Five chapters of all new content on mento, plus the best of every style of reggae!
600 pages of great artists and great songs, telling the complete story of reggae.
Click here for more information. You'll love it!
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10 years in the making, my book,
"The
Ultimate Guide To Great Reggae",
is out! Five chapters of all new content on mento, plus the best of every style of reggae! 600 pages of great artists and great songs, telling the complete story of reggae. Click here for more information. You'll love it! |
| More Golden Age Single Scans |
Page last revised: 1/19/19
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For most of the 1950s, 10" 78 RPM singles were the norm. But by the end of this decade, 7" 45 RPM singles were also produced. A few four song 7" EPs were also released during this era.
The very first mento singles were those released by the MRS label by Lord Fly, as seen on the Lord Fly page. Many other artists would follow on this and other labels. A selection is below.
To start things off, here's an urban mento single by Mapletoft Poulle and His Orchestra:
On the Rhythm label, another single by Mapletoft Poulle and His Orchestra, but this time its pure R&B rather then mento:
"Highlights From The Silver Seas Floor Show" gives us a better idea of the live presentation of this band in the mid 1950s at the Ocho Rios hotel of the same name. This apparently included dancers and theatrics to convey a trip to a Jamaican market set to a collection of Jamaican folk songs as narrated by MC Stuart Sharp. "Hill and Gully Ride" includes the narration, And here comes the Little Marsh, dancing with bamboozles on his head. A brief Eddie Brown acoustic guitar solo segues into "Rukumbine", which includes the narration, And lookie, here comes that ham himself, Bertie Green and the Silver Seas Goat!. This brings us into "Miss A Ram Goat", which is followed by the narration, Of course ladies and gentlemen, no market scene would be complete without the market woman herself, smoking her chalk pipe and riding her donkey, its Mama Bell. This bring us into "John Tom" follow by the narration, Well ladies and gentlemen the greatest of all market songs, the Jamaican song, Carry My Ackees to the Linstead Market. "Caribbean Curtsy (Courtesy)", an original composition, also includes narration. It is Saturday, February the 19th, 1955. A memorable day for Jamaica. Her royal highness, the beautiful Princess Margaret of England has arrived at this Caribbean paradise. At Kings House, the famed Silver Seas Calypso are about to sing a new song dedicated to our royal visitor. Its title, 'Caribbean Courtesy' words by Sally Mitchener[?], original melody by Eddie Brown. Presented now by the Silver Seas Calypso. Musically, the sound on both sides is recognizably Silver Seas with prominent acoustic guitar drum and claves. I am not sure who the lead vocalist is.
A few golden age singles on had different artists on either side. Here's one, released on the Kalypso label:
Both tracks are rural and sound like the same backing musicians were employed. (The fact that the backing group on both sides is The Jamaican Calypsonians does not necessarily guarantee this. This is something of a generic name used by more than one backing band.) Power's medley sandwiches two well known songs around a lesser known one. Composer's song about a beloved dish credits Omri Mundle as the song's author, perhaps revealing Composer's real name. As the label below shows, this 78 was later re-released as a 45 RPM single.
Courtesy of Matthias Münchow of Germany, on MRS, a single by Lord Melody, with Sonny Bradshaw and His Quintet: "The Whistler" backed with "Boy Days".
Mike Spencer of Canterbury, England, provides the following info on this record: As seen in the Daily Gleaner clips below,
Melody was touring Jamaica in 1957, and recorded the tracks whilst
there (presumably to promote these gigs). Both sides were played on the
radio on different weeks in August, the radio show being sponsored by Mottas.
One of the shows, as seen in the clipping below, promotes "A Federated Calypso Clash" with Melody and Lord Pretender representing Trinidad versus Count Lasher ("Jamaica's number 1 calypsonian") and Lord Messam (the "demon of Montego Bay") representing Jamaica.
I spoke to soon. In mid-2010, I found another mento record bearing Sonny Bradshaw's name.
The former is different from the Harold Richardson song of the same name. The latter celebrates Winston Churchill's visit to Jamaica in January of 1953. Both consist of jazzy piano (both who solo) and Bradshaw's trumpet along with Jamaican hand drum.
In mid-2013, Richard Noblett of London provided scans of another Sonny Bradshaw single.
maracas and hand claps. This is the only gospel entry I've heard on a 1950s mento label. Could this be the first ever Jamaican gospel record?
Both songs are from the mento repertoire, with the latter being more commonly known as "Sweetie Charlie". Both feature a rollicking rural backing and good lead and backing vocals.
Speaking of Clyde Hoyte, he acts and performs mento in the 1956 movie called Manfish. Filmed in Jamaica, it features other Jamaicans in the cast such as Vere Johns. It can be seen in its entirety on Youtube, with mento performances at 0:8:21, 0:20:00 and 0:25:00. Thanks to Generoso Fierro of Boston in the US, for alerting me to this. Here are images from the movie:
Here is an extremely curious specimen. Its a MRS 78 RPM single, but it substitutes a less familiar "Made By" variation of the label.
There is no matrix number on the run out groove to provide any clues. Both songs are instrumental. The dated side has lead clarinet, piano and maracas. The melody played by the clarinet is unfamiliar, but after a brief jazzy piano break, the medley changes to that of "Belly Lick", as recorded by Cecil Knott and his Joybell Orchestra with Arthur Knibbs on vocals. The pianist here sounds like he could be the same as from Joybells, but that group featured piano and banjo as lead instruments, and never clarinet. The signed side is cocktail jazz with piano, a drum kit, stand up bass, and lead clarinet! So what exactly is this record? A rehearsal or jam session? A demo? The worlds first dub plate? A private recording? As is often the case, the toughest mento questions can be readily answered by Dan Neely:
"Man Smart, Woman Smarter" backed with "Mary Ann / Brown Skin Gal". These tracks appeared in on compilation LPs released by Ritmo and Monogram as well on both of the Valmark CDs, which can be inexpensively purchased today.
Here are the labels from more two Kalypso singles by Denzil Laing and The Wigglers, courtesy of Matthias Münchow of Germany. The first three tracks can be heard today on the inexpensive Valmark CDs. These are pleasing folksy mento tracks, though a bit tame. "Mermaid" is a jazzier track. I have not heard "Who To Call Your Friend". Interestingly, all the specimens I have seen of these singles and the Kalypso single above are labeled "Complimentary".
On MRS, a single by Monty Reynolds and The Shaw Park Calypso Band:
This is rural mento, but acoustic guitar, rather than banjo is featured. Though he is not credited, the guitar player sounds like Eddie Brown. Both songs were written by R. Thompson, a name I've seen on other labels, but I am not otherwise familiar with.
Here are three singles on the MRS label, by Reynolds Calypso Clippers, Boysie Grant on vocals and Eddie Brown on tenor banjo.
"The Naughty Little Flea" can be heard on the 2006 CD compilation, "Take Me To Jamaica". "Solas Market" can be heard on the 2004 CD compilation "Mento Madness".
Both labels bear the legend "Jamaican Mento-Calypsos". Both tracks can be heard on the 2004 CD compilation "Mento Madness". A song from each side influenced later Jamaican music giants. "Nobody's Business" was recorded by Peter Tosh. "Old Lady Oh" was recorded as "Firesticks" by Prince Buster.
MRS also included "Maintenance" was included on the LP "MRS - Authentic Jamaican Calypsos Volume 3". Count Lasher like this song well enough to cover it reggae style some twenty years later. To my ears, this track seems more calypso than mento. Perhaps its the backing by the otherwise unknown "Ganny Gabbison and his Calypso Band". Or does the legend that appears after the song title on the label give a clue. It reads "Calypso", while the flip side has no such legend. "My Brother Calamity" shares some of the melody with "Maintenance". But this time the backing band is the more familiar in name and sound "George Moxey and His Calypso Quintet" and jazzy piano and percussion flow.
Mighty Dictator was a Trinidadian calypsonian of some note. Apparently, at the end of his career, he recorded this single in Jamaica. In fact, the b-side is about leaving Trinidad for Jamaica. The music is piano, clarinet, bass and maracas from a Jamaican sounding band.
Below is another example of the Kalypso label as a platform for Trinidadian sounds. This time it's calypsonian Duke of Iron. His band is billed as His Trinidad Troubadours, suggesting that Khouri produced a visiting troupe rather than licensed an existing record. The sound is more Trini than JA.
US born jazz singer Marie Bryant had a recording and performance career that spanned from at least from the 1930s into the 1950s. At one point, she was a featured vocalist for The Duke Ellington Orchestra. In the 1950s, she recorded a series of sides of well known Jamaican folk/mento songs, though the renditions are more jazz-calypso than mento. These were popular in Jamaica, as they were released by Ken Khourii as 78s, and later 45s on his Kalypsoo label. This helped to keep these songs alive in the repertoires of Jamaican mento and reggae bands. These records were also released on American and British labels.
Thanks to a correspondence with Rachel Rankin and her research on the origins of Caribbean folk songs, we now know who R. Henderson is and more about this song. Russell Henderson is a Trinidadian pianist who emigrated to London in 1951. He played piano and double bass on many jazz and calypso recordings during the 1950 and 60s (including some of Kitchener's) and ran Britain's first steel band (featuring fellow Trinidadian and ex-TASPO Stirling Betancourt) for many many years. The "give me what you gave daddy last night" joke was known in Trinidad and he rewrote it to make it into a proper song,
Courtesy of Matt Dinsmore of San Francisco, left is another Marie Bryant' re-release on a Kalypso 45: "Tomato", which was backed by "Little Boy". To the right is a 78 RPM release on Lyragon. The label also credits the Mike McKenzie Quintet, featuring mento musician Bertie King on alto sax.
Many of the tracks described here were complied on Marie Bryant's LP, "Don't Touch Me Nylons" as seen on the More Golden Age Albums scans page, as well as on an EP, "Calypsos Too Hot To Handle", as seen below.
From Robert Schoenfeld's Collection |
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Courtesy of Robert
Schoenfeld of
Nighthawk Records and
Roots Natty Roots fame, is this great collection
of rare label scans. (Four more can be seen on the
Lord Lebby page, two more can be seen on the
Lord Flea page, two on the
Count Lasher page, and one on the
Chins page.)
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| Pianist, band leader and
sometimes lead singer Baba Motta recorded a variety of jazzy golden
age singles, some of which are seen below. (Though he recorded for him,
Baba Motta is not related to
Stanley Motta, who started the MRS label.) Two other Baba
Motta singles are located elsewhere on this page,
here and here. Some of these recordings
were also collected on albums, as seen on the "More
Golden Age Album scans" page. He also recorded the 1960s LP, "The
Myrtle Bank" and at least one single from
that era. Two additional Baba Motta LPs are described on the "Mento
and Jazz" page. |
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A single by singer Ben Bowers
with Baba Motta & his Orchestra on an unusual label: Souvenir of Montego Bay:
Brown Skin Gal b/w: These may be the same recordings as on the MRS LP, MOTL101. |
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Here's another rendition of
Ben Bowers performing "Rum and Coconut Water", this time with backed with his Royal Jamaicans. It's on the French Parlophone label. Its b-side is "Country Boy".
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Here, on MRS, is
Baba Motta and his band, again fronted by singer Ben Bowers performing
Louis Jordan's "Push Ka Pee Shee Pie". Its b-side is "Tie Tongue Mopsie".
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From 2
different discs, on MRS, is another single by
Baba Motta. This time Baba handles the vocals and is backed by The
Jamaicans: "She 'Pon Top" b/w: "Susie" The saucy "She Pon Top" was a hit for this popular dance band act. |
Authorship of both songs is credited to the otherwise unknown J. E. Wilson.
Another MRS single by
Baba Motta. Young Kitchner is the vocalist this time around. The band
is billed as
Baba Motta and His Orchestra. Young Kitchner took his name from the
internationally popular Trinidadian calypsonian Lord Kitchner.
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"Reincarnation (Bed Bug)" b/w:
"Spelling".
"Reincarnation" (with writing credit given to Leonard Josephs) appears on the MRS LP, Authentic Jamaican Calypsos vol.4. Authorship of both sides goes to Leonard Josephs. |
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With Baba back on lead vocals, "Jamaica Talk" b/w: "Calypso Hullabaloo". "Calypso Hullabaloo" acknowledges the backlash against bawdy mento songs, specifically mentioning two Chins Calypso Sextet songs: "Night Food" & "Night Food Recipe". |
Authorship of both songs is credited to the otherwise unknown Ruby Thompson
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Courtesy of Dave Williams, from Uxbridge in west London, England, below are two more Baba Motta singles, this time performing with the St. Jago Dons on the Calypsotime label. To the left is a variant pressing on Calypsodisc. Note the lumanaries that are credited on the label. Rougher Yet (https://www.facebook.com/rougher.yet) informed me that drummer Joe Dawkins is the father of reggae singer Carl Dawkins.
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"Miss Goosie And Mr. Gander" b/w: "So She Go". The former is a remake of Motta's hit "Miss Goosie".
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"Tenderly" b/w: "Breadfruit". |
Featuring
Ernest Ranglin
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You may have noticed that, rare for 1950s
mento records, musician credits are included on the above 4 labels. And
you may have further noticed that "Ernie Ranglin" is
credited as the guitarist on the first two sides.
Ernest Ranglin is known to be a major force in ska, reggae and jazz.
Here is Proof positive that he also contributed to the sound of the
urban mento style. Is there anyone who has contributed longer or more diversely to Jamaican music than virtuoso guitarist and consummate musician Ernest Ranglin? Born in Manchester, Jamaica in 1932, this self taught guitarist began playing for Jamaica's jazz bands in 1948 (in groups such as The Val Bennett Orchestra and, later, The Baba Motta Band). By the early 1950s, he was a member of Jamaica's top Jazz band, the Eric Deans Orchestra. By the middle and late 1950s, Ernest had participated in recordings of dance band mento  and
Jamaican R&B. By 1958, he impressed a young Chris Blackwell
sufficiently to be featured on an LP that was the first ever release
on the Island label. He
participated in the creation of ska, recording for Coxsone Dodd, and arranged the first Jamaican
cross-over hit, "My Boy Lollipop", by Millie Small.
Ernest also arranged and played on many of (Bob Marley and)
The Wailers earliest
hits, gracing several with memorable solos. He did innumerable
reggae sessions, including The Melodians hit, "Rivers
of Babylon" (as heard in the film "The Harder They Come"), toured with Jimmy Cliff, and scored a
reggae hit of his
own, the instrumental classic "Surfin'" (a.k.a. "Surfacing"). He
recorded a series of LPs from the mid-1960s into the new millennium, and in
the process, helped create the new genre of "Jamaican Jazz", a
fusion that was equal parts reggae and jazz. To the delight of his
fans, Ernest still tours, and occasionally will still
touch on jazz-mento
live. This photo comes from a performance by The
Monty Alexander Trio and
special guest Ernest Ranglin, June 25, 2004 in NYC. You
should have been there! |
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Here is another single by Baba Motta and the Saint Jago Dons, featuring a different lineup: "What A
T'ing 'Pon Lucy" |
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Baba Motta - piano Len Pottinger - bass Cooty - maracas Ken Williams - drums D. Pinch - guitar H. McNair tenor [sax] Sir Alfred - vocals J. E. Wilson - lyrics |
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Hubert Porter was perhaps the top singer urban mento. His sound was invariably smooth as silk, making him more a part of Jamaica's jazz sound that pert of the reggae continuum. Though his sound was consistent, he recorded for a number of labels. First are two singles on MRS by singer Hubert Porter as backed by George Moxey and His Calypso Quintet: This is dance-band mento, featuring fine vocal, jazzy arrangements with prominent clarinet and piano. Lyrics by the great E. F. Williams.
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"Women's Bigger Brain" b/w "Advice To Women" Both sides re written by E. F. Williams, who had previously dispensed "Advice To Men" on a Harold Richardson single. |
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Sporting a lot of ink (and, sorry, no larger
image available) is: "Dry Weather House". Courtesy of Jerry Kerns is the flipside: |
These popular songs appeared on several MRS LPs and can be purchased today on the CD compilation "Mento Madness". A clip from "Dry Weather House" can be heard on the "More Artists and Favorite Songs Clips" page. |
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A 45 RPM single on the US Ritmo label and
perhaps from the 1960s rather than the 1950s, billed to Hubert Porter and
The Jamaican Calypso Funmakers:
"Mary's Lamb" backed with This single was taken from an LP on the same label. |
| Here are several singles of polished dance-band style mento by Hubert Porter and The Jamaican Calypsonians singles on Times Records. Some of these sides can be heard on easily found CDs. See the Valmark collections and Jamaican Mento - Authentic Recordings on the Can I Buy Mento? page. They also appeared on some of the Times Store LPs, as seen on the More Golden Age Album Scans page.
"Rum and Coconut Water" b/w: "Not Me" (plus a label variation from another pressing). "Rum and Coconut
Water" is a cover of the cross-over calypso hit. "Not Me" was
recorded by several mento acts as well Harry Belafonte, who re-titled it,
"Man Smart, Woman Smarter". |
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Taken from two different discs are both sides of
another Hubert Porter single on the T
imes Store label:
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"Miss Goosie (Medley)" b/w "Ugly Woman"
(Sorry, a larger image of the latter is not available.) |
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In addition to being compiled as described above, "Miss Goosie" was popular enough for Hubert to record several times, and for several reggae artists to record as well, as can be seen on the Non-mento Covers of Mento Songs page. "Ugly Woman", on the other hand, has never been compiled, released only on this single . |
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Two more popular sides Hubert Porter and The Jamaican Calypsonians sides on Times Records: "Miss Daisy and Brown Skin Girl" backed with "Old Lady".
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A Hubert Porter and The Jamaican Calypsonians 45 RPM single on the Times Records label:
"Don't Fence Her In"
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From
Allen Kaatz's Collection
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In August of 2003, Allen Kaatz of the US
generously supplied this web site with a collection of label scans. Five
golden age label scans can be seen below. Two more of Allen's scans can be seen on the
Lord Flea page and two on the
Count Messam page.
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On the rare Maracas label,
Lord Power and His Calypsonians:
Mambo La La b/w These tracks can be heard on the easy to obtain CD collection, Boogu Yagga Gal. |
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"Phantom Rapist" by |
"Tight Dress", the b-side of the previous |
"Mongoose In Mento", by |
From
Richard Noblett's Collection
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Thanks to Richard Noblett of London, who in May of 2004 sent me a great set of scans for this site. Fourteen mento 78 RPM label scans from his impressive collection are below. Two more scans each from his collection can be seen on the Count Owen, Lord Lebby, Count Messam and Lord Tanamo pages. Four more each can be seen on the Count Lasher and ten more Harold Richardson page. Four Lord Fly scans can be seen on that page. Over time, he provided even more scans that can be seen elsewhere on this page and on other various pages of this site. |
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On the
Kalypso label is a single by the Trenton Spence Quartet
Matty Belly (voc: Roy Shurland)
b/w: |
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Not from Richard's collection, here's the same record, but on the Hi-Lite label. Note the legend, "Cut Exclusively for Reid's Sound System" that appears on all Hi-Lite discs. Duke Reid started his production career with a brace of mento 78s. |
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Another MRS
single, this one by Clyde Hoyte backed by the dance band stylings
of the George Moxey Quartet:
Montego Calypso b/w: Hoyte passed
away December 2003. |
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On the Synco label is a single by
band leader and pianist Mapletoft Poulle. As the label is
uncommonly informative, we can see amongst the musician credits that the
lead singer is Peter Hudson and lyrics and music are by
Lord Bogue:
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Additionally, Tony
Johnson released a number of other singles in the UK on the
Melodisc label, such as this one: Sly Moongoose b/w: Imogene On the A-side, Tony is backed by
Bertie
King's Jamaicans, who play an instrumental on the B-side. |
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Four more Tony Johnson singles on Melodisc close out Richard Noblett's collection. Melodisc re-released Jamaican music in the UK. Recording in a variety of genres, Melodisc helpfully labeled the style of each Tony Johnson track:
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  Mango Walk
b/w: With: |
  Marilyn Monroe Calypso b/w: With: |
  Without You (Beguine) With: |
  Give Her Banana (Calypso) With: |
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Also from Richard Noblett's collection, on the unusual Crystal label, a non-rural single by female mento singer Louise Lamb. Cutting Wood |
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Both songs are credited to F. Williams, who is very likely E. F. (Everard) Williams, described on the Chin's Calypso Sextet page. The Byron Lewis backing band is less know. "Cutting Wood" is a funny double entendre song that largely uses the melody of Rukumbine. It was covered on a surprising turn by Girl Wonder. Below is Lamb's second of two records, and the rarer of the two:
Louise Lamb is the only female other than Louise Bennett to make Jamaican records in the 1950s. Bennett concentrated on folk songs, and these records are just part of the folklorist's ubiquitous output that included radio, stage and TV. Lamb's recordings were new songs for the newly emerged Jamaican industry and by this can be considered golden-age mento's only female recording artist. In April of 2008, I was happy to hear from Louise Lamb’s son Michael Morales, and a family friend, Helen McCulloch. Since Louise Lamb is alive, healthy and displays a fine memory for someone who is 82, they were able to provide me with some information:
More than half a century later I was happy to reunite Louise Lamb with her recordings. When her son played "Perfect Love" for her over the phone, she laughed, and said, "yes, that's me". |
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From Ulrich
Stark's Collection
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Here is a very nice collection of label scans courtesy of Ulrich Stark of Germany. Four more of Ulrich's scans can be seen on the Chins page and two more are on the Count Lasher page. |
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A classic single on Kalypso (that, as can be seen to the above right was popular enough for a 45 RPM re-release) is the harmonica driven rural mento of Sir Horace and His Merry Knights: "Morgan's Mento" backed with: "Mambo Jamaica" Ken Khouri produced this Kalypso 78 RPM single in 1958. The label tells us that Sir Horace's surname is Abrahams. Unusually, it also bears the legend, "A Real Treasure", prefacing by several decades reggae 45s that would bare the legend "scorcher". Both sides are indeed a treasure -- insanely catchy, high-energy harmonica driven mento. Each side follows a popular subject for mento songs. The first is about a Caribbean dance craze. The second is about a type of rum. (Another rum song, Lord Power's "Special Amber Calypso", can be heard on Boogu Yagga Gal. Another two dance-craze songs can be heard on the Valmark CDs. ) Because they are favorites and the and these songs were out of print when this site was created, here are song clips of Mambo Jamaica and Morgan's Mento. [Click here for notes About the Audio Clips On this Site.] Both of these songs became available on CD in 2013 on the collection called "Mento, Not Calypso".
Both sides are filled with harmonica, adroit electric guitar solos and aggressive, sax, maracas and prominent accomplished conga drum playing that not present in the prior single. Both sides are very upbeat, but dialed down a notch from the ecstasy of the prior single. "Mambo Mento" is a direct followup to "Mambo Jamaica". It features choruses of ay, ay, ays and a touch of Hawaiian sound , especially on the electric slide guitar. "Jamaica Magic" is a tourist song, recounting all of the island's history and all a visitor can do there, including "Dance to the mento, 'neath the bright silvery moon". It's more welcome than the umpteenth rendition of "Take Her To Jamaica". Sir Horace also recorded a two singles in the 1970s, as seen here. |
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Two songs from the mento
repertoire played by the Brute Force Steel Band of Antigua:
Jumbie Jamborie b/w These tracks are collected on MRS album MOTL4. |
Ulrich Stark's collection continues with the eight Laurel Aitken on Caribou scans below.
Laurel
Aitken
| Though best known (especially in the UK) as a ska performer, Laurel had his start in mento and in R&B before the advent of ska. Many of these sides can be heard on CD collection , "Laurel Aitken, Pioneer of Jamaican Music", which features 25 Aitken sides in a variety of styles. Another compilation, "Soundman Shots" has 6 Laurel Aitken sides. |
| "Prisoner Song"
backed with "They Got It" "Calypso Rock And Roll"
backed with "Rock Santa Rock" backed with |
Both sides of the
first single can be heard on the CD collection "Pioneer
of Jamaican Music".
The other two singles, like the first, is in Laurel's style of sax led mento with electric rhythm guitar and hand drum. "Rock Santa Rock" owes a bit to Lord Flea's Shake Shake Senora. |
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A
Laurel Aitken oddity on the PEP label, as leas singer of the
obscure Milton Dawes Band: "Lady From Trinidad" b/w "Merenguito" |
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A Laurel Aitken 45 RPM single: "Tribute To Collie Smith" b/w "Baba Kill Me Goat".
As we can see, it was released on the Caribou label, Kalypso
and RCA. |
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Another
Laurel Aitken single on Caribou, with R&B sounds: "Aitken's Boogie" is on the Pioneer CD. "Cherrie" is not compiled. The Jolly Boys would cover it as "Nightfall". |
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Another Laurel Aitken
single, this time on MRS:
"One Night In Mexico" b/w: Aitken is sporting a softer, popular sound here. Neither side is compiled |
 
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Courtesy of Richard Noblett
of London, here are four more Laurel Aitken
sides on Caribou:
Sweet Charriot b/w: and
The Wall Or Jericho b/w: "Rege Dege Ding" is sometimes considered the first usage of the word "reggae". Go here for more info on "Nebuchnezer" and to hear a clip. |
More of Richard Noblett's scans appear below.
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Here's something you don't see every day. Courtesy of Jeremy Collingwood (www.Traxonwax.net) is this MRS sleeve that has survived from the 1950s. Click on the image for a larger view, and you will see which MRS golden age singles were "new releases" and which were "old favorites" at that point in time. The sleeve also has an MRS logo not seen elsewhere. |
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With 4 tracks from the LP of the same name and same cover art, is the 5 song EP, "Calypsos From Jamaica". "Talking Parrot" by Count Lasher is the 5th track. |
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The other four tracks are: Though the jacket label identified the label as being released on the NYC-based Ritmo (as was the related LP), the disc leaves little doubt where the tracks were licensed from. |
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Another version of the 45 RPM "Calypsos From Jamaica" EP on Kalypso, courtesy of Matt Dinsmore of San Francisco. This scan is of the opposite of the on shown above. |
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Courtesy of Matthias Münchow of
Hamburg, Germany is 4 song 7" 45 RPM EP on the Kalypso label
entitled "Calypsos For Adam and Eve":
A - Lord Kirchener: "Big Toe"; Duke of Iron: "Big Bamboo" Says Matthias, the A-side is calypso, while the B-side is more Jamaican in style. |
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Courtesy again of Xavier Guillamon of Barcelona,
Spain (http://soundsystemfm.reggae-blog.net)is the Mary [Marie]
Bryant four song EP, "Calypsos Too Hot Too Handle" on the
Kalypso label.
This album was also released in the UK on the Fab label. For more on Marie Bryant,
see above.
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| Also courtesy of
Xavier Guillamon is this 1958 Ben Bowers with Bertie King and His Rotal
Jamaicans four song EP, "Kings Of Calypso Volume 4" on the UP
Pye/Nixa label.
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 Thanks again to Xavier Guillamon strange specimen from . Say what you want about the cover art, but when Argentina wants a spicy cover, they don't mess around. Xavier speculates that this is not the actual original jacket. "Vacation In The Caribbean" on the Vox/Opus label has tracks from artists from various Caribbean countries. Jamaica is represented by "Take Her To Jamaica; Time So Hard" and "Banana; Boogu Yagga Face[?]" by The Tower Isle Orchestra. "[Calypso] Cha Cha" by Cecil Lloyd and His Orchestra is attributed to Cuba. Both tracks are presented in a polished Latin jazz style. |
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Kalypso was not the only label to release 7" 4 song EPs. Here is one
from MRS that draws 4 songs from the album
MRS - Authentic Jamaican Calypsos, Volume 4.
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1. Water the
Garden - Count Lasher and His Calypso Quintet 2. Breadfruit Season - Count Lasher's Seven
1. Jumbie Jamboree - |
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Courtesy of Brian Keyo of
Massachusetts, here's a nice picture sleeve four track 7" EP by the Tower
Islanders. It was released on the US Fiesta label in 1954. The
songs and the style of the printed lyrics are taken from
The Tower Islander's album. |
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Also see... For more more label and jacket scans and song clips, also see this site's:
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