10 Essential Carnival Anthems, Selected by General Levy

Next year, London’s Notting Hill Carnival will turn 50. Throughout its decades-long history, NHC has launched careers of musicians across Britain’s Caribbean diaspora, while bringing the sounds of soca, calypso and reggae to local UK audiences. The event has also played an integral role in shaping dance genres like jungle, which combines rave breakbeats with dub vocals and reggae basslines.

General Levy grew up in a Trinidadian household in Harlesden, northwest London. Carnival was a mainstay of his youth, where he honed his skills MCing on the sound systems. In 1994, he released the song ‘Incredible’. With its bombastic energy and iconic ‘jungle is massive’ lyric, it has become one of the defining tracks of UK jungle and a standout anthem of 90s NHC.

Here, General Levy picks out and discusses some of the songs that bring back the sights and sounds of Carnival.

1

Arrow

‘Hot Hot Hot’

(RH Productions, 1982)

Released by Montserrat musician Arrow, the track was one of the first soca songs to gain widespread popularity outside of the Caribbean and enjoy commercial success in countries including the US and UK. “I didn’t go to Carnival till I was about ten, and this one my mum used to listen to, it was a safe tune that gave European people a bridge into calypso and soca, it brought people together.”

2

Errol Dunkley

‘O.K. Fred’

(Scope, 1979)

Originally released by the Jamaican singer John Holt in 1970, Dunkley’s version made the track a hit, peaking at No.11 in the UK. It’s about an upper-class woman falling for a ‘yagga yagga’, Jamaican slang for a carefree man who doesn’t care for a conservative, upkept appearance. “This was the tune I used to sing! It makes you want to be a rude boy. I used to love it.”

3

Cheryl Lynn

‘Encore’

(Columbia, 1983)

From the US R&B singer’s fifth and most successful album, Preppie. It was produced and written by US new jack swing duo Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, who were behind hits including Janet Jackson’s ‘Together Again’ and Human League’s ‘Human’. “They played it at Carnival under the flyover and everyone was dancing. I never used to dance, but I caught a vibe and it drew me out. It was the first time I did my steps.”

4

Afrika Bambaataa & Soulsonic Force

‘Planet Rock’

(Tommy Boy, 1982)

A seminal early hip-hop track characterised by eerie synth grooves and a laser-guided electro pulse. Produced by Arthur Baker, the track was a result of Baker and Bambaataa’s shared love of Kraftwerk, unexpectedly blending hip-hop with early European electronic music. “A groundbreaking tune! I was listening to this when I was going through my breaking and body popping phase.”

5

Barrington Levy

‘Under Me Sensi’

(Time Records, 1984)

A smash hit reggae song written in the UK, where producer Jah Screw first played the dulcet-toned dancehall singer the slow, hazy riddim he had first created at Channel One studios in Kingston. “It was the biggest commercial for marijuana! There were other ganja songs, but that one had great production; it sounded mystical.”

6

Admiral Bailey

‘Punaany’

(Jammy’s Records, 1986)

A cheeky song that was once reportedly banned for its explicit nature (it was renamed ‘Healthy Body’), this no-nonsense reggae track gets straight to the point lyrically, pairing suggestive vocals with a mischievously gyrating rhythm. “It was sexy, and it had bounce to it. It made people dance and whine to reggae music.”

7

Smiley Culture

‘Cockney Translation’

(Fashion Records, 1984)

A track truly celebrating the skill and wit of the sound system MCs; Smiley Culture marked a historical moment in UK multicultural history by bridging the dialects of Cockney and Caribbean. “Everyone loved it! It was humorous, bringing Cockney into reggae. Fashion Records was launched by the Dub Vendor shop in Ladbroke Grove, so they sold loads of these records at Carnival! Big up John MacGillivray and Chris Lane [Fashion Records]”

8

Janet Kay

‘Silly Games’

(Scope, 1979)

Released by the shrill-voiced British singer Janet Kay and written by studio engineer and sound system selector Dennis Bovell, ‘Silly Games’ is considered a lovers rock benchmark. “It was very popular, it gave you the chance to dance with a woman, make connections. It was a beautiful moment sung by a beautiful lady.”

9

Fabian

‘Prophecy’

(Wolf, 1977)

A roots reggae track written by late singer Fabian (also written as Fabienne or Faybiene) Miranda, a US-Panamanian singer who moved to Jamaica in 1974. The track, produced by Jack Ruby, paid homage to Jamaican civil rights activist Marcus Garvey and was banned by Jamaican radio for its overt political nature. “The rasta movement was growing, and there was a rebellious spirit in the community. I was young, but that drop changed the vibe. Powerful.”

10

UK Apachi with Shy FX

‘Original Nuttah’

(SOUR, 1994)

Written by UK Apachi, a London MC of South Asian and Iraqi descent with a robust love for Jamaican culture, and produced by Shy FX, the track further pushed the jungle fever gripping the nation in the wake of M-Beat and General Levy’s own ‘Incredible’. “You played the two together! The 90s was when everything flipped, everything got digital. It was a proper mixing pot of rave and electronic music, with reggae setting the foundation.”