Three Great Rocksteady Tracks

[Pete S]

I paid over £100 for this one, no doubt nobody will be able to understand why, I collect the label though and they are mighty tough to find

1) Glen Addams / D Tony Lee - Cool cool rocksteady - Collins Downbeat

2) Dobby Dobson - Loving pauper - Treasure Isle (many people don't realise this came out on Uk as on the label it's called When It Comes To Loving I'm Alright and it's credited to Vic Taylor!)

3) Alton Ellis - Shake it - Doctor Bird

notice how they don't even bother to fade it out, it just ends!

[Pete S]

So did anyone like any of the ska/reggae/rocksteady stuff? Been ages since I played any so I thought I'd bash a few tunes out as I hadn't sent any up for ages.

Will go back to the soul again tomorrow, don't worry!

[Guest TONY ROUNCE]

I paid over £100 for this one, no doubt nobody will be able to understand why, I collect the label though and they are mighty tough to find

1) Glen Addams / D Tony Lee - Cool cool rocksteady - Collins Downbeat

2) Dobby Dobson - Loving pauper - Treasure Isle (many people don't realise this came out on Uk as on the label it's called When It Comes To Loving I'm Alright and it's credited to Vic Taylor!)

...and of course it did also come out on the all-orange UK Trojan (TR 000 series) with the correct song and artist credits (BTW have you noticed that "Heartaches" by Vic Taylor - which actually IS by Vic Taylor! - is really a version of Fred Hughes' "My Heart Cries Oh"?

"Cool Cool Rock Steady" is worth a ton of anyone's money, and much more than that - "on the Lee's label, Mabel!" as the man DTL would say! Have you got the rare "Milk Bottles" cut of Alva Lewis' "Return Home" on the Collins subsidiary label "Sound Of Jamaica"?

TONE

TONE

[Pete S]

...and of course it did also come out on the all-orange UK Trojan (TR 000 series) with the correct song and artist credits (BTW have you noticed that "Heartaches" by Vic Taylor - which actually IS by Vic Taylor! - is really a version of Fred Hughes' "My Heart Cries Oh"?

"Cool Cool Rock Steady" is worth a ton of anyone's money, and much more than that - "on the Lee's label, Mabel!" as the man DTL would say! Have you got the rare "Milk Bottles" cut of Alva Lewis' "Return Home" on the Collins subsidiary label "Sound Of Jamaica"?

TONE

TONE

I've never seen it on Trojan Tone, in fact it's a bit of a hens teeth job on Treasure Isle, this took me years to get, and I mean over 20 years.

I like the Collins Downbeat label, he recycles everything numerous times. I'm sure you know that the backing track of this one came out as Lees Special by Don Lee on Island 3087...but it also came out on Island 3081 by Henry III as Won't Go Away! And the other side of that is called I'll Reach The End, but it's actually a version of The Troggs song With A Girl Like You! Bizarre. Henry III had a really great version of So Much Love on UK RCA. Any idea who he was?

[Guest TONY ROUNCE]

I've never seen it on Trojan Tone, in fact it's a bit of a hens teeth job on Treasure Isle, this took me years to get, and I mean over 20 years.

I like the Collins Downbeat label, he recycles everything numerous times. I'm sure you know that the backing track of this one came out as Lees Special by Don Lee on Island 3087...but it also came out on Island 3081 by Henry III as Won't Go Away! And the other side of that is called I'll Reach The End, but it's actually a version of The Troggs song With A Girl Like You! Bizarre. Henry III had a really great version of So Much Love on UK RCA. Any idea who he was?

I might be wrong about this, as I haven't heard it in years, but I have a feeling that the B side of "Bang Bang Lulu", "I Never Knew" by 'Mrs. Miller' (actually Lloyd Charmers, singing in a silly voice) is also a cut to "Cool, Cool Rock Steady"/"Lee's Special".

Yes, I've had "I'll Reach The End" in my collection for about 35 years. I love the way it starts with that killer bass, horns and piano then drops, completely unexpectedly, into Reg Presley & co.'s finest moment. Nearly fell of my chair the first time I heard it and just kept putting the needle back on the intro over and over again....

...Henry III was (and I believe still is) Henry Buckley, who also wrote the Gayletts "Silent River Runs Deep" and who had a few other records under various aialses on Federal and Merritone.

If I can access it easily in the mess that passes for my (supposedly filed) record collection I'll send you a scan of the UK Trojan "Loving Pauper". The B-side is good, too - a Tommy McCook version of "Yeh Yeh" (albeit with a different title, of course!)

Collins Down Beat is such a great label to collect I only have a few myself, but I do know someone who has a whole set, so he's obviously barking mad!. I also like the Collins productions that came out on Smash in the early 70s - if you don't know it, "Hard Life" by (allegedly) Merlene Webber (who it patently is not) is a killer rocksteady on the same rhythm as "The Young Ones" (or "Young Love", as it says on the Blue Cat label) by Lloyd Clarke....

TONE

[Richard Bayley]

Dobby Dobson's "Loving Pauper" is a superb rocksteady track, but the killer version, IMVHO, is by the Cool Ruler himself.....Gregory Isaacs

[Guest TONY ROUNCE]

Dobby Dobson's "Loving Pauper" is a superb rocksteady track, but the killer version, IMVHO, is by the Cool Ruler himself.....Gregory Isaacs

Sorry Richard, it's good - no, actually, it's great, esp. the Jamaican pressing on Puppy, with Pablo blowing wistfully in the background - but Gregory's take is most definitely is not in the same class as Dobby...

...Admire your display of sublime taste, though, mate!

TONE

[Pete S]

Dobby Dobson's "Loving Pauper" is a superb rocksteady track, but the killer version, IMVHO, is by the Cool Ruler himself.....Gregory Isaacs

Thats sacrilege!

[Guest Stuart T]

I paid over £100 for this one, no doubt nobody will be able to understand why, I collect the label though and they are mighty tough to find

1) Glen Addams / D Tony Lee - Cool cool rocksteady - Collins Downbeat

Absolutely great track Pete, not managed to get it on 45 myself (yet). Wish I could put a few up but its beyond me. Have you ever seen/got the Justin Hinds rocksteady version of Carry Go Bring Come on UK Trojan? Been after that for a long time, or is it just in my imagination?

[Toodarnsoulful]

Started listening to a lot of 6ts ska, rocksteady etc. over the last months and some is so soulful i really like a lot... Alton Ellis is great..

L

[Pete S]

Absolutely great track Pete, not managed to get it on 45 myself (yet). Wish I could put a few up but its beyond me. Have you ever seen/got the Justin Hinds rocksteady version of Carry Go Bring Come on UK Trojan? Been after that for a long time, or is it just in my imagination?

It's on UK Treasure isle mate, thats why you can't find it

[Denbo]

So did anyone like any of the ska/reggae/rocksteady stuff? Been ages since I played any so I thought I'd bash a few tunes out as I hadn't sent any up for ages.

Will go back to the soul again tomorrow, don't worry!

Good stuff Pete, enjoyed them all, especially the first one.

Is that a UK label Collins Downbeat?

[Pete S]

Good stuff Pete, enjoyed them all, especially the first one.

Is that a UK label Collins Downbeat?

I'll try and put up a few more sounds today.

Collins Downbeat is a UK label, no idea who distributed it though.

Some scans enclosed.

[Pete S]

I might be wrong about this, as I haven't heard it in years, but I have a feeling that the B side of "Bang Bang Lulu", "I Never Knew" by 'Mrs. Miller' (actually Lloyd Charmers, singing in a silly voice) is also a cut to "Cool, Cool Rock Steady"/"Lee's Special".

TONE

No, you are right Tone. I think he's trying to impersonate the American Mrs. Miller!

[grant]

So did anyone like any of the ska/reggae/rocksteady stuff? Been ages since I played any so I thought I'd bash a few tunes out as I hadn't sent any up for ages.

Will go back to the soul again tomorrow, don't worry!

thank god for that Pete

did like a bit of ska years ago when the specials, etc craze came along but my 'love' for it didnt last that long

[Guest Stuart T]

It's on UK Treasure isle mate, thats why you can't find it

I'm sure I knew that, doh!

[Guest TONY ROUNCE]

I'll try and put up a few more sounds today.

Collins Downbeat is a UK label, no idea who distributed it though.

Some scans enclosed.

I think Clancy Collins used to distribute a lot of these releases himself, I can recall seeing him in Harvey Records in Upton Park, when I was a teenager, selling them boxloads of "Sir Collins' Special" - which was one of the biggest records of the day (and which, of course, is another cut to the great Roy Shirley's "Music Field"...). It was also distributed, like Island and Doctor Bird, by the now-defunct distributor Lugton's.

His later label, Sir Collins Music Wheel,also has one or two interesting records on it, some of which recycled the rocksteady backing tracks that he originally got from Bunnie Lee and Enos McLeod. (There's a great white label LP on Music Wheel with a killer version of Curtis Mayfield's "Keep On Keepin' On", on it...)

But one of his rarest 45s is that "Milk Bottles" version of "Return Home", on "Sound Of Jamaica" label. I have it somewhere in the racks, I think the artists credit is "Sir Charles" or "Lord Charles" or similar. I'll dig it out over the weekend and give you the details...

TONE

[Pete S]

thank god for that Pete

did like a bit of ska years ago when the specials, etc craze came along but my 'love' for it didnt last that long

Tough day for you today then Grant, I changed my mind, it's going to be all ska and reggae today...

[Pete S]

I think Clancy Collins used to distribute a lot of these releases himself, I can recall seeing him in Harvey Records in Upton Park, when I was a teenager, selling them boxloads of "Sir Collins' Special" - which was one of the biggest records of the day (and which, of course, is another cut to the great Roy Shirley's "Music Field"...). It was also distributed, like Island and Doctor Bird, by the now-defunct distributor Lugton's.

His later label, Sir Collins Music Wheel,also has one or two interesting records on it, some of which recycled the rocksteady backing tracks that he originally got from Bunnie Lee and Enos McLeod. (There's a great white label LP on Music Wheel with a killer version of Curtis Mayfield's "Keep On Keepin' On", on it...)

But one of his rarest 45s is that "Milk Bottles" version of "Return Home", on "Sound Of Jamaica" label. I have it somewhere in the racks, I think the artists credit is "Sir Charles" or "Lord Charles" or similar. I'll dig it out over the weekend and give you the details...

TONE

I never even heard of it Tone. Why is it referred to as 'milk bottles', is someone playing them? I do have the Alva Lewis on Caltone. I also have a bizarre version of Sir Collins Special on a white label from about 75 (going by the sound of the other side), basically it's the original version but they've "dubbed it up". Sir Collins Special also slipped out on the b side of something by The Aggrovators on Smash, I forget now, might be "The Wizard".

I've got Music Field (on Island) - I do prefer the inst though, I know thats weird...

[Guest Stuart T]

Tough day for you today then Grant, I changed my mind, it's going to be all ska and reggae today...

Hurrah!

Tony, did you compile that Dawning of A New Era compilation? If you did, good work sir! Anyone know what Walking Through Jerusalem by the Corporation was released on? B side of one of those bad things on Torpedo perhaps?

[grant]

Tough day for you today then Grant, I changed my mind, it's going to be all ska and reggae today...

Cheers Pete.....................

[Pete S]

Cheers Pete.....................

Don't worry, I'll post them in the new Media section so you won't see them in the soul sections..

[Denbo]

I'll try and put up a few more sounds today.

Collins Downbeat is a UK label, no idea who distributed it though.

Some scans enclosed.

Bloody Hell, never, ever seen these before!!!

Call myself a UK label collector???

:¸(

[Guest TONY ROUNCE]

I never even heard of it Tone. Why is it referred to as 'milk bottles', is someone playing them? I do have the Alva Lewis on Caltone. I also have a bizarre version of Sir Collins Special on a white label from about 75 (going by the sound of the other side), basically it's the original version but they've "dubbed it up". Sir Collins Special also slipped out on the b side of something by The Aggrovators on Smash, I forget now, might be "The Wizard".

I've got Music Field (on Island) - I do prefer the inst though, I know thats weird...

Yes, exactly - just like on "The Whip" by the Ethiopians, only on the "Return Home" cut someone actually IS banging empty milk bottles, or maybe beer bottles, throughout the track! If I had the technology to make sound files I'd be glad to post it up here for you. It is indeed stupidly rare, and my pal who only collects rocksteady and who has one of the world's best collections of it say that it's probably a £300.00 record in any sort of reasonable condition.

SCS on Smash has - I think - "Conqueror" on the other side which, from memory, is the same as "Sticker" by Roland Alphonso on Gay Feet and which is also a cut to "La La Bam Ba" by Enos and Shiela (on Blue Cat).

Last time I saw Clancy Collins in person was when I was living in Lewisham in the early 80s. He was on his way to attend a local court hearing in respect of the "New Cross Fire" of 1981 - an arson attack on a house in SE15 in which several people died including Collins' son Steve...

TONE

[Pete S]

Yes, exactly - just like on "The Whip" by the Ethiopians, only on the "Return Home" cut someone actually IS banging empty milk bottles, or maybe beer bottles, throughout the track! If I had the technology to make sound files I'd be glad to post it up here for you. It is indeed stupidly rare, and my pal who only collects rocksteady and who has one of the world's best collections of it say that it's probably a £300.00 record in any sort of reasonable condition.

SCS on Smash has - I think - "Conqueror" on the other side which, from memory, is the same as "Sticker" by Roland Alphonso on Gay Feet and which is also a cut to "La La Bam Ba" by Enos and Shiela (on Blue Cat).

Last time I saw Clancy Collins in person was when I was living in Lewisham in the early 80s. He was on his way to attend a local court hearing in respect of the "New Cross Fire" of 1981 - an arson attack on a house in SE15 in which several people died including Collins' son Steve...

TONE

He put out a fundrasing album after that fire didn't he.