Quote Originally Posted by Slightly Stoopid View Post
I think nostalgia may once again be playing tricks with some memories. The "big shows" featuring Freddy McGregor, The Marley sons, John Holt and Shaggy were held on the cliffs at Negril Escape just 5 years ago

Yeah,5 years ago ...
... & the only performer I mentioned was Gregory & my comparison was to a Las Vegas show act ...
Big up to Rockhouse for putting on these shows.... So, what happened to all the other venues?

Etana, Tarrus, Jah Cure, Queen Ifrica and the legendary Luciano and Yellowman are all regulars in Negril.

Been there ...done that - like going to Vegas & seeing -the same old song & dance -

My point is that all the open air concert venues ..are closing up shop
& I'll gladly drop my $$$$ on "quality" live entertainment
The problem is that there are not enough interested people with "$$$$" besides yourself to pay "quality" live entertainment. If you charge too much for locals to pay then you will only have a few hundred people at most to shoulder the fee for the entertainers as they don't play for free.

The fact is that most Jamaicans out on the island have never been to what we would call a "quality" live entertainment show mainly because of the high ticket price. A worker making $60 a week at the Royalton can hardly be expected to pay half a weeks wages to see a show.

This is why the alternative shows with lesser known entertainers with one or two popular tunes are teamed together to make a card that the average Jamaican can afford. These are the shows where the featured artists don't go on stage until the wee hours of the morning. This, of course, wouldn't be possible to put on in Negril due to the noise curfew.

Here in Accompong Town they have the January 6th Celebration each year and the original Stone Love puts on a show with an entrance fee of $300 Jamaican dollars and that the thousand or so that pay to get in in venue just cover the cost for the sound system. The profit, if any, comes from the sale of drinks and food.

There is a disconnect between the locals and the tourists (as well as more well-off Jamaicans) where the money they are willing to pay for top flight entertainment is concerned. If you as a tourist want the best entertainment, you and a fair number more of fellow travelers must be willing to support it because the general Jamaican people can't afford it.