04.24.14 - Inspiration from The Gaylads

LISTEN TO THE ARCHIVE AT JAMAICAROCK.COM

I am kicking myself for not trying harder to get The Gaylads on the show. I heartfully apologize. The week gets away from me and also I get a little overwhelmed with the idea of meeting and interviewing my music idols but I will tell you that I will not let that stop me in the future! This show is filled with many amazing Gaylads tunes and I hope you enjoy. I also hope that you checked them out in Brooklyn because it was a memorable night. "Saturday night at a party… everyone was feeling good…"

03.13.14 - DJ Fyahrama LIVE in the Studio

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DJ Fyahrama

This show starts out with some 60s and 70s songs by female artists and continues with a bunch of Studio One and more. In the second hour we are joined by the one and only DJ Lady Fyahrama who brought the dancehall fyah to the show. You can catch her every 1st and 3rd Friday night at the VIBES party at Madame X brought to you by one of the top reggae women in NYC Bintou aka Conscious NYC. Check the archive above!

12.19.13 - Holiday Special with Scratch Famous

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Happy Holidays! It was a treat for me to be joined by Scratch Famous, one of my fellow Deadly Dragons as we dug up our favorite Christmas and holiday reggae tunes for you once again. All the best and many blessings to you and yours in this season and beyond. Thank you for your continued support!

08.29.13 - Beres tunes & Cool Hand Luke from the UK

LISTEN TO THE ARCHIVE AT JAMAICAROCK.COM

A happy Earthstrong out to the soulful Beres Hammond! The show starts out with some of his older songs, such as ones with Zap Pow and moves into his classics and a few newer ones. The ladies love Beres. In the second hour I was joined by our friend Cool Hand Luke from North London and his wicked vinyl selections. He also joined us later that night at our weekly Downtown Top Ranking party where he kept the vibes strong and selected into for the deejays on the mic into the wee hours. Check the archive.

08.01.13 - Jamaican Independence Special with Scratch Famous

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Scratch Famous of Deadly Dragon Sound

Happy Independence Day, Jamaica! This show is particularly Jamaican-themed and some songs from 1962, the same year. In the second hour we were joined by good friend and fellow Deadly Dragon Scratch Famous who (as usual) went into the vault and brought some killer ska and rocksteady 45s. We discussed the upcoming party, The Roots Of Sound System co-presented by Dub Stuy Records and featuring legendary collectors / selectors spinning on the custom Tower Of Sound. Check the archive!

12.13.12 - Moody Studio One

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I was inspired by the celebration of the man Mr. K (the Deadly Dragon Studio One maven) this night to do an all Studio One set. So it starts moody and gets a little, say, happier towards the end and also has some Studio One Christmas songs in there as well. I hope you enjoy, check the archive.

09.27.12 - Rhythm n Blues, Rocksteady n Ska

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Prince Buster

Having recently picked up a new (old) 45 of Dave Barker's "Set Me Free", it got me into listening to his other songs and led me into an RnB and rocksteady n ska type of mood. Dave Barker is a beautiful singer that was born in Kingston, JA. Having started out doing some recordings for Harry J and Coxsone while working at the Studio One pressing plant, he then joined Winston Riley for a bit singing with The Techniques but hit the most success partnered up with Ansel Collins for their big track "Double Barrel". I have also included a song or two by Prince Buster, Ken Parker, Laurel Aitken and The Skatalites. There are also some lovely songs by Rita Marley in here and of course (as I do love them) some great cover songs as well. You can check the playlist above, though for some reason the EVR playlists run out of room for me and so then some songs at the end will be listed at the top, fyi...

09.06.12 - Alton Ellis Tribute Show

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Alton Ellis

Alton Ellis (1938-2008) was a musician best known as the innovator of rocksteady music. He began recording in the late 1950s and continued until his death in 2008, but he reached his period of greatest popularity in the late 1960s.

Ellis was born in Trenchtown, Jamaica, and learned to play the piano at a young age. In his teens, Alton and Eddie Perkins formed Alton & Eddie, and began recording for Coxsone Dodd at Studio One, scoring a hit in 1958 with “Muriel”. 

Ellis launched his solo career after Perkins left for the United States around 1965. He moved to Treasure Isle and began recording with the back-up trio The Flames. His first hit for Treasure Isle was “Dance Crasher”, a plea for peace, and he followed it up with “Get Ready - Rock Steady”.

Ellis’ most well-known song is probably “Girl, I’ve Got A Date”, or “I’m Still In Love With You”, a song that has been versioned many times by artists such as Sean Paul, Althea & Donna (As ‘Uptown Top Ranking’).

In 2006, Ellis was inducted into the International Reggae And World Music Awards (IRAWMA), Hall Of Fame. (- via Last.fm)

Alton Ellis' birthday was this past September 1st, and this show is a tribute to him. I started with some of his first tunes and took you through his ska, rocksteady, soul and roots. His musical innovations will never be forgotten.