I
GRADE SHOWCASE 2005
Ancient King, Abja, NiyoRah and Army
Backed by Black Foot with Aba Shaka & the
Musical Ark of Jah Kovenant Sound
This was the west coast debut of the I Grade Records
family, that has been producing some of the finest roots music since 2000. The showcase
featured Ancient King, NiyoRah and Army,
each of whom had albums released by I Grade Records earlier this summer.
Abja also performed backed by Black Foot which
features crucial guitar and vocals from Tuff Lion, Laurent
"Tippy" Alfred on keyboards and melodica, Astor Campbell on
drums and Gregory "Bassie" Jackson on bass. Aba Shaka
filled the cup beautifully with his inspiring MCing and meditative Musical Ark of Jah
Kovenant Sounds.
The photographs below were taken by Mark
Siebert at the Ashkenaz Community Center in Berkeley on August 3, 2005. Unfortunately,
he did not arrive until after Ancient King had finished performing, and his batteries died
before the finale in which everyone was united on stage.
