The old guard

 Jamaica has recently lost so many of the old guard singers who have rocked the world with great reggae music, the latest being Jimmy Cliff, that it's depressing.

And seeing how shaky the great Ernie Smith looked didn't help my feelings of unease.

Steve Higgins greets Ernie Smith 

In fact seeing him needing to sit on a stool to perform, reminded me of the last time I saw the late, great Pluto Shervington. He died about 3 weeks after I saw him perform (around 2years years ago,) while also needing a stool, as he was obviously not well. (JOAN, MY VIEWS.: A.J delivered! 💓)

The good thing about Ernie though is that although he looked very shaky, his voice was still powerful, so let's hope he will be around for many more years.

This event was the annual Christmas Carol service which I look forward to. 

This turned out to be much more than just regular affair though.

Apart from the pleasant surprise of having Ernie Smith appear, the Cuban pastor from a nearby church, also visited, all dressed in Jamaican colors and did a Bob Marley number.

 Not bad at all.

The other surprise appearance was by Father Richard Holung with some members of the 'Brothers of the Poor' and they too did a number.

Father Holung also looks shaky.

Father Holung greets Ernie Smith 

Bwoy, all my contemporaries are looking shaky, so I guess I am too.

Man I hate old age😡.

Well at least our Consul General is still young!😊

He loves to perform and did a decent job as usual.

And of course there was the performance from the regular choir, the South Florida Caribbean Chorale, and the organizer, Steve Higgins.

Steve Higgins always puts on good concerts and it's now a family affair, as his young son Matthew sometimes performs, and last night he brought on another son who plays the drums.

Steve Higgins in front on keyboard and son behind on drums.

I always enjoy his productions and saw many familiar faces, as we start gearing up for the Christmas holidays.🌲⛄☃️🌰

Pretty good start of the season.

Nb. Bernie Smith was buried Saturday 16th May 2026. Link: https://joan-myviews.blogspot.com/2026/03/reggae-supreme.html?m=1.

Sumfest 2025

 I thought Sumfest 2024 was a bit better  (can't forget Freddie McGregor and Babyface' s outstanding performances,) but this year still selloff!

The band change before Toni Braxton's performance was a bit long and I fell asleep😡. However what I caught of her, including her massive hit "unbreak my heart" was so dynamic, it made up for everything I missed.

We arrived there early and got our usual spot at the fence and that's why the pics are not so clear. But what the heck, it's a cell phone camera!

I especially enjoyed Fantan Mojah who I haven't heard for some time, but he said he had been in hospital.

Bugle was good as usual and Protegee has improved 100% since I last saw him.

 Love how Fantan Mojah and IWayne preached against child abuse, sexual predators and incest. Very appropriate as we have been reading about some horrific cases in the local papers.

Annea

Bugle

Rasta empress in audience waved her flag all night😊

Protegee at work

Toni Braxton is really beautiful 

Comfortable by the fence

Good night of solid entertainment all around and we were home by 4.30am.

 That meant leaving before Taurus Riley came on, but have seen him dozens of times.

I was a bit sorry for the vendors though. There were twice or three times more vendors than normal on the outside and when we were leaving, they had so much stuff left over which I guess they have to pay to transport everything back.

They seem to have forgotten that there were stalls selling everything on the inside.

So sad, they were just trying to make some money from the festival but it didn't seem to work out too well for most.

Island groove

 If you want a Caribbean person to go missing, just beg the Lord to send a teeny weeny bit of rain😊.

For that's just about the amount of rain that fell before what turned out to be a great musical event put on by the Tamarac City.

But alas, most Tamarac residents missed that really nice and energizing event.

Our groovy Mayor never missed a beat though.

Neither did my friend Cora (91)😊.

She enjoyed the short time there. She may not spend all night at these events but she loves the great outdoors.

The few people who came also had a great time as the music was good throughout.

When we got there, the "stilt" experts (Bahamian?) were just finishing up their routine.

Then it was time for great Caribbean music.

Nadine Sutherland who closed out the show, kept the vibes going.

And the kids had a great time too.

Plantation City was represented.

Nadine Sutherland 

Miramar City was also represented.

Hope in 2024 Tamarac will host more Caribbean music events.

It really sets the groove.👍.

Pluto's send off

 I don't think any country in the world has given more good music to the world than little Jamaica.

Unfortunately, most of our greatest artists are either dead or on the way out.

The latest departure (2024) was Pluto Shervington. His send off was wonderful.

This celebration of his life was held at Crandon Park in Key Biscayne, Florida, a place where Pluto performed often, bringing great entertainment to thousands.

 

Incidentally, there was a musical tribute for the late great Bob Marley on the 6th February 2024, to mark his 79th birthday.

 The link is below.

https://www.youtube.com/live/eWtPgab1i4o?si=Iag-u7Jvb4D-Xg8p

And don't forget, the latest movie in his honor, "One Love", hits theatres worldwide Feb 14, 2024.

Freedom is not free!

 One of the main reasons for coming to Cape Town was to go to Roden Island. But it was not to be, as the sea was too rough.

I felt like crying, but strongly believe all things happen  for the greater good, so know all will be well tomorrow.

So we pushed things forward and took on the museums today.

It was wonderful and because  today is Human Rights Day, a public holiday, entry was free.

Now, I am by no means an expert on museums, but have been to a few in my short life, and this Iziko Slave Lodge is by far one of the best I have ever visited, in terms of information and displays.

I don’t know if it was deliberate but I never detected a pause between slavery and apartheid. 

For the struggle for freedom and human rights in South Africa never really ceased with abolition.

I was a bit disappointed to see that Winnie Mandela was written out of the history though.

 For yes, she found other lovers when Nelson was incarcerated. But she was human wasn’t she?

The fact is though, without her non-stop years of struggle, his name would not have remained on the front pages throughout history.

My view!

Anyway I was overwhelmed that my favorite Reggae artist, the late great Peter Tosh, ❤️was memorialized in the section outlining the important role music had played in the struggle .

This was in a room dedicated to the role of music in the struggle for freedom and throughout, South African Freedom songs are played non stop in the background. 

There is so much to talk about I just don’t know where to start!😊

Another thing , I had just recently learnt that since slaves had no identity, the names they were given in South Africa represented the month they were brought to these terrible shores.

Another room was dedicated to that era.

They also had a comprehensive map showing where the  slaves were brought from and the route they traveled to get here.

Then there was a room displaying the weapons the white people brought versus what the invaded people had at their disposal.

African weapons 

The white man’s arsenal.



Another thing I loved was how they tied in Egyptian history into Africa, for that’s where it belongs. 

However, some revisionists would have you believe Egypt is no where close to Africa.

It took me a total of 23 hours to get here, but this visit to the Iziko Slave Lodge and the Cape of Good Hope (so far) made it more than worth the effort. 

Kids perform outside Iziko Slave Lodge. 

Don’t believe me, just pay a visit and see if you agree.

MEMORIES 

The street outside