Eek-A-Mouse

Eek-A-Mouse plays Cambridge Junction on Friday 2 April, with support from Apex HiFi and live performances from Clapper Priest and Ellen Peters. It's a full night of reggae and singjay, with the Jamaican original taking the main slot.

If you're not familiar with the name, Eek-A-Mouse is one of those figures who's been around long enough to have a story that goes back a fair way. Born Ripton Hylton in Kingston in 1957, he's an original Jamaican singjay—that particular blend of singing and DJ-style chanting—known for his storytelling and social commentary. His first releases came while he was still in college, recorded under his birth name alongside his maths teacher, Anthony Dehaney, in a cultural roots style. The track was My Father's Land, and it was around that time, in 1979, that he took the stage name Eek-A-Mouse, a nickname given to him by his friends.

Since then, he's worked with many of the era's great producers—King Tubby, Joe Gibbs, Linval Thompson and Henry Junjo Lawes among them—and has put out more than 100 singles and 17 albums from the 1980s to the present. That's a lot of ground to cover, and with Apex HiFi on support and live sets from Clapper Priest and Ellen Peters, the night builds around him.

Doors open at 19:00, with last entry at 21:30 and a curfew of 23:00. Tickets are £28.50 in advance, and the venue is a short walk from Cambridge station.