CHUNE

Riddim: Far East (1986)

Producer: King Jammy

In the late ’80s and early ’90s, the original Don Gorgon (not counting Cornell Campbell!) ruled the dance with his staccato torrent of gun talk, but he also knew how to keep it holstered. It’s Sunday, so let’s keep things peaceful with this call for unity and dancing over the mighty Far East riddim. Sound systems Jammy’s, Hi-Power, Kilimanjaro, and Stone Love all get praise before Ninja urges the dance in a new direction:

memba mi seh weh back a long time
when dancehall business wasn’t so fine
gunshot buss in a young man’s spine
man lose dem life mi seh several time
but right ya now mi seh dance a easy
you can come a dance from 7:30
and nuh stop from skankin tomorrow 8:30
seh sun a shine out pon everybody

Additional listening:

• Rolando Alphonso, “Jah Shakey” (the 1973 song that gave rise to the Far East riddim)

• Barry Brown, “Far East” (1978)

• Ninja Man at Reggae Sunsplash 1992. All it takes is two minutes to understand how Ninja—sorry, “the original front teeth gold teeth Don Gorgon gun pon teeth brush teeth with toothpaste”—captivated crowds. Yes, even with long red hair and a dyed white mustache. Seckle, rudebwoy!

• Ninja Man, “Don’t Test the High Power,” aka the source of one of rap’s most famous dancehall interpolations: Method Man’s “Bring the Pain”