Mel Cooke, Star Writer

Sizzla - File

Stone Love's 37th anniversary event, held at Mas Camp, Oxford Road, New Kingston, on Saturday night into Sunday's predawn hours, managed to squeeze in onstage competitions for $10,000, courtesy of Magnum, a slew of guest selectors and performances and a quick award or two into just over two hours.

Not that the celebration lasted only that time before ending a few minutes after 4 a.m. on Sunday. But what turned out to be a large crowd did not really fill up Mas Camp until after 2 a.m. And the real action seemed reserved for the wee hours of Sunday morning as well.

Inevitably, with the celebration running past the 2 a.m. cut-off time stipulated by the Noise Abatement Act, and the police enforcing the law in recent weeks, there was a rush at the end before the celebration ended at just about the same time as Bolt's much-talked about Super Party in St Ann last weekend.

So when it was performance time, it kicked off with the big guns, Sizzla rasping "all b- haffi run whe" and starting out with Holding Firm. It was a matter of snatches of song as well, on a sound system that had been greatly reduced in volume, Sizzla calling up Bounty Killer, who opened with "gun no stick", the roars going up as a smiling Mavado strolled onstage to declare himself the 'Real McKoy', paying respects to his deejay father Bounty Killer.


the action

Bling Dawg and Chase Cross were among those who got involved in the action, Bounty making it clear that while peace is good "Nuh bodda feel sey the musical competition stop ... When we start sing we song dem we no waan see no repercussion in the society".

And on the day when Buju Banton's arrest in the US was headline news, Sizzla said "arright Buju Banton, big respect said speed".

The celebration was not a consistently buoyant affair, although it had far more peaks than troughs. And throughout it all, from Sky Juice's smashing white suit to Dance Xpressionz taking up station just in front of the stage (the Magnum girls went at it hard on the stage itself) and the general aura of respect, it was clear that Stone Love is held in very high esteem.

As one of their noted shout-outs reinforces, "Stone Love stands alone!"

After Sky Juice had delivered his splits and hits and other guest selectors Jagga, Liquid, Digital Chris and Kurt Riley had shown their respects to the 'world immortal' sound, to varying degrees of impact on the crowd, Geefus led out the sound system in honouring its veteran status. He said that wherever they went in the world there was a particular dub plate which is rated and the reaction to Forever Young by Wayne Wonder and Buju Banton showed that it is also put on a pedestal at home.

Nitty Gritty's Good Morning Sound Boy also hit home, a string of early 1990s Bounty Killer specials, including 2004 and Kill or Be Killed sending the hands skywards.


awards section

The awards section, which have proved the downfall of many an event, was restricted to broadcast on big screen as the action went on onstage. Among the awardees were Richie Stephens for Best Comeback Artiste of 2009 and Queen Ifrica for Female Singjay of the Year.

Two more were squeezed in at the very end, an Outstanding Humanitarian award announced for Shaggy and King of Dancing locally and internationally for Ding Dong.

And Ragashanti, who co-hosted with Miss Kitty, had a personal hand in the giveaways, urging on some climactic moment simulation from female volunteers, to delight - and in one case derisive laughter - all around.