Event

'Duke Vin and the birth of Ska" [Keeling's Caribbean Showcase]

One night screening of a documentary that tells the story of Duke Vin, the man who built the UK's very first sound system in 1956 and helped popularize Ska in the UK. Part of the ongoing series Keeling's Caribbean Showcase. Q&A with Australian Filmmaker Gus Berger to follow screening

Film Description:
'Duke Vin and the Birth of Ska'
(Dir. Gus Berger, 2008)
London in the 1950's was a cold place in more ways than the obvious. Or so it appeared if you were one of the thousands of newly arrived Jamaicans. Many were overqualified for their menial jobs. Thousands of others quite simply could not get work. Discrimination and racial tensions culminated in fierce riots in both Nottingham and Notting Hill Gate. It was in this environment that the Jamaican soundmen; Duke Vin and Count Suckle arrived in the UK. They both stowed away on a boat from Kingston and brought with them a sound that was sweeping across the small Caribbean island and would later change the face of music in the UK. This was the sound of ska!

Part of Keeling's Caribbean Showcase: Every first Sunday of the month, Keeling Beckford of Keeling's Reggae Music and Video shares his vast library of films, concerts and vintage dancehall parties.