REBEL Salute ended on a high note at Richmond Estate in St Ann yesterday morning. From most indicators, patrons left the two-day festival satisfied.

Veteran roots trio, The Mighty Diamonds, showed what has made them one of reggae’s great harmony groups with a well-received set.

Their vocals were flawless and sounded no different from their recordings. Tabby, Bunny and Judge belted out Have Mercy, Pass the Kutchie, I Need a Roof and When the Right Time Come.

As expected, Freddie McGregor hit his mark and delivered a classical set. From the ‘Big Ship’ boss sang his first line, it was evident a lot of preparation went into his show.

During his first 15 minutes, McGregor churned out lyrics to old favourites like To Be Poor is a Crime Prophecy, Big Ship and Push Come to Shove.

The female fans were thrilled with the ballads Brandy, And So I’ll Wait for You, and Just Don’t Wanna be Lonely. McGregor had to return for an encore and had everyone doing ska dance moves to Justin Hinds’ Carry Go Bring Come and Wings of a Dove, originally done by Eric ‘Monty’ Morris.

Many questioned why he was not given a longer set compared to other acts who did not have much of an impact.

Leroy Smart was ‘not so smart’ and earned himself a chorus of boos. Just minutes into his set, the singer insulted the Warrior Love Band, saying although he did not rehearse with them, they should be familiar with his tunes.

After more verbal attacks on the band, the crowd had enough of Smart. Not even hits such as I Am the Don, Ballistic Affair and Without Love could redeem him.

“I have attended 21 staging of Rebel Salute an’ Leroy a the first man mi ever hear get boo because this crowd is not the rowdy type. The band has been doing a good job all night and they were playing his tunes, him jus’ a try blame them for his mess. Clearly, he is high on something before he came on,” said patron Linval Walker.

The ‘Fire Muma’ Queen Ifrica was in blazing form and drew full attention with Born Free, Lioness on The Rise, Let’s Get Silly, Below the Waist and the defiant Keep It to Yourself.

Earlier, 1980s dancehall star Echo Minott turned back the clock with uptempo songs such as What the Hell the Police Can Do?, Mad Over Me, Put Your Hand Pon the Key and his big hit, Lazy Body.

Patrons could not get enough of Minott, who had them singing along to Lionel Richie’s Hello and Ben E King’s I Who Have Nothing.

Fantastic sets also came from Leroy Gibbons, Fantan Mojah, Inner Circle, Richie Spice and Shuga.

The rising sun welcomed magnificent, spiritual and conscious sets from Luciano, Cocoa Tea and Sizzla Kalonji.

Organisers of Rebel Salute should be commended for the short set changes, great sound and lighting. However, there were complaints from fans about the drawn-out spectacle that saw both days running over-time.

Some suggested an extra day to ease this problem.