo by Keleenna Onyeaka Instagram: @keleenna

© Keleenna Onyeaka

With thanks to Outside Org, Pester PR, Tania Townsend, Cody Eastmond, Tania Townsend, Jonathan Sexton, Robert ‘Biggie’ Ofungo, IN’KLU:SIV Creative, Kam King Group, Adrian Boot, Mark Painter and Keleenna Onyeaka

Published by Craft Rum Box Limited David McNabb, Director www.craftrumbox.co.uk Editorial Director Mia Maugé

Designed by Time & Leisure Creative Agency Lucy Kane, Creative Director Kevin Smith, Head of Design www.timeandleisuremedia.co.uk

©2020 Craft Rum Box Limited. While endeavouring to make sure that all published information is accurate, the publishers cannot be held responsible for mistakes or omissions. Reproduction in whole or part of any of the text, illustrations or photography without the express permission of the publisher is strictly forbidden. The opinions expressed in articles and accompanying literature are strictly those of the authors. Terms and conditions apply.

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Why I love Carnival

NHC Ambassadors are individuals who have strong ties with Notting Hill Carnival and a deep rooted love of it. They are passionate spokespeople for NHC and we are very proud to have each one contribute and support us as an organisation. They help us in making sure that Carnival is well represented to the media and the public at large.

Our current NHC Ambassadors are: A’sha Morris Why I love NHC

Notting Hill Carnival to me means everything about being a part of an amazing community and celebrating community spirit.

My favourite moment of carnival has to be last year when I was queen for my mas band and we went on to win for the fun fantasy children’s category.

My first Notting hill carnival experience was when I was a baby in a buggy parked up near a sound system with big headphones eating a pattie and enjoying watching everyone dancing in the crowds.

Notting Hill Carnival is unique because it has evolved to not only include the soca mass band community but to also embrace other cultures and music genres making in inclusive for all whether mas is your thing or not there is somewhere for you to enjoy!

My favourite thing about Notting hill carnival is performing with my mas band at the judging point and taking centre stage to show off all of our hard work over the summer creating such amazing costumes and concepts.

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Notting Hill Carnival 2020: Access All Areas

Alexandra Burke Why I love NHC

NHC means so much to me because of the culture and the history.

I come from a Jamaican family who have alway embraced and loved carnival. It’s the one time in the year where people of all cultures can come together and become one, through great music, food and a good vibe. I love how naturally the carnival weekend brings families and friends together.

My best NHC moment would simply have to be when I first became an ambassador. That moment of officially opening the carnival, cutting the ribbon was such an honour!

As I’m just a girl from Islington, to be asked to become the first ambassador- well words can’t express what that meant to me.

My first NHC experience was when I was very very young (maybe 4 or 5 years old) I just remember being there with my family and seeing my Aunty in particular having a great time! Trust me! Us as the kids my siblings and cousins) just had the best time running around and enjoying the music and soaking it all in!

NHC is unique not only because it is the worlds largest street festival.

But also the fact that no matter come rain, sunshine or storm - anyone that is a carnival goer will be loyal to carnival and make sure they turn up no matter the weather! For one weekend in the year Notting Hill is colourful, loud, happy, vibrant and loving. Carnival is a vibe that can’t be created anywhere else!

My favourite thing about the NHC carnival experience is walking through the streets of Ladbroke Grove. There is something special in the air, being surrounded by people in mas and seeing so much effort put into costumes and how confident it makes people feel is amazing.

The smell of the mouthwatering food cooking at the stalls that line the roads, and how many people that fill the carnival route and are content and vibin’. It’s truly the one time of the year that so many people look forward to. Because it simply is an unforgettable experience.

Colin Salmon Why I love NHC

Colin has been involved in Notting Hill Carnival for over 35 years. Firstly in a live band on the back of a truck in 1985 playing Trumpet “ lips like chopped liver after two days non stop.” He met artist Fiona Hawthorne in the area a year later and they married in 88. They now have 4 children together and were the driving force behind Fox Carnival Mas band for 17 years bringing hundreds of people to Carnival each year celebrating the art of local children.

As an actor Colin has managed to stay busy over his 30 year career and had early success in Emmy award winning Prime Suspect 2 closely followed by three 007 movies. Colin enjoyed playing Note Makoti alongside Jill Scott in Number One Ladies Detective Agency and the fireman dad in Some Girls as well as playing Walter Steele on Arrow and Mr Sands in Limitless. More recently he has finished two seasons of Krypton as General Zod and completed a new film with Bob Odenkirk called Nobody to be released later in the year.

Colin believes Carnival is one of the most important, influential artistic festivals anywhere combining costume, dance, live music and the invaluable sound systems. Caribbean/African heritage has been a force for centuries and Carnival continues to adapt and grow and give our artistic spirits a place to express, create and rebel. Colin says “It’s an honour to be an Ambassador for such a powerful source of joy and inspiration which is NottingHill Carnival.

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Fiona Compton Why I love NHC

NHC is a spiritual experience for me. It is like my pilgrimage to Mecca. Being part of Carnival is a spiritual practice that gives you a high that no drug or alcohol can induce or come close to, only do it’s best to replicate. What most see as a two extravaganza is a year long labour of love culminating in joyous communal chous as we celebrate all that is wonderful about or culture, as well as homage to our ancestors who celebrated their freedom from slavery.

The best thing about NHC for me is being in the middle of the road, surrounded by thousands - yet feeling like the road belongs to you,and you alone and just for a moment you close your eyes and sing, move with the soul of the drum - and everything around you becomes irrelevant. It’s about you and your internal experience.

My first NHC experience was almost 20 years ago, and I went as a spectator and after that I said I will NEVER do that again - I have to be part of it ! And every year since my participation has become more and more dedicated. What makes NHC unique is experiencing many versions of Carnival under one umbrella.

Grenada Jab, Brazillian Samba, Trinidad Pan, St.Lucian Dennery Segment - all of it can be found here.

My favourite thing about the NHC experience is watching the area transform into the magic of community, art and expression.

From a relatively quiet area , to the burst of life and colour that it is. Dirty mas is my favourite element of Carnival, because it represents the true essence of what Carnival is. It doesn’t matter who you are, what you look like, where you come from. Doesn’t matter if you are a supermodel or not - we are all the same, and how you look is the least important thing in Dirty Mas.

Levi Roots Why I love NHC

To me, carnival is the one time of year that we can truly celebrate everything “Caribbean” we are free to take to the streets, singing, dancing. It’s such a great time for everyone. I love the family day on Sunday. When all the kids are out in their costumes and they get to be a part of a little piece of history. The first time I went to Carnival I was a stall holder, I was trying out my Reggae Reggae sauce. It’s where we did all our market research, we were trying out the sauce to see if people loved it hot or not! NHC is the largest festival in Europe. There is nothing else quite like it. It is a combination of my favourite two things - music and food and you need them both for it to be truly a great experience! As one of the largest street festivals in the world, I am so proud that NHC is in our capital city London, the vibe, the music, the food..... its just the best!

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Maurisa Coleman Why I love NHC

Maurisa is the face of Channel 4’s ‘Humans’, starring in the promotional video that was aired internationally on both television and cinema, claiming further International attention by way of billboards, publications and newspapers. 2019 saw Maurisa take a sabbatical from film and fashion to focus her attention on her political ambitions. Despite her absence, Maurisa took on the position of second in command to owner Savita Kaye for LFW’s House of Ikons.

Maurisa is a strong voice in the Caribbean community with her continued interest and

Notting Hill Carnival 2020: Access All Areas

involvement in Carnival and promoting equality and fairness in the BAME community. As an ambassador she has been involved with Carnival for both promotional and planning activities for many years. She has been a key contributor to conversations in the communities with the Windrush debate and enquiries in the Grenfell fire. She was recently published on Conservatives Home calling on the government to further work on national diversity and interviewed

by Esther McVey MP founder of the BlueCollar Tories on the importance and meaning of the BLM protests and showing support for NHC at a national level. She has further featured in several publications in Carnival Costume including the advertising for Sony.

Rudolph Walker Why I love NHC NHC has become part of my Heritage and it is a wonderful sight for me to see first my children and now my grandchildren all born in the UK being part of this great event.

In the early days when the event moved from the Town Hall to Ladbroke Grove & Notting Hill, I recall after jumping up on the streets to the sound of steel pan for several hours, hungry and thirsty, descending into a basement flat manned by Corrine Skinner-Carter and several women, being welcomed

and served with a plate of rice and peas and stewed chicken and a glass of mauby and told to squeeze into a space on the stairs. This was at no cost to me. The ladies just cooked for friends who might just turn up.

One lasting memory was being caught up in a very heavy crowd of people with my wife and two very young children, my daughter the youngest on my shoulders, couldn’t move anywhere, and a group of youngsters spotting our difficulty stepped in and cleared a way for us.

Shakka

Triniboi Joocie

Notting Hill Carnival is both a physical, and spiritual embodiment of my ancestral traditions; a concrete roadmap to my awareness of self. At times where it may be difficult to find my place in the world, the Carnival is both the light that shows me where that place is, and the bridge to get there.

NHC means the opportunity to participate and perform on the biggest stage in celebration of Caribbean culture in Europe. It’s provided a platform for many individuals to come and celebrate the Caribbean culture.

NHC provides the opportunity for Caribbean artists to display their talents, while exhibiting a rich historical background. It means a freedom of expression.

Why I love NHC

The Mangrove Steel Band, the steel orchestra I had played for during my late teens and early adult life, had won the 2011 Panorama Steel Drum competition, after many years of battling against formidable opponents. The band played an integral role in my personal growth.

Learning a 9 minute orchestral piece, and preparing that performance takes months of discipline and physical human-power, all amidst a 9 to 5 or academic studies. (Setting up instruments whose average weight were 20kg meant that we didn’t need gym memberships).

The growth I saw in myself as a man, was the growth I saw in the band as a family, as the faces of fatigue and frustration, turned to embraces, and tears of joy, when the judges announced that we had won.

It’s hard to discover my first carnival experience, as I have never missed a carnival since birth, largely due to always having lived 30 seconds walk from Portobello Road (Portobello Market). My earliest experiences were either 5am wake up calls to help set up my mum’s food stand. If not that, then watching Bashy perform his underground smash and empowerment record “Black Boys” for the first time on the infamous Rampage Sound stage.

From the perspective of a musician, the music of the islands such as Trinidad, Grenada, St Lucia and many others, tends to be Soca, and at times, Calypso oriented. The black sound of London however, finds its home in Grime, Afro-Swing, and going further back to UK Garage, Jungle, and eventually Dancehall and the many colours of Reggae (Dub, Revival, Ska). NHC in my opinion, is unique mainly because of its marriage between the world of afro-Caribbean culture, and its home today.

Therefore, there is no outdoor period of celebration on planet earth, other than here, that has both a historical and contemporary celebration of black music, black history, and black culture, in such density, or variety.

And that is my favourite thing about the NHC experience.

Why I love NHC

My best NHC moment was in 2014 as I won the UK Road March Competition, which is a competition celebrating the song most played on the road over the two days of carnival. I was grateful enough to have the opportunity to celebrate this moment twice in 2014 & 2015.

My first experience of NHC was in 1998, when I was brought up from Trinidad and Tobago to play with Ebony Steel Band. At that time I was young but what stood out to me was the amount of non Caribbean people involved in the carnival and the atmosphere consisting of Caribbean food and music.

NHC is a very unique Carnival because in the Caribbean the music played in Carnival is predominantly Soca and Calypso whereas in NHC they have allowed other genres of music to be heard such as Afrobeats, Reggae & Dubstep. This I believe broadens the marketing of the carnival allowing new audiences to attend each year.

My favourite thing about NHC is the celebration of Steel Band, the procession on the road and being an active Soca artist for 10 years, it gives me the opportunity to move from truck to truck joining the masqueraders as they celebrate NHC.

For more information visit www.nhcarnival.org Notting Hill Carnival 2020: Access All Areas

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Photo by Jack Taylor/Getty Images

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*SCAN QRAll CODE Notting Hill Carnival 2020: THIS Access AreasTO CHECK OUT THE DIGITAL PROGRAMME.

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Notting Hill Carnival 2020 online for one year

The Carnival experience at home!

The arts, music and food of the Notting Hill Carnival goes online for 2020. Steel Bands, Sound Systems, Mas Bands, Brazilian Bands, Calypso and Soca performances, food and drink shows, interviews, big name performances alongside emerging artists and so much more.

August Bank Holiday - Saturday 29, Sunday 30 & Monday 31 August OďŹƒcial microsite at www.spotify.com/Carnival Carnival Warm-Up Steelpan Show & Calypso & Groovy Soca Channel 1: Saturday 29 August 6pm - Midnight Carnival Culture Channel 1: Saturday 29 August, 9am - 12pm Parade Channel Channel 2: Sunday 30 & Monday 31 August, 12pm - 8pm Sound System Channel Channel 3: Sunday 30 & Monday 31 August, 12pm - 8pm Main Stage Channel Channel 4: Sunday 30 & Monday 31 August, 8pm - 11pm

www.nhcarnival.org @NHCarnivalLDN

@nhCarnivalldn

@NHCarnivalLDN

Get The Official Notting Hill Carnival App - Apple & Android

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access all areas In this unprecedented year and for the first time in its 54 year history, Notting Hill Carnival has moved entirely online, opening up to a global audience that can share in one of the world’s great events.

It will take place over the August bank holiday weekend - 29, 30 and 31 August Notting Hill Carnival was founded to bring people together during trying times, and that legacy will continue. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was announced in May that the Carnival could not take its usual form this year but there will be an alternative - Notting Hill Carnival: Access All Areas.

Streamed for free over four separate channels from 6pm - Midnight 29th August and 9am - 11pm Sunday & Monday 30th & 31st August details on how to register can be found at www.NHCarnival.org.

Spotify will also be showing its support for Notting Hill Carnival as an official partner for 2020. The collaboration will see a dedicated Spotify microsite launch later in August, highlighting the importance of Carnival culture to the UK. www.spotify. com/Carnival will feature brand new playlists curated by each of the official sound systems and the DJs of Carnival.

The site will also host podcast episodes covering everything from Notting Hill Carnival’s rich history to current issues facing the Black community, as well as very special guest takeovers of some of the UK’s

biggest dancehall, reggae, soca and afrobeat playlists, including the flagship Who We Be. This three-day spectacle of music, dancing, food and drink will be brought to you by those that have made Notting Hill Carnival the breathtaking weekend we love today.

With more names to be announced, here is a snapshot of some of the performers you will be able to enjoy...

There will be exclusive sets from legendary Sound systems of Notting Hill Carnival and includes Volcano, Arts-A-Light, Disya Jeneration, Gaz’s Rockin Blues, Seduction City, KCC & The Rockin Crew, King Tubby’s, Love TKO, Mark Ross, Rampage, Rough But Sweet, G T Flex Roadshow, CMC Matrix and Solution Sound.

The magnificence of Calypso and Soca comes courtesy of Ms Desire, Brown Sugar, Rev B, Latoya, G-String, Triniboi Joocie, De Admiral, Clivus, Muffinman, Batch, Dansa, Alexander D Great, Helena B, DeeVine, Soca Kidd, Sunshine & Nadiva, D’Alberto, Masterlink, Nigel Isaacs and The Divette’s.

The incredible sound of the Steelpan comes from Panash, Pan Nation, Panectar, St Michaels and All Angels, Reading All Steel Percussion Orchestra, Stardust Arts, Steel Pan In Motion, UFO, Nostalgia, Ebony, Mangrove, Metronomes, Real Steel and Brazilian bands Baque De Axe and Tribo The colour and panache of Mas is brought

“This three-day spectacle of music, dancing, food and drink will be brought to you by those that have made Notting Hill Carnival the breathtaking weekend we love today.”

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Notting Hill Carnival 2020: Access All Areas

to you by Notting Hill Carnival bands The Bride Outreach, Calabash, Flamboyan, Colours, Burrokeets, DUKA, Tempo Mas, Funatiks, Urban Touch, Ebony Mas, Island Mas, D Riddim Tribe, Karnival Mania, Soca Massive, Jamaica Twist, Vibrance, Cocoyea, Elimu, Mahogany, Elevate, Flagz, Gemz, Saga Boys, Hot Wax, Genesis, CAPCA, Mangrove Mas, Tropical Fusion, IDF and Designers Tiffany Thompson and Edrahil Lucifer. There will also be performances from other well known UK and international artists.

This year’s unique Notting Hill Carnival has been filmed over a month-long period.

This collaborative process brought together members and bands of the Carnival community who make Carnival so amazing every year, Notting Hill Carnival Ltd in partnership with Let’s Go Do and with the support of Kensington and Chelsea Council, Westminster Council and the Greater London Authority.

Matthew Phillip, Executive Director of Notting Hill Carnival - “This year we faced the ultimate challenge of being unable to gather on the streets to celebrate our Carnival. But, now, more than ever, it’s important to keep the spirit of Notting Hill Carnival alive, giving an outlet to the thousands of people that spend all year creating incredible costumes and music for Europe’s largest event.

DOING OUR DUTY TO PROTECT THE COMMUNITY. NHC 2020 is online. Giving you Access All Areas. We urge everyone to stay in the safety of their homes and enjoy a full programme of events from Aug 29th-31st.

Go to www.aaa.nhcarnival.org for an immersive celebration of Notting Hill Carnival. You will experience the hype of the sound systems, the energy of the mas bands.. there will be performances from the big names alongside emerging talent, food and drink demonstrations and lots more. All from the comfort and safety of your home. We are bringing the Carnival spirit to you... to protect lives.

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Photos by Collin Hills: Behind the scenes filming Access All Areas 2020

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Notting Hill Carnival 2020: Access All Areas

Thank you to our ‘Notting Hill Carnival 2020: Access All Areas’ Partners

And our Official Photography Partners, Getty Images, who very kindly donated the use of their images for this publication

Additional photography with thanks to Adrian Boot, Collin Hills, Keleenna Onyeaka and Mark Painter

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the history Carnival is so much more than just a party, we have a rich heritage that deserves to be acknowledged.

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Photo by Keystone/Getty Images

Kelso Cochrane

Kelso Cochrane was a 32 year old, Antiguan born carpenter, and aspiring lawyer, living in Notting Hill at a time when racial tensions were high. He died after a racially motivated attack on Southam Street (off Golborne Road) Notting Hill on May 17th 1959 (today a blue plaque marks the spot).

Kelso Cochrane Funeral

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His murder had a huge impact on race relations. Reportedly, there were over 1,200 attendees at his funeral. Many of whom came to demonstrate solidarity and a show of defiance against racism locally.

Activism was stepped up to Whitehall when it was felt the investigation into the

Photo by Edward Miller/Keystone/Getty Images

The late Political Activist and Broadcaster, Darcus Howe, once said “If there weren’t race riots in Notting Hill I don’t believe that we would have had the Notting Hill Carnival. If it wasn’t for the murder of Kelso Cochrane, Carnival wouldn’t have happened.”

© Hulton-Deutsch Collection/CORBIS/Corbis via Getty Images

Whitehall demonstration

murder was complacent, and allegations of a police cover up began to circulate (the case is unsolved to date). Rab Butler, the then Home Secretary, made an appeal for witnesses in Parliament and went on to launch a public inquiry into race relations.

Much activity to ease racial tension within the Notting Hill area preceded Cochrane’s murder, leading to a children’s street fayre organised my local resident and community activist, Rhaune Laslett. Laslett is reported to have said of her community and her event “We felt that although West Indians, Africans, Irish and many others nationalities all live in a very congested area, there is very little communication between us. If we can infect them with a desire to participate, then this can only have good results.” It was this small community children’s street fayre back in the mid 60s that would morph into what we now know as Notting Hill Carnival.

Claudia Jones, a Trinidadian human rights activist based in London, put on a BBC broadcasted indoor ‘Caribbean Carnival’ at St Pancras Town Hall back in 1959. She is widely credited with planting the seeds for Carnival in the UK by doing so.

An appetite for the indoor Caribbean Carnival was fed by Trinidadian husband and wife booking agents Edric and Pearl Connor who along with many partners including the West Indian Gazette (which was founded by Claudia Jones) began promoting indoor events in halls dotted around 1960s London.

Claudia Jones

In 1966 the first outdoor festival took place in the streets of Notting Hill. A local resident and social worker Rhaune Laslett – a Londoner of Native American and Russian descent – organised an event for local children.

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Russell Henderson

Leslie Palmer MBE

Rhaune Laslett ©Val Wilmer

With over a million expected visitors over the August Bank Holiday, London’s NHC is second only to Brazil’s Rio Carnival in size 26

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As an established community activist with a history of addressing and easing intercultural tension in the area since the violent race-riots of the 1950s, she set out to include the local West Indian residents in her event.

Rhaune invited well-known pan player Russell Henderson, who was accompanied by his pan band members Sterling Betancourt, Vernon “Fellows” Williams, Fitzroy Coleman and Ralph Cherry.

The band were already popular amongst the Caribbean community, having been regulars at the indoor Carnival events. As Laslett had intended, many local Caribbean residents attended, and her vision of an outdoor multicultural community celebration was a huge success: the first event saw Henderson’s steelband weave its way

Eddie Grant performs at the Notting Hill Carnival 1980

through Portobello Road as a trail of locals spontaneously gathered and danced in the street to the sound of pan. the first Notting Hill Carnival was officially born.

Today’s Notting Hill Carnival Notting Hill Carnival is still proudly a community-led event, its ever-increasing popularity over the last 5 decades has seen it become the wonderfully diverse and vibrant event it is today.

With over a million visitors expected over the August Bank Holiday, London’s NHC is second only to Brazil’s Rio Carnival in size, and is now one of the globe’s largest annual arts events. NHC is considered to be the largest street event in Europe.

Whilst Notting Hill Carnival is rooted in Caribbean culture, with its Windrush-

generation influence remaining strongly evident, it is at the same time characteristically ‘London’ – today’s modern London.

talents Aswad and Eddie Grant, who both went on to become two of the UK’s biggest musical exports.

Uniquely NHC is the only full-scale Carnival in the world to feature multiple static sound systems – a feature introduced in 1973 by the then NHC organiser Leslie Palmer MBE.

In the 90s, hip hop legends like Jay Z, Lil’ Kim and Busta Rhymes all performed on an NHC live stage, more recently the likes of Stormzy, Wiley, Craig David, Giggs, Major Lazer, Mr Eazi and Stefflon Don. 2018 saw the launch of ‘the Wilf Walker Community Stage’ in Hormiman’s pleasant park. a stage dedicated to giving a platform to emerging talent predominantly from the local community.

There are live performances too. the first stages were organised by Wilf Walker in 1979, chiefly featuring reggae and punk bands.

Wilf’s early live stages featured performances Wilf Walker OBE from emerging

NHC live stages and ‘trucks’ (floats) also host performances from British-based calypso artists like Alexander D Great and De Admiral, as well as internationally known soca artists like Bunji Garlin and Machel Montano.

WORDS: MIA MAUGÉ

Notting AccessAccess All Areas 2020 Notting Hill Hill Carnival: Carnival 2020: All Areas

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© DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS/AFP via Getty Images

the road is for Carnival Since its launch the mid 60s, Notting Hill Carnival has established itself as one of the largest and finest street events in the world, with its roots and organisation firmly planted in London’s Caribbean community.

The area of ‘Grove’ (Notting Hill) welcomes crowds of over a million, from all over the world, who each year flock to this vibrant corner of West London; hardcore Carnivalists and curious spectators alike.

However it has not been an easy journey, with many a battle fought, and won, for its survival. In 1977, following the clashes with police of the previous year, many hard liners were calling for the end of Carnival as we know it, with plans to confine it to a park in White City. The threat was serious, and the community reacted accordingly. One key intervention came from within the pages of ‘Race Today’, a black political journal, edited by the late Darcus Howe, which mounted a strategic and relentless campaign to keep Carnival on the streets.

The following extracts are taken from “The Road Make to Walk on Carnival Day”, their 24 page pamphlet that made the case for the Carnival that we know and love today. They provide historic context and a reminder of the social and political importance of Notting Hill Carnival. It is more than just a party, it is a movement. All the articles have been published in Race Today between July 1974 and June 1977.

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Illustrations by Una Howe

It’s taken a worldwide pandemic to take Carnival off the street.This year we had to put community first, and protect our residents and the elderly from Covid-19, by going online for 2020…. Something we would never wish to do, when we know the historical struggle our community has faced to keep it on the road.

Our relationship to Carnival is, that through the influences of Darcus Howe, editor of Race Today, and an activist in the Carnival movement, both in Trinidad and in this country, we have consistently regarded this festival as the most important, independently organised, social and political activity by West Indians in Britain. He is also an honorary life-member of Renegades Steelband, from East Dry River, Port of Spain, Trinidad, a distinction accorded to him in recognition of his commitment to the steelband movement.

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The Story of Carnival in Britain is a significant part of the history of the West Indian community, a community that has settled here and retained its cultural and political links with the international movement of black people. Carnival has now established itself as the most important annual mass event, in the life of black Britain. It brings together over a quarter of a million Caribbean people on to the streets of Notting Hill. It has inevitably become not only a cultural festival, but an arena for the demonstration of the political forces that

take this cultural opportunity to gather and make themselves felt. As such, the British state and its law enforcement machinery, view Carnival in the same way that their colonial counterparts did in the West Indies. The humiliating defeat, inflicted by young blacks on the police army deployed at Carnival 1976, has echoes of the bloody battles in Trinidad in 1881 when a similar effort to stop Carnival was defeated.

Following the street battles of Carnival ’76 and, in the face of increased hostility from the police and other authorities, two questions remained to be answered: Would Carnival take place again? If so, what would be the organising body and whose interests would it serve?

For the continued existence of Carnival in 1977, it has been necessary to mount a campaign aimed at winning the struggle to keep Carnival on the streets. A major part of this campaign has been aimed at convincing members of the Carnival Development Committee (CDC) – the organising body responsible for staging the event – on particulars of organisation and strategy, to preserve Carnival’s independence and strengthen it to resist those forces ranged against its existence. This pamphlet represents a weapon in this campaign.

The programme and policy which we have put forward for Carnival, starts from the self-evident fact that there can be no Carnival without workers of Carnival – the mas men and women, the steelbands men and women, the sound systems organisers and the stall holders.

It was a recognition of these facts that cemented our relationship with the body of Carnival workers who form the Carnival Development Committee, and who elected Darcus to be chairman of the committee. With Darcus’ acceptance of this task, in April 1977, Race Today committed its organisation and platform to winning a police-free Carnival and to placing before the black community the democratic structures through which its cultural and political struggle will, in our view, be extended.

Race Today Collective - July 1977

CARNIVAL IN A STRANGE LAND Origins The Carnival festival is peculiarly Trinidadian, held annually on the Monday and Tuesday immediately preceding Lent.

It has been, historically, a working class festival staged by the African section of the Trinidad and Tobago working class.

Denied all outward expression of the African experience, the slave community socialised in their thousands on the sugar plantations, appropriated the French colonial form and infused it with a West Indian content. On the two days, small groups and individuals would disguise themselves and parade through the streets, mimicking their masters. As the working class grew in strength and confidence, new creative forces were unleashed. The groups grew in numbers and the costumes became more elaborate and daring.

With the end of slavery, the postcolonial economy fostered permanent unemployment. From within this section of the working class, the steelband, as a musical art from, emerged to give new creative depth to the Carnival festival The colonial authorities did not allow the festival to develop unchecked. Always in fear of large gatherings of the working class, for whatever purposes, slave laws, banning

gatherings and processions, were evoked to destroy Carnival. Riots ensued as the working class defied the ban, subsequently forcing the authorities to concede.

The sheer dynamism of Carnival produced the calypsonian, the poet of the working class, who, in verse and song, recorded the concrete experiences, the fantasies, the hopes and aspirations (political and social) of a people making their way in the brutal conditions of the new world.

Calypso and steelband go hand in hand, the former providing the largest slice of the songs played by the latter. This twin relationship survives until today; stylistic changes in one area, informing the development of the other.

Post Second World War Trinidad and Tobago, like every other Caribbean society, was decimated by mass unemployment and under-employment. Low wages strangled the few who could get work. As a consequence, thousands of workers emigrated to North America and Britain. To these territories, we brought little material possessions; what we did bring was ourselves, in which resided the whole history of Caribbean society – steelband, calypso, Carnival and all.

Surrounded on all sides by a cultural climate which, however unwittingly, demanded

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By 1975, Carnival in Notting Hill had been established as a major social occasion in the lives of Londoners.

An attendance of 250,000 people, overwhelmingly black, was proof positive of this fact. an elimination of our former selves, we re-christened Britain – Babylon. In overcrowded rooms, basement shebeens, we sought to recreate, in a strange land, the sprit which informed Carnival. Every Trinidadian carried a long face on the day Carnival was celebrated back home.

The Colherne Pub in Earls Court was the first social institution to reflect the search of the Trinidadian personality for a distinct cultural expression here in Babylon. There, Russell Henderson, Sterling Betancourt and Vernon Fellows, former steelbandsmen and Carnival bandleaders in the home town, entertained West Indians with calypso and jazz. It became known as the Sunday school, a welcome break from the cultural aggression that we faced in the factories, the universities and the mass media.

The demanding audience at the Colherne forced the organisers to break new barriers, and, in 1965, the idea of Carnival in London was born. Notting Hill was chosen as the venue. It was the closest to being liberated territory. The West Indian community had fought off the racists in the famous Notting Hill riots of 1958. The community had put up a major resistance to police brutality, and, in so doing, established itself as a major bridgehead in the struggle of black people in Britain.

Where the social organisation at the Sunday school produced the idea, the community organisation in Notting Hill would give it roots.

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the particular circumstances of Caribbean social and political life.

All in all, the strength and weakness of a Carnival festival is the measure of the stage of development of the West Indian community in Britain. The festival is not and has never been organised by a group of professional impresarios. Neither has the government or any other official body any say in its organisation and preparation. From a small makeshift steelband and 500 revellers in the year 1965, Notting Hill’s black community threw up an organising committee responsible for the event. It has a constitution of its own and the committee includes all the different groups whose activities form the body of the Carnival – steelbandsmen, soundsmen, masqueraders, organisers of competitions and other individuals.

The first ever Carnival in London was held on August Bank Holiday, 1965. One steelband and 500 revellers represented little more than a makeshift operation.

It appeared then that the community still lacked the confidence to parade its experiences, hopes and aspirations openly.

That was still to come. After eight years of teasing, the carnival took on a mass creative form in 1973. More steelbands surfaced, supplemented by reggae music. Costumes appeared for the first time, though largely borrowed from participants in Trinidad.

In any event, the technical detail involved in bringing order to a Carnival in which 250,000 people participate is immense. To present a steelband, which parades the streets for two grinding days, needs more than musicians; a sense of organisation and discipline is essential. There were eight steelbands on the streets in 1975 and all but one stood the test. The same measure applied to the organisation of masqueraders. Not many of the steelbands or masqueraders would have been disgraced in terms of quality on the streets of Port of Spain, Trinidad, where experience and technique have the benefit of decades of trial and error.

In 1974, 100,000 people and a dozen bands with costumes prepared here in Britain. The band, ‘Rebels on Remand’, portrayed by the youths of Notting Hill, was the first concrete experience to be projected. Wearing prison outfits, they displayed the lot of black youths in the urban situation. Other bands appropriated fantasies and gave them concrete art form. It was the first Carnival festival to approach the mass creativity of its counterpart in Trinidad.

Within a period of eight weeks, July to August 1975 two million Caribbeans celebrated Carnival in five metropolitan centres. In Montreal and Toronto, Boston and New York and then to London, we held the streets, thousands at a time.

We demonstrated, across the Atlantic, the vitality, creativity and sense of social discipline that is distinctly West Indian.

1975 – Carnival comes of age By 1975, Carnival in Notting Hill had been established as a major social occasion in the lives of Londoners. An attendance of 250,000 people, overwhelmingly black, was proof positive of this fact. It was our 10th anniversary, and by far the most successful attempt at making concrete here in London, a festival which originated and developed in

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Two million West Indians on the streets of North American and Europe uncovered the new West Indian nation, one which is no longer confined within the geographical limits of the islands.

Originally published by Race Today in July 1977 Article kindly donated by The Darcus Howe Legacy Collective - Preserving the life, work, voice and ideas of one of the most influential and dedicated independent political activists of Britain and the Caribbean.

Vintage Carnival Notting Hill Carnival through the years.

2005 © Mark Painter / Urbanimage.tv

1979 © Adrian Boot / Urbanimage.tv

1979 © Adrian Boot / Urbanimage.tv

2005 © Mark Painter / Urbanimage.tv

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1989 © Adrian Boot / Urbanimage.tv

Dread Broadcasting Corporation Reggae DJ Lepke at Carnival 1981 © Adrian Boot / Urbanimage.tv

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2014 © Adrian Boot / Urbanimage.tv

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1979 © Adrian Boot / Urbanimage.tv

2005 © Adrian Boot / Urbanimage.tv

2014 © Adrian Boot / Urbanimage.tv

2004 © Mark Painter / Urbanimage.tv

1981 DJ Don Letts

© Adrian Boot / Urbanimage.tv

1989 © Adrian Boot / Urbanimage.tv

2005 © Mark Painter / Urbanimage.tv

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mas means masquerade Mas Bands create and provide the costumes for NHC. Each registered band has a new theme annually, and the general public are welcome to purchase a costume and join a band to ‘play mas’ on the parade route at Carnival. Each mas band is assessed by official judges at the judging point (south on Great Western Road) across both days.

The winning mas bands are announced on social media.

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Photo by Peter Summers/Getty Images

The origins of mas, from the word ‘masquerade’, go back to the 1800s with the emancipation of slavery in the Caribbean. Prior to their freedom, the slaves would mimic and ridicule the masters, copying the elaborate gowns worn at their celebration balls and combining them with many African traditions of their former cultures – which included costumes made with bones and natural products, and blue devils playing music with tins and bamboo.

Once the slaves were freed from the French, Spanish and English, they would openly continue and elaborate on these foundations, so Caribbean carnival developed as a fusion of African and European traditions and culture. Alongside individual costumes, there are several specific, named characters that became part of this tradition - and which still exist today. Some of the most popular of these are the ‘Dame Lorraine’, who wears long skirts with an exaggerated backside and is accompanied by string music; a ‘Midnight Robber’, who resembles a depiction of Death as he eloquently proclaims his greatness wearing an oversized hat, and often carries skulls, weapons and a coffin for the collection of coins; the ‘Burrokeet’, resembling a satin-clad rider on a donkey constructed as a bamboo skirt, and which has a specific dance; the ‘Pierrot Grenade’, wearing multi-coloured rags and carrying a whip to draw attention to his comedic speeches, whose name denotes his joint roots in the French clown Pierrot and in the island of Grenada; the ‘Fancy Sailor’, an elaborate and decorated sailor with a papier-mâché headpiece and several of his own dances to choose from.

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Photo by Stuart C. Wilson/Getty Images

Fast forward a little, and whilst Trinidadians continued to tread the annual Carnival road, many also chose a different and more permanent path and headed for a new life in Britain as part of the Windrush Generation. In 1959, Trinidadian Claudia Jones, a community activist, recognised that something should be done to unite the community in response to the worrying state of race relations. She held her first of several indoor Caribbean Carnivals that

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year, at St. Pancras Town Hall; a ‘Carnival Cabaret’ featured at the event, which would have been the UK’s first sight of anything resembling Caribbean carnival costumes.

One of the personal accounts of the history of Notting Hill Carnival comes from a secretary who worked with Rhaune Laslett, a social worker and activist in the Ladbroke Grove area. She reported that in the early 60s, Trinidadian women from

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Tavistock Road, near Ladbroke Grove, went to Rhaune’s office for help. They’d chat, telling her about carnival back home and wishing they could be there to experience it. She thought it sounded like a wonderful celebration, and suggested that they could do something similar in the area. This was the first outdoor, street festival, and it was decided that it should be held in August when children were on holiday from school and could participate fully. Both children

Both photos: DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS/AFP via Getty Images

and adults paraded through the streets of Ladbroke Grove in costume; children’s costumes were made by the women, with materials sourced from a costume shop on Kensington High Street, and there was a man who ran a taxi firm on all Saints Road who came and played the king.

In the coming years, distinct bands of masqueraders appeared on the road, for example those led by Trinidadian Lawrence

Noel, Dominican Silma Faustine, and Trinidadian Peter Minshall, who later became a celebrated costume designer and true icon of the artistry of mas, back home in Trinidad. By the mid 70s, a Carnival Development Committee had been formed to secure funding and develop the carnival.

Soon there was more involvement from people from other parts of the Caribbean; costumes were heavily influenced by those countries’ national wear, African dress and

historic portrayals, and each band would have a theme.

By 1980, the Arts Council had fully recognised mas as an art form and so, if you were a designer and wanted to bring a costume band on the road, funding was available. There were 10 to 12 mas bands in Carnival by then, but there was still no fixed route - they could go up and down whichever roads they felt like honouring

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with their presence. There was also a hugely anticipated costume gala held each year, for both adults and children. In the early years the event took place in a huge tent set up in Wormwood Scrubs playing fields.

The King, Queen and Individual costumes were paraded through the tent, in at one end and out at the other, whilst everyone scrambled to get ready on the grass outside.

The gala later graduated to other venues around London such as the Linford Christie Stadium, the Commonwealth Institute, Alexandra Palace, the Millennium Dome and Olympia.

In 1984, the London School of Samba was the first samba band to perform at the Notting Hill Carnival. Samba music and traditions represent the African / Brazilian carnival culture, which began in Bahia in the eighteen hundreds when African slaves celebrated their freedom due to the abolition of slavery. Today, the Rio carnival features around a hundred samba schools; there are hundreds of samba schools in Brazil, which teach members the art of dance, music and drumming, and this tradition is continued here in London.

Another important element of Caribbean carnival is J’Ouvert, from the French jour ouvert, the opening of the day, and is the official start of the carnival festivities.

Revellers spill onto the streets from around 4am, in costumes made from old clothes. This is called ole (‘old’) mas, and presents witty and satirical themes of social commentary. Another feature of J’Ouvert is mud mas, when people get covered in mud, oil, paint or pigmented powder. A modified version of this tradition has existed in the UK on Carnival Sunday since 1996, when a J’Ouvert-style band appeared on the streets of London - not in the early hours, but

Photo by Venla Shalin/Redferns

throughout the day. This has been termed dutty (‘dirty’) mas, and combines some of both the ole mas and mud mas traditions.

That first band used liquid chocolate instead of the more indelible substances that feature in the Caribbean; there are now several chocolate, water- based paint and mud bands to choose from on the Sunday - if you’re brave enough to take the plunge. The dutty mas bands also have launch events and websites where you can go to register.

“The range and variety of the costume bands has considerably influenced the development of the Notting Hill Carnival as one of Europe’s most significant cultural events” 40

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Claire Holder, the longest serving Chair of the Carnival committee from 1989 to 2002, instituted appearance fees and prizes for the mas bands as well as securing significant corporate sponsorship for the carnival as a whole. This was important for the bands, both in terms of recognition of the art form and in giving them opportunities for development.

Another important part of the imported carnival culture was the mas camp, a workshop (often someone’s front room) used by a band to design and produce their costumes in-house, but which doubled as a place to socialise whilst helping to make costumes. There was always food, drink and music in a mas camp.

There has been a progression, partially influenced by samba costumes from Brazil, towards increasingly skimpier costumes in a

style often referred to as ‘bikini and beads’, where the emphasis is more on aesthetics than a narrative or depiction of a theme.

But running alongside this there are those who are harking back to more traditional mas, even still representing some of those traditional figures. Other designers are developing their own contemporary take on the traditional ethos, redefining mas in the modern age. The range and variety of the costume bands has considerably influenced the development of the Notting Hill Carnival as one of Europe’s most significant cultural events.

All of the variations and more are to be found amongst the 70 plus bands on the road at Notting Hill Carnival Monday. Many bands have now outsourced their costumemaking, either overseas or elsewhere in the UK, but there are still a handful of more traditional mas camps around. Whether

you’d like to make costumes or just wear one on the road, you need to do some research and see what’s out there.

Most bands hold a launch event at some point between April and July, where they show their costumes and often allow preliminary registration. You don’t need to attend, but it’s a great opportunity to go and see the costumes in person – and get a taste of the music and party atmosphere at the same time.

It’s possible to view and register for costumes afterwards, online. There’s a price range for each band, with some more expensive than others depending on the costume you opt for and the extras you choose. Most are allinclusive, so as well as your costume you’ll be provided with food and drink, music and security throughout the day.

Each band has their own system in place regarding when and from where costumes

should be collected, where and when you should meet them on the day, and what happens during the day. It’s good to be aware that a highlight is when the band reaches the judging point, and gets the opportunity to display the costumes, section by section, in all their glory. These things are important, so make sure you check everything in advance.

As the August Bank Holiday approaches, the realisation grows that you’re about to participate in a significant aspect of Caribbean culture and anticipation mounts.

And when you’ve thought through the accessories you’ll want to properly portray your costume and the essentials you’ll need to make it through the day, we challenge you to not feel the excitement!

WORDS: ALLYSON WILLIAMS MBE AND KATIE SEGAL

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Photo by Daniel Berehulak/Getty Images

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steel pan 46

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Photo by Museum of London/Heritage Images/Getty Images

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It was steelpan that rang out the first sound of Carnival on the streets of Notting Hill in the mid 1960s. Russell Henderson and his band had been invited by Rhaune Laslett to play pan at the children’s street fayre she had organised.

Russell decided to ‘make ah rounds’, and, with pan round neck, the band took the first steps into what has now become the biggest street event in Europe. Steelpan remains an integral element of Notting Hill Carnival today.

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Photo by Peter Summers/Getty Images

The Steel Pan instrument made its first appearance on British TV in 1950, thanks to Trinidadian creative Boscoe Holder and his Caribbean Dancers. The first steel drums performed on his own television show, Bal Creole, broadcast on BBC Television on 30th June 1950.

With the exposure of the instrument so widely broadcast the previous year, The Trinidad All Steel Percussion Orchestra (TASPO) were invited to play in the summer of 1951 on the Southbank in London as part of the ‘Festival of Britain’.

This was the first time the British public came into direct contact with the instrument. It was hard to comprehend how a 55 gallon oil drum could make musical sound let alone be used to play melodies of songs and the public literally

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looked under the steel pans to check the sound was actually coming from the instrument.

Many of the TASPO players decided to remain in the UK to pursue their love of music and spread knowledge about the steel pan, which at the time was struggling to be accepted as an instrument in the world of music due to its creation less than a decade before and the lack of proof that the instrument could accurately control its pitch, tone and cover the chromatic scale.

Russell Henderson arrived in the UK in 1951, an established recorded pianist from Trinidad. He was exposed to the early birth of the Steel pan and when he arrived in London he teamed up with

drummer and accomplished steel pannist, Sterling Betancourt, one of the original TASPO players to remain in the UK after the Festival Of Britain. They enlisted the help of Mervyn Constantine, Max Cherrie and his brother Ralph Cherrie, at different stages of the band performing as a trio, they formed ‘The Russell Henderson Calypso Band’.

They were quickly identified as brilliant entertainers, having regular bookings for clubs and small venues, which eventually led to them being the first steel band to play for royalty at a garden party in Buckingham Palace. The band amazed audiences wherever they played the steel pan.

Hill - Ukrainians, Spanish, Portuguese, Irish, Caribbean’s and Africans - to contribute to a week-long event that would culminate with an August bank holiday parade.... she borrowed costumes from Madame Tussaud’s; a local hairdresser did the hair and make-up for nothing; the gas board and fire brigade had floats; and stallholders in Portobello market donated horses and carts.

Around 1,000 people turned up, according to police figures.”

Involved with its conception and present throughout Notting Hill Carnivals history,

steel bands are an integral part of Notting Hill Carnivals tradition. Bringing the unique sound and energy of the Caribbean to the streets of London. It takes year round, and even lifelong dedication to master the steel pan.

The annual steel pan ‘Panorama’ event and Notting Hill Carnival are where the best of the best pan players and steel pan bands from all over the United Kingdom really showcase their skills.

WORDS: KEVIN JOSEPH @kevrjoseph

In April 1964, Russell’s band was invited

by Rhaune Laslett to play steel drums at her annual children’s event on Tavistock Road, W11. Russell’s steel band were met with rapturous applause and an encore was requested, it was at this point Russell decided to really give his audience a taste of Trinidad and as all the Steel pans were fastened around the necks of each player it allowed them to be mobile whilst they played. So they started to walk, in time with the beat.

Everyone involved with the event were in a conga line behind the steel band who led them down the streets between Tavistock Crescent and Portobello Road. The general public who heard the music, saw the small parade, joined in and there were even people coming out of their houses to join in the parade/impromptu street party.

This was undoubtedly the spark that gave Rhaune Laslett the idea to apply to the local council for permission to have an outdoor event, as she saw the impact the steel pan had in uniting the local community and hoped she could replicate this by encouraging the small communities of a very multi cultural West London at the time to take part by infecting ‘them with a desire to participate’, stating ‘this can only have good results’. She managed to achieve this goal and ‘The Notting Hill Fayre and Pageant’ was held over the course of a week from the 18th September 1966, Gary Younge (Guardian) has written, Laslett “spoke to the local police about organising a Carnival....with more of an English fete in mind, she invited the various ethnic groups of what was then the poor area of Notting

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What do we owe the Windrush Generation?

The Caribbean arrivals who came to the UK in the late 1940s to 70s bestowed many gifts on the society they joined. One of those is Notting Hill Carnival, each year we celebrate them.

The Windrush Generation, as the Caribbean arrivals who came to the UK in the late 1940s to 70s are known, bestowed many gifts on the society they joined.

As well as being the source of one of the largest Carnivals on the planet, their cultural legacy - from food and music, to language and celebratory traditions - is now a longstanding staple that infuses our collective heritage.

The ‘Windrush’ shorthand comes from the Empire Windrush ship, which docked at Tilbury on the Thames in 1948, bringing more than 500 Jamaican passengers, among others. Images of the young, black, (mostly) men, dressed to impress in their porkpie hats is a unique and determining passage in the history of our nation. In the years to follow, other Caribbean islanders, men and women, answered the same invitations to come and help rebuild the war-ravaged ‘Motherland.’

There were promises of unbridled opportunity for ambitious and hard-working young people.

All these new arrivals from the Commonwealth Caribbean, while they may never have set foot on UK soil before, were in fact already British. Even before they left their home countries, which at the time remained under colonial rule, there was no question of visas or work permits for these ‘subjects’ of Empire.

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Therefore, they were all free to live and work indefinitely in the UK, and of course many settled here for life. A large proportion of the Windrush Generation found work in the newly established NHS; meanwhile others - like my grandparents - took up jobs in the car manufacturing industry and other sectors affected by a post-war labour shortage.

Contrary to the welcome they might have expected, however, the West Indian

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newcomers was routinely met with suspicion, hostility and open racism from the predominantly white communities they settled alongside.

Eager to work, the Caribbean migrants were told of ‘colour bars’ or given less desirable positions than white counterparts. Looking for somewhere decent to lodge for the coldest nights they’d ever encountered, they may have found the infamous ‘no blacks,

no Irish’, no dogs’ signs in the windows of residences. My grandfather, Everill (Eddie) Kelly, who came to Britain from St Vincent in 1958, once told me with a chuckle: “And if they didn’t see me to know I was black, they would read my name and think I was Irish!”

This brand of good humour and stoicism in response to the racism levelled at them was not unusual of the Windrush Generation. It nonetheless belies the sinister and longenduring nature of systemic racial injustice.

Structural racism, brought into sharp relief recently by the Black Lives Matter movement, has characterised the British establishment’s treatment of many migrants of colour, both then and now.

Those who are not their direct descendants and didn’t spend time in areas populated by us are likely to have heard the name ‘Windrush’ for the very first time in 2018.

This was the year in which the scandal broke that many from this group of settled migrants were denied their rightful citizenship and, essentially, had their lives destroyed. Some people were deported to countries they barely knew, others lost livelihoods, homes and dignity; many died before there was even talk of justice. It was a sustained and

co-ordinated effort by the Runnymede Trust, along with campaigner Patrick Vernon, Guardian journalist Amelia Gentleman and organisations JCWI, Praxis and Law Centres that brought the injustices to light. What we know is that this all came as a result of the home office’s ‘hostile environment’ policy surrounding the treatment of people coming to live in Britain.

The public outcry around the Windrush scandal was big enough to fell a home secretary. Yet the travesty today is that, not only are most of those affected still waiting for any compensation, but the inhumane policies that allowed such disgusting treatment of people remain firmly in place and government-backed, ready for future scandals.

generation’s priceless contribution to British culture and industry. And not to forget the many stories behind the statistics: the people.

My grandmother, Carmen Kelly, remembers travelling for two weeks on a trading boat when she was barely 19 to meet her husband, who by then had found work and somewhere to live in Coventry. She remembers that she’d never before owned a coat and didn’t like the way it covered her up, “because I was slim and pretty, you know?”

The couple had six sons and a daughter, and lived a hard-working and settled life together until Eddie died of cancer in 2002, just months before the build was finished on their house on the hill back in St Vincent. There was barely standing room at his funeral.

It is not right for politicians to leverage their supposed respect for Caribbean contribution to British society, such as Carnival, without also taking action to right these wrongs.

Meanwhile, Carmen is still going strong, enjoying the odd rum and winin’ to soca whenever she gets the chance.

Neither is it right that a landscape-changing generation of pioneers are remembered only for the injustice they have suffered.

I feel only pride to be a grandchild of this generation of trailblazers. Especially - though not only - when it’s Carnival time.

But it is right to take Carnival time as an opportunity to celebrate the Windrush

BY NINA KELLY, Editor at The Runnymede Trust: www.runnymedetrust.org

“I feel only pride to be a grandchild of this generation of trailblazers.

Especially - though not only - when it’s Carnival time.”

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the sound syst ems

Rooted in Jamaican culture and ‘Reggae’ music, sound systems were officially introduced to NHC in 1973.

Today there are over 30 static sound systems catering for numerous musical tastes.

Everything from ‘Dub’, ‘Rare Groove’ and ‘House’ to ‘Jungle’, ‘Samba’ ‘Blues’ and ‘Hip Hop’.

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What Is A Sound System?

What is a ‘Sound System’? How does it differ from a normal mobile DJ or a Club PA System?

A ‘Sound’ is a super-amplified mobile system, invariably called by a name, manned by a team of individuals, each having real skills, who together create a unique party vibe wherever they set up and play recorded music of their choice.

Origin & Background The concept of a sound system originated in Jamaica during the 1950’s. The idea arguably came from Jamaicans going back and forth to the USA during the 40’s & 50’s and being bowled over hearing American R&B bands playing through PA systems and were inspired by the New York block parties where DJs set up PA systems and sold liqueur at these gatherings to make some money.

These ideas were then taken back to Jamaica, but as bands were expensive to hire, poor Jamaicans played recordings through these early ‘sound systems’ which were very rough compared to the ‘PA sound systems’ they saw in America. They consisted of a turntable, a home built valve amplifier & pre-amp (from a kit) and the biggest speakers they could lay their hands on, mounted in home-made ‘wardrobe’ sized speaker cabinets, some even nailed and glued together with ‘chicken wire’ as speaker grilles!

By the late 50’s early 60’s these sounds had become more sophisticated and high powered. The early ‘sound system’ operators were already legendary figures and played at very well attended dances, some on the open air ‘lawns’, the real home of sound systemology! Men such as ‘Tom’ The Great Sabastian, Coxsone Dodd, Duke Reid, Prince Buster & Duke Vin who later started the first sound system in the UK, developed the idea by not just playing records but opening studio’s and producing local artists and releasing tunes on their own label - the early Ska (a Jamaican interpretation of popular American R&B music) then later Rocksteady & Reggae music.

© Mark Painter

UK History With the migration of Jamaicans to the UK in the late 50’s & 60’s the tradition of ‘sound systems’ was also exported. Early UK ‘sound system’ operators like the aforementioned Duke Vin, Count Shelly, Count Suckle, Lloyd Coxsone, & East London’s ‘chicken’, each had a huge following and from these early sounds developed many new ones encompassing new ideas and directions. The concept of a ‘soul sound’ or ‘roadshow’ was developed in the 70’s, by the likes of Mastermind (originally a

‘reggae sound’ called the Mighty Conquerer who changed policy to play Soul/Funk/Disco & later Electro & Hip-Hop music) TWJ, Roxy, Soul Incorporated, Good Times, Freshbeat & Rapattack. Interestingly, ‘Rampage Sound’ who popularised ‘Swingbeat’ in the early 90’s, added a profitable dimension to this concept and made it a business venture by playing on club systems and ‘hiring in’ a ‘sound system’ when needed. All these and many more ‘Sounds’ brought their own style & ideas to the discipline including using professional

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Photo by Jack Taylor/Getty Images

purpose built PA gear (Electrovoice, Turbosound, ASS, JBL speakers and amplifiers such as Crest & Crown & not forgetting Technics 1200/1210 turntables) as opposed to home made equipment, which was championed particularly by ‘Mastermind’ & ‘Rapattack’ Sounds.

Ironically this returns to the origin of sound systems being initially a ‘homemade’ version of a PA system.

During the 70’s & 80’s every area of London & every city with a West Indian population had their own crop of ‘sounds’. Historically it was important to ‘build a sound’, one man (it was mainly men in those days) would mainly buy music, another has an interest in electronics and one liked to MC – ‘talk on the mike’. While a young member or apprentice was learning about the equipment and how to ‘play a sound’ (which

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means; although you are using recorded music, the effect is of it being ‘live’) he would have the status of a ‘box boy’ his particular job was to lift the heavy speaker boxes at the end of the night!‘ Sound men’ took pride in this achievement, to the point of sound systems challenging each other to a competition or ‘clash’ where each ‘sound’ sought to win over the crowd at a dance by any means such as playing an exclusive record or one off pressing of a tune by a well known artist (a dub plate – UK Garage DJ’s, does this sound familiar?), or the verve of the ‘mike men’ (Saxon had some of the best which in conjunction with their vast knowledge of reggae music helped them win the ‘World Sound Clash’) or sometimes, turning up the bass and ‘drowning out’ the other sound! The sound system world has it’s wealth of stories of rivalry and within this it’s ‘villains & heroes’ to rival any from the corporate world.

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Present Day There are many and varied ‘sound systems’ in existence, run by many different people both men and woman from different backgrounds and cultures. All playing a selection as broad and diverse as US/ UK Garage, Soulful, Deep, Funky House, Hardcore, Techno, Trance, Drum & Bass, Miami-Bass, Hip-Hop, Trap, Grime, Afrobeat, Swingbeat, Dub Reggae, Roots Rock Reggae, Ragga, Revival Reggae, Lovers Rock, Soca, Calypso, Jazz, Jazz-Funk, Fusion, R&B, Disco, Soul/Funk from & 70s/80’s/90’s, Rare groove, Latin, Pop, Ska, Rocksteady.

The impact of ‘ sound systems’ on UK culture is immense. For example before ‘sounds’ most clubs had small ‘Rock & Roll’ style systems & poor facilities. Consider that the ‘sound system’ influence has subsequently caused the demand for both bands on the road and clubs to want to hire/

install high powered, multi-amplified PA systems. UK sounds (without question) have raised people’s expectations when they go out to rave, as well as being instrumental in the rise and prevalence of ‘urban’ music in the mainstream media today. Many successful UK artists started on ‘sound systems’ and the ‘Modern Superstar Club/ Radio DJ’s owe a lot to the influence of ‘sound systems.’

The Future Of Sound Systems The formation of a committee representing the British Association of Sound Systems BASS is a major step in the right direction.

It has given ‘sound systems’ a Trade Association, raising the profile and organisational standards of all that play at the ‘Notting Hill Carnival’ and formalising the contribution ‘sound systems’ make to our lives and the community we live in.

The Notting Hill Carnival on August Bank Holiday Sunday & Monday every year, has always been the biggest Weekend of the year in all sound men’s diaries. Sound systems have been an integral part of the atmosphere at Carnival since the early days.

Statistics compiled by Intelligent Space who were commissioned by the GLA around the Millenia surprisingly showed that 80% of the people who attend the Notting Hill Carnival, come specifically to hear its legendary ‘sound systems’. The streets of Notting

Hill during our summertime is the nearest place we have in the UK that produces the atmosphere present at ‘open air lawns’ of Jamaica. Sound system has not only evolved and diversified in the UK having arrived with migrating Jamaicans back in the 1950’s it is now a recognised ‘global movement’ that has millions of passionate and loyal followers.

Several BASS members regularly travel abroad including to all corners of the globe to play their music and whilst doing so creating an electric vibe to crowds of exited sound system fans whether at a club or open air festival.

Stationary, or as we say these days ‘static’, sound systems were a part of Notting Hill Carnival from its early days. Both Duke Vin and Count Suckle put their sets out on the street unofficially as they were both based in Ladbroke Grove. Sound systems were officially invited to join NHC as the 5th discipline in 1973 by Leslie Palmer, who was then on the NHC committee (so 2023 will be a 50th milestone for sound systems at NHC). The main reason for this was in those days funding was linked to attendance and the organisational need was to increase NHC’s attendance numbers which the introduction of static sound systems certainly did and continues to do.

As the biggest street event in Europe and the 2nd largest Carnival in the world, NHC has provided static sound systems with a huge platform, to display their discipline which

is both a performing and technical art form.

Originally in both Jamaica and the UK, sound men (it was only men in those early days but not so now) skilfully built the equipment themselves. What was available ‘off the shelf’ would only give you loudness and volume.

What all sound systems were after was that ‘BIG BASS’ to move your waist! The annual NHC has helped elevate many to legendary status down the years. All members of BASS are in reality legends noting they each have a loyal and cult following (that support their sound system of choice all year round at various dances and functions culminating in a gathering of the largest support at the annual NHC event – similar to fans of a football club with NHC being like going to the FA Cup final at Wembley!) whether they are a small, medium or large set up – each create their unique vibe in a different way. Sound systems play different forms of recorded music some specialist in one form such as House, Latin, Hardcore, Roots Reggae, Rocksteady & Ska - others play dance music across the board.

It is noticeable that the relatively newer members of BASS have each grown in crowd size and stature since their first appearance at Carnival and will no doubt become the well-known/household names and legendary sound systems of the future.

WORDS: RICKY BELGRAVE, CHAIRMAN OF BASS (British Association of Sound Systems)

Images © Adrian Boot

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BY JONATHAN WINGATE

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e M s i C H N # e W s i #NHC y t i n U s i C H #N Notting Hill Carnival 2020: Access All Areas

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Norman Jay The veteran UK selector and Notting Hill Carnival veteran selects five classic tracks that have graced his Good Times Sound System over the years. Reggae, soul, hip-hop – it’s all here.

WRITTEN BY LOUIS PATTISON

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For years, Norman Jay MBE’s Good Times Sound System was the hot ticket at Notting Hill Carnival – a London bus parked up at Notting Hill’s Southern and West Row pumping out the absolute best in disco, house, reggae and funk. This was the pitch where Jay tested out what would become most of his most beloved records – and those hazy August mornings setting up for Carnival have inspired his brand new compilation Mister Good Times, a distinctly laid-back selection of mod, soul and jazz tunes that confirm his status one of our country’s most knowledgeable, crowd-pleasing selectors.

It’s a matter of cosmic injustice that Good Times’ Notting Hill Carnival days are over. A few years back, the spot where the Good Times bus stood was renovated, and now luxury flats stand in its place.

For this feature Norman was taken on a little walk down memory lane and quizzed for five tracks that sum up Carnival for him.

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VICKI SUE ROBINSON – Daylight

[This is] a disco favourite from the hot summer of 1976 – it’s a cover version, Bobby Womack sung the original.

I instantly connected with the lyrics. “People are getting up/We’re just getting in…” I totally related to that because being young and carefree I’d often be coming in from parties right when my family were getting up.

I would have been playing this at Carnival around ‘95, ‘96, and I’ve really rediscovered it in recent months. It’s the first track on the new compilation, and I only wish we’d been able to secure the 12-inch version – the 12-inch version is highly sought after, a real collector’s item, and it has two amazing conga percussion breaks which you only get a hint of in the single.

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2

UNLIMITED TOUCH – I Hear Music In The Streets

This is kind of post disco, electronic disco – I remember buying this in New York when I was there in about 1981.

The label, Prelude Records, put out amazing stuff. I’ve always had a predilection for music that talks about the streets, outdoors – or Saturdays, Friday nights, weekends. Music that waxes lyrical about escape or release. I’ve played Unlimited Touch since my very first Carnival back in 1980, and continued throughout the noughties. I could never play Carnival and not play this track. It was always the one that got the crowd going.

You could play music for an hour or two, but put this one on and it was a clarion call – now Carnival can begin!

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MFSB – Summertime

It stands for Mother Father Sister Brother, and they were an actual orchestra – a house orchestra for Philadelphia International Records. They are credited as coming out with the proto-disco sound as far back as 1973, with Love Is The Message. They were one of my favourite orchestras, I’ve always loved classical music - and when you get orchestral music meets disco meets funk... well.

Then later on they joined forces with other Latino musicians and morphed into the Salsa Orchestra. It’s a Gershwin song, Summertime, so this is a sort of disco interpretation of a jazz standard. I love the versions of Summertime by Lou Rawls, and I love the version from The Zombies – but this is one of my all-time favourite pieces.

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HOUSE OF PAIN – Jump Around

This was one of my favourite hiphop tunes of the time, but it used to incite the crowd in the wrong way and I used to steer clear of it for a while, mainly because of the young kids. When other sound systems were playing it, it might result in violence and tension. But some years later I felt it might be time to revive it. One year I played it as the last tune and I couldn’t believe the response. Ten thousand people jumping up and down on the streets of Notting Hill in a way you’d never seen. The intro is a sample of an R&B ‘60s song, Harlem Shuffle

by Bob & Earl. I used to tease the crowd with that intro – sometimes I’d play the original, sometimes Jump Around. We always used to play it in the final three tunes, never before, and it’s got more rewinds than any other tune we ever played.

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FABIAN – Prophecy

This was one of the first songs we played at Carnival on our sound system way back in 1980.

At the time we were still a roots reggae system called Great Tribulation, which was built and operated by my brother. Her vocals are kind of sparse – it’s all about the production, that dubwise production. At that time, this was the tune you used to test your system – test your amps and your bass bins with. If you could deliver a Sir Coxsone production on your sound system, you’d arrived. Us being young kids, playing a track like Prophecy – that was the moment where we won a lot of respect from the other sound systems. It was like, ‘Yep, Good Times – you’re good!’

This article was originally published on RedBull.com

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Ian Burrell Whatever you do, try not to befriend Ian Burrell on social media. It’ll only depress you. Throughout the wet, cold winter months, he simply won’t go away – popping up on your phone, always somewhere absurdly exotic and warm, always with a rum in his hand and a cheeky grin on his face, wearing his trademark Fedora hat on his head.

It’s by no means the only hat that Ian’s worn.

Prior to becoming one of the most travelled and acclaimed figures within the rum industry, he was not only a professional UK basketball player but also an internationally recording artist known as “The Dude” – in fact, his song “Rock da Juice”, featured on numerous PlayStation games as well as the soundtrack for Hollywood blockbuster “Scooby-Doo”! But it is his role as The Global Rum Ambassador for which he is now famed. He conducts masterclasses, seminars, sips cocktails and judges’ competitions across all 7 continents around the world – even opening a pop-up rum shack in the Antarctic back in 2013 In 2014 he even took the time to break the Guinness World Record for the largest organised rum tasting and masterclass, he is also the driving force behind the world’s first international rum festival the UK RumFest, which is now approaching its 14th year featuring more than 400 of the world’s best rums.

In short, there’s very little that Ian doesn’t know about rum. We sat down and talked to him about it.

You’ve been involved in the UK rum scene for years now, and as the founder of the worlds premier Rum festival, how have you seen the scene evolve since you

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first started championing it? It’s grown significantly as more and more consumers have demanded a wider range of rums.

When I started the UK RumFest back in 2007 there were no events to promote the diverse category of rum. Now there are many events that bring rum loving people together to learn that rum is more than just white, gold and dark.

Sales of rum are soaring. Why do you think that it is capturing the imagination of consumers? Rum has always been popular. Most people will drink it in a cocktail or with their favourite mixer, but now we are seeing an increase in sales within the premium sector of the category.

Most people’s perception of a premium spirit is one that can be sipped neat or with a dash of water or a couple cubes of ice.

There are now many rums brands that are capturing the imagination of connoisseurs and casual rum drinkers alike, thus increasing awareness and sales.

What must the rum category do to ensure this growth is sustained? It needs to continue to evolve. Educate its consumers.

Embrace technology but not forget it traditions and heritage. Continue to be fun.

What are the key issues facing the rum category in the UK? The biggest issue is

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the perception that anything made from sugar, or that is sweet and spiced, or ‘Rum’ flavoured, is A RUM. There is a lack of understanding among the trade on what is the real definition of a rum.

This lack of knowledge is then passed onto the consumers who rarely understand the spirit definitions. They just want a drink that tastes good. For example, rums are still categorised as white, gold and dark on most menus but they are more complex than that.

Colour tells you nothing about the product in your bottle. Imagine a wine list merely saying ‘white wine’, without clarifying the grape variety or country of origin.

You’ve previously been outspoken about regulations within the rum category – what do you feel needs tightening up in this regard? There are many countries that have rules and regulations on how they make and market their rums. But once these products are sold to a third party or brought into another country, they can be manipulated in any way deemed fit to promote it as a premium drink.

In some countries you are allowed to use age claims on your bottle referencing the OLDEST rum that was used in your blend, but most consumers believe that an age claim means how long a product has been aged for.

So if there is no level playing field because the regulators are not enforcing rules to help consumers make an “informed” choice for their rum, then some companies will take advantage of any loophole to promote anything that looks, tastes and smells like a rum as a premium rum.

What must the governing bodies be doing to ensure that the consumer isn’t hoodwinked? Enforce their own rules. Or create up-to-date rules that everyone can agree on. Similar to whisk(e)y. Or just employ me. I’d create a rum “standards of identity” in a matter of months. Make it law, then ban any brand that wants to flout this law.

Do you think there needs to be a global agreement on what defines rum? Definitely not. Why? Because everyone is entitled to make their own version of what they perceive as rum. What is the global agreement for whisk(e)y ? Or brandy? Or vodka? There isn’t one. BUT if you’re adding any form of additive to your rum that is in the customer’s interest to know what they are drinking, then that should be disclosed. Especially to the trade who are more inclined to support honesty than marketing bullshit.

What makes an “authentic” or “pure” rum in your opinion? What is your opinion on adding sugar back into the rum? The word ‘authentic’ is frequently misused, especially in the spirits industry.

It is normally bandied around as the “right way” among the rum industry. I like to refer the term ‘authentic’ as the “old way”. This does not mean that the old way is the best way. It’s merely creating a product that captures part of a company’s history and traditions. So for me, rums created using old batch distillation or discontinuous methods are making their rums in an authentic way,

as this was the only way rums were made when they were first created.

But evolutionary methods are traditional methods waiting to happen! Thus continuous methods of distillation have improved how some rums are made. These can also be traditional to particular brands, especially the single and twin column stills used in the Caribbean.

Where do you stand on the “sugar” topic?

The sugar topic in rum will always be an interesting debate around the world. It is normal in some countries and alien in others. I personally don’t mind “sweetened” rums as long as it’s disclosed how sweet they are or what’s been added. Champagne adds sugar to some of its wines. And the consumer (if they know what to look for) can see this on the label. Brandy does not disclose how much sugar is added to it.

Nor does vodka. Again, if I were the “Rum Tsar” for rum standards in the UK, your

“For example, rums are still categorised as white, gold and dark. Imagine a wine list merely saying ‘white wine’”

rum would have to state certain words on the label, if it exceeded a certain number of grams of sugar per litre. I like the Champagne method of Brut, Extra Sec, Sec and Demi Sec. This wouldn’t stop me from drinking sweetened rums, nor would it stop anyone else who enjoyed the taste of it, but at least you know where you stood.

If you’re looking to pay more for a premium rum, are there any rumproducing countries, that have tight regulations to ensure that what is in the bottle relates to what is on the bottle?

And any nations that one should avoid?

There are a few but Jamaica, Martinique, Cuba, Puerto Rico and Venezuela are a few rum producing countries that have strict guidelines about what must be in the bottle, and what it says on the label. I know what I’m paying for when it comes to countries like these. But countries like Mauritius & Barbados are making amazing rums that are consistent and quality.

What questions should bartenders be asking to ensure that the rum is authentic? Where was it distilled? Where is your distillery? How was it made? Where was it aged? Has anything been added to it?

What can the bartending community do to improve consumer knowledge of rums?

Empower themselves with knowlege of the

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rum category. Learn from the blenders, the distillers, the ambassadors. Then do their due diligence. Attend REAL rum festivals that invite the people that are behind the brands. Not just the events that promote rum as just a “party spirit”. Come to one of my masterclasses!

Bars that don’t focus on rum, what are they missing out on? Nothing. Just an amazing diverse spirit category that holds its own against any other spirit out there.

If your bar has a great whisk(e)y selection, as well as brandy, gin and vodka but only has a few rums on the shelf, categorised as white, gold, dark and spiced on your menu…

Then you are not offering your customers a complete rum experience.

What advice would you give to high-end bars looking to improve sales of premium/ sipping rum? Create a special part of your menu for premium rums. Sit them side by side with the single malts, cognacs, and afterdinner drinks. Explain why they command a premium. Arrange tastings, food and rum pairings. Offer a small jug of water for cask strength rums. Serve more cask strength rums. Remember, in the minds of most people, rum is cheap because the biggest brands in the world are fairly affordable, and

the true premium rums don’t have the big marketing budgets of a vodka or gin to create that intrinsic value for the consumer.

Compared with cognacs and whiskies, do you get more bang for your buck from top-end rums? Is this to do with the ageing? Well as many rums are aged in tropical climates, the evaporation rate of the liquid in the barrel is faster than a spirit aged in cooler climates. For example, a whisky barrel in Scotland could lose up to 3% of volume over the course of a year. In Jamaica, a barrel of rum can lose up 6% of its volume in the intense tropical heat over a same period, thus ageing twice as fast.

So, a 5-year-old rum in Jamaica is equivalent to a 10-year whisky from Scotland. This is not to say that the rum would be better than the whisky, but that both products will have matured at different rates. Of course, the 10-year whisky will cost more than the 5-year-old rum even though they may have the same maturity.

Speaking of premium rums, you have launched Equiano Rum, the world’s first African Caribbean rum. Tell us about that It’s the world first rum that blends rum from the African continent with rum from the

Caribbean. Part of the rum is from Mauritius and aged in Cognac barrels. This is sent to Barbados where it is blended with award winning Barbadian Rums, bottled and sent to the US and the UK. In its first year it has already won 4 top international medals for taste and works amazingly neat, on the rocks or with your favourite mixer. My team & I also decided to name the brand after one of greatest Africans in British history, Olaudah Equiano. In the 18th century Equiano was kidnapped and enslaved in West Africa, and then sent to Barbados & Virginia (USA) before being sold and sent to England. After years of travelling he eventually bought his own freedom by selling various produce including Rum in the Caribbean. He came back to England a free man and wrote and self-promoted his auto biography the interesting Narrative of the life of Olaudah Equiano which informed people about the horrors of the enslavement of Africans. It became a best seller and was instrumental in the movement for the abolition of slavery in the 18th and early 18th century.

Is Equiano Rum a sipping rum ? It a rum to be drunk in any way YOU see fit. Sipped neat or with ice. With your favourite mixer or in a cocktail. It’s a DRINKING RUM. What are the three greatest rum cocktails in your opinion?

The Planter’s Punch: the drink that launched a thousand other rum drinks including Tiki cocktails – the Daiquiri, the Mai Tai and any other rum drink that takes advantage of the recipe of rum/lime/sugar with a little spice and water.

The Cuba Libre: some would say the rum and Coke (with lime) is the most requested way to drink rum around the world. Not limited to just Cuban rum it is the king of the rum highballs. The Dark & Stormy is a nice alternative. Try this with a Jamaican rum like Blackwell’s, as it’s full bodied, flavoursome and compliments ginger beer.

Ian has just launched Equiano Rum, the world’s first African Caribbean rum.

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The Mai Tai (Trader Vic): this cocktail is king of the Tiki drinks. A drink that showcases the quality of a heavy-aged rum or a blend of several rums, enhanced by the subtle flavours you’d naturally find in a wellbalanced aged rum. Nuttiness, sweetness, citrus, and vanilla.

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SET THE TREND IMAGE

Notting Hill Carnival Special The guys from the popular music and lifestyle based podcast bring you the story of the unsung heroes and document the history of NHC’s Sound System.

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© Adrian Boot / Urbanimage.tv

Set The Trend have been documenting the history and stories of the unknown major music characters in Black music giving them a platform and voice that has been unheard on the mainstream. The host’s themselves have a history in Sound Systems...Sweet Vybz a selector and mic man learned his craft as part of the mighty Saxon and now leads the successful 5th Avenue, Reggie Styles was a box boy and apprentice selector for Supertone Roadshow as a teenager, Michael Fountaine (aka Mr Eastender) career as a DJ inspired by attending events played by Madhatters, Jigs, Des Parkes and more.

Leslie Palmer introduced Sound Systems to Carnival in 1973, he has been quoted as saying he wanted to include the Jamaicans and add a new element to the Mas Bands and steelbands on the Carnival route.

While Reggae, Bluebeat & Ska is generally associated with Sound Systems; Soul, Funk

& Jazz also has well dug roots in the Notting Hill and the West London area hosting ‘Blues Dances’ in the huge mansions well into the early hours after the street parties had finished.

Hosted by outfits such as Fresh Beat “we were one of the first to bring soul and funk to house parties in the area, even Norman Jay (Good Times Sound) and others used to come to our gigs before they were well known” says co-founder Mikey... “We would

play at Carnival alongside the reggae sounds and was an extension of what we did at our own parties”. Alistair another DJ was also an original member of Fresh Beat who made his carnival debut in 1984 after forming his own sound called RapAttack had a pitch on All Saints Road and welcomed guest sets by other sounds, one of those was Casual Affair whose selectors were Vibert and the Chelsea FC’s first black footballer Paul Canoville “Myself and Canners did a stint a few times at their (Rap Attack) parties in the 80

“We would play at Carnival alongside the reggae sounds and was an extension of what we did at our own parties” Notting Hill Carnival 2020: Access All Areas

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and one of only a few to play within the Notting Hill area itself”. Another pioneer who brought the soul raregroove fused with reggae to West London in the early 80’s is Funky Express with Mikee B who went on to form the successful UK Garage collective The Dreem Team with DJ Spoony. We also must give a mention to Funkadelic Sound another giant at the time attracting a huge following for years with their unique musical style and delivery.

Notting Hill Carnival is now a global event for Sound system culture and aside from the documented accounts by recognized names Rampage, Good Times, Channel One, King Tubby’s, KCC and Saxon we lift the veil on topics such as good relationships with residents, bridging racial barriers through music and the importance of MC’s (Microphone Controllers) spreading a positive message in their lyrics.

Images © Adrian Boot / Urbanimage.tv

Set The Trend will be hosting a round table sit down featuring a selection of the unsung Static Sound Systems. They have tirelessly devoted their services over the years in bringing that perfect rumble and booming bassline to the streets of Notting Hill. We uncover how they were inducted into carnival?, the technical and logistical aspects of their systems and how Notting Hill Carnival built and enhanced their reputation and brand.

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Documenting their impact culturally and musically into mainstream music retelling the history sharing the legacy and experiences for future generations to read and learn from.

Set The Trend Carnival Special is written and presented by Reggie Styles, Sweet Vybz, Michael Fountaine and produced J2, Sheldon and Jide.

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Carnival Remembers Grenfell Each and every person in our community was affected by the events of the 14th June 2017. We lost 72 of our loved ones, neighbours and friends in the Grenfell Tower fire.

Grenfell Tower can be seen from the Notting Hill Carnival parade route, and for the past three years the Carnival has held a 72 second silence in memory of the lives lost. The participation of the silence by carnival goers in their thousands shows the world that this community and beyond will not forget Grenfell.

This year is different. We are living with a new crisis. But even if we are not able to be together in person, it means so much to survivors and bereaved families that Notting Hill Carnival continues to hold Grenfell in its hearts. Even apart, we are strong together.

Since the fire many survivors and bereaved families have come together to form Grenfell United. We work together for our community and campaign for safe homes, justice and change. We are determined that our loved ones and neighbours who died will not be remembered for the events of that night but for the change that comes next, so we work together for our community and campaign for safe homes, justice and change.

The monthly silent walks, on the 14th of each month, have started again. They bring us together to remember and to send a message that we remain strong in our campaign for justice. We have campaigned for extra panelists to be added to the Inquiry that bring real community expertise and fought for dangerous combustible cladding banned across the country.

But there is still so much that needs to change. Thousands of people across the country are still living in unsafe homes and their concerns are not being listened to.

And three years on from the fire justice still feels like a long way away.

We are determined not to let Grenfell fade away and allow politicians to leave everything the same. Everyone has the right to live in a safe home and to be treated with dignity and respect.

We thank you for your support today and everyday as we continue our campaign for justice and change.

GRENFELL UNITED Find out more or get involved at: www.grenfellunited.org

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Photo by Peter Summers/Getty Images

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CALYPSO EDIT

It’s documented that Calypso first arrived in the UK, with the British West Indies Regiment who were stationed on the south coast in 1917.

However, the Caribbean genre was given huge exposure when Trinidadian Calypsonian, Lord Kitchener was filmed emerging from the Empire Windrush at Tilbury Docks on 22 June 1948. A Pathé reporter asked him to sing a Calypso, and he gave Britain his song ‘London is the Place for Me’ on the spot. A UK Calypso scene was born.Today, the highlight of the UK Calypso scene is the ‘London Calypso Tent’ (see details below). Held annually at The Tabernacle, Britain’s talented calypsonians keep the artform alive at this vital part of London’s cultural calendar.

The climax of the UK calypso season is the ‘Calypso Monarch Finals’, which is held on the Thursday before Notting Hill Carnival.

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For calypso-lovers, there’s only one place to be on an August Friday evening: the London Calypso Tent.

The ‘tent’ is, of course, no such thing. For the past 11 years, the arena for double-entendre, picong and lyrical bacchanal has been the stage of The Tabernacle in Powis Square. The term harks back to the days when calypso was the Caribbean’s rebel music, looked on with suspicion by the colonial authorities.

In a ‘hall’ of bamboo poles roofed in palm leaves and lit by flambeaux, the singers would engage in musical combat, poking fun at authority and each other. Lyrics that hit the spot, flashes of verbal dexterity and cleverly extemporised verses were rewarded with shouts of “Kaiso! Kaiso!”

Like so much else connected with Carnival, calypso’s roots lie in African soil in work

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songs, praise songs, and songs and chants that accompanied dances and masquerades.

Pinning down the music’s origins more precisely is challenging, but it’s likely it developed in the Caribbean as a creolised hybrid of different traditions from various parts of Africa. Bear in mind, too, that some Africans freely migrated to Trinidad after Emancipation: compared with the slaves, these arrivals would have been able to retain more of their own language and culture, including music and dance.

Other musical influences reached Trinidad from neighbouring islands, particularly Martinique, and from Venezuela.

The music’s very name is a clue to this tangled history. ‘Calypso’ dates only from the late 1890s, before which it was known as cariso or caliso, a Spanish word for a topical song. Earlier still, many researchers

argue, it was kaiso, derived from a Hausa word meaning ‘bravo!’. The word lives on, as people still call out “kaiso” at the London Tent after a particularly fine performance.

There’s no definitive record, of course, of the sound and lyrics of the earliest kaiso/ caliso. However, there were two broad types of song to be heard in the streets and backyards of 19th-century Port of Spain.

The typically African pattern of call-andresponse, often used for work songs, became the accompaniment to Carnival groups on the road. The revellers would repeat the same basic stanzas as a chorus, known as a lavway or leggo. Post-Carnival newspapers were full of complaints from ‘respectable’ citizens about the day-long repetition of these less-than-tuneful battle cries!

The other variant, the belair, was sung by a chanterelle or chantwell, who carried on the tradition of the West African griot (equivalent to a European troubadour).

Lyrics were central to the success of a belair, which extolled the virtues of a group or an individual (perhaps a patron) and mocked enemies, sometimes in terms so devastating that the target of the singer’s scorn felt obliged to leave the island! In contrast to lavways, some belairs were “exquisitely melodious”, according to one 19th-century writer. Until 1900 all these songs would have been sung in French Creole (patois). Traces of the language survive today at Carnival, for example in fete, for a party, and J’Ouvert.

The two types of music took different forms because they served different purposes, and they live on today in soca, the high-energy, dance-focused modern counterpart of the lavway, which is the ‘motor’ that keeps Caribbean Carnival moving. The descendant of the belair is of course calypso – clever, satirical, humorous, provocative and sometimes outrageous. In singing truth to power, the modern calypsonian takes on the mantle of the chantwell and the griot.

Up to the First World War, a calypso tent was no place for respectable folk, but that gradually changed thanks to a ticket collector on Trinidad’s railways. Walter ‘Railway’ Douglas was a chantwell, the leader

of the Railroad Millionaires mas band and something of an entrepreneur. For the 1921 Trinidad Carnival season he opened a thrice-weekly calypso tent roofed with railway wagon tarpaulins instead of palm leaves, replaced uncomfortable bamboo benches with proper chairs, lit his premises with gas instead of flambeaux and distributed advertising flyers on the railway trains!

Douglas’s gamble paid off: the middle classes started attending, standards of composition and performance rose and newspapers began to take more notice of the calypsonians and their music.

By this time, calypso had reached Britain, as several chantwells serving in the British West Indies Regiment were stationed on the south coast in 1917 before being posted overseas. By the 1930s the music began to reach a wider audience thanks to Ken ‘Snakehips’ Johnson’s West Indian Dance Orchestra and Decca’s calypso recordings.

Calypso in Britain got a boost when troopship Empire Windrush arrived at Tilbury Docks on 22 June 1948. On board were calypsonians Lord Woodbine (Harold Philips), Lord Beginner (Egbert Moore) and the celebrated Lord Kitchener (Aldwyn Roberts), who stepped off with a calypso on his lips the optimistic and catchy ‘London is the Place for Me’.

In the Fifties, the world was gripped by a calypso craze, and the Mighty Sparrow (Slinger Francisco) emerged as the genre’s biggest star. Sparrow regularly visited the UK, and others settled here, such as Roaring Lion (Rafael de Leon), Mighty Terror (Cornelius Henry) and Lord Invader (Rupert Grant).

The innate competitiveness of calypso took root here too. In 1957, Terror, singing ‘I Walk a Million Miles’, was crowned Britain’s first Calypso King at Chelsea Town Hall.

Calypsonians also featured in an annual series of indoor ‘Caribbean Carnivals’ organised by Trinidadian journalist and social activist Claudia Jones from January 1959.

Tastes in music changed, however, and by the mid-60s calypso once again found itself on the margins in Britain, ignored by broadcasters. Locally based singers

continued to appear at West Indian dances and shows, and from 1976 official calypso contests were held annually around Carnival time. The initial competition was won by the Mighty Tiger (Ashton Moore), but, true to form, he never received the promised £100 prize money! For years, Tiger and Lord Cloak (Errol Brown) dominated the calypso honours, interrupted only by Lucky (Patrick Humphrey), Soca Baby (Betty Alexander) and Voodoo Queen (Patricia Gillian).

Eventually, the singers decided they had been cheated by unscrupulous promoters for long enough and founded the Association of British Calypsonians, with Tiger as its president. On 7 August 1992 the stage at the Yaa Asantewaa Centre hosted ABC’s first-ever London Calypso Tent.

Under Tiger’s benign dictatorship, and against the odds, the tent survived and thrived. Standards of composition and performance improved immeasurably, until audiences outgrew the much-loved, but rather ramshackle, Chippenham Mews premises. In 2008 the tent moved to The Tabernacle. With Tiger’s passing in 2017, the ABC became the Association of Calypsonians UK and is now the more inclusive Association of Calypsonians and Soca Artistes (ACASA). Its purpose – to champion what Tiger called “the first music of the Caribbean” and its UK-based practitioners – remains the same.

Today, the London Calypso Tent remains the only one in Europe. From the moment the Divettes take to the stage and the ABC Band strikes up, the atmosphere in the hall crackles with anticipation. Britain’s talented calypsonians keep alive this marvellous artform that for more than two centuries has been pricking pomposity, mocking the powerful, challenging injustice and making the audience laugh.

That change and continuity help explain why the London Calypso Tent is as vital a part of London’s cultural calendar as it has ever been. Come and hear for yourself what makes it so special. The climax of the UK calypso season is the Calypso Monarch Finals, which is always held on the Thursday before Notting Hill Carnival.

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Looking back at last year’s Carnival Photographer Keleenna Onyeaka's passion for culture, history, music and visual art is expressed in his street-style photo story of Notting Hill Carnival 2019.

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Looking forward to being back on theNotting road,Hillwhere belong 2021 Carnival we 2020: Access Allfor Areas 97

I N 2 0 2 0 , T H E E X P E R I E N C E G O E S D I G I TA L

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*SCAN2020: THISAccess QR CODE TO CHECK OUT THE DIGITAL PROGRAMME. Notting Hill Carnival All Areas

DOING OUR DUTY TO PROTECT THE COMMUNITY Notting Hill Carnival 2020 is online, giving you Access All Areas.

We urge everyone to stay in the safety of their homes and enjoy a full programme of events from Aug 29-31.

Go to www.nhcarnival.org for an immersive celebration of Notting Hill Carnival. You will experience the hype of the sound systems, the energy of the mas bands and performances from the big names alongside emerging talent, food and drink demonstrations and lots more. All from the comfort and safety of your home.

We are bringing the Carnival spirit to you... to protect lives.

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