Stascha Bader’s Rocksteady… is a nostalgically hued, slickly made documentary that gives its cast (including Stranger Cole, Hopeton Lewis, Gladdy Anderson, Marcia Griffiths, Judy Mowatt, Dawn Penn, Derrick Morgan and Leroy Sibbles) their deserved place in the media spotlight.
Where Jérôme Laperrousaz’s Made In Jamaica (2006) was as sprawling, messy and irreconcilable as the reggae scene it documented, this Swiss/Canadian venture sticks firmly to the Buena Vista Social Club template. Centring on a reunion concert with lots of backslapping, reminiscing and rehearsal banter from its sexagenarian stars, it presents the mid-sixties proto-reggae as a safely calcified branch of consumable world music for the international market.
The film mixes artist voiceover, newsreel, black and white stills, and vibrantly coloured interview and studio footage. Cole sings acapella on the beach, conjuring up visions of Burning Spear in Ted Bafaloukos’ Rockers (1978). He and U Roy duet on Stop That Train in an empty train carriage, while the Christian convert Lewis spreads the gospel to a reggae rhythm in church. In one of the most poignant scenes the nearly blind Derrick Morgan returns to the abandoned Palace theatre where he won the Vere John’s singing competition and springs into life for a rousing Tougher Than Tough with guitarist Hux Brown (later, he publicly embarrasses his wife by discussing his many illegitimate children - a clip that perhaps could have been left out). The former I Threes appear in resplendent costumes: the humble self-deprecating Judy Mowatt is contrasted with the steely (and still musically active) Marcia Griffiths. Rita Marley takes part in a candid, if a little contrived, visit to the bed where she and Bob first got it on.
The only major disappointment is that we are short-changed somewhat on the actual concert. Unlike Jeffrey Levy-Hinte’s peerless Soul Power (2008) which built to a half hour live performance climax, here a fast-cut during the closing credits must suffice – suggesting a separate DVD may be in the offing. In Buena Vista Club style, the filmmakers are far keener to push the accompanying studio album. This features authentically arranged recuts of the big hits (including the odd errant reggae number!) played by a supergroup lineup featuring Sly Dunbar, Lloyd Parkes, The Tamlins and the wonderful Ernest Ranglin - in many ways the real star of the show. Notable by his absence is the true guitar pioneer of rocksteady Lynn Tait who spoke so eloquently on Alex Beason’s Lyric DVD: The Roots documentary. Sadly liver failure during the shooting of Rocksteady forced him to abandon his proposed bandleader role.
Mowatt and Morgan give contrasting views of the period. For Judy it was a time of romance when "you could walk the streets at night" without fear. Derrick, in keeping with his image at the time of rude boys defender, points out that violence and criminality were on the rise, and the political gun flooding of the ghettos was about to begin. Though touched on, this aspect of the era seems slightly toned down to maintain the feel good vibe of the movie (the presence of JLP culture minister Olivia Babsy Grange on the executive producer’s credits may also be a factor.) That said, there is nothing wrong with a Jamaican music retrospective that celebrates the positives - there are plenty of more downbeat offerings around.
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