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British reggae group Aswad perform ‘African Children’ live on the ����tv television show ‘The Old Grey Whistle Test’ in 1982. Rhythmic, instrumental and performance features of reggae can clearly be seen accompanied by interjections from a small brass section. Captions over the performance explain how the band sing about the black youth’s experience growing up in the UK, where their name comes from and celebrates five decades on the music scene.

This could be used as a starting point for student research into reggae music and the UK music of this era, bringing young people together musically with a political agenda - the fight against racism. Other artists to explore include The Specials, UB40 and Madness. The clip provides an example of how to use a horn section in a pop arrangement. Find other listening examples and use as a starting point for helping students write their own horn parts.