The British Music Experience at the O2 Arena
OneTravel, Sep 14, 2011
Combining cutting edge audio-visual technology with a collection of some of popular music’s coolest memorabilia, the British Music Experience is a must-see attraction for fans of British music.
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The British Music Experience at the O2 Arena
The British Music Experience at O2, London presented by the Co-operative, in association with OOM Gallery will be showcasing an exclusive exhibition of 38 rare archive photographs celebrating legendary black musicians. From 1st to 30th October.
Using a simple 1980’s Canon camera photographer Pogus Caesar followed the musicians and singers around the famous venues producing a collection that celebrates a style of black music that brings together the UK, the US and the Caribbean.
Explaining his motivation for Muzik Kinda Sweet, Caesar said: “As a child growing up in Sparkbrook and Aston in Birmingham I was inspired by the record sleeves of the day. Years later I had the honour of being the company of these great performers, in Birmingham and beyond. I wanted to contribute to the musical legacy of Birmingham through my imagery. The book is dedicated to those who remember seeing the stars like Curtis Mayfield walking through the Bull Ring or watching Ike and Tina Turner performing at the Top Rank Club on Dale End. It’s also for the younger generation who can still hear the influence of older musical artists through the sounds of today”.
From Stevie Wonder in 1989, Grace Jones in 2009 and Big Youth in 2011, this unique exhibition documents how black music, in its Reggae, Soul, Jazz and R&B tributaries of sound, has changed and renewed itself over the decades.
Journeying from Jimmy Cliff to Jay-Z via Mica Paris and Mary Wilson of The Supremes to David Bowie’s bass player Gail Ann Dorsey, these images conjure up an alphabet of the music of the Black Atlantic.
The photographs selected from OOM Gallery Archive are also as much about the clubs and venues in Birmingham, as it is about the singers, producers and musicians. The Wailers at The Tower Ballroom, Sly Dunbar at The Hummingbird Club, Courtney Pine at Ronnie Scott’s, Cameo at the Odeon Cinema, Ben E. King at the Hippodrome and Soul II Soul’s Jazzie B at BBC Pebble Mill, many venues now lost to regeneration or renewal, and only recalled through memory and imagery.
Author and historian Paul Gilroy who wrote the foreword for the book Muzik Kinda Sweet remarks “Pogus Caesar’s emphatically analog art is rough and full of insight. He conveys the transition between generations, mentalities and economies. These images record a unique period in what would come to be called black British life.” Other photographs include Dennis Brown, Lynden David Hall, Maxi Priest and Mighty Diamonds.
In addition to the exhibition, Pogus Caesar will be launching his book Muzik Kinda Sweet and conducting a Q&A session at the BME on the 12th October 2011.
This is a free event supported by Ahmet Ertegun and is bookable by e-mail sign up.
Please e-mailevents@britishmusicexperience.com and include your full name and address.
Muzik Kinda Sweet is presented as part of Black History Month UK.
http://www.britishmusicexperience.com/muzik-kinda-sweet/
http://www.oomgallery.co.uk