Bournemouth Reggae Weekender

Strangely enough, if I were to need to describe Maxi Priest to somebody not previously familiar with him, I’d be inclined to direct them to an old BBC comedy show from about ten years ago, World Shut Your Mouth. It was essentially a higher-budget - but strangely, lower-profile - international version of Trigger Happy TV, and one sketch had Dom Joly, dressed as a Scotsman, lifting up his kilt to reveal a doll of Priest, at which point he’d describe him as “the king of light reggae.” That’s precisely correct, too; over the course of a glittering career that’s now lasted more than three decades, the Lewisham, London native has made a name for himself as one of the premier purveyors of the genre. He had his biggest success in the late eighties and early nineties, with his Maxi, Bonafide and Fe Real albums; he’s always tended to lean more towards the more romantic side of the genre in terms of lyricism. His first album in seven years, Easy to Love, was released earlier this year; he’s already lined up shows with his band in destinations as far-flung as Melbourne and St. Albans for the rest of this year, with more planned for 2015.

Hollie Cook hails from West London, and comes from musical roots with her Dad being Paul Cook from the Sex Pistols. She found solace in music from Marc Bolan, David Bowie and The Cure, and has been fascinated by arts from a young age having gotten into professional acting, singing and modeling. One day she decided that all of those performing arts just weren’t for her and found her way into performing on her own from a family friend called Ari Up, whom she sang backing vocals for.

I had the chance to go and see this songstress perform in her hometown, London UK, where she performed a set that was heavily reggae inspired. She worked the crowd fantastically, getting the audience involved in dancing and singing exerts of the song back to her. The whole vibe was just so fun, and it was a real party atmosphere. Backed by such an all star band of fantastic musicians, it is no wonder that everyone was having the best time throughout her set.

Really enjoyed The Dualers at Chepstow Castle last night. They played brilliantly and engaged with their audience throughout. They played a real mix of own music and covers. I will be seeing them again!
Chepstow Castle was a great place to host a concert. The crew were helpful and friendly. The only drawback was not enough toilets and they had no lights in them!