Mel Cooke, Freelance Writer
The Merritone Brothers: Monty (left) and Winston Blake at a 'Reunion' in October 2004. - WINSTON SILL/FREELANCE PHOTOGRAPHER
AN EXTENSIVE list of activities for the 55th anniversary of Merritone Music, as well as their 15th annual Family Reunion and Homecoming, was outlined at the Waterfalls, Liguanea, St. Andrew, on Thursday evening.
Details of the 10 consecutive days of the celebration, running from the Saturday, October 8, 'Return to the Roots' in Lyssons, St. Thomas, to the 'Las' Lick' at The Deck on Trafalgar Road, New Kingston, were given by Monty Blake.
In fact, the celebration starts with a trio of free events, with the Lyssons kick-off followed by a Jazz and Blues session at the Alibi in Baron's Plaza on Sunday. On Monday, trombonist Nambo Robinson and the Idren Workshop play alongside Merritone at Peppers on Upper Waterloo Road, and the following night Colin Hines and Marlon Young are the guests when Merritone plays at The Quad. After Thursday's return to Waterfalls, on Friday, October 14, the Fabulous Five Incorporated and a number of guests will pay 'Tribute To Songbird Cynthia Schloss' at the JAAVA Headquarters on Haining Road in New Kingston.
The following day Merritone Music heads to the Morgan's Harbour Hotel and Marina in Port Royal for 'Merri Music on the Harbour', then grooves on Sunday afternoon at the Kabana Restaurant on Hope Road, before the closing 'Las' Lick' at The Deck on Heroes Day 2005.
There was applause when, before saying the 'thank yous' to a long list of sponsors, Blake said 'the movement in Jamaica is to sponsor the risqué artistes. Things of quality need sponsorship'. And there was laughter when he mentioned one of them, along with its purpose, saying 'Levitra for upliftment'.
Six hands, including Winston Blake's, were employed in cutting the large celebratory cake that was in the middle of the room for the entire event.
Dr. Clinton Hutton of the University of the West Indies (UWI) celebrated not only the 55 year landmark, but also the role of Merritone in Jamaican music history, saying, "The Blake brothers were pioneers in the development of the sound system, which spawned popular Jamaican music. The single most important contribution of Merritone to Jamaican culture was that they institutionalised the sound system. Merritone was founded in 1950. That was two years before Sir Coxsone Downbeat. Today Merritone is the surviving sound system of the late 1940s and 1950s And it is still going strong."
Of the Blake brothers, Hutton said, "They set a high standard. They celebrate excellence at a time when many people celebrate mediocrity, whether in the music industry or outside the music industry."
Ruddy Mair, deputy governor of the Bank of Jamaica (BoJ), said that with the spreading of Jamaican music all over the world has come a huge intellectual property issue. "The people who have created this sound have not truly benefited from it. That is what we have to tackle in the next round," he said.
"You have ensured at all times that the music goes worldwide," Mair said of Merritone Music, adding that the contribution of the bands such as Tomorrow's Children, Inner Circle, Fab Five and Third World must not be forgotten.
Colin Leslie of the Museum of Jamaican Music noted the contribution of Winston Blake as a member of the board of that organisation, saying that "He has been a repository of knowledge of Jamaican music and culture".
And Neville Ying gave a quick analysis of Merritone's longevity, beginning with the unity of the four Blake brothers in using the sound system left to them by their father to send themselves to school.
