Heard But Not Seen #1
Wille & The Brentford Disco Set – No One Can Stop Us
It’s a new day..Listen Tune.
studio1 mp3
musicology #504
CoversWeek2 #1
(Hortense Ellis – Sitting In The Park)
This week I’m revisiting an earlier musicology theme concerning cover versions. Cat’s got my tongue a piece today and I have plenty to do regarding ‘the project’ so I’ll just get straight down to business and kick off the proceedings with Hortense Ellis’s top ranking Studio1 version of Billy Stewart’s Soul classic ‘Sitting In The Park’. Always been a bit of a mystery to me why there are so few female singers to have emerged from Jamaica…The only three I can think of are Marcia Griffiths, Phyllis Dillon and Hortense Ellis?..During her career Hortense recorded for all the top producers Coxsone, Duke Reid, Lee Perry, Bunny Lee, Gussie Clarke but, (like 99% of all Jamaican artists), never had any great commercial success….shame.
musicology #93
sixartist, sixtune, sixweekspecial #16
(Alton Ellis – I’m Still In Love)
a piece of Valentines day musicology delivered by Mr Soul of Jamaica…Alton Ellis.
if it sounds familiar but you can’t quite place it this is the original cut to Trinity’s top ranking Saturday night special ‘Three Peice Suit’ which in turn spawned the more well known cut by Althea & Donna ..’Uptown Top Ranking’
musicology #92
sixartist, sixtune, sixweekspecial #15
(Alton Ellis – Hurting Me)
next piece from Mr Ellis…yet another Brentford Road, (Studio1), diamond.
one from out of the top drawer..with what sounds like the Heptones on backing vocals..definately Leroy Sibbles on the ‘four string’ delivering the essential bassline vibes.
Studio1, (and Leroy Sibbles in particular), pioneered the bass as an essential reggae ingredient. before him the bass was almost inaudible..maybe it was due to the fact that not only was Leroy Sibbles an all round musicologist in charge of arrangement, production, (after Jackie Mittoo left for Canada), and vocal duties but he was also resident bass player at the peak of the Studio1 sound.
stands to reason that he would favour the bass drenched approach, (although the ‘ganja’ must have had something to do with it too !!), anyway hold this top ranking cut sung by Alton with all the soul a man can muster…no wonder he was known as Mr Soul Of Jamaica…a richly deserved title…one of themusicologists favourite reggae cuts, slides into the dubwise..dancehall, discomix style.
musicology #91
sixartist, sixtune, sixweekspecial #14
(Alton Ellis – You Make Me Happy)
day two of the Alton selection is a piece from the early 70’s cut for Jamaica’s dominant production house, Coxsone Dodd’s Studio1. After a succesfull spell at rival Duke Reid’s Treasure Isle singing rocksteady classics Alton returned to Studio1, (I imagine), as the sweet and heavy sounds coming out of Brentford Road at that time were second to none, (Treasure Isle was also on it’s last legs)
With musicologists such as Jackie Mitto and Leroy Sibbles, (to name but two), at the controls the Studio1 sound had evolved into something special as well as unique and no studio could contest Dodd’s during this period. (it would take Channel 1, structured on the Studio1 sound, to try and wrest control from Coxsone in the mid 70’s),
Alton and Coxsone collaborated successfully at the birth of the Jamaican music industry in 1959 and although there would have been no love lost due to their previous financial dealings both knew their musical ‘onions’ inside out and had great respect for each others musical knowledge so a reunion was always on the cards…Alton Ellis had a very special quality that few possess, namely to make any tune sound like his own..
this song, (extended dancehall ‘discomix’), co written by Brenda Holloway and Frank Wilson, was made ‘famous’ by the group Blood, Sweat & Tears but for themusicologist Alton’s is the one that does it most justice…
for another example of the man’s special quality check Alton’s rendition of the Bee Gees song Massachusetts, (musicology #60), thrown down during ‘coversweek’
themusicologist 