"Jah Live! (Filming and Frenzying in London)"

September 2, 2008

Halifax to London



Red eye flight awaits, we are stuck on the tarmac and I am squished in the smallest seats legal on international flights. My legs are too long, this is the last trip, well not really, the second to last trip for the Vision series, it’s been a long run but man has it been a lot of fun. I have learned that I am happier at home these days however, I have had years of great travel, and I am really ready to stop, unless its with my woman…



It was nice to have 3 days off, we flew in from a crazy night in Frisco as the “beats” call the bay area city. I flew straight to Halifax, woke up the next morning and Jess and I raced to Saint John, a 4 hour drive, just in time to make our friends Monica and Steve’s amazing wedding. Monica is one of my oldest friends and lived on the other side of “the path” from me when I was much younger. Monica’s house was the ultimate community center and party spot in junior high and high school. Man so many memories of that era, but those will have to wait for another blog post at some point.



Their wedding was amazing, it was beside a lake on the Kingston Peninsula at Adaire’s Cabins, my good friend Joel LeBlanc from Hot Toddy played sweet jazz guitar with another bass player lake side, the wedding was great all seated on hay bails. Dinner was fantastic, all Mexican made by Monicas mom who is an incredible woman in the community. The night crusied along and our favorite DJ Kurt Frank spun the wheels of styeel under the umbrella of the forest and Chinese lanterns as we dance partied our way through the night, my wedding close got destroyed as a result of a breakdance competition Chris Lloyd and I had on the muddy ground, but hey when the beats are pumpin, what can 2 guys dressed nicely do other than lay it down???



Jessica, Jay MacLean and I ended the night at this stunning cabin on the Saint John River that Jay has been taking care of…this place was so inspiring and beautiful. Waking up to the river and the beautiful end of summer air was so refreshing. I wanted to go for a swim but I didn’t, I haven’t really swam all summer? This summer has crusied by faster than any other summer of my life. I do remember when shooting and editing Planet Luxury, we had similar feelings, but this is what we do!



Jess and I drove home that night and worked all of Monday, trying to catch up, life really is getting ahead of us as we focus on our careers, something we are both very conscious of keeping in control. Spare time is a luxury. The next day I hopped on this plane that I am writing this post on. I will try to sleep as it is the red eye, but sleeping on uncomfortable and crammed plane seats is not the easiest thing to do in the world you know…hardly any room even for the laptop. Off to England, I will be jet legged, then we will film some more Chaos Majik and also some more “Life on Other Planets” people.



September 8, 2008

Heathrow to Halifax



What a week! I feel we could have probably filmed everything we needed in a day but here I am flying home after a 5 day trip to London, or was it 6? We landed and sure enough I had one of the worst flights of my life, or most uncomfortable anyway, I didn’t have a chance to do any work, “I kinda was sitting there in limbo, waiting for the tide to flow, sitting here in limbo knowing that I have to go, while they are putting up resistance, but I know my faith will take me home”…whoa…sorry, I am listening to the soundtrack Jamaica’s first domestically produce film “The Harder They Come” and Jimmy Cliff is singing “Sitting in Limbo” such a great tune…man there is big significance and relevance in all of this, but I will get to it shortly…”you can get it if you really want, but you have to try, try, try, and you will succeed at last”.



We checked into our Hotel the Imperial at Russell Square just outside of SOHO. The hotel was as the British say “Shite” but it had enough character that it was perfect, despite no toilet seat that actually attached to the toilet, a shower that only worked if you used one hand holding the hose and the other the bar of soap, the bed bugs, the “One Flew Over the Coo Coo’s Nest” groove, no not the Shining…the Shining hotel was far to prestigious…REDRUM! No, this place was very institutional, but it had a weird but great little bar called the Night Day Bar, truly at midnight you thought it was still day as they pump the lights to full blast, anyway I digress.



We are flying over the Atlantic, finally heading home, I’m ready. The airplane bar man just hooked me up with some nectar of the vine, hold on I must pour me a glass…or a plastic I should stay…talk amongst yourselves…



I’m Backsville.



After a great nap at the beautiful Imperial we headed to a fantastic English pub, lots of old wood, green upholstery, dim lights and Guinness on tap, “Buy you a bitter mate?”. I think my favorite part of travelling is meeting new people and seeing new places of course, but even more so eating and drinking local delights. I know I’m not in Ireland, but come on!…GUINESS, WARM GUINESS ON TAP…it’s the time and place…yes I. The rivers of Babylon, where we sat down, and their we wait when we remember Zion. Melodians? Alpha Blondie?



We shot out and about around London, headed down to Millenium Bridege and got a fantastic and illegal, or permit free I should say, shot of Jeremy our magician host walking with the holy St. Peter’s Cathedral filling the background in its slightly out of focus Letus 35mm adapter-actioned depth of fielded glory. England is weird, they have a shite load of cameras ALL OVER THE CITY, this city is the most camera covered city on earth, CCTV, or Big Brother 1984 is always watching, I felt I should be careful even in my own room, who knows eh? Who knows! Saying “Eh” is something I do a lot, why? Well because I think I am Canadian, well I know I am Canadian, but I think that’s why I say it. It is a great transition into this next little story of our trip, the MAPLE LEAF bar in Covent Garden…London’s (supposedly) only “tru-dat” Canadian pub. Ha, what a joke. You walk in and it’s a log cabin, but they are playing uninspired pop music, British pop music at that. Anyway I went their with Al, my friend Heather and Stu last time I was here for Planet Luxury and we had a good time, you know, jerseys of the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Canadians, Tragically hip on the box, But this time Mike Macdonald and I decided to go in it was different, it was disappointing? Why because the bar staff where less than cordial.

That is the first time I have ever used that word, none the less…Mike, Alana; our production coordinator, and I decided to check it out, hey we are Canadian, anyway Mike made a joke saying “hey, if we are Canadian can we get a free pint?” Ok, we all know it was a dumb joke but it is exactly the type of dumb comment I would make so I took great offense when the barman said sarcastically “As if I haven’t heard that before…wanker!” then when Mike turned around behind his back the barman gave the ole hand to mouth phallic innuendo…grow up buddy. I think if you accept a job at a place called THE MAPLE LEAF you should come to expect people like us, deal with it, or go work at Starbucks instead. We left and didn’t buy our daily pint or two from them and tip like rock stars as we do, too bad for the barman at the Maple Leaf Canadian Pub in Covent Garden. When we left I told Mike what he did behind his back, Mike turned around and started heading back in to settle the score, but in the end we realized that we where Canadian and we don’t deal with situations that way. Ha ha. We went to a great underground cellar type of English style restaurant instead, English pies are good for the belly.



Did we shoot that day? No we didn’t, the next day we met with Peter Mastin the head of the European (?)…maybe he was the head of the British Order of the Illuminates of Thanateros (Thanat (t) = Death (d), Eros (e) = Sex (s), therefore, d+S= Chaos Majik (cm)). We interviewed Peter in the park, he was a very interesting character, he has a great piercing in his nose where typically a long bone like thing goes through, at the same time a very distinguished English gentleman with a great bowtie etc. We talked about Chaos Magik, sex and death etc. He was getting ready for the Colors of Chaos event that was attracting the Illuminates from around the globe, first public gathering they have had in 15 years. I dint go but Jeremy did. We also interviewed 2 other Illuminates, one being a healer of sorts. They where nice people. A lot of people are nice people. The people at the Maple Leaf at Covent Garden are not nice people though.



Besides these interviews and a very interesting interview at another pub with a fellow named Nick Pope who used to work for the British government taking care of UFO interests (that was for the Life on other Planets episode), we didn’t shoot too much more. Steve and I had a fun time, as Jeremey and I had the day before, riding the great London Taxis around town getting some B roll of the London Eye, Buckingham, Thames, and beat-boxing in front of the London Tower.



The highlights of this trip.



1) Stuart Wood

2) Musicals

3) England vs. The World soccer match at Wembley



NUMBER 1 HIGHLIGHT, Stuart.



It’s been so long since Planet Luxury, I can’t remember if I wrote about Stuart…I am sure I did, but I will re-brief you. A few years ago I shot a documentary in China about trade opportunities between New Brunswick and its’ sister cities in China. We had a blast there at Karaoke. After a lot of nice banners, handshakes, red carpets, tours and one on one meetings I said goodbye to the rest of the crew I was travelling with (slightly embarrassed that I didn’t film the great wall of China part of the trip because of some unforeseen issues that happened the night before involving the forgetting of the process of battery charging for video cameras after a late night of strange Karaoke). Anyhow, I hit the airport and flew 5 Billion miles South to Singapore to meet with some folks about another show I was trying to develop with a Singaporean company at the time called “Eco 4 The World”. To avoid repeating a story that I already wrote about, I will summarize it with me hopping onto a boat and heading to Indonesia and getting my beard trimmed in a hut with no floors with a straight razor during Ramadan. That was an interest night filled with Halal food and hair dressers and life threatening environments and little ole me with no communication skills.



This was an Island called Bintam I think. Later I found a more relaxing island called Batam (the two names may be mixed up, who’s to tell anyway?). I rented a cabana thatched hut on the beach and met another dude who was there for another reason….sadly his other reason didn’t show up because she was from a country that has a nasty past with Indonesia so she wasn’t allowed into the country. So Stu, the fellow who I met who is still a very good friend of mine, and I hung out on the beach together. That adventure has a lot of cool memories attached to it like hula hooping 14 hoops at a Singaporean Hooters, and meeting 2 American lassies who hosted me for a night at their Singaporean apartment (they where teachers). I will see if I have already written about all of this, if I have I will not continue with these memories but encourage you to read back to the beginning of this blog. Anyway Stu came to meet us at the prestigious Imperial Hotel on Russell Square. It was great seeing him.



Previous to seeing him we just got back from a great meal at a restaurant called “Mr. Jerk” this fantastic I-Tal Jamaican restaurant with pictures of Bob everywhere, Red Stripe, fancy rum and my favorite, Akie, saltfish, dumplings…the true health foods of the world. Jamaica Jamaica! I have such a heart and spirit for that country, the culture, the food and certainly the soul filling music…AHHH. Why me? Why am I such a slave to the blessed rhythms of reggae to the point of tears?



Ok, so we filmed, we filmed and we filmed around London. I am totally exaggerating, we actually shopped, I got some sweet shoes and a stylish Jacket.



NUMBER 2 HIGHLIGHT, The Harder They Come



I will try to keep this highlight short, it will be hard for me to put this into words, hmm, am I getting over emotional in my pre-middle age years? I can’t tell you how ridiculously emotional music has made me lately, specifically like I said in the last paragraph, reggae and Bob Marley. The Spirit talks to me through this music, it lifts me up, and sheds light, it is light. So rewinding to a long time ago when I lived on the Avontuur sailboat shopoting my first documentary EVER (which I still haven’t edited yet!) with my bro Jamie Fougiere and Captain Paul Whalen on the island of St. Maarten. The two of us worked our asses off for months on that ship, but every once in a while we would treat our self to a night of live reggae on the beach, full moon bonfires, Rasta’s, dreadlocks, warm water, Careb and Red Stripe, “You don’t haffe dread to be Rasta”, “Africa Unite”, and “The Harder They Come” vibrating through the warm Caribbean full moon nights with Jamie and I dancing our little white asses off understanding for the first time the true spirit of music and letting go. Man there is so much to write here about God and music and love and life. Should I write more about the business of television? Maybe, but not right now….



…where am I? Oh yeah, I’m in England with my ole pal Stuart from my adventure in Indonesia and Singapore. Him, my friend Alana and I decide to go to London’s lower West side to the theater district. I have never been interested in musicals you know...maybe because my mom and my aunt used to be quite fanatical about Les Miserables and Phantom that I heard so much of it that I automatically though musicals where something to be avoided. I’m glad I am here, because I know have a whole new outlook! Why? Because the Spirit led me to see the musical adaptation of Jamaica’s first fully domestically produced film back in the early 70s that I mentioned at the top of this post… The Harder They Come. I own this movie on DVD, it is a great story of a Jamaican kid from the country side who wants to make it big as a star and moves to Kingston, but gets wound up in the wrong things and you know the rest of the story, lots of ganj, guns, and I-n-I. The movie wasn’t that good but it is one of my favs, all shot on old 16mm film with a fantastic soundtrack from Jimmy Cliff, Toots and the Maytals etc. By “The Rivers of Babylon”, “The Harder They Come”, and “You Can Get it if You Really Want it!” all became famous because of this movie. Jah Live.



Anyway they made a musical of it, it was so tight, the band was ridiculous…I don’t think Stuart and Alana realized how touched I was watching it, I had tears the whole way through, it felt better than any drug could possibly make me feel, the spirit of music is straight from heaven. Ok sorry, I am going on a bit too much, but I really feel it. Music, besides the love I have for my family friends and faith, is the most important thing in the world to me. I think this is why I was amazed when I read the blogs of my guys at Hemmings House Pictures; they all have deep roots and love for music. Is this why we all get along so well as more of a family then a group of employed filmmakers? Not sure, maybe?



At the end of the musical, well for the last 3 songs, the whole theater was up dancing and singing, I’d say 90% of the crowd where Jamaican and of course like me, knew all the words, they could just break it down better! Ha ha, the energy was so positive, I just wish I could have bottled that sober experience, I was high as a kite on nothing more than a combination of different frequencies leaving the strings of the bass and the guitars, the electrical pulses from the Hammond B3, the percussive rhythm from stick hitting snare, through the theater into my chest, through my heart and up to my eye balls.



Ok, so whatever, I’m a hug musical fan now, so a little secret, I kind of needed to go to another musical as soon as possible, so the next day after I said bye to my man Stuart, I snuck away by myself to see The Lion King…WHOA!!! WHAT THE???? “He’s in you! He’s in me!!!” YEAH I KNOW! That musical is ridiculously amazing, hey the movie was wild, but this just blew my mind, AFRICAN MUSIC!!! The songs, the music, the sets, the incredible performances, dance and voice, once again kind of brought me to man-tears (those are the ones that you try not to let out because you have been taught all your life by society that guys can’t shed tears, even if they are alone at a Lion King, or Harder They Come musical).



So to wrap this up, I’m sold, I’m a full on musical nut, I want to go se Joseph and the Technicolor Dream Coat next, hey I loved Jesus Christ Superstar, man that was a film! Hippy apostles! Mary singing “I don’t know how to love him! He’s just a man”, “What’s That Buzz Tell Me What’s Happenin”…takes me back to Saint John High School coffee houses.



There is a lot to write about here, but I feel like I am too stoked to write anything that makes any sense, I feel that the last two days have really re-connected me to my reggae roots, and to my music listening roots. I popped Bob on my I-pod the other day on the plane and listened to Three Little Birds as he sings “Don’t worry, about a thing…cause every little thing, is gonna be alright”. I need to hear that.



We ended our UK trip at a fantastic trip to Wembley Stadium for the best football match ever, it was England vs. the World with chef Gordon Ramsey of Hell’s Kitchen captaining The World team, too funny! It was a celebrity UNICEF fund raiser and it was jammed packed! Jeremy Steve and I went and ate chilly dogs and drank dark beers and did the wave 8 times in a row in a stadium that holds close to 100,000 people…Jeremy has pictures, I’ll have to get them from him. We also cheered like lunatics if either side got goals, we are so Canadian…