"All Around The World ..." - Pt. 1

Good day to you, friends!

A few evenings ago I was happy to have one of those rare occasions where Little Loser slept at his grandparents' house whilst Mrs Loser was in the bedroom working on her blog (a book-blog: books! No music whatsoever ...can you believe it?) whilst simultaneously watching Germany's Next Topmodel or some similar crap on the telly. Isn't it strange how women can do this at all? Multitasking: what a fine ability this must be, to be sure! And I, I had nothing to do at all, apart from doing last year's tax declaration. But I couldn't be arsed to do it (because I already knew that at the end of the day they want money from me again instead of giving some back to me!), so I thought to myself: "hold on, we don't have enough ska on this blog!"

And so the evening ended up in an almost empty bottle of South African red wine plus a very fine mix of Ska and Rocksteady from Jamaica, no third wave - UK crap (although, mind you, there were some very fine bands amongst those as well: have a look at Swiss Adam's recent posts over at Bagging Area and you'll find them (by and large) all there), just original versions, you know. In my humble estimation this mix is really worth downloading, so you should do exactly this without hesitating very much longer: spring is coming soon and I can ensure you that this mix will go along nicely with you enjoying the first rays of sunshine outside in your garden/on your balcony!

Also I thought that this could well be the start of another - albeit potentially small - new series: "All Around The World", in which I might do mixes of music from exotic countries from all over the globe ... perhaps it's Belgium next, or England, because, to be absolutely frank to you: my collection of songs from, for example, North Korea is ... limited, to put it mildly.

But either way, at least we have Jamaica, a country I luckily was able to visit twice and I can only tell you to go there as well, should you ever contemplate a trip to the West Indies. Of course I am not talking about staying in five star all inclusive resorts for two weeks without seeing anything from the country and not meeting any of the natives: I'm sure you can find those resorts at Seaford Bay as well ... just a few miles to go for a small part of the money ... have fun!

In Jamaica you just need a small hotel, preferably in the Port Antonio area, perhaps with breakfast included. If they don't offer breakfast, don't worry all too much: you will get excellent (!) food at every corner for a very small amount of money. Get yourself a small car and explore the area, enjoy the fantastic beaches, enjoy the food and enjoy the drink and, most importantly, enjoy the people! If you're not satisfied, I'll give you your money back!

Here's some Jamaican music from yesteryear for you, friends, to bring you in the right mood, if you want ... enjoy:

mp3: "Jamaican Ska and Rocksteady '62 - '83" (mix)

Now, wasn't that simply wonderful? As soon as Little Loser is a bit older, we'll be back to Jamaica one day. And that's a promise!

Take good care,

Dirk