Hard and Smart.

Aug 24

We know we’ve been slacking on Friday Night Fights as of late. We’re done slacking. We want to get you set up for the weekend in style so between Friday Night Fights and First Cut Fridays we should be able to do that. Let’s get to it. Livingstone Bramble was a, shall we say, interesting character. Boxing’s full of ‘em but Bramble might take the cake. Hailing from Saint Croix but born in Saint Kitts and Nevis, Bramble was hounded by accusations of practicing witchcraft throughout his career. Accusations he never denied. Various rumors circulated, as they do, about cutting off the ears of dogs and rabbits for good luck or decapitating birds to offer their blood to prevent himself from shedding blood in the ring. He also had a fascination with snakes and pitbulls, often entering the ring with a snake draped across his shoulders. Ray Mancini was just about as opposite as you can get. The son of a World War II veteran, Ray’s story was an easy one for the public to get behind. His father Lenny Mancini had been a promising prospect in the Lightweight division prior to the outbreak of WWII. Injured in action he was never able to return to his pre-war heights. Ray fought for him, in the very same weight class, and took on his nickname: Boom Boom. Mancini’s style also endeared him to fans. Those type of cats who never take a step back and throw punches in bunches are always easy to like. So when Bramble and Mancini met for the second time some bad blood had brewed between the two camps. The fighters trainers, Lou Duva and Murphy Griffith respectively, nearly went at it at the press conference. The first fight had been a war and many expected the same for the second. It lived up to the expectations.

Aug 24

We like to keep it new and interesting here. And our weekends kind of get away from us. So we’re introducing another Friday feature. This one we’re gonna call First Cut Fridays. It’s real simple, when we put up the Errol Dunkley track “Please Stop Your Lying” and realized it was the first tune released on Amalgamated we got an idea. So every Friday til we run out of labels we’re gonna put up the first track ever released on skinhead reggae labels. Simple right? We went for an obvious one to kick this off. The Upsetter subsidiary of the legendary Trojan label is considered by many to be one of the best labels for skinhead reggae. It helps they kicked it off with “Eight for Eight” by The Upsetters b/w “You Know What I Mean” by The Inspirations. It was a pretty solid indication for what would come for the label. Creepy introduction of the track courtesy of Lee Perry himself followed by a massive organ led instrumental, very much the sort of sound the genre would become known for. Then you flip the thing over and BAM! Completely different but still incredible, a top vocal cut. The single would have been worth every penny. And the quality continued throughout the rest of 1969. Pretty good way to start wouldn’t you say?

Aug 24

We lose our number 7, we pick up a number 7. Matt Jarvis was officially unveiled as a West Ham player today, going straight into the squad heading to Swansea tomorrow afternoon. The transfer process was a long and drawn out but Big Sam has got his man. Jarvis adds a great attacking threat in the final third and one of the best crossers of the ball in that area. He won’t bang in a lot of goals but if the opportunity comes to him to finish he’ll do the job. We’re aware a lot of West Ham supporters hate Big Sam and his style of play but that said he’s at least getting the right players to play his system. Jarvis providing service to Carlton Cole could be a very fruitful partnership and our likely lineup at the top of the pitch of Jarvis, Cole and Ricardo Vaz Te is quite an imposing one. We’ll hold off on giving our final assesement on the transfers in and out of the club over the summer til the window closes, but so far Big Sam has done good.

Why yes that is a wall full of speakers. Meet the Sounds and Pressure Sound System probably the best vintage sound system anywhere in the world. They have the annual 1970 Bank Holiday Revival at the IOW rally this weekend. If you can make it out and don’t there is likely something wrong with you. We were going to do a write up on them but figured we’d let them describe themselves: Sounds and Pressure Sound System specializes in serving up the choicest cuts of hard 60s reggae, rocksteady, ska and soul to tingle the tastebuds of any 60s freak. Our business is massive, heavyweight sound systems, in the original Jamaican style and designed to level buildings. We work alongside and support regular clubs all around the UK, such as Scorcher, Blue Cat and Liquidator and promote regular shows by some of the great names in Jamaican music, such as Derrick Morgan, Pat Kelly, Dave Barker and George Dekkar.
Aug 22

Why yes that is a wall full of speakers. Meet the Sounds and Pressure Sound System probably the best vintage sound system anywhere in the world. They have the annual 1970 Bank Holiday Revival at the IOW rally this weekend. If you can make it out and don’t there is likely something wrong with you. We were going to do a write up on them but figured we’d let them describe themselves:

Sounds and Pressure Sound System specializes in serving up the choicest cuts of hard 60s reggae, rocksteady, ska and soul to tingle the tastebuds of any 60s freak. Our business is massive, heavyweight sound systems, in the original Jamaican style and designed to level buildings. We work alongside and support regular clubs all around the UK, such as Scorcher, Blue Cat and Liquidator and promote regular shows by some of the great names in Jamaican music, such as Derrick Morgan, Pat Kelly, Dave Barker and George Dekkar.

If being a warrior put people in the International Boxing Hall of Fame, Rafael “Bazooka” Limon would be a first ballot hall of famer. We love all kinds of fighters here at For The Suits. From the defensively gifted to the men who have moved around the ring with skill and poise to rival a ballerina, we appreciate every different style of fighter. But we have to admit, we appreciate the hard luck battler more than anything. A record doesn’t mean nearly as much to us as does a man possessing the heart to leave everything thing he has in the ring over the course of every single fight. So, as you might have guessed by now, we love Bazooka Limon. His style was far from perfect. He often times had more punches land on the arms of opponents than on their heads. But that didn’t matter, when you punch with the regularity and ferocity that Limon possessed you quickly made opponents think twice about just how long they wanted to stand toe to toe with you. Numerous times throughout his career he was written off as past his sell by date. But you can never underestimate a cat like Limon. A lot of great life lessons can be learned through the sport of boxing. One is that much like an opponent in the ring, life throws everything it can at you. You have to be the one to withstand it all and keep moving forward, never accepting defeat. Limon embodied that mentality. It didn’t matter how many times he was put down, he was going to do his damnedest to get back on his own two feet. It was that mentality that gave him a special kinship with Bobby “Schoolboy” Chacon. Their four fights over the course of seven years were all wars. The men were too similar in their dogged determination to be anything but great opponents for one another. The fourth fight between the two, featured here a few days ago, is one of the greatest of all time. It didn’t take place amidst the glitz and glam better known fighters get. It was fought in the Memorial Auditorium in Sacramento in front of a rabid crowd. The sort of place Limon could shine. He may have lost the fight, but with Limon the story was never about the wins. It was about a man who never quit. Thus we felt it fitting to use the picture we used. It isn’t about winning or losing, it’s about never admitting defeat.
Aug 21

If being a warrior put people in the International Boxing Hall of Fame, Rafael “Bazooka” Limon would be a first ballot hall of famer. We love all kinds of fighters here at For The Suits. From the defensively gifted to the men who have moved around the ring with skill and poise to rival a ballerina, we appreciate every different style of fighter. But we have to admit, we appreciate the hard luck battler more than anything. A record doesn’t mean nearly as much to us as does a man possessing the heart to leave everything thing he has in the ring over the course of every single fight. So, as you might have guessed by now, we love Bazooka Limon. His style was far from perfect. He often times had more punches land on the arms of opponents than on their heads. But that didn’t matter, when you punch with the regularity and ferocity that Limon possessed you quickly made opponents think twice about just how long they wanted to stand toe to toe with you. Numerous times throughout his career he was written off as past his sell by date. But you can never underestimate a cat like Limon. A lot of great life lessons can be learned through the sport of boxing. One is that much like an opponent in the ring, life throws everything it can at you. You have to be the one to withstand it all and keep moving forward, never accepting defeat. Limon embodied that mentality. It didn’t matter how many times he was put down, he was going to do his damnedest to get back on his own two feet. It was that mentality that gave him a special kinship with Bobby “Schoolboy” Chacon. Their four fights over the course of seven years were all wars. The men were too similar in their dogged determination to be anything but great opponents for one another. The fourth fight between the two, featured here a few days ago, is one of the greatest of all time. It didn’t take place amidst the glitz and glam better known fighters get. It was fought in the Memorial Auditorium in Sacramento in front of a rabid crowd. The sort of place Limon could shine. He may have lost the fight, but with Limon the story was never about the wins. It was about a man who never quit. Thus we felt it fitting to use the picture we used. It isn’t about winning or losing, it’s about never admitting defeat.

New book to keep your eyes open for. Or you can just go order it from Amazon, up to you really. In The Blood is written by some character called Snowy alongside Pete McKenna, he of Night Shift fame. Haven’t heard anything about the book ourselves as of yet, and we’ve yet to read, but the story centers around an East End gangster in 1967. Obviously his name would be Ronnie Hardman. Mr. Hardman has a love for Motown you see, and it’s the only thing keeping him sane. Then a bird comes into his life, starts to change him, he’s at a crossroads, etc. Get it? Sounds like a fun read to us.
Aug 21

New book to keep your eyes open for. Or you can just go order it from Amazon, up to you really. In The Blood is written by some character called Snowy alongside Pete McKenna, he of Night Shift fame. Haven’t heard anything about the book ourselves as of yet, and we’ve yet to read, but the story centers around an East End gangster in 1967. Obviously his name would be Ronnie Hardman. Mr. Hardman has a love for Motown you see, and it’s the only thing keeping him sane. Then a bird comes into his life, starts to change him, he’s at a crossroads, etc. Get it? Sounds like a fun read to us.

Well it’s official. Sam Baldock has been shipped off to Bristol City. We hate to see the lad go. During the preseason he was banging ‘em in for fun and things were looking up for Baldock. But a small striker was never going to be in Big Sam’s plans. Allardyce has been longing for another big target up front, hence the feverish attempts to sign Andy Caroll on loan. In our opinion the big man we already have, Carlton Cole, is better than Andy who is all around a useless twat. Needless to say we were happy when it all fell through. But Baldock’s departure is a bit of a disappointment in our eyes as his potential seemed to be on the rise. He came in with a flurry of goals and went out with a flurry as well. Odd business. That said Allardyce has been doing good business in this transfer window so we’ll hold back any outrage or condemnation 'til we see this all play out.
Aug 21

Well it’s official. Sam Baldock has been shipped off to Bristol City. We hate to see the lad go. During the preseason he was banging ‘em in for fun and things were looking up for Baldock. But a small striker was never going to be in Big Sam’s plans. Allardyce has been longing for another big target up front, hence the feverish attempts to sign Andy Caroll on loan. In our opinion the big man we already have, Carlton Cole, is better than Andy who is all around a useless twat. Needless to say we were happy when it all fell through. But Baldock’s departure is a bit of a disappointment in our eyes as his potential seemed to be on the rise. He came in with a flurry of goals and went out with a flurry as well. Odd business. That said Allardyce has been doing good business in this transfer window so we’ll hold back any outrage or condemnation 'til we see this all play out.

Aug 19

We’re in the process of writing a profile of Bazooka Limon, one of the most exciting fighters of all time. While you’re waiting for that watch his epic fourth fight with Bobby Chacon (we did a profile on Bobby earlier in the year). For us it is, hands down, the greatest fight of all time. You will never see two men attack each other with such force and keep it up for the duration that Chacon and Limon do. It’s a superhuman performance from both men. At times you might think the camera is in fast forward. And they keep that pace up for the entire fight. Everyone who watches this fight will hit a point where you have to ask yourself how they are still standing and battering each other with such ferocity. Numerous points in the fight would have resulted in a stoppage nowadays. Watch this fight.

Well we returned in a bit of style now didn’t we? It made not have been an absolutely emphatic victory, the kind a team would like to have to really make a statement, but yesterday’s 1-0 victory over Aston Villa showed a lot of promise. James Collins was a rock at the back, coming up with a few timely tackles and blocks when we needed it to start to put to bed any doubts over his worth. Collins definitely was the Man of the Match yesterday, and if he can keep it up him and James Tomkins will be a very formidable partnership in the center of defense. Imagine us, playing well defensively! Momo Diame was another standout yesterday. The lad is an absolute beast in the middle of the park, able to win the ball AND keep possession. At times he looked a different class. Our single goal wasn’t the prettiest, but it ain’t a beauty contest now is it?
Aug 19

Well we returned in a bit of style now didn’t we? It made not have been an absolutely emphatic victory, the kind a team would like to have to really make a statement, but yesterday’s 1-0 victory over Aston Villa showed a lot of promise. James Collins was a rock at the back, coming up with a few timely tackles and blocks when we needed it to start to put to bed any doubts over his worth. Collins definitely was the Man of the Match yesterday, and if he can keep it up him and James Tomkins will be a very formidable partnership in the center of defense. Imagine us, playing well defensively! Momo Diame was another standout yesterday. The lad is an absolute beast in the middle of the park, able to win the ball AND keep possession. At times he looked a different class. Our single goal wasn’t the prettiest, but it ain’t a beauty contest now is it?

Aug 19

Did you happen to know Derrick Morgan wasn’t just an incredibly talented vocalist? The man responsible for a dozen or so absolutely legendary ska, rocksteady and reggae tracks also happened to have a bit of a knack for producing as well. It certainly had to help that he had Lyn Tait and the Jets backing all his vocals as well as putting out some classic instrumentals on the way. Here we have The Black Brothers with “Give Me Loving” (a tune Derrick himself later recorded for his Moon Hop LP on Pama), a great rocksteady cut. Listen to the vocals first and then go back and pay attention to the instrumental work on it. Class all around. Perfect for a Sunday.