March 3, 1997, New York City - "The Week That Was" ! Bashment galore was on the minds and lips of
everyone in the the Big Apple, as an abundance of concerts and shows descended on the city
and took everyone by storm. The hype reached a feverish boiling pitch as promotional
appearances were made on all the media airwaves by celebrities such as Luciano Fears that shows might not perform as well in the box office because of the many choices were unfounded as people flocked to see their favorite artists perform. Feb. 27 - Buju Banton's interview with DJ Roy of the The Caribbean Blend. Feb. 28 - Being a typical Jamaican,
March 1 (Shocking Vibes) - Naturally, I wasn't
going to be late this time around, I had learned my lesson and decided to leave an extra
half hour earlier than I had planned.
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, Buju and
Beenie. With ticket prices in the $50 USD range, there was stiff competition to 'sell
out'. This caused some tension as promoters and artists took it on themselves to further
the cause. 
I arrived late at the
Brooklyn Academy of Music for the Luciano / Anthony B show. At my astonishment I
discovered that Anthony B was the first performer. I had figured he would be the act
before Luci and I couldn't stop kicking myself as he finished his set while I took my
seat. Mikey General was next and he did a few songs that were moderately received by the
audience. I was still out of it, when Sizzla replaced Mikey G. He performed a few songs
including his current hit "Black Woman and Child". I finally snapped out of my
funk when Luciano grabbed hold of me and moved me with his performance. It was quite a
stirring one filled with all his hits and nuff kin puppa lick.
But it just wasn't meant to be. With President Clinton in town,
(I thought he was catching one of these shows, not 'The Rent") traffic betrayed me.
To top it off, the Beacon Theatre's security team decided to dispose of the guest list.
Now, what was I to do? I eventually made in it to catch Tanya Stephans singing 'Yuh No
Ready Fi Dis Yet', boy. I couldn't argue. I figured I had missed the most of the show as
Beenie Man was now being introduced on stage by DJ Roy. Beenie started off his performance
with a standing ovation from the capacity crowd
and he kept them on their feet with a marathon performance. Lady
Saw later joined him on stage and both did a few Xtra-Rated numbers together. Saw then
took over and continued with the 'hardcore lingwa', as she even prompted a male in the
audience to step up. Beenie Man somehow made it back to the stage and continued where he
had left off. He seemed to draw lyrics non stop but as the time clock ticked away, he
called for the rest of the Shocking Vibes Crew (Little Kirk, Silver Cat, Tanto Metro, Saw
and Snagga Puss) , where they joined him on stage to sing their finale.
The Caribbean
Blend crew of Roy and Chris then closed the show reminding everyone to cool the violence,
mindful of all the hype surrounding the shows.
March 2 - The New Music Cafe was the
spot where I dipped into next as Turbo Crown and Cloud 9 hosted the new opening for reggae
Sundays. Anthony B was the headliner and this time I was EARLY ... kinda ( I was late in
meeting Jacquie from 
That was quite a week(/end), it's not often that shows of such
high caliber are kept so close together in such a short time frame. Check out the chart
below to see a sample of the shows and their schedules.