Orbitone's Soca Magic

A collection of Soca music taken from records bought from Orbitone Record Store 2 Station Road, London NW10 in 1983.

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when autumn weather turns leaves to flame

Another Dark Song Mix.

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DBC and I&I

In the time I lived in London from 1979 to 1983, my knowledge and appreciation of reggae music was very much aided by the pirate radio station DBC The Dread Broadcasting Corporation. This mix blends together DBC promo jingles with some choice reggae cuts taken from 12" singles I purchased in that period. Like any good 12" it contains some songs , some toasting and some dub.

Tune in if you rankin.

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Asia Asha to Zulal

Aother Doowad & Robert Song musical journey this time transversing a larger variety of cultures, genres and times.

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Over In Africa Mining For Gold

A mixture of some Delta Blues, some African Blues and collaborations bridging the two.

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Europa Pa

To follow on from the Mama Africa mix, Doowad and I came up with this diverse blend of European tracks.

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May Day Work Songs

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It is Monday 4th May and here in the State of Queensland, it is a public holiday to celebrate Labor Day. Rather than being celebrated on May Day (1st of May) it is scheduled for the first Monday after that, and so giving us workers a treasured long week-end. So in honour of all the workers of the world here is a collection of Work Songs. The cover art is taken from the 1967 Labor Day Parade in Brisbane. Given that Queensland is considered to be one of the more conservative states of Australia, it is rather amusing that we are about the only ones outside the Socialist countries who still celebrate May Day in such a fashion.
A short History of May Day.

The happy idea of using a proletarian holiday celebration as a means to attain the eight-hour day was first born in Australia. The workers there decided in 1856 to organize a day of complete stoppage together with meetings and entertainment as a demonstration in favor of the eight-hour day. The day of this celebration was to be April 21. At first, the Australian workers intended this only for the year 1856. But this first celebration had such a strong effect on the proletarian masses of Australia, enlivening them and leading to new agitation, that it was decided to repeat the celebration every year.

In fact, what could give the workers greater courage and faith in their own strength than a mass work stoppage which they had decided themselves? What could give more courage to the eternal slaves of the factories and the workshops than the mustering of their own troops? Thus, the idea of a proletarian celebration was quickly accepted and, from Australia, began to spread to other countries until finally it had conquered the whole proletarian world.

The first to follow the example of the Australian workers were the Americans. In 1886 they decided that May 1 should be the day of universal work stoppage. On this day 200,000 of them left their work and demanded the eight-hour day. Later, police and legal harassment prevented the workers for many years from repeating this [size] demonstration. However in 1888 they renewed their decision and decided that the next celebration would be May 1, 1890.
In the meanwhile, the workers' movement in Europe had grown strong and animated. The most powerful expression of this movement occurred at the International Workers' Congress in 1889. At this Congress, attended by four hundred delegates, it was decided that the eight-hour day must be the first demand. Whereupon the delegate of the French unions, the worker Lavigne from Bordeaux, moved that this demand be expressed in all countries through a universal work stoppage. The delegate of the American workers called attention to the decision of his comrades to strike on May 1, 1890, and the Congress decided on this date for the universal proletarian celebration.

In this case, as thirty years before in Australia, the workers really thought only of a one-time demonstration. The Congress decided that the workers of all lands would demonstrate together for the eight-hour day on May 1, 1890. No one spoke of a repetition of the holiday for the next years. Naturally no one could predict the lightninglike way in which this idea would succeed and how quickly it would be adopted by the working classes. However, it was enough to celebrate the May Day simply one time in order that everyone understand and feel that May Day must be a yearly and continuing institution [. . .].

The first of May demanded the introduction of the eight-hour day. But even after this goal was reached, May Day was not given up. As long as the struggle of the workers against the bourgeoisie and the ruling class continues, as long as all demands are not met, May Day will be the yearly expression of these demands. And, when better days dawn, when the working class of the world has won its deliverance then too humanity will probably celebrate May Day in honor of the bitter struggles and the many sufferings of the past.

Mixsperiment Vol 9

This was a mix experiment set up by Doowad. He issued a set of 11 songs and you had to make a mix using them as a base. This is my stab and is Volume 9 in the series.

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