Joseph Hill & Culture, Louie Culture (Portland Splash 1999)

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This is video footage I found on one of my VHS tapes with Portland Splash stage show footage on it. I filmed this one in 1999 for Louie Culture. The VHS copy was a logging tape which is why the time code is on the screen, but I hope you will still full joy the footage.

Joseph Hill (22 January 1949 – 19 August 2006) was the lead singer and songwriter for the roots reggae group Culture, most famous for their 1977 hit "Two Sevens Clash", but also well known for their "International Herb" single. Hill recorded twenty-two albums.
Joseph Hill was born in 1949 in Linstead, a town in Saint Catherine Parish in the southeast of Jamaica. He was raised in a Christian family and began singing in church at the age of six. Within two years he was making his own musical instruments. After leaving home he came into contact with Rastafarians and adopted the faith.
He began his career in the late 1960s as a percussionist, recording with the Studio One house band the Soul Defenders. He also worked as a sound system deejay, and began performing as a backing vocalist, leading to his singles "Behold the Land" and "Take Me Girl" in the early 1970s. In the early 70s Hill performed with two groups that included future reggae star Glen Washington: C35 Incorporated and Stepping Stone.[citation needed] He performed regularly on the hotel circuit but had his greatest success with the group Culture. Hill formed Culture in 1976, and had early success with the prophetic "Two Sevens Clash", predicting apocalypse on 7 July 1977. During the seventies, the group had a string of highly successful singles for producers Joe Gibbs and Sonia Pottinger including the song 'Two Sevens Clash' which made its mark on both Jamaica and the United Kingdom. It was named by Rolling Stone magazine in 2002 as one of the '50 Coolest Records', the only single artist reggae album to make the list. The group also had a hit with 'Stop Fussing and Fighting', a song that addressed the chaotic political climate of the late 1970s and the attempt on Bob Marley's life. Joseph Hill and Culture developed a reputation as a performing group after a performance at the 'One Love Peace Concert' in 1978 and was soon regularly touring the United States, Europe, and Africa. In recent years the group continued to perform at least one hundred concerts each year, with Hill's wife Pauline as road manager. Hill was a presence on stage: part DJ as he directed his band to reconfigure songs on stage and part teacher as he commented on Jamaican history and current political issues. In his lyrics, Hill often explored how the legacy of slavery continued to have an influence on Jamaican citizens. Hill had received a number of honours; an induction into the Jamaican Reggae Walk of Fame and a 2005 Independence Award presented by the Prime Minister of Jamaica. In 2005 he received the Culture Shock Bronze Medal in recognition of his contribution to Jamaican music. As a member of the Rastafari movement, Joseph Hill was a worshipper of emperor Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia. Indeed, Hill's honorific/nickname, "Keeper of Zion Gate" reflects his position as one of reggae's and Rastafari's greatest voices. Joseph Hill died on a tour bus just after entering Berlin on 19 August 2006. At his funeral in September 2006, Hill was eulogized by, amongst others, Jamaican Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller who recognized his contributions to Jamaican culture. His son Kenyatta subsequently took over his role in Culture.

Louie Culture, who was born in rural Portland (Windsor Forest to be exact), on May 9, 1968, took that old rural term and gave it a new meaning and lease on life in 1993. To Louie, a "gangalee" is a freedom fighter. One who fights for and never gives up on his beliefs, and what he wants and dreams of, no matter what the circumstances, obstacles or difficulties may be. Even if it means going or fighting the battle alone, with God by your side.
Louie Culture, born Lewin Brown, started out DJing while still at school in Portland. He took the name of his mentor Bobby Culture and fused it with his pet name "Louie," to come up with the name Louie Culture. Like his mentor, Louie DJayed a lot of Cultural tunes. His first recording was "Rat a Bother Me" (with fellow DJ and friend Waynie Ranking) for producer Red Man in 1986.
After recording some songs for Colin Fatta, Louie met DJ Terror Fabulous. Terror introduced him to the "Mad House" crew. That's when his career took off. He recorded and scored with songs "Live and Learn" (with Wayne Wonder), "Excellent," "Bogus Badge," "Revolution Song," "No Gal" (on the Pepperseed rhythm), and then the monster hit and title track "Gangalee", that gave him his first LP, produced by Stone Love (Released 1994/ Available at VP Music Group).
Louie is very happy about his growing success, and he thanks Jah for making his dream become a reality.