Sunday with Don Letts: ‘Empty your mind and let it go’
First thing you see on Sunday? The smart answer would be my wife, Grace, but I’m often away from home, so it’s more likely to be a crack of light through the curtains. And I think: yes, result!
Work or rest? Music is my religion, so every day is like Sunday. As a radio producer, I’m duty bound to embrace the new. I am constantly sourcing material: a DJ’s job is to guide people to what’s out there; it’s cultural creation. I never switch off, but sometimes the most creative thing to do is absolutely nothing, empty your mind and let it go. Sunday is good for that.
Childhood Sundays? My father, part of the Windrush generation, would set up a sound system after church – it was an important social function for immigrants living among strangers. It was called Duke Letts Super Stonic Sound System, a deliberate Jamaican misspelling. The music was the emerging sounds of Jamaica: Desmond Dekker, Prince Buster, plus a dose of country and western, and crooners such as Nat King Cole and Jim Reeves.
The perfect Sunday lunch? Growing up Black British, roasts never existed. My mum would cook all this good Jamaican food, but I wanted what my white mates were eating: beans, fish and chips. It is only years later that I can appreciate the culture my parents brought to this country. I hate dinner parties, all that Sunday roast stuff, gatherings of people who I don’t like … I find a lot of people insufferable.
Best film for a Sunday? The Hangover, 2009.
Your ideal Sunday playlist? The sounds that emanate from my garden. I have a spectacular garden in the middle of London. When I grew up, all I had was a patch of dirt. If this earth made a sound, it would be the sound of bass. I believe bass connects likeminded people to each other and in turn the planet.
If you could be anywhere next Sunday where would it be? I was born in 1956 – I’m 68 – and a lot of my friends have gone: Shane MacGowan, Sinéad O’Connor, Terry Hall… wanting anything more than to still be here would be churlish.
Hannah Newton
Don Letts is playing at next week’s Mucky Weekender Festival, 5-7 September (mucky-weekender.co.uk)
