Thoughts on Small Axe: Lovers Rock with historical context
Steve McQueen’s anthology series Small Axe is a love letter to the Black British community.
After watching Steve McQueen’s anthology series Small Axe, I’ve acknowledged McQueen has essentially memorialised parts of Black British culture and historical events. Britain hasn’t seen films of this nature depicting the pre-80s Black British experience since Babylon (1980) and Pressure (1976). McQueen has put the Black British experience in front of the UK audience in such a way that demands conversation, acknowledgement, and learning about an experience most of the average Brit does not know.
I recently had a conversation with my father, who is British Jamaican, born in the 1960s, about The Colour Bar. This was a practice of segregation in Britain that was outlawed with the Race Relations Act of 1965 and 1968. Surprisingly, my father did not know about this historical event.
The Colour Bar is a fundamental era of Black British history, it astounds me that my Dad does not know about the practice, and what's even more worrying is that I just learnt about the practice through my research. But this is where Small Axe steps in, becoming a love letter to the Black British community, informing them of historical events that aren’t widely known amongst the community.
One film in the Small Axe anthology series that I particularly related to was Lovers Rock. When talking to my Dad about his adolescence in the ’70s and 80s he raves about the Blues Dance scene amongst the British West Indian community, so much so he calls it “the best times of his life”. Unsurprisingly, he taught me everything about that era, music, fashion etc. Making me a fan of the Reggae and Dancehall music of that era.
Lovers Rock played tribute to a sound that grew out of Sound systems in London. The children of the Windrush Generation helped grow Lovers Rock, a different form of reggae encompassing singing about love compared to the well-known Rastafarian-based reggae known as Roots. Both British Jamaicans and Native-Born Jamaicans achieved brilliant success with Lovers Rock, for example: Janet Kay, Sugar Minott, Bob Andy, Dennis Brown, Brown Sugar, The Investigators, Winston Reedy, Peter Hunnigale, Marcia Griffiths just to name a few.
The film showcased the experience of a night at the blues dance, centring the music from the Soundsystem at the heart of the film. No matter the arguments, trouble, or fights, everyone at the dance would go back to listen, vibe and wine to the music. I can’t even describe the importance of music to Jamaicans/ West Indians. Music helped them prosper, gave them joy, happiness, and laughter; it gave them the means to survive.
The Dance and Soundsystem started in Jamaica around the 1950s. Jamaicans were setting up sound systems and having dances in open areas, along the side of the road and in their houses all over the island. The dance and Soundsystem was a free tradition not submitted to any substantial criticism in Jamaica. Jamaicans/ West Indians who were British citizens during the 50s - who are now recognised as the Windrush Generation - moved to England and naturally brought their traditions with them. But moving to a different country Jamaican/ West Indians naturally wanted to assimilate into British society. But they arrived on British soil it quickly became clear to them that assimilation into British society would not happen.
The widespread practice of The Colour Bar ostracised the British West Indian and other ethnicities in the Black British community in Britain. Wanting to practice their traditions and being barred from White clubs and spaces, The Windrush Generation created their own space, having dances in their homes separated from the wider British society. A stark contrast to the free traditions of Soundsystems and dances they were used to in Jamaica. Despite The Colour Bar being outlawed in the mid-60s; British society largely continued the practice. The ostracization of British West Indian communities continued into the 70s and 80s. Members of Parliament actively debated banning dances and saw them as a public nuisance. White clubs especially feared letting Rastafarians into their clubs, despite the growing influence and popularity of Rastafarianism in Britain.
It’s quite nonsensical recognising that British society was ostracising British West Indians while regularly enjoying their music, food and culture. West Indian music was breaking the UK charts, influencing slews of major white British acts, essentiality influencing British culture in its entirety.
During the 60s to 80s, Jamaican music Ska, Rocksteady and Reggae gained much influence and fandom in Britain. Ska song, My Boy Lollipop sung by Millie Small in 1964, reached number 2 on the UK singles charts. Desmond Dekker’s singles ‘Israelites’ and ‘It Mek’ reached the top 10 on the UK singles charts. Jamaican music had a large influence on the UK Punk scene and Skinhead subculture in the 60s and 70s. The Beatles, The Police, Rolling Stones, The Clash, and Sex Pistols to name a few were all influenced by reggae music and incorporated aspects of the genre into their music. Not to mention the legendary popularity and influence of Bob Marley in Britain. With all the accolades, popularity and influence of Black music in Britain, racism persisted. Praising black music while racially abusing black people still boggles the mind.
Just to clarify, the dance was not a wholly safe space. When Martha (Played by Amarah-Jae St. Aubyn) went looking for her friend, white males confronted her and started making monkey noises as she walked away. McQueen highlighted that safe spaces for Black Brits were under constant threats from the outside White British society, who forced them into that position. It’s not a coincidence that the birthday party in Lovers Rock compares to Yvonne Ruddock’s birthday party in New Cross 1981. The New Cross Fire consumed the lives of 13 young black teens including Yvonne Ruddock, injuring over 50 black teens. Menelik Shabazz chronicled in his documentary ‘Blood Ah Go Run’ how the safe space of young black teens was subjected to what many black people believe was a racist attack. Unfortunately, Black Brits could not avoid being subjected to violent forms of racism during the 70s and 80s. Small Axe told the audience the story of Black Brits thriving despite the racism they experienced.
