GO-GO Alive and Well; Still Cranking
Go-go rhythmically pumps from street corner to street corner throughout the city, providing a soundtrack for the bustling activity that defines the cultural and social identity of working class neighborhoods of Washington, DC. The communal harmony is only interrupted, however briefly, when cars coming and going offer their own distinctive and competing soundtracks.
From Wheeler Road SE to Benning Road NE to Florida Avenue NW, the city’s indigenous sound of choice is go-go. Similar to jazz and New Orleans or the Blues and the Mississippi Delta, go-go music is a sound that has singularly grown from within the city and continues to be cultivated and appreciated by the city, despite some who want to prematurely write its epitaph.
DreamCity News Corp
Current Mayor Fenty has used go-go music as a platform to extend his campaign message to would be supporters of his re-election efforts. Radio ads and marketing efforts, such as T-Shirts associating Fenty with go-go, provide evidence to any doubters that go-go still holds cultural currency.
Fenty’s nascent endorsement of go-go, and go-go’s endorsement of him, stands in contradiction to Metropolitan Police Department Chief Lanier’s well publicized “go-go report.” Morning briefings are used to identify potential locations where go-go shows might be happening so MPD knows where to divert extra police presence. An incident this year at Georgetown Day School in NW and a recent deadly shooting at Georgia Avenue & Peabody Street NW, near the MPD’s Fourth District Headquarters, serve as reminders that whether right or wrong, go-go has a stigmatizing connotation.
Go-go’s longstanding reputation as being associated with violence began in the early 1990’s with City Councilmember Frank Smith (Ward 1) advocating against go-go in the city, and local media coverage which depicted go-go as violent. Many annual events such as Georgia Avenue Day, which prominently featured live outdoor go-go, and venues such as the Capitol City Pavilion, aka “The Black Hole,” are now only memories. While popular performance venues still exist in the city, many shows have now shifted to Prince George’s County, which have always hosted go-gos going back to the early 1980’s when go-gos were held at the now shuttered Rosecroft Raceway.
Courtesy Rare Essence
One of the most internationally known go-go bands is Rare Essence; band leader and one if its original members Andre Johnson estimates RE has performed more than 200 times a year for the past two and half decades. Known as “RE”, Rare Essence was formed back in the 1970’s, first under the name Young Dynamos, and has achieved legendary status in the city, according to Charlette “Cocoa” Taylor, who introduced her daughter to RE.
With classics such as “Overnight Scenario”, “Body Snatchers”, “Work the Walls” in their musical cannon, RE is releasing PA Tape #12 with its latest hit “Clap if it’s Good.” The album is available in stores and online while the lead video can be seen on youtube.
Wash Syndicate
On a recent Wednesday night, the Zanzibar on the SW waterfront was abuzz as RE prepared to take the stage. Many of the self-described “grown and sexy” crowd had received text messages letting them know where RE was performing that night. New technologies such as texting and iTunes have allowed RE to reach its fans in a new ways, says Johnson.
As city officials have changed their attitude towards go-go, “one thing hasn’t changed, people love this music,” affirms Johnson who maintains that RE, staying as “current as we can” has been successful in maintaining a rapport with its fans that transcends generations.
A recurring theme when talking to attendees of RE’s show was the intimacy the audience feels with RE. Many described their shows as a reunion of sorts; never knowing who you might see. One woman told a story where she saw her junior high boyfriend and best friend who she had lost track of and hadn’t see for more than a decade. That is the essence of a Rare Essence show, she said.
Johnson and band members are local celebrities in their own right which makes the connection with their fans that much more personal. “I might see them or they might see me during the day and you always want to let people know you appreciate their support as they appreciate what we do.”
With a catalogue of individual songs on iTunes and numerous albums, RE can trace its fans to Germany, Australia, and areas that are well beyond a metro ride. Performing at Harlem, New York’s Apollo Theater, up and down the eastern seaboard at HBCU’s, the Tonight Show with Jay Leno, and the 2005 MTV Music Awards, Rare Essence “is adored by the city, because of what they mean to us,” says Ms. Parker, a loyal fan for more than two decades.
To some, their only experiential opinion of go-go is formed by makeshift street musicians who harness buckets together downtown along 7th Street NW. Johnson says this phenomenon, ongoing for years, is “flattering” and shows the self-determination of go-go to be heard and enjoyed wherever and whenever it can be as long as there is a demanding crowd.
Johnson, in the go-go game for more than 30 years, can remember when he was classmates with the recently deceased go-go legend Anthony Harley aka “Little Benny” at St. Thomas More Catholic School on 4th Street SE.
At this time Johnson was in a band that would rotate rehearsals from house to house and one day Harley, coming from his trumpet lesson, overheard the rehearsals and knocked on the door. He was given an audition on the spot. Johnson remembers Harley played Kool & The Gang’s Billboard hit “Hollywood Swinging”. This was 1976 and the rest is history.
For more information on Rare Essence www.rareessence.com.
The Smithsonian of go-go music, with archival CDs from the 1970’s until now, is American Shottas at 1346 Good Hope Road SE, according to its owner Manni. He is in the process of filming a documentary on go-go from its inception to where the distinctive music should go in the future.
Stocked with a “plethora” of go-go CDs and DVDs, American Shottas prides itself as the best place to find go-go not only in East Washington, but the entire city and, in fact metro area.
From newer groups such as Let It Flow, the Versatile Band, and Bela’Dona, an all female group, to classics from Chuck Brown and Rare Essence, the four year old store is stocked from the ceiling to the floor with go-go. “If it wasn’t relevant, it wouldn’t be in stock,” says Manni.
When it comes to overall sales, “RE smashes everybody,” according to Mannie who says that the younger crowd consistently buys records from Backyard Band, led by Big G who gained national acclaim while starring as Slim Charles on HBO’s The Wire, and TCB.
“Go-go is moving in a great direction. A lot of new bands are coming out,” says manager Damo who classifies go-go into three separate subgenres; hardcore which is strictly for the streets, grown-n-sexy which focuses more on R&B, and bounce beat which is usually consumed by younger gogo fans. However, there can be variations among and within bands as long as they “crank.”
American Shottas is open Monday through Saturday 10am – 9pm. For more information call (202) 525-3438 or www.americanshottas.com
George Washington University Professor and American music ethnographer Kip Lornell began studying and documenting go-go around 1997 in anticipation of writing, The Beat: Go-Go’s Fusion of Funk and Hip-Hop, with Experience Unlimited’s first manager Charles Stephenson, which was published in 2001 as the first academic analysis of go-go.
“Although it is true that go-go is the only artistic expression that originated in our nation’s capital, it’s often overlooked because go-go reflects popular, contemporary, African American culture,” says Lornell.
“Folks outside of the DMV should know more about go-go: both the music and the culture surrounding it. It’s a truly unique musical form that deserves wider recognition,” says Lornell who predicts city leaders will eventually market go-go as a citywide treasure, much in the way that New Orleans has embraced jazz as its iconic music culture.
Fenty seen in the southside streets; Gray supporters pack townhall @ Kelly Miller
Last evening Yvette Alexander held her 3rd annual Ward 7 Townhall Community Meeting and Crime Summit with 6th District MPD, 6D Citizen Advisory Council, and Superior Court of the District of Columbia Community Courts. Tyrone Parker was seen in attendance along with Police Chief Lanier.
There were two senior citizens welcoming visitors to Kelly Miller and asking them to sign a petition in support of Gray. Lapel stickers were available alongside campaign literature. There were no signs of Fenty or his trademark Green.
Meanwhile around 5:00pm, Thursday, 5/20 Mayor Fenty was observed by The Syndicate in the 1400 block of Alabama Avenue SE.
Washington Syndicate
Feds & DCPS closed; DC Gov says report to work 1 hour later
Record snowfall has closed all above ground Metro stations. Photo Washington Syndicate
7:25AM _ The Syndicate has been watching NBC4 this morning since 5am. The streets within the beltway in DC and Maryland are treacherous with an earlier accident being reported at Georgia and Connecticut Avenue in Aspen Hill we can see the treachery out there.
The Syndicate urges everyone to take it easy and don’t go around doing something stupid like trying to get Route 50 westbound.
Mayor Fenty announced yesterday at 4:30pm that DCPS would open two hours late, but around 8:30pm the decision was reversed. The Syndicate knows of no charter or speciality school open today. All area school systems including area colleges are closed with many already announcing closure for Tuesday according to DCist.
With an estimated 5 – 10 inches expected for Tuesday/ Wednesday it could be well into mid or late February that suburban areas are cleared.
Metro continues to only run underground stations with trains running every 30 minutes. Limited bus service on only the mainest of main thoroughfares are running and service is limited. Also from the ist.
Although the Syndicate does embrace and applaud Mayor Fenty’s esprit de corps the decision to open DC gov’t (an hour later) is misdirected and places the safety of American worker Bee inspired municipal workers, such as librarians at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library, at risk. We appreciate the city’s rebellious spirit, but it is not business as usual. Take the day off and be safe.
From the Examiner, “Along with the sheer volume of snow — more than 32 inches at Washington Dulles International Airport — the storm deposited wet, heavy underlayers that packed down into hard, icy strata that defied road crews’ best efforts. Winds then caused the top layers to drift, covering some already cleared areas. The little that melted was expected to refreeze overnight.
The ice and drifting snow also afflict Metro, which on Sunday kept its buses and disability access vehicles off the roads and its aboveground Metrorail stations closed for a second day. It was not clear Sunday afternoon when regular service could resume, even on the rail system.
“It’s slow-going, just like the roads,” Metro spokeswoman Cathy Asato said. “It’s going to be a long recovery period for everybody.”
Also from the Wash Examiner:
“Snowmagedon vs. history
The weekend storm hit near-record snowfalls, with as much as 40 inches falling in Colesville, Md., just north of the Capital Beltway. Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport clocked in its highest two-day snowfall ever, but only the second-highest was recorded at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.
And overall the storm was only the fourth-highest two-day snowfall in Washington since 1871, according to the National Weather Service, in part because Reagan National Airport is now used as the official measurement spot.
1. Knickerbocker storm, Jan. 17 and 18, 1922: 26.0 inches
2. Feb. 12 and 13, 1899: 19.0 inches
3. Feb. 18 and 19. 1979: 18.7 inches
4. Snowmagedon, Feb. 5 and 6, 2010: 17.8 inches recorded at Reagan National Airport“
The North American blizzard of 2010 from Wikipedia
Where is this year’s Linda Cropp? (or Carol Schwartz?)
In the spring and summer of 2006 anyone who left the house saw for their own eyes that Adrian Fenty was as ubiquitous in the city street’s as 992s (now and always ”legendary”). Then Ward 4 Councilmember was “beating his feet” everywhere in the city, at all hours.
From being one of the first to arrive on the scene of late night / early morning Uptown shootings to taking time to meet with the DC Youth Advisory Council this man was everywhere.
Any Washingtonian native, generational or working on their second week in town, could see Fenty was winning wear it mattered. As they say in the clichéd currency of campaign managers and politicians, Fenty was winning “hearts and minds”.
Before The Washington Post released polls indicating Fenty’s approval ratings were in decline, anyone on the street could tell you the chatter within the peasantry for Fenty is not all love.
Although the powers that be are strongly urging City Council Chair Vince Gray to oppose Fenty he has been at best non-committal. So we are now left with current At-Large City Council Member Michael Brown, former broadcaster Leo Alexander, and some other random people?
These candidates are missing something Linda Cropp had. Although losing all the city’s 167 142 precincts, Cropp was the embodiement of the old guard.
Unfortunately, only Brown, whose late father Ron Brown was Commerce Secretary under Pres. Clinton, has the pedigree to one day be considered old guard. So we are missing this year’s Linda Cropp. Or even Carol Schwartz, who ran for Mayor and lost four times; 1986, 1994, 1998, and 2002, for that matter.
We need some fireworks in the 2010 race.
Mr. Marion Barry, The Washington Syndicate formally asks you to run.
You are the only one beloved enough by the old guard to be this year’s Linda Cropp.
I know you can make this thing interesting. You still have time. C’mon Son!
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