Master Class from Richie Poo at Echoes of Sound

Although Richie Poo wasn't billed for Saturday's night's Echoes of Sound, the much touted Reggae Month 12-sound clash at the National Indoor Sports Centre, the veteran selector seized the opportunity to play some music. And what transpired was a master class in sound system selection as Richie Poo showed exactly how he could "nice up di dance".

Plugging in his laptop right after a 10-minute stint from Supa D, which had earlier declared their mission to "kill any tin pan, zinc pan or red herring pan sound," Richie Poo, who had been quietly chilling with friends after collecting the award for Silver Hawk sound system, took them to school.

"A what dat just gwaan a while ago?" he queried, looking genuinely puzzled. "Him have two lickle boy a bawl out dem throat like somebody a beat dem. Show respect," the master selector said, as he studiously unleashed his arsenal.

He chose Garnett Silk to bring back the lustre and the massive showed appreciation. Using the more music and less talk format, Richie Poo reeled of Silk's hits, including Keep Dem Talking, Oh Me, Oh My, and Everything I Got, playing just enough of each to energise the crowd, before moving on to another gem, in his bid to give 10 minutes of real entertainment.

With the people eating out of his hands, Richie Poo voiced his thoughts, "Me feel like me waan kill Supa D," he said. And, with that, he drew for specials from reggae's greatest, including John Holt, Delroy Wilson and Alton Ellis, while boasting that only Silver Hawk can "play dem special yah".

Wilson's Run Run ('Til You Can't Run No More) was classic. Richie Poo, at that time used the platform to talk against crime and violence.

"Mi nuh love di violence that we hear and a read bout by di youth dem. We a appeal to oonu fi hold it down," the overseas-based selector stressed.

Then, it was back to more music. Enter the Bad Boys theme song in a special from Inner Circle, "Soundbwoy, soundbwoy what yuh gonna do? What you gonna do when Silver Hawk come for you?" The cheers sent the sports centre atilt, and before it could get upright, Richie Poo released the big, bad Jimmy Cliff, "The Harder They Come, stating the harder they fall one and all."