THE ZINC FENCE MILLENIUM COUNTDOWN

 

 

Record of 1993, selector Steve Barrow

 

 

Disciplinary Action

Charlie Chaplin

(John John Records)

The rhythm known as "Death In The Arena" has a long history in modern Jamaican music. The first JA lick was Alton & the Soul Vendor's Whipping The Prince in 1968, directed at Prince Buster again, although the instrumental itself was 'adapted' from Bernard Purdie's tune The Funky Donkey [recently reissued on vinyl by CBS/Sony]. Following the Studio One version, deejay Clint Eastwood scored a big mid-seventies hit Premo Ballarena on the Channel One cut in 1977, as did Johnnie Clarke with King In The Arena. Later 1970s cuts from Sylford
Walker and Welton Irie are also worth hearing.

From the mid-1980s the rhythm was revived every year until the early 1990s.
In 1993 Fattis scored two big hits on his cut - Beres Hammond's Show It Off and Nadine Sutherland's Baby Face. This was followed by the Charlie Chaplin cut discussed here; early in 1994 Garnett Silk voiced his Splashing Dashing on Bobby Digital's cut.

No surprise then that Charlie Chaplin - the most resolute of all cultural deejays - chose such a popular rhythm to launch his scathing attack on all things slack and violent. It was timed to coincide with Police Commisioner Macmillian's attempts to
stop sound systems and their deejays propagating more slackness and gun lyrics, although Chaplin is never merely rubber-stamping police actions in this area. Seven years later and the record stands as another signpost along the route of the cultural revival that has been the most noticeable feature of late 1990s reggae, alongside such as Buju's Murderer. Again the argument is best expressed in the lyrics:

"Now this one dedicated to all the lickle deejay man dem
Yuh see how long we a warn dem, an' dem no lissen we ?
But God said if yu wicked, 'im put a wickeder man over yu
Missa Mac - deal dem case!

All a the deejay weh a talk 'bout slack
An' a talk 'bout shot in a police head back
Dem dance get wash out
An' dem show get flop
Ca' dem a fi answer up to Missa Mac
Say Missa Mac, say me a one deejay who will support your act
A long time me a tell dem seh badness fi stop
A long time me a tell dem fi stop chat slack
But dem a gwan like dem a big shot
Dress up in a glass an' a big pretty hat
As dem come 'pon de stage
Pure badness dem a chat -
Who fi get boom
Who fi get shot
Who fi get cut up
Who fi get chop
But dem never know seh
Missa Mac gwine attack,
Now Mister Mac start attack
An' the whole a dem shock
Me see dem 'pon mi tv
Run dem mouth and a chat
Me see dem pon de road an' dem favour rat bat
Unnu hear me ?
All a the deejay weh a talk 'bout slack
An' a talk 'bout shot in a police head back
Dem dance get wash out
An' dem show get flop
Ca' dem a fi answer up to Mister Mac
But a de sign a de times
So no worry about no whol' 'eap a crime [laughs]
Jus' put God 'pon yu mind
An' everyting will happy an' fine
Me a tell yu the truth Mister Mac -
Man a fi live the dem love, love the life dem live,
Dem could a build forty Ardent and twenty Acid
Dat nah go stop dem from tu'n fugitive
You ave fi full dem belly wi' food an' give dem good place fi live
An' teach dem say God a dem main incentive
An' don't treat dem cold like ice water in a fridge
Ca' if you do that, dem will get well wicked
'Cause a de time
So no worry about no whol' heap a crime
Jus' put God 'pon you mind
An' everyting will be happy an' fine
'Ear me - ting so wicked:
Everybody wan' kill, an' nobody nah build
That's why the whol' world is at a stan'still
Dem wan' to put we into barrel
An' roll we down hill
Same ting 'appen to Jack,
Dem wan' 'appen to Jill
But a de time
So no worry about no whol' heap a crime
Deejay !
Jus' put god 'pon unnu mind
And stop chat about this whol' 'eap a crime
One more time me a go warn:
All a the deejay weh a talk 'bout slack
An' talk bout shot in a police head back
Dem dance get wash out
An' dem show get flop
Ca' dem a fi answer now to Mister Mac
Mister Mac, me a one deejay weh support your act
Long time me a tell dem badness fi stop
Long time me a tell dem fi stop chat slack
But dem a gwan like dem a big shot
Dress up in a dark glass an' big hat
Now Mister Mac start attack
An' de whole a dem shock -
Long time me tell dem to cool, but dem nah lissen
ca' me a simpleton..Lawd!
But a de sign a de times
So no worry bout no whol' 'eap a crime
People ! Jus' put God 'pon unnu mind.
[fade out]

steve barrow
19-11-99

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