Schooltime Chronicle

Smiley Culture has been dead now for three months and the circumstances of his death remain unexplained. The Campaign for Justice for Smiley Culture are doing a sterling job keeping up the pressure for answers, as well as raising the wider issue of deaths in custody.

Smiley Culture's Schooltime Chronicle (1986) was a 12" single released on Polydor records. In my view it's not one his best tracks musically, but it is all about going to school in South London - specifically Santley Primary School in Clapham and Tulse Hill Comprehensive School (as did his friendAsher Senator and, previously, Linton Kwesi Johnson and Ken Livingstone).

Lyrics in full:

Big request to Miss Crane, Headmistress off Primary School. And massive respect to Mr Evans Principal of Secondary. Wherever they may be./

Me junior school was Santley, me secondary Tulse Hill. If I could turn back the hands of time I would be going to them still. Yet to miss couple day dem deh time it was a thrill./

So don't be like me a fool, Youth man go to school, youth man go to school, don't be like me a fool. And tek in dem ya style ca you know culture rule. This ah me school time chronicle. Me school time chronicle Lord /

As a youth in Primary School me used to play marble, conkers, football and even scrabble. The youth that used to lose would always grumble. But tru dem know how me stay dem hav to humble. When play time done teacher blow the whistle. Me come from behind prickle just a kiss up dimple. And me reach a classroom feeling comfortable. So me never used to give the teachers too much trouble. Still the worse time inna me school chronicle. Might sound funny now but to me was terrible. Me did a run down the stairs holding on not to stumble. Should of guessed somebody spit on the staircase handle. Before me coulda say elyak hear the whole school./ El el el el Smiley's got the fever. We're gonna tell the teacher. Injections all over. Can't say we never told ya/

Me school time chronicle. Me school time chronicle Lord /

Ner na ner na ner na Smiley's got the fever. Injections all over. Can't say we never told ya/

Me school time chronicle. . . /

Now to start secondary say it was pure trouble. Cause every school I wanted to go to was full. Stockwell Manor Kennington all had too much pupil. So for Tulse Hill Comprehensive I had to settle. I heard the big boys there were very brutal. But when me reach on dem handle me respectful. With me blazer, shirt and tie me did well official. Every day was the same nice and simple. But the worst thing throughout me school chronicle. El.... was the dinner it was terrible. And every lunchtime this is how the cooks would grumbled/

"I tell you Smiley in our days in school, All we got was a bowl of 'Gruel'. And when we were finished or even before. We'd be going up asking for more". 'MORE' I'm cool! But don't be like me a fool. Youth man go a school. Youth man go a school. Don't be like me a fool. Cause I don't want you to come turn out like me. A hard working raggamuffin M.C. Get intelligent and now run the country. Listen to your teacher go to school weekly. And take little time and think wisely. About your school time chronicle.

Me go a P.E. everything PHYSICAL. Touch a Science Lab me ramp with pure CHEMICAL. We did leve me R.E. because me mind BIBLICAL. Inna Maths everything was MATHEMATICAL. But down ah Computer Studies me did well DIGITAL. Inna English everything was ALPHABETICAL. It might sound like history but it's not HISTORICAL. That me only left school with one O'level

Smiley Culture in Catford

Nice bit of footage of the late Smiley Culture , seemingly shot at a Fashion records showcase at the 10 club in Brownhill Rd, Catford in 1983. There's a little bit of Maxi Priest, then I believe Papa Face then Smiley doing Cockney Translation, obviously already well known to the crowd a year before it became a hit record. If you have any memories of that club or even that night please comment.



Details have now been confirmed for the demonstration called by the campaign for Justice for Smiley Culture on Saturday April 16th. It will be assembling at noon at the Southbank Club, 124 - 130 Wandsworth Road SW8 2DL, and then heading to New Scotland Yard.

Moses Tagoe: a death in police custody (1967)

The recent strange death of Smiley Culture in a police raid continues to raise alarm. Last week there was a packed public meeting in Brixton, and the family-led Campaign for Justice for Smiley Culture has called a demonstration on Saturday, April 16th at 1:00pm from Wandsworth Rd in Stockwell (where David Emmanuel/Smiley Culture grew up) to Scotland Yard.

The campaign has already reawakened memories of many other deaths in police custody in the past. Doing some unrelated research this week I came across the following South London case from 1967 - what is particularly shocking about this one is that as recently as the late 1960s, 'coloured people' getting 'over-excited' was accepted as a cause of death! The police are going have to try a bit harder in 2011 to provide a satisfactory explanation for what happened in Warlingham, Surrey, on the 15th March.

'A 22-year-old Nigerian student went berserk when a police officer approached him at night in St Thomas Street, Southwark. Fifty minutes later, the man died in Tower Bridge Police Station, the Southwark inquest was told.

The Southwark coroner, Mr A. Gordon Davies, was informed the student was arrested after striking the policeman, PC John Carr, with a heavy brief-case, in the face. Then the student, Moses Tagoe, of Dalyell Road, Brixton, ran away, but was chased - first by PC Carr and then PC Anthony Mercer. Finally Police Sergeant Henry Dowswell arrested Tagoe.

At the inquest Mr Davies told the jury: 'If you are satisfied that there was quite proper force used, and there was no undue violence on the part of the police, the only possible verdict would be Accidental Death. There is no evidence for any other verdict'.

The jury returning an accidental verdict, had been told by Professor Francis Camps that some coloured people suffered from a disease which could lead to a fatal attack when over-excited. Mr Davies said that because the dead man was coloured, the authorities had made a very thorough investigation to ensure that no charge of racial discrimination could be made.

Pointing out that no reason for the attack on the policeman was apparent, Mr Davies said of Tagoe: 'He may have been under some delusion - persecution complex, or paranoia does seem very possible'.

Tagoe was said by the police to have been writhing on the floor of the police station charge-room, and to have been dead when a police surgeon was called to attend PC Carr'.

Source: South London Observer, 22 March 1967.

Justice for Smiley

The campaign to find out what really happened to Smiley Culture, who died during a police raid last week, takes a step forward on Thursday

The Justice for Smiley Culture campaign will be having its first Public Meeting on Thursday May 24th, 7 pm to 8:30 pm at Lambeth Town Hall in Brixton (entrance on Acre Lane). The organisers say:

'The family have asked it to be known that the meeting will start on time and that they will not want a long protracted meeting. They are still in the process of grieving they will want the meeting to be concluded early. To all those in attendence they ask for your support, prayers, patience and understanding.The meeting will provide an update and details of the next steps for the campaign. One Love - No Justice No Peace'.

Nice tribute to Smiley from Maxi Priest at his myspace site today:

'Stunned, shocked and sad! These are some of the words to describe how I felt when I heard of Smiley Culture's death and how they said he died.

Smiley, a close friend of mine, who like me grew up around sound systems died a few days ago. I shook my head in total disbelief, and for hours I refused to believe it. He was more than just a reggae icon, more than a phenomenal deejay, he was a musical pioneer, but more importantly, Smiley was a great friend to all of us. Those who knew him could tell how articulate and intelligent he was, someone who would think outside the box, had a keen eye for business, and made a significant contribution to this world through his music. Smiley is a legend and respected worldwide.

In thinking of Smiley, I couldn't help but go back in time to when we wrote songs together like Caution with Asher Senator and Paul Robinson. Paul and I also recorded the song "Festival Time", which paid tribute to the good old times and the good old days of which Smiley was a huge part of….

Things we used to do
Things we used to say
Sunday morning I rise bright and early
Getting ready for a festival time
Smiley Culture, Tippa Irie they are coming
Philip Levi, phone and say him soon come

We are gonna meet, meet the sound
We hold the mike,, crowd gather 'round
Put on the show fi please the crowd
Everybody them baul out loud

Festival Time is here....

Smiley and I had similar cultural backgrounds, similar goals and visions for innovating reggae music, and much of this played out in our early days with Saxon Sound system, which was the foundation for our musical career as young teenagers.....times I will never forget.

Smiley was popular across the country and the people loved him, I remember in the early days of our career when we made many appearances together, they loved his spirit, his captivating charm, his musical talent and the way he worked his Caribbean heritage into his music. He was a breath of fresh air, and always motivating others to do their best. I can't count the amount of times he would start and end our conversations with an inspirational quote or reciting a scripture from the Bible.

The music industry has lost a genius and I like all of you have lost a great friend. To his family and friends, I extend heartfelt condolences. May God comfort you through this difficult and challenging time. To his fans and music family….stay strong and look out for each other.

Rest in peace my friend! We miss you.

Jah Bless,
Maxi Priest'

Like Smiley Culture, Maxi Priest started out with SE London's Saxon Sound System (he went to the now closed Roger Manwood Secondary School in Brockley Rise)

Smiley Culture Update

The strange death of South London MC Smiley Culture (David Emmanuel) in a police raid continues to raise concern. Today more than 200 people attended a press conference at Karibu Education Centre in Brixton, with family and supporters. There's an excellent report by John Eden at Uncarved (John also has some great old music press stories from the 1980s). Seems it was something of a sad reunion for other former Saxon sound system MCs including Papa Levi, Asher Senator and Tippa Irie, gathered together to recall their fallen comrade.

I recommend watching this press conference all the way through, there's some incredible memories and contributions from friends, family and community activists.




The police story that Smiley Culture stabbed himself through the heart when he went to make a cup of tea while police were searching his house just sounds incredible. It is theoretically possible that a vulnerable person under stress might want to harm themselves - but even if that was the case here it would suggest a shocking failure by the police to exercise their duty of care. As someone said today 'what kind of madness is this that they're trying to tell the people?'.

There is going to be a follow up public meeting on March 24th, probably in Brixton but venue to be confirmed. This is a campaign that isn't going to go away until the family get answers.

Among the speakers from the floor today was the brother of Sean Rigg, who died in the back of a police van at Brixton Police Station in 2008. Here's a short film about him and his family's campaign for justice.

Smiley Culture

Reggae MC Smiley Culture (real name David Emmanuel) died yesterday in as yet unexplained circumstances during a police raid in Surrey.

The South London MC went to Tulse Hill School (as did Linton Kwesi Johnson, and indeed Ken Livingstone) and was originally known as 'Culture Smiley. So named because of his refusal to chat 'slackness' in his rhymes, but renamed Smiley Culture by his management, David Emmanuel was a popular DJ with the Deptford-based Saxon sound system run by Lloyd 'Musclehead' Francis and Dennis Rowe' (Paul Gilroy, There Ain't No Black in the Union Jack, 1987).

In 1984/5 he had two groundbreaking hits: Cockney Translation and Police Officer. Dotun Adebayo recalled yesterday:

'My pioneering generation of black Britons wanted our own MCs, just as lovers rock a few years before had given us our own reggae singers. Out of that grew a much more vibrant and entertaining expression of second-generation black Britons based around the Saxon Sound System in Smiley's end of southeast London.

It was at a Saxon dance in Deptford in 1984 or 1985 that I first saw Smiley perform his cockney anthem. And you know, for the first time in my life I relished in being black and British ... and was proud of it. And it wasn't just me. I could see the same feeling in the 500 or so other youngsters in the place'.



Schooltime Chronicle is all about his time at Tulse Hill, which is name checked a couple of times in the track:



(I have the 12" of this somewhere, will dig it out and post the lyrics later)

See more at History is Made at Night

Maxi and Mistri

'Why you are WRONG about Maxi Priest' is an interesting post over at Uncarved, where Jon Eden attempts to reclaim the only reggae star named after Max Bygraves from the charge of being just a diluted crossover sell-out. Maxi Priest was born in Lewisham and started out with south-east Lewisham's Saxon Studio International sound system. He went to the now closed Roger Manwood Secondary School in Brockley Rise, as did the late Arsenal and Leeds player David Rocastle (and presumably Ian Wright too as Jon says he went to same school as Maxi).

Over the years Saxon has functioned as a finishing school for emerging reggae talent - as well as Maxi, Smiley Culture, Papa Levi, Tippa Irie and DJ Mistri all performed with them. The latter, famed for a thousand car stickers, 'was born in St Giles Hospital and raised in Camberwell & Deptford, South London... His first public experience as a disc-jockey started with Saxon Sound System at the age of 17... Mistri studied drama & dance at Goldsmiths University, and ballet, jazz and contemporary dance at Laban' (in New Cross).

Maxi Priest played on Jamaica Unlimited's 'Rise Up', recorded to support the Reggae Boyz Jamaica team in the 1998 World Cup. There's an interesting article discussing this whole phenomenon, 'Lions, Black Skins and Reggae Gyals' on the Goldsmiths site.