Found this rather interesting interview with Trojan’s Laurence Cane-Honeysett, the man that’s been there for 2 decades and done it all with the label through various owners, scripting amazing liner notes and delving into the treasure trove of the titanic Trojan vaults.

He goes into great detail of things that [...]]]>

Found this rather interesting interview with Trojan’s Laurence Cane-Honeysett, the man that’s been there for 2 decades and done it all with the label through various owners, scripting amazing liner notes and delving into the treasure trove of the titanic Trojan vaults.

He goes into great detail of things that are happening, what he’s found, what’s still there, and why he’s optomistic about the future of the label that for most of us is just simply REGGAE!

Listen to the interview along with various tracks from the label and read about what the futures holds for the label that for most of us is simply REGGAE.

http://www.musiclikedirt.com/2010/07/19/universal-love-for-trojan-records/

Reggae’s very core is built on the version going [...]]]> Since I’ve decided to get my ass in gear and write some more stuff on this blog I’ve come up with a new semi-regular feature that I’ll call — wait for it —Version Galore! Original right? Well that’s kinda going with the new theme of the feature.

Reggae’s very core is built on the version going back to the earliest days of course. Taking soul and R&B hits or anything else really that the producers and artists heard being piped in from the states or that was brought back on vinyl on the many trips people like Clement “Coxsone” Dodd of Studio One label fame – IE: The Godfather, made to the states to find the latest U.S. hits for their respective sound systems, were ripe for a cover.

Artists were covering anything and everything as the recently independent country and quickly enlarging new music industry were hungry for home grown music and what did they have but songs they heard – until that is they had enough talent built up to create their own songs. Covers and recording new versions of old tunes or using old rhythms on new cuts has always been a staple of the recording industry – not strictly a Jamaican phenomenon.

The first track to launch this new feature comes from Cynthia Richards doing her version of “Foolish You”. Why this track? Well I was looking around the web and came up on a cover version by Sublime which made me think – so here you go.

First a little background on Cynthia (taken from Wikipedia): Born in Duhaney Park, Kingston, Jamaica, in 1944, Richards attended the Denham Town Primary School where after impressing teachers with a performance at an end-of-term concert she was encouraged to appear on the Vere Johns Talent Show.

While working as a magistrate’s clerk, she continued her career, working in the 1960s with Bobby Aitken’s Carib Beats band and later the Falcons (with a young Dennis Brown), Byron Lee & the Dragonaires, and the Mighty Vikings. She recorded her debut single, “How Could I”, in 1969, produced by Coxsone.

Although this wasn’t a success, it brought her to the attention of Clancy Eccles, who produced “Foolish Fool”, which became a major hit in Jamaica. She also recorded as one half of the duo Cynthia & Archie. She moved on to work with several producers, including Duke Reid, for whom she recorded “Jungle Fever”, “Sentimental Reason”, and “Aily I”, the latter a hit with UK reggae audiences in 1972. Other producers she worked with included Alvin Ranglin and Larry Lawrence, before moving into self-production with singles such as “Mr. Postman”, and had further chart success in Jamaica with her version of The Staple Singers’ “If You’re Ready (Come Go With Me)”.

She was voted Top Female Artist of 1973 in Jamaica and toured with Dennis Brown and Toots and the Maytals. Later in the 1970s she worked as a backing singer, contributing to Beres Hammond’s 1976 album Soul Reggae and Pat Kelly’s 1978 album Lonely Man.

Check out the many versions of “Foolish You” below.

Original 1969 Version by Dee Dee Warrick

Cynthia Richards Reggae Version

Sublime Cover

and here’s a wicked cut by a more recent band showing the longevity of some simply “sublime” (pun intended) hits. Over 40 years and some cuts just keep finding new fans.

The Flea Market Funk blog did a post back in May about The Music Specialists. I thought it was a fun read so [...]]]> It’s been a bit of time since I did an update and well it’s time to get back in the saddle. Here’s a little link to a cool blog and some video selections!

The Flea Market Funk blog did a post back in May about The Music Specialists. I thought it was a fun read so go there now and check it out.

Here’s the flip: “Flip”

If You’re Not In The Mood To Dance, Step Back, Grab Yourself A Seat.

The wonderful (and we can’t say that enough) DanceCrasher site updated their long running list of 100 greatest Rocksteady tunes back in December but we didn’t get it posted here so we’ll make up for it now. They present another amazing collection of label art, stories and sound clips of some of the most outstanding [...]]]>

The wonderful (and we can’t say that enough) DanceCrasher site updated their long running list of 100 greatest Rocksteady tunes back in December but we didn’t get it posted here so we’ll make up for it now. They present another amazing collection of label art, stories and sound clips of some of the most outstanding tunes ever recorded. Be sure to let em know what you think about those tunes too! Check out the list including hits from Techniques, The Ethiopians, The Uniques, Ken Parker, The Melodians and more here www.dancecrasher.co.uk.

Still wondering how to do the ska? That’s ok – if the video didn’t help then here are some actual written instructions. It’s a fun little piece from some cats in Japan called SkaMania Sound System.

Check it out here: www.skamania.at.infoseek.co.jp

As the story states: his involvement in the 1972 recording session was somewhat impromptu. “I came down here with, Millie [...]]]> There was an interesting piece in the Jamaica Observer about the classic Count Prince Miller cut “Mule Train”. This was a hit back in the day and still gets a spin sporadically in the clubs today.

As the story states: his involvement in the 1972 recording session was somewhat impromptu. “I came down here with, Millie Small, Charles Hyatt and Jackie Edwards to do a show…and Jackie was recording for Bunny Lee at Federal. I was leaving the following day and Jackie said, ‘come with us down the studio nuh Prince’. When I went down there I saw Familyman….Aston (Barrett), Chamers and a couple of others guys from the Wailers. And they were so glad to see me and right away dem sey ‘gi mi a piece a di Mule Train man a long time we nuh hear dat yu nuh Prince,’ and they start to play Mule Train. And I just go behind the mike and Blurr!!!!…..and sing Mule Train and leave the studio,” recalled Count Prince Miller.

As happens pretty regular enough, especially in the early Jamaican music scene, it was a cover given a reggae twist. In this case of an older cowboy hit having been recorded by the likes of Frankie Laine, Bing Crosby, Tennessee Ernie Ford, and Vaughn Monroe.

FOR THE COLLECTORS: Produced by Jackie Edwards, it was originally released in the UK on Trojan Records (TR-7824) in 1971. I also have it on a Jamaican Jaguar pressing (J-05) from around the same time. It’s interesting to note that as the label shows it’s a Walt Disney Publishing tune. Trojan Records and Walt Disney – now there’s a combo!

www.discogs.com

Here is the Count himself discussing a new remix that came out.

READ MORE: www.jamaicaobserver.com

Derrick Morgan also recorded his own version on the mule train riddim changing it slightly to “Reggae Train” which he has performed to this day. You can find a pretty good pressing of this version on a Striker Lee re-issue.

And just for a little fun here is Bing Crosby’s version for your listening pleasure.

Mel Cooke, Gleaner Writer

When Burning Spear’s Door Peep was first included on an album, it did not get title billing. Still, its position as the first song on side ‘B’ of the 1973 Studio One Presents Burning Spear suggested that it was very [...]]]> Hard work to put in ‘Door Peep’ introduction
Published: Sunday | August 16, 2009

Mel Cooke, Gleaner Writer

When Burning Spear’s Door Peep was first included on an album, it did not get title billing. Still, its position as the first song on side ‘B’ of the 1973 Studio One Presents Burning Spear suggested that it was very important.

And the title was actually Door Peep Shall Not Enter.

Always a favourite, the song’s importance in Burning Spear’s catalogue was underscored when it was used for the title of the collection of his work in the Island Anthology series in 1996. The actual title, Door Peep, was not the pair of words that graced the cover of the 35-song collection from Spear’s work with Island Records in the 1970s.

The title Chant Down Babylon came from a phrase which bore Spear’s hallmark of concise repetition and stated his musical intentions as he sang:

READ MORE AT www.jamaica-gleaner.com