The event held in the recreation room of an apartment building in New York City’s west Bronx at 1520 Sedgwick Avenue, was hosted by Clive Campbell, the brother of the birthday girl, Cindy who is popularly known as DJ Kool Herc – the founding figure of hip hop.
The flier read: “back-to-school jam” in the recreation room, block at 1520 Sedgwick Avenue in New York City’s West Bronx. Entrance cost 25c for “ladies” and 50c for “fellas”.
Also billed a “Special Guests” was Coco, Klark K and Timmy T.
Born in Jamaica 1955, Clive Campbell later relocated to New York in 1967. Due to his imposing stature, he acquired the nickname “Hercules,” often shortened to “Herc.” His father, Keith, possessed a diverse collection of records, and as the sound technician for a local band, he had access to crucial sound equipment that significantly contributed to Herc’s nascent DJ career. Herc’s journey as a DJ began at house parties, during which he introduced notable technical innovations.
Fueled by a desire to stand out, Herc devised a method to amplify his setup to the highest volume, similar to Jamaican sound systems that were part of the culture of Kingston. This made him a dominating sound in the New York environment. Herc brought a slice of Jamaican culture with him to the Bronx. This encompassed the deep bass and dub sounds that characterized the music, as well as the tradition of “toasting” – the art of speaking or rapping over records. Herc’s friend Coke La Rock skillfully employed this technique to great effect at the famous Sedgwick Avenue party.
Herc noticed that people eagerly awaited specific parts to showcase their dance moves, often coinciding with drum breaks – moments in a record where vocals and instruments temporarily fade out, leaving pure rhythm.
The decision to utilize two turntables not for seamless transitions between records but, to alternate between two copies of the same record, effectively extending the coveted drum break that the audience craved. He referred to this technique as the “Merry-Go-Round,” which has since become known as the “break beat.”
By the summer of 1973, DJ Kool Herc had spent nearly a year refining his break-beat approach. The turning point arrived at his sister’s party on August 11, where he faced his largest audience yet and had access to a potent sound system. The success of this event marked the beginning of a grassroots musical revolution, predating the mainstream adoption of the term “hip hop” by six years.
As Hip Hop cut the cake to celebrate its 50th birthday with several media highlights and milestone achievements, dancehall hangs in the wings with no definite date to mark its beginnings or planned media celebrations.
Maxine Isis Stowe, the widow of legendary dancehall singer/producer Lincoln Sugar Minott and former A&R at Columbia Records says the celebration of Hip Hop brings dancehall to the forefront and next year should be dancehall’s 50th birthday.
“Hip Hop’s first events were what happened at the Party because of Kool Herc’s technique that he learned by literally growing up next door to a Dancehall and being inspired by the culture to start playing it. This led to his manipulation within playing breaks between the turntables that allowed for unique vocalizing and as important dancing that is recognized as crystallizing the Genre,” Stowe confimed with World Music Views.
Stowe says the song “Wrong Doers” by Sugar Minott released by Studio One in 1974 follows a similar storyline as Herc’s party because Minott grew up next door to the Dancehall space.
“Being influenced by its culture, they both (DJ Kool Herc Here and Sugar Minott) acknowledge Prince Buster as being their “God.” She says Sugar Minott became a Selector on the Sound System which is similar to being a DJ in Hip Hop.
“(Minott) became so educated on Riddim’s/Versions that in becoming a Solo Artist at Studio One, he became the first to innovate the “reusable riddim” that became the standard of the Dancehall Genre. So The Party was the space for Kool Herc & The Studio for Sugar, both happening in the exact same era!” Stowe explained.
With different events inspired by the same culture, Lincoln Sugar Minott who died in 2010, is to the evolution of dancehall what DJ Kool Herc is to the evolution of Hip Hop asserted Maxine.
The inspiration of Ska legend and Nation Of Islam member Prince Buster must also be considered when celebrating both genres Stowe asserted.
“So it’s actually the techniques driven by The Sound System Culture which for me is highlighting technology mixed in with the culture being a main ingredient of both genres. Prince Buster being acknowledged by both as being their mentor ought to also be considered as he was a mentee of Tom The Sebastian, the first Soundsystem owner and leading to Hedley Jones & Tom’s relationship as the first Soundsystem designer.”- Maxine Stowe
“So the Sound System is and still stands as “The Party” behind these Genres and Jamaican Music Culture influences that keeps manifesting,” Stowe concluded.
Minott himself has said he didn’t get much respect in Jamaica, neither as a singer or producer in spite of his pioneering work due to him being too laid back. In an “In the Reggae Studio” interview the “No Hiding Place” singer recalled, “one of my goal is if I can stay in Jamaica as long as I want and don’t really have to travel to foreign every time I want to achieve a thing. But if I stay here, it’s a big struggle for me.”
Minott said the support of the Jamaican people was not forthcoming although he got love all over the world. “The world could recognize me, I don’t care, Germany, Russia, Belgium…they want me in many places, Japan, China but that’s not what I want, I need the love from my people in Jamaica. That would be so great,” he explained. “If you gave me 10 million dollars, it couldn’t compare to when I walk through Jungle and Rema and a youth say, “yes fada” or “a who dat, Missa Minott?” you can’t pay for that,” he continued.
As for the exact date of dancehall’s birthday, Maxine says, “There’s no exact date. Based on label copy of that time. This is the 1974 process and further it’s Herc’s & Sugars timeline that’s aligned. They were born 1955 & 1956 respectively and experienced the exact same environment surrounding the Sound System/Dancehall to end up being 1973/1974”.
“In 1974, African Brothers cut “Mysterious Nature” with producer Rupie Edwards, which brought them to the attention of Studio One. Their debut song for that label, “No Cup No Broke, was also their last, and the trio split to pursue solo careers. (Tony Tuff would continue his cultural career before switching with great success to dancehall.) In 1987, the Uptempo label gathered up the African Brothers singles for the compilation album Collectors Item, crediting it to Sugar Minott & the African Brothers. Coxsone Dodd was keen to keep Minott, whose talents extended beyond vocals and into session work as both a guitarist and drummer. However, the artist had an even more innovative talent tucked away — an extraordinary ability to compose new lyrics to old songs,” Stowe reflected.
Maxine, whose work in the 90s as A&R for Columbia Records include albums like Super Cat’s Don Dada, Mad Cobra‘s “Hard To Wet, Easy To Dry”, Bad Boys and Cool Runnings Soundtracks, says her late husband Minott, not only had the first dancehall song, but is credited with the first album of the genre four years after the single “Wrong Doers” was released.
“In a scene split between toasters and deep roots, Minott had invented an entirely new style and Dodd was quick to take advantage. It was pure serendipity, or incredible forethought, that the rhythms the pair used were ones that would soon be tearing up the dancehalls. It took a few releases for the Jamaican public to catch on, but by 1978, Minott had his first hit with the single “Vanity.” More quickly followed and before the year was out, he released his debut album, “Live Loving,” which many credit as the first true dancehall album.”
Stowe continued, “It would revolutionize the entire Jamaican musical scene. Minott’s follow-up album, 1979’s Showcase, was equally revolutionary and included not just dub versions, but featured the hip new syndrums that would soon rule the dancehalls. Both albums also doubled as hits collections, and included such smashes as “Wrong Doers,” “Oh Mr. DC,” “House Is Not a Home,” and such Niney Holness-produced chart-busters as “No Vacancy,” “Give Thanks and Praise,” and “Babylon.”
