On 26 July, Dub Me Always presents another Saturday Night Special with the unbeatable combination of guest selectors Gladdy Wax, Mistah Brown & Tim P of Tighten Up Crew, and Asher G the ‘rock steady daddy’ playing alongside the regular host, DJ David Katz, who is celebrating a significant birthday!
Gladdy Wax, affectionately known as Mr Vinyl Fingers, is one of the most highly-rated selectors on the revival circuit, a stylistically superior DJ whose sound system has long been a highlight of the Notting Hill Carnival. One of the UK’s original sound men, Jamaica-born Gladdy has a very long involvement in the UK reggae scene, presenting radio programmes on BBC Radio London and community station WNK, running the Wax Unlimited record shop in Stoke Newington, and providing London-based promotional assistance for prime releases by artists such as Gregory Isaacs, Dennis Brown, and Freddy McGregor, among many others. With over six decades of experience playing sound systems, Gladdy has already achieved his 35th anniversary at Carnival, a testament to his enduring commitment to furthering reggae in all its forms. Which gems will Gladdy pull out of his exclusive musical bag for your dancing pleasure? Once he puts on those white gloves, you know things are bound to get serious!
Mistah Brown and Tim P have been Tighten Up Crew’s core selectors since 1999, raising the standards of the vintage vinyl game by celebrating the music they love and by giving space to their fellow selectors at numerous venues across the capital and beyond. Currently enjoying a longstanding monthly residency at the Rollex Inn in Finsbury Park, Tighten Up Crew have played at festivals and venues across Europe, have collaborated with esteemed reggae labels such as Trojan and Greensleeves, and have been collaborators with Gladdy Wax at Notting Hill Carnival for over 20 years. When Mistah Brown and Tim P take to the decks – whether separately, or in tandem – you will be treated to hot ska, cool rock steady, boss reggae, tuff roots, vital dub, and a touch of old-school dancehall – and watch out for unexpected gems!
Born in London to Jamaican parents, Asher G was raised in the same north London, neighbourhood as Eddy Grant. His father ran a sound system called Count Wally the Mighty Hi-Fi, so he was raised in an environment where authentic Jamaican music was paramount and ever-present. When Count Wally retired in the early 1980s, Asher inherited his father’s awesome collection and thus developed his own distinctive style of selecting, excelling at the art with an arsenal of unusual instrumentals and obscure vocal tunes. Beating Gladd Wax, Jesse James and RS Digital at a legendary sound clash in 2008, Asher has since consolidated his position as one of the most revered and versatile selectors on the revival circuit.
Every time each of these selectors play, you are guaranteed to hear music you’ve never encountered before, with non-stop action for your dancing pleasure and revelations galore for the connoisseurs. We expect a roadblock for this unmissable extended Saturday Night Special, so come early to avoid disappointment and stay late!
8pm-2am
Upstairs at the Ritzy
Brixton Oval
Brixton SW2 1JG
Free entry
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