SINGER Hugo Barrington, known in legal circles as lawyer Hugh Faulkner, returns to the stage June 28 as the University of the West Indies celebrates the 40th anniversary of the Norman Manley Law School.

The celebratory event takes place at the Assembly Hall of the UWI’s Mona campus. There will be performances from past and present students including Barrington, who had a brief recording career in the 1980s.

In an interview with the Jamaica Observer, Barrington, who is known for songs such as Loving Is a Thing (Lawdy Lawdy), So For Your Love and True Love, said while he is a practising attorney, his passion for music never waned.

He has been in the recording studio recently working on a number of songs including Ghetto Personality and Light So Shine which will be released in mid-July.

“In-between my law practice I have been writing and seeking to settle on the melodies for new material. My renewed philosophy is to guarantee all my songs to be inspirational, educational or promote love,” he said.

Barrington is pleased with the technological advances made in Jamaican music, but bemoaned the drop in production standards.

“Inappropriate lyrical content in some songs introduce unhealthy concepts to listeners and contaminate the minds of the young,” he said. “Intellectual property protection has expanded and the electronic distribution processes are dominant. As a result, veteran artistes must invest the time to familiarise themselves with the changes.”

Among the performers slated for the UWI event, dubbed ‘Res Ipsa Loquitur’ (The Thing Speaks for Itself), are Cordel Green and Ian Wilkinson.