The lyrical content of dancehall has long been a source of much concern mainly because of its lewdness. However, contrary to popular belief, controversy over that aspect of Jamaican music didn't begin with dancehall.

Bedasse... was lambasted by the government, who at the time felt that Night Food was eroding the morals of children

Long before the birth of popular music as we now know it today, there was a song recorded by mento pioneer Alerth Bedasse called Night Food that attracted the outrage of the first People's National Party (PNP) government of the late 1950s.

So intense was the controversy over Night Food, Bedasse was forced to reply in a letter to the press about his song, which compared to todays raunchy offerings could be considered a lullaby of virtue.
"In 1959, when government minister Willis O Isaacs, raised hell in Parliament bout the song spoiling children moral and all that, me asked them what was Night Food,' Bedasse recalled.

"Night Food was a Christian song when compared to what going on now," he was quick to add in defence of the song, which was released under the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) government of the early 1950s.
According to Bedasse when in power, the JLP never made an issue of the song, which in those days was considered too suggestive.

But towards the end of the PNP's reign in the late 1950s, the then minister of Trade and Industry, Willis O Isaacs, criticised Night Food in Parliament on moral grounds.

"I replied in a letter to the press," Bedasse told the Sunday Observer, "telling them that as a government, it is time for them to start thinking about taking the children them out of the one room, which is more dangerous than Night Food."

Born on February 21, 1928 in the parish of Clarendon, Bedasse driven by his love of music migrated to Kingston at age 21 and started to play the guitar.

It was at this point he met Everald Williams, who had just returned from Cuba. Over time, the two were to become the new version of Slim and Sam, the folk/mento duo (from the 1920s to early 1940s) famous for their performances at street corners and at the Coronation Market. On these occasions, Slim and Sam would also sell "tracks" (music-sheets) with the words of the tunes they performed.

"Somebody recommended "Willie" (Everald Williams) to me and we eventually met. This was during the period of Lord Kitchner who had a great influence on me," Bedasse said.

"Williams was a brilliant man, who sometimes would look at a situation and make up a song extemporaneously. He was good at that. He was a teacher also and was good at the English language. He composed the songs them, I played the guitar and he and I would sing and we performed as a duo," recalls Bedasse.

Because of the risqué nature of Night Food, it was a challenge for them to record as prospective producers wouldn"t touch it with a long stick.

"He (Willie) composed a song and it was the first commercial song we recorded and that was Night Food in 1952. But initially, nobody would produce the record. None of the recording places, and I can name a few. In those days you had Stanley Motto, Ivan Chin from Chin Radio, you had Wonards, and one or two more. Williams went to them and they say it was too suggestive."

Eventually, however, Bedasse and his partner managed to get Night Food recorded. "We eventually got it recorded when a guy name Standford bought it.

Stanford was at Church Street and Beeston Street corner. He said he was going to take a chance and buy it and that was the greatest chance any human being ever took. Believe me when the song was recorded at Stanley Motto's studio we couldn't believe. It gained momentum and sold like wildfire. Every dance you go, Night Food would play 10 times. All the people who refused to produce it were so saddened.

"Mr Chin, who at first was not interested in the song called and gave us a contract to make two songs per month. That was a big break for us. In fact, we left the streets after that. Ken Khouri distributed Night Food and we got about £18 for both of us," reminisced the 77-year-old mento pioneer, who used to perform at the corner of Oxford Street and Spanish Town Road in the vicinity of Myers' Drug Store.

"This area was conducive for that kind of thing; a lot of people frequented that area because of the Coronation Market. We used to feed ourselves, buy clothes and give our girlfriends 'a money', as we would go home with £3 or £4," explained Bedasse.

The next big songs for the duo of Bedasse and Williams, which with additional members in time evolved into Alerth Bedasse and the Chin's Calypso Sextet, were Night Food Recipe, Kendal Crash (inspired by the train accident by that name) and some children songs including There's A Brown Girl In The Ring.

With his partner migrating, Bedasse stopped recording around 1959. He became an accountant in 1962 and started working with the National Workers Union (NWU).

NIGHT FOOD

"I really thought that I was wise till a woman mek me realise
that after proper knowledge
I was nude for I did not know
what they call the night food

Lady there is no knife and fork
how can I eat food in the dark
She said the
food is right here
in the bed come here man
mek mi scratch you
head

Chorus

I wonder what
they call this night food
I wonder if it taste so good
I want a lady now
to tell mi why
this night food
is so very high

Executive Class

Gardens with Gravel

Necessary Luxury