Youths Boogie - Jamaican R&B and The Birth Of Ska

[Bazza]

'Youths Boogie - Jamaican R&B and The Birth Of Ska' is a new comp out on 17th June on the Fantastic Voyage label.

It took years for ska music to become an overnight success. When tunes like 'My Boy Lollipop' hit the airwaves in Britain in the sixties, most listeners assumed that the odd and addictive back-to-front beat was something dreamed up in the studio the month before. Some realised that the music had connections with Jamaica, but few people knew that the genre had been gestating for some years. The music owed some debt to Jamaica's indigenous folk music, mento, but the strongest, most obvious ingredient of ska was American r&b.

By the close of the 1950s the advent of record pressing facilities on the island had enabled records to be manufactured, without sending tapes to Britain and waiting for records to be shipped back. A number of enterprising Jamaicans began to supervise recording session and released the results on their own labels.

Compiled by specialist black music writer Mike Atherton (Record Collector, Echoes), Youths Boogie portrays the popular music of Jamaica in the period 1959 to 1962, before it became formally known as ska, but by which time most of the characteristics of ska were present and correct, alongside the influences of American r&b.

Disc One showcases the productions of Chris Blackwell, a white Jamaican who ran the local R&B and Island labels, before moving his operation to Britain, and Duke Reid, who ran the Trojan sound system, and issued many of his productions on the Duke Reid s label, before founding the famous Treasure Isle label in the sixties.

Disc Two looks at the productions of other individuals like Simeon Smith, Charlie Moo, Dada Tewari, Byron Lee, Roy Robinson, Vincent Chin and the London-based Sonny Roberts, who were all vying to make names for themselves. Taking its name from a Rico instrumental, Youths Boogie features the work of male solo artists like Laurel Aitken, Owen Gray, Derrick Morgan, Wilfred Jackie Edwards, groups such as Derrick Harriott s Jiving Juniors and the Blues Busters, male/female duos Derrick & Patsy, Roy & Millie, and Keith & End, as well as a rare (for this era) solo female outing by Hortense Ellis. Tracks by Charlie Babcock, Al T Joe and Lloyd Williams are making their debut on CD.


Track Listing:

Disc: 1
1. Boogie in My Bones (Laurel Aitken) - Laurel Aitken
2. Lover Boy (Derrick Morgan) - Derrick Morgan
3. Please Let Me Go (Owen Gray) - Owen Gray
4. What Makes Honey (Duke Reid) - Duke Reid
5. Tell Me Darling (Wilfred Jackie Edwards) - Wilfred Jackie Edwards
6. Lost My Baby (The Blues Busters) - The Blues Busters
7. I Wanna Love (The Jiving Juniors) - The Jiving Juniors
8. Baby Baby Baby (Charlie Babcock) - Charlie Babcock
9. Never Go Away (Wilfred Jackie Edwards) - Wilfred Jackie Edwards
10. One Kiss for My Baby (Lord Lebby) - Lord Lebby
11. Joker (Duke Reid) - Duke Reid
12. Let the Good Times Roll (Derrick and Patsy) - Derrick & Patsy
13. Parapinto Boogie (Lloyd Clarke) - Lloyd Clarke
14. Midnight (Hortense Ellis) - Hortense Ellis
15. My Sweet Angel (The Jiving Juniors) - The Jiving Juniors
16. Mitty Gritty (Ernest Ranglin) - Ernest Ranglin
17. I Feel Good (Owen Gray) - Owen Gray
18. Marjorie (Alvin and Cecil) - Alvin & Cecil
19. Let s Go to the Party (Derrick and Patsy) - Derrick & Patsy
20. Slop n Mash (The Jiving Juniors) - The Jiving Juniors
21. Blackberry Brandy (Roland Alphonso) - Roland Alphonso
22. Morning Train (Errol Dixon) - Errol Dixon
23. Crazy Dog (The Beans) - The Beans
24. Low Down Dirty Girl (Laurel Aitken) - Laurel Aitken
25. Midnight Love (The Downbeats) - The Downbeats


Disc: 2
1. Running Around (Owen Gray) - Owen Gray
2. Aitken s Boogie (Laurel Aitken) - Laurel Aitken
3. Early One Morning (The Blues Busters) - The Blues Busters
4. Dumplins (Byron Lee and The Dragonaires) - Byron Lee & the Dragonaires
5. Why Did You Leave Me (The Magic Notes) - The Magic Notes
6. We ll Meet (Roy and Millie) - Roy & Millie
7. I Pray for You (Derrick Morgan) - Derrick Morgan
8. Crackers Rush (Bobby Aitken) - Bobby Aitken
9. Dream Girl (Ricketts and Rowe) - Ricketts and Rowe
10. If It s Money You Need (Laurel Aitken) - Laurel Aitken
11. Palms of Victory (Azie Lawrence) - Azie Lawrence
12. Mama Shut Your Door (Errol Dixon) - Errol Dixon
13. Joy Ride (Byron Lee and The Dragonaires) - Byron Lee & the Dragonaires
14. Sugar Dandy (The Jiving Juniors) - The Jiving Juniors
15. Midnight Track (Owen Gray) - Owen Gray
16. You Win (Whisky) - Whisky
17. Let Me Dream (Alton and Eddy) - Alton & Eddy
18. Going to Kansas City (Laurel Aitken) - Laurel Aitken
19. Mash! Mr. Lee (Byron Lee and The Dragonaires) - Byron Lee & the Dragonaires
20. Nobody Else (Owen Gray) - Owen Gray
21. Fleet Street (Dimples and Eddie) - Dimples & Eddie
22. Youths Boogie (Rico s Combo) - Rico's Combo
23. Stop, Look and Listen (Al T Joe) - AI T. Joe
24. Misery (Lloyd Williams) - Lloyd Williams
25. Worried Over You (Keith and Enid) - Keith & Enid