Martha Reeves and The Vandellas

One of Motown Records' earliest and most exciting vocal groups, Martha and The Vandellas achieved two Top Ten hits before the ascendancy of The Supremes. Driven by Martha Reeves' soulful, brassy lead vocals, the Vandellas became Motown's earthier, more aggressive "girl group" alternative to the Supremes.

Martha Reeves, one of eleven children, was born in Eufaula Alabama on July 18, 1941. She moved with her parents Ruby and Elijah to Detroit, Michigan before her first birthday. Reeves spent most of her childhood singing and working in her grandfather's church. She attended Russell Elementary on Detroit's eastside and was taught vocals by Emily Wagstaff. Northeastern High School was where she studied voice under the direction of Abraham Silver, who also coached Florence Ballard and Mary Wilson of the Supremes, Bobby Rogers of the Miracles.First Martha and the Vandellas group photo(From L-R Martha Reeves, Annette Beard and Rosalind Ashford)After graduating from high school in 1959, Reeves joined the girl group called the Fascinations. They recorded their first record about 1960, backing Mike Hanks on "The Hawk" on Mah's Records. They also backed Leon Peterson on "I Know You Know" on the Bobbin label in 1962. Their first big break was working with local singer J.J. Barnes on "Won't You Let Me Know." The 1962 single on Rich Records credited both Barnes and the Del-Phis and led to the answer record "Ill Let You Know" on Check-Mate. In the late summer of 1960 Reeves met Rosalind Ashford and they were invited to join Annette Sterling and Gloria Williamson in the Del-Phis. After doing some local talent shows and jobs they recorded a single on Chess-Mate Records, a subsidiary of Chess Records in 1961. The Del-Phi"s recording that didn't make the charts was "My Baby Won't Come Back".Reeves as a solo entered and won a talent contest. The prize was a three day engagement at the Twenty Grand, a local nightclub where she sang as Martha LaVaille. On her last night, William "Mickey" Stevenson, an A&R and Berry Gordy's right-hand man at Motown Records, approached Reeves, after hearing her sing, and gave her his card. In 1961 Reeves was hired as his secretary. One day Motown head Berry Gordy needed background singers in short order for a session; Reeves and her friends, Ashford and Beard, were called in. They sang behind Marvin Gaye on "Stubborn Kind of Fellow," his first hit in 1962 and "Hitch Hike."A couple months later, Reeves again found her self in the right place at the right time. Stevenson had called over to the studio, where a union rep was checking to make sure the label was following the rule that a singer had to be on a mic when tracks were recorded. In Mary Well's absence, Reeves sang "I'll Have To Let Him Go, impressing Stevenson enough ask the Del-Phis to record "You'll Never Cherish A Love So True ('Til You Lose It)." The session was a success, but Gloria decided she didn't want to leave her job and left the group. The single was issued anyway on Mel-O-Dy as by the Vells.The rest of the group convinced Gordy that they were staying as a trio. Gordy then asked the girls to come up with a new name. They then called themselves Martha and the Vandellas, taking their name from Detroit street Van Dyke and Reeve's favorite singer Della Reese before recording "I'll Have to Let Him Go."Come Get These MemoriesSigned to the newly formed Gordy label in September 1962 as Martha and The Vandellas, the group's first hit was their second release, a beat ballad "Come Get These Memories" (#29 pop, #3 R&B 1963) and was Holland-Dozier-Holland's first collaboration as a songwriting team. "Memories" was followed by two explosive Holland-Dozier-Holland dance records: "Heat Wave" (#4 pop, #1 R&B, 1963) and "Quicksand" (#8 1963). After being turned down by Kim Weston, a Mickey Stevenson and Marvin Gaye composition,"Dancing in the Street" was given to Martha and the Vandellas; who turned it into their biggest hit (#2, 1964). Their other big hits included "Nowhere to Run" (#8, pop, #5 R&B, 1965) and "I'm Ready for Love" (#9 pop, #2 R&B, 1966), "Jimmy Mack" (#10 pop, #1 R&B, 1967) and "Honey Chile"(#11 pop,, #5 R&B, 1967) were the last Holland-Dozier-Holland compositions they recorded, and were their last big hits.Rosalyn Ashford, Betty Kelly, and Martha ReevesThe Vandellas 1963-1968By 1967, the group was billed as Martha Reeves and the Vandellas, as she was featured solely as lead for the group. Beard retired in 1963 and was replaced by former Velvelette Betty Kelly; when Kelly left four years later she was replaced by Reeve's younger sister Lois. Ashford quit in 1969 and was replaced by another ex-Velvelette Sandra Tilley. Tilley died during surgery for a brain tumor in 1981. The group disbanded in 1973 after giving a farewell concert on December 21, 1972, at Detroit's Cobo Hall. Lois Reeves went to work for Al Green.Martha Reeves launched a solo career, but her recordings for MCA, Arista, and Fantasy through 1980 failed to sell well.As recounted in her 1994 autobiography Dancing in the Street, Reeves believes that the groups succession was undermined by Motown and Berry Gordy JR's. obsession with the Supremes. An example being "Jimmy Mack which was held from release for two years because it sounded too much like the Supremes then current singles. A strong personality Reeves clashed with Gordy demanding answers to business questions that most other Motown artist didn't ask until years after they left the label. Struggling to maintain a hectic schedule of recording and performing, Reeves became addicted to prescription drugs, exacerbating emotional problems that led to nervous breakdowns and a period of institutionalization. Reeves has been drug free since 1977. In 1989 she, Ashford and Beard sued Motown for back royalties.In 1974 Reeves signed with MCA Records, Her debut solo album, Martha Reeves produced by Richard Perry, had a minor hit "Power of Love". Other solo albums were We Meet Again, and Got To Keep Movin on Fantasy Records, and The Rest of My Life for Arista Records. Though her solo records have been critically acclaimed, Reeves has never achieved the success that she had enjoyed with the Vandellas.Reeves currently resides in Downtown Detroit after living twelve years in Los Angeles. She continues to tour and record; sometimes the Vandellas consists of her sisters Lois and Delphine. On special occasions, she performs with Beard and Ashford.Rosalind Ashford has just retired from Ameritech and Annette Sterling has worked at St. John's Hospital as a phlebotomist for the last forty years.The Vandellas were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995.

Rocksteady Queen

Born in 1948, in Linstead, St. Catherine, Jamaica; died of cancer on April 15, 2004, in New York City; married and divorced; children: Nigel, Janice.

Hailed as the undisputed Queen of Rocksteady, Phyllis Dillon launched her singing career with Duke Reid of Treasure Isle, releasing her first single in 1966. Dillon gained popular recognition with such hits as “Don’t Stay Away,” “Perfidia,” “Don’t Touch Me Tomato,” and “It’s Rocking Time” (”Rock Steady”). After moving to New York City in 1967, for a time Dillon continued to return twice annually to Jamaica in order to record cuts for Reid. Although Dillon retired from singing in the 1970s, she enjoyed a successful comeback beginning in the 1990s and into the early 2000s. She succumbed to cancer in 2004.Dillon was born in central Jamaica, in the rural town of Linstead in St. Catherine. While growing up she sang in school, the church choir, and later entered talent parades. In her late teens she sang with the band the Vulcans, playing first in Linstead and eventually at clubs in Kingston, Ocho Rios, and Montego Bay. At 19 Dillon was singing at the well-known Kingston club the Glass Bucket. There she gained the attention of Lynn Taitt, a steel drum player and legendary guitarist whose “chicken picking” sound echoed the mellow pop of steel drums and defined the rocksteady sound. Taitt invited Dillon to Duke Reid’s Treasure Isle studio, where she completed a recording session with one of Jamaica’s first and most influential music producers. Dillon signed with Reid in 1965, a contractual relationship that lasted throughout her entire career.Dillon was influenced by a host of American singers, including Patti Page, Sarah Vaughan, Connie Francis, and Dionne Warwick. As the popular sound of Jamaican music moved from the fast beat of ska to slower melodies, Dillon’s soulful soprano blended well in ballads that have since become standards of rocksteady, a movement described by one critic as “Jamaica’s equivalent of the Motown sound.” The rocksteady rhythm is generally regarded as having a significant influence on the dancehall sounds that have come to dominate reggae music. At the forefront of the rocksteady movement, which peaked from 1966 to 1968, Dillon recorded her self-penned solo “Don’t Stay Away” for Reid in 1965, and it was released in early 1966. Recorded on the first take, “Don’t Stay Away” quickly gained success in Jamaica, rising to the number one spot of the Radio Jamaica Top 40 chart.At the height of rocksteady’s popularity, Dillon recorded numerous hits, including such solos as “Perfidia” and her self-penned song “It’s Rockin’ Time,” which is also known as “Rock Steady.” During this time she recorded duets with her friend and professional mentor Alton Ellis (”Right Track” and “Remember That Sunday”) and Hopeton Lewis (”Walk through this World with Me” and “Love Was All We Had”).Despite Dillon’s popular success, she herself pocketed little of the money from sales and royalties, money that instead went directly to Reid because of a lack of any copyright law in Jamaica. In an interview for Roots Archive with Jim Dooley in 1998, Dillon reflected on her lasting relationship with Reid, commenting, “By the time I realized what was really happening in the recording world in Jamaica, I would not have gone to anybody else. Because they were all the same—nothing was different. I mean, the guys from Beverley’s were crying, the guys from Coxsone Dodd was crying, you know, Federal the same thing. So I figure, let me just stay with one thief, you know, this way I don’t have to cry for everybody.”In 1967 Dillon left Jamaica for New York City, where she worked a series of temporary jobs. Still in touch with Reid, she returned to Jamaica to record at his studio and play Kingston clubs a couple of times a year. For a time she sang with a Jamaican band, the Buccaneers, in New York. She realized, however, that once again she was not seeing any of the money she should have earned, and retired from singing altogether. She married in New York and had two children. During her two-decade hiatus from singing, Dillon worked in a bank and raised her children.In the late 1980s Michael Barnett, a director of MKB Productions, which produced the Get Ready Rock Steady tours, approached Dillon about doing a show. At first reluctant to sing again, Barnett eventually convinced her to return to the stage in 1991. Dillon performed for a celebration of rocksteady at the National Arena in Jamaica to a crowd of 5,000. She told Dooley, “Everything just came back, and I realized how much I was in love with that thing. So I started from there.” Revitalized by her return to singing, Dillon regularly performed rocksteady shows, including the Heineken Startime concerts. Although she continued to hold her position at the bank, she performed in New York, London, Jamaica, France, Germany, Belgium, Spain, and Japan.Dillon has appeared on countless compilations of reggae and rocksteady CDs. However, she has only two CDs of her own. Midnight Confessions: Classic Rock Steady & Reggae 1967-71 includes her most enduring songs, “Don’t Stay Away,” “Love Was All I Had,” “It’s Rocking Time” (”Rock Steady”), and “Perfidia.” In a review of the CD for All Music Guide, Andrew Hamilton praised Dillon’s singing, declaring that “she possesses an exciting, pretty voice that massages lyrics for the sole purpose of melting your heart.” After Dillon’s second rise secured her status as a legend of Jamaican music, she was diagnosed with cancer, and died in New York in April of 2004. In November of 2004 a second CD of her work was released, Love Is All I Had: A Tribute to the Queen of Jamaica. Included on this collection are her vintage rocksteady cuts, as well as several reggae songs. Wade Kergan of All Music Guide commended the collection, calling it wide-ranging in its inclusion of “a staggering 29 cuts of vintage rock steady and early reggae,” and concluding that “no matter what she’s singing … it’s hard not to fall in love with her voice, making even touristy cuts like the randy ‘Don’t Touch Me Tomato’ worth hearing.”

Phyllis Dillon’s Career

Singer in Jamaican band the Vulcans, early 1960s; discovered at the Glass Bucket in Kingston by Lynn Taitt; signed with Duke Reid for Treasure Isle label, 1965; released first song, “Don’t Stay Away,” 1966; moved to New York City, 1967; briefly sang in New York with Jamaican band the Buccaneers; returned to Jamaica twice yearly to record songs for Reid; emerged from a nearly two-decade hiatus in 1991 to perform in the Get Ready Rock Steady show at Jamaica’s National Arena; established successful comeback, touring United States, Europe, Japan, and Jamaica throughout 1990s and early 2000s with other rocksteady artists.

Soul

The History of Soul Music

Soul Music is the product of ever evolving social conditions and a diversity of musical influences.
My starting point must be the arrival of African Slaves to North America. The first batch were brought by English Privateers and landed in Jamestown, Virginia, in 1619. At first they were few in number so it was not necessary to define their legal status but with the development of the plantation system in the southern colonies the number of agricultural slave labourers increased greatly. The first statutory recognition of slavery occurred in Massachusetts in 1641, in Connecticut in 1650 and Virginia in 1661, but these were mainly rules for dealing with runaways. By the time the war of independence began (1775-1783) laws defining their legal, political and social status with regards to their owners had become very specific.

As they were toiling in the fields the slaves tried to alleviate their misery by singing their traditional African Folk songs. It was only when these black workers started to convert to Christianity that these folk songs metamorphosed to become "African Spirituals". The first references to spiritual-like songs sung by Black Slaves date from about 1825-1850. As one would expect, these 'Spirituals' showed significant melodic and rhythmic relationships with West African songs. Before the Civil War they were apparently sung without harmony, examples of which are "Deep River" and "Roll Jordan Roll". Black Spirituals were often used as work songs and sometimes contained coded information as a form of secret communication. By the late 1800's spirituals had largely been displaced by Gospel Songs.

Black Gospel Music, which had become distinctive from White Gospel Music by 1930, was especially associated with Pentecostal churches. It developed out of a combination of earlier hymns, black performance styles, and elements from the spirituals. The singing was often merged into ecstatic dance and was usually accompanied by a piano or an organ, often with handclapping, tambourines and electric guitars.

Just before, and during World War Two many blacks migrated from the agricultural south to the more industrial Mid-Western, North-Eastern and West-Coast Cities. This population shift was caused by relatively high paying wartime employment. It was this new urbanised demographic group which evolved a new style of secular music known as R&B. Its genesis was inspired by two technological developments, the invention of the electric guitar during the 1930's and the discovery of the German Tape Recorder. This new, cheap medium simplified the sound recording process and meant that Blacks could start their own independent record companies for the first time. These companies Atlantic, Chess, Speciality and Modern were crucial in the production and distribution of R&B. Access to their music was given fresh impetus during the late 1940's when many radio station owners, fearing that the newly invented television would make their radio stations obsolete sold them at knockdown prices. For the first time black owned radio stations could promote the sounds of R&B.

Whilst the newly urbanised blacks of the North were developing R&B, their Southern counterparts were developing their own brand of secular music. Like R&B, Jazz was also rooted in the musical traditions of American blacks, but with White European Influences mixed in. Most early Jazz was played by small marching bands or by solo pianists and besides Ragtime and marches their repertoire included hymns, spirituals and blues. Although blues and ragtime rose independently of Jazz, these genres influenced the style and forms of Jazz and provided important vehicles for Jazz improvisation.

Soul did not evolve until the early sixties when artists like Sam Cooke, Bobby Bland and Ray Charles began merging traditional Gospel and R&B styles. Ray Charles went even further and began taking overtly religious songs such as 'I Got Religion' and secularising them to become songs like 'I Got a Woman'. In the process he alienated many religious blacks who thought his music was 'the music of the devil'.

Throughout the early sixties the most important centres for Soul were Chicago, Memphis and Detroit, each developing their own distinctive styles. It was the Stax label in Memphis which relied most heavily on Gospel and which produced the rawest sound. In Detroit Tamla Motown were busy combining polished songwriting with straightforward vocal delivery to evolve Soul's most commercial style of all. Indeed this label was so successful that its music is often considered to be a genre in its own right. Its producer and owner Berry Gordy achieved this not only by using sophisticated productions but also by sanitising the content so as not to offend white ears. Chicago soul fell somewhere between the two with its main player being Curtis Mayfield. With his group 'The Impressions' he experimented with trading lines between the lead and the backing group in a call and response fashion. He termed his music 'Songs of Faith and Inspiration' and often included semi-religious overtones. A good example of Mayfield's work is his composition 'People Get Ready'.

By the 1970's however 'Soul' was being superseded by 'Funk' as the most important form of Black Music. Whereas traditional Soul had its Roots in R&B, the Roots of Funk were in Jazz and African Music. Whereas many Soul aficionados consider Funk and soul to be distinct Genres the term 'soul' is now commonly used to encompass both styles and this can lead to confusion. James Brown's song 'Cold Sweat' (1967) is generally regarded as the first ever 'Funk' composition. Historically funk has been closely associated with Malcolm X and the Black Power movement, whereas Soul has been associated with Martin Luther King and the civil rights movement, the former being violent, the latter being peaceful. For this reason funk has never achieved the same popularity with white audiences as Soul has done.

Vespa

*Vespa History*

*The Beginning*

Vespa's timeless design comes from an equally timeless company - Piaggio has been a distinguished innovator in the field of transportation for nearly 120 years.

Piaggio was founded in Genoa, Italy in 1884 by twenty-year-old Rinaldo Piaggio. Rinaldo's business began with luxury ship fitting. But by the end of the century, Piaggio was also producing rail carriages, luxury coaches, truck bodies, engines, and trains.

With the onset of World War I, the company forged new ground with the production of airplanes and seaplanes. In 1917 Piaggio bought a new plant in Pisa, and four years later it took over a small plant in Pontedera in the Tuscany region of Italy. It was this plant in Pontedera which became its new center for aeronautical production (propellers, engines and complete aircraft).

During World War II, the Pontedera plant built the state-of-the-art P 108 four-engine aircraft, in both passenger and bomber versions. However, the plant was completely destroyed by Allied bombers due to its military importance.

*Rebirth*

Piaggio came out of the conflict with its Pontedera plant in complete ruin. Enrico Piaggio was at the helm, having taken over from his father Rinaldo. Concerned about the disastrous state of the roads and the Italian economy, Enrico decided to focus the Company's attention on the personal mobility needs of the Italian people.

Enter Corradino D'Ascanio, Piaggio's ingenious aeronautical engineer who designed, constructed and flew the first modern helicopter. D'Ascanio set out to design a simple, sturdy, and economical vehicle that was also comfortable and elegant.

D'Ascanio, who could not stand motorcycles, dreamed up a revolutionary new vehicle. Drawing from the latest aeronautical technology, he imagined a vehicle built on a "monocoque" (French for "single shell") or unibody steel chassis. Furthermore, the front fork, like a plane's landing gear, allowed for easy wheel changing. The result was an aircraft-inspired design that to this day remains forward-thinking and unique among all other two-wheeled vehicles.

Upon seeing the vehicle, Enrico Piaggio remarked "Sembra una Vespa!" ("It looks like a wasp!") This was a real two-wheeled utility vehicle. But it did not resemble an uncomfortable and noisy motorcycle. The steel frame's shape protected the rider from road dirt and debris. It emanated class and elegance at first glance.

By the end of 1949, 35,000 units had been produced. Italy was getting over its war wounds and getting about on Vespas. In ten years, one million were produced. By the mid-fifties, Vespa was being produced in Germany, Great Britain, France, Belgium, Spain and, of course, Italy.

Vespa has lived on from one generation to the next, subtly modifying its image each time. The first Vespa offered mobility to everyone. Then, it became the two-wheeler of the post war economic boom. During the sixties and seventies, the vehicle became a symbol for the revolutionary ideas of the time. Advertising campaigns like "He Who Vespas, eats the apple", and films such as Quadrophenia have symbolized eras in our history.

And the story continues today with the new generation of Vespa models, which range from the Granturismo and Granturismo Sport (GTS), the largest and most powerful Vespas, to the LX, the latest restyling of the classic Vespa design. Also check out the new vintage-inspired Vespas, the GTV and LXV, and the limited edition GT60.

Vespa is not just a scooter. It is one of the great icons of Italian style and elegance, and with more than 16 million units produced, is well known throughout the world. For more than 60 years, Vespa has fascinated millions of people and given the world an irreplaceable icon of Italian style and a means of personal transport that has become synonymous with freedom.

Hoolifan -- 30 Years Of Hurt

It's a good read on hooliganism.

Spirit Of '69: A Skinhead Bible

This book describes all of the important facts of skinhead history. From the music to the style of dress. From scooter to football hooliganism. From rudeboys to mods. From original skinheads to SHARP's skins. Most of all it explains the truth about skinheads that so many people don't know or (maybe) don't want to know.

Skinhead Nation

This is a really good book on skinhead subculture. Lots of personal stories, antidotes, and of sourse great pictures. It covers all aspects of skinhead cult and gives good first accounts of how it is to have to live with and deal with mainstreams tainted view of what it is to be a skinhead.

Trojan

The Trojan story begins on July 28th 1967 when the first incarnation of the label was launched by Island Records as a showcase for the productions of Duke Reid. The name itself derived from the seven ton Leyland ‘Trojan’ trucks that were used to transport the producer‘s huge sound system around Jamaica, and which had emblazoned upon its sides, ’Duke Reid, The Trojan King Of Sounds‘. In fact, long before Island launched their version of the imprint, Reid had used the name on a series of 78s, although it was by the early sixties it had been dropped in favour of the Duke Reid’s and later, Treasure Isle labels. Meanwhile, the first British inception of Trojan proved a short-lived operation, folding after a mere dozen or so releases, with Reid‘s productions subsequently highlighted on the UK incarnation of the aforementioned Treasure Isle imprint.In 1968, the Trojan name was reactivated by businessman Lee Gopthal, whose company, B&C (Beat & Commercial) had recently merged with Island. Unlike its previous manifestation, the new Trojan label showcased material from varying sources, ranging from British-based producers such as Dandy and Joe Mansano to their esteemed Jamaican counterparts, among whose number included Lee Perry, Bunny Lee, Clancy Eccles and the aforementioned Duke Reid. Meanwhile, the increased volume of recordings being purchased and licensed by the company led to the formation of a series of subsidiary labels, most of which showcased the output of a single producer. Included among these were Amalgamated (for Joe Gibbs), High Note (Sonia Pottinger), Upsetter (Lee Perry), Jackpot (Bunny Lee), Clandisc (Clancy Eccles) and Downtown (Robert ’Dandy‘ Thompson). So substantial was the volume of material obtained for release that further labels such as Blue Cat, Big Shot and Duke were also created to fulfil a similar function to the parent label, issuing recordings from an array of producers. Over the next year or so more than thirty different labels under the Trojan umbrella were launched.Soon after its creation, Trojan also began releasing albums, with the TRL (S) series featuring packages considered more up-market and the TTL line (later superseded by TBL) aimed at the budget-price market, predominantly featuring various artist compilations, the most successful of which were the popular ’Tighten Up‘ volumes.In 1969, the company enjoyed their first taste of mainstream success, when Tony Tribe’s upbeat version of Neil Diamond‘s ’Red Red Wine‘ briefly entered the lower reaches of the UK singles chart on 16th July, re-appearing the following month to peak at number 46. Rather than proving a one-off success, the record in fact marked the beginning of a deluge of hits for Trojan and its associated labels. In the Autumn, the Upsetters, led by saxophonist, Val Bennett, hit the number five spot with their double-header, ’Return Of Django‘/’Dollar In The Teeth‘, while the Pioneers’ ‘Long Shot Kick De Bucket’ peaked at number 21. These were swiftly followed by top ten singles from Jimmy Cliff (‘Wonderful World, Beautiful People’) and the Harry J All Stars (‘Liquidator’).The hits continued into 1970, with Desmond Dekker, the Melodians, Toots & the Maytals, Bob & Marcia, Nicky Thomas, Horace Faith, Freddie Notes & the Rudies, as well as the aforementioned Jimmy Cliff, all breaking into the charts. In the spring of 1971, ‘Double Barrel’ by Dave (Barker) & Ansel Collins gave the company their first British number one, while further chart entries were provided by Bruce Ruffin, Greyhound and The Pioneers.Aside from the more commercially successful releases, Trojan also showcased work from an array of artists previously considered virtual unknowns outside the shores of Jamaica. Among these were a number of performers who were later to become major international recording stars, including Dennis Brown, Gregory Isaacs, U Roy and a Kingston-based vocal trio called Bob Marley & the Wailers.The dramatic rise in the company‘s fortunes since its humble beginnings just a year or so before were nothing short of phenomenal. While its incredible success could certainly be credited in some part to the British West Indian ex-patriot community, it was undoubtedly the buying power of the white and proudly working class youth movement, the skinheads, which had the most profound effect. Unable to identify with either the teen-based style of bubblegum or the psychedelic sounds so favoured by the middle-classes, skinheads found the direct, unpretentious approach of Reggae in keeping with their lifestyle and attitudes and readily adopted the music as their own. But as Reggae became mainstream, Trojan’s releases developed a more sophisticated sound, which although initially proved successful, ultimately led to the disenchantment of the music‘s loyal skinhead following. Nonetheless, the hits continued for the company into 1972, with singles from Greyhound, The Pioneers, Dandy (Livingstone) and Judge Dread. The same year Trojan finally severed all links with Island, which began to concentrate its efforts into promoting UK-based acts.Over the next few years, Trojan released further UK chart hits, with singles by Dandy, Judge Dread and John Holt all breaching the top thirty, while Ken Boothe’s soulful rendering of Bread‘s ’Everything I Own‘ gave the company its second UK number one. Meanwhile, back in Jamaica, the sound of Reggae was changing. Increasingly apparent was the rise in black consciousness and the growing influence of the Rastafarian faith, while Dub had also begun to make its mark, with the pioneering sound engineer, King Tubby continually furthering the boundaries of the sound with his innovative mixing style.In 1975, Trojan was sold to Saga Records and despite a number of worthwhile releases, sustained commercial success proved elusive. Despite this, the company continued to present some of the best in Jamaican sounds, showcasing the work of leading vocalists, including Linval Thompson and Sugar Minott, DJs, such as the late Prince Far I, and leading Dub masters, Scientist and Prince Jammy.Ten years on, the company changed hands yet again and its new owners embarked on an extensive re-issue programme, with the imprint quickly becoming established as world leaders in field of vintage Jamaican sounds. In the summer of 2001, Trojan was acquired by Sanctuary Records Group who immediately set about raising the label’s standards even higher. Today, Trojan‘s future looks brighter than ever and with some of the leading authorities in the field of vintage Jamaican music contributing to future releases, there are undoubtedly some truly exciting times ahead.

Stax

Stax Records was the creation of brother and sister, Jim Stewart and Estelle Axton.

Twelve years older than Jim, Estelle was brought up in the county of Middleton, Tennessee. Always strongly interested in music, as a teenager, she had been a fan of pop music, played the organ and sung soprano in the family gospel quartet.She came to Memphis in 1935 at the age of sixteen to get her teaching certificate. While attending Memphis State University she met her husband to be Everett Axton. One year1ater she returned to Middleton to become her brother's first grade teacher. In 1941 she married Everett and moved back to Memphis.By this time she was married and had school aged children of her own. Jim twelve years younger, would later joined her in Memphis, where Estelle worked as a teller at the Union Planter's Bank in Memphis.
Estelle stayed home for ten years raising her two children, before going to work at Union Planters Bank in 1950. There she stayed until she opened the Satellite Record Shop in 1961.
Jim Stewart was born July 29, 1930 in Middleton, Tennessee. His parents Ollie and Dexter Steweart ran a farm with Dexter also doing carpentry and brickwork on the side. Stewart's father bought him a guitar when he was ten. Many Saturday nights he would listen to the Grand Ole Opry and try to ply along with it. Constantly practicing Stewart learned by ear. Eventually he and a friend from a band that played at local square dances.
After high school he went to Memphis where he hoped to develop a career as a country fiddler. Influenced by the Western Swing of Bob Willis ant Texas Playboys, Pee Wee King and Tex Williams, as well as the honkey tonk sounds of Hank Williams, Moon Mullican and Ernest Tubb, he played odd jobs while working at Sears Roebuck during the day. Stewart could be heard on WDIA playing in the early morning as a member of Don Powell's Country Cowboys.
By late 1950 Stewart was working for the First National Bank.
He went into the Army in 1953 and was in the Special Services where he played the violin. He studied business at Memphis State in preparation for a banking career and graduated in 1956. Stewart's intentions were to become a banker, but while working in a bank, he still played fiddle in Western swing bands around Memphis.
Playing at the Eagle's Nest. Jim Stewart is pictured at the far rightAfter getting out of the Army, Stewart returned to his job at the bank and got a job playing at the Eagle's Nest on Lamar Avenue. Stewart took advantage of the G.I. Bill and got a B.A. from Memphis State University majoring in business management and minoring in music.
Stax Records The Satellite Record Shop
By 1957 Stewart's interest in recording led him to tape a couple songs that he took to Sun Records as well as a few other local labels. With the exception of Erwin Ellis, his barber who owned the small Erwin Records, no one would give him the time of day. Ellis loaned Stewart his first recording equipment, educated about the value of publishing and and taught him the basic mechanics of running a small independent record label and establishing an affiliate publishing company.

Jim Stewart began fooling around recording music in his wife's uncle's garage around 1957 and he put out his first record in 1958, a country and western song named "Blue Roses" by a disc jockey named Fred Bylar (Satellite 100). At this time Stewart was equal partners in the new label with Bylar and a rhythm guitarist named Neil Herbert, as a three had put in three or four hundred dollars. Only a few hundred copies were pressed with virtually no copies being sold on its only airplay was on KWEM, the station where Bylar worked.
Stewart, Bylar and Hebert had been recording Satellite's releases in Stewart's wife's uncle' two car garage on Omni Street using a portable reel-to-reel tape record owned by Erwin Ellis. Wanting to buy a state of the art Ampex 350 monaural tape recorder Stewart asked his sister Estelle Axton for help by taking out a mortgage on her house. After convincing here husband Everett to go along a second mortgage was taken out. With the $8000 - $9000 Herbert and Bylar were bought out, the Ampex recorder was financed and badly needed operating capital was provided.

Estelle took out a $2500 on her house and they began a record label they called Satellite (probably because Sputnik, the Russians' first earth satellite, was launched in October, 1957, and dominated the news). In 1958, Estelle became involved when Jim Stewart asked her to invest in his record company, she took out a second mortgage on her home and they bought new recording equipment. The label was located in Brunswick, Tennessee in an old storehouse.
In the spring of 1959 Stewart recorded his first black group, the Veltones. The Veltones' "Fool in Love"/"Someday" was released in in the summer of 1959. In September it was picked up for national distribution by Mercury Records for an advance of $400 - $500. The record went nowhere and Stewart received no further money from Mercury.
In 1960, they moved the label back to Memphis to rented for $150 a month the old Capitol movie theater on East McLemore and College. Short on money, Estelle decided to convert the candy counter into a record shop to generate additional income.Estelle ran a record shop in the front of the building from which they would derive much of their early income.
After signing the lease, they set about renovating the theatre. In the next few months after everyone's regular workday and on weekends, acoustical drapes were hung, a control room was built on stage, carpeting was put on the floors, baffles were built with burlap and ruffle insulation on the one outside plaster wall to cut down on echo and a drum stand was built. The hanging of the ceiling baffles was the only work that they paid professionals to do.
Although the renovations only cost $200 - $200, they again found themselves cash strapped. Unable to find local investors, Axton again refinanced her house to get another $4000 of badly needed operating capital. As luck would have it, their next recording would provide their first hit.
They recorded a local disc jockey named Rufus Thomas, who had had a minor hit with Sun Records earlier called "Bearcat". Rufus and his 17 year old daughter Carla recorded a duet titled "Cause I Love You" and it became a local hit in Memphis. The song came to the attention of Jerry Wexler, who was Vice President of Atlantic Records, he leased the record and obtained a five year option for future Satellite product for $5000. After "Cause I Love You", Carla Thomas recorded a song she had written called "Gee Whiz". The record came out on Satellite, but Wexler immediately claimed it for Atlantic, and it was released nationally on Atlantic. "Gee Whiz" went to Billboard #5 and became the first big national hit for Jim Stewart and Estelle Axton.
The Mar-keysEstelle Axton's son Packy played tenor sax in a rock and roll band named the Royal Spades. Along with Packy was Steve Cropper on guitar, Charlie Freeman on guitar, drummer Terry Johnson baritone sax player Don Nix and bassist Donald "Duck" Dunn. This group became the Mar-Keys and recorded an instrumental named "Last Night" which became the next big hit for Jim and Estelle. When this song started up the charts, Jim Stewart became aware of another record company in California called "Satellite" so rather than risking litigation, the name of the company was changed to "Stax", the ST from Stewart and the AX from Axton.
Booker T and the MGsA young piano player named Booker T. Jones lived in the neighborhood near the Stax studio, and started hanging around. He joined up with Steve Cropper and Duck Dunn from the Mar-Keys and with Al Jackson and they became the backbone of the "Stax Sound". They also recorded on their own as Booker T. and MG's (standing for Memphis Group) and soon had a giant hit named "Green Onions". Steve Cropper became an important producer for Stax and both wrote songs and produced many other acts for Jim Stewart.
In 1962, Johnny Jenkins came to the Stax studio to record a single for Atlantic. When the recording session for Jenkins turned into a disaster, they used the last half hour of studio time to record Jenkin's 21 year old driver, Otis Redding. He recorded a ballad he had written called "These Arms of Mine". "These Arms of Mine" was released in October of 1962 on Stax's new rhythm and blues subsidiary named Volt. It made the charts in March of 1963 and in September of 1963, Otis came back into the Stax studio and recorded "Pain In My Heart" which became an even bigger hit.
With the success of Booker T. and the MG's, Carla Thomas, The Mar-Keys and Otis Redding, Stax studios became a magnet for other acts. Atlantic Records brought in two of their recording acts, the duo Sam and Dave and Wilson Pickett, to Memphis to record at the Stax studio. Stax Records itself had added William Bell, Eddie Floyd, the Mad-Lads and a top notch producing and song writing duo named Isaac Hayes and David Porter. In 1965 Stewart hired a very successful black Washington DC disc jockey named Al Bell as national sales director. From the beginning, Al Bell took over the effective leadership of the company and greatly expanded it's roster of artists.

On December 10, 1967, Otis Redding was killed in a plane crash and had his biggest hit, "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay," posthumously. Shortly after losing their most important artist, the distribution deal Stax had with Atlantic was to expire and had to be renegotiated. To the horror of Jim Stewart, he found out that the original contract had given Atlantic the ownership of all of the Stax masters. Atlantic owned the entire Stax catalog! The negotiations dragged on for several months, but Stax had no leverage, since Atlantic already owned their catalog. Instead of giving up and signing with Atlantic, Stewart sold the company in May 1968 to Gulf and Western for several million dollars. At this point the Stax numbering system was changed. The most successful act on Stax/Volt other than Otis Redding was Sam and Dave, even though Sam and Dave's material was being released on Stax, their contract was with Atlantic so they were no longer on Stax.
Sam and DaveEven with the loss of Otis Redding and Sam and Dave, the company did very well without Atlantic. They had additional hits by Booker T. and the MG'S, Johnnie Taylor, and William Bell. Stax had formed a subsidiary label called Enterprise in 1967 and released an album by one of their producers named Isaac Hayes called "Presenting Isaac Hayes" but it was not very successful. After the break with Atlantic, Hayes made another album called Hot Buttered Soul and it went triple platinum.

Al Bell and Jimmy StewartAfter a couple of years, sales were down and there were internal troubles at Stax. External pressure was coming from Gulf and Western who really didn't have a clue about the creative aspects of a record company. Jim Stewart thought he could rescue the company and he and Al Bell repurchased the company from Gulf and Western in July 1970. At this point, the numbering system changed again. Soon the company was challenging Motown for the lead in black album sales, with new artists such as the Soul Children, the Staple Singers, Frederick Knight, Jean Knight, Rance Allen, Mel and Tim and the Emotions. Richard Pryor was signed to the company and had a giant debut album called "That Nigger's Crazy" on Partee, the comedy subsidiary. Other new subsidiary labels were also formed including Gospel Truth, Hip and Respect.
Stax just before it was torn down Historic marker where Stax stood
In 1972, Al Bell made a deal with Columbia Records for the distribution of Stax product. Columbia gave Stax a six million dollar loan for expansion. In October of 1972, Al Bell used the money to buy out Jim Stewart. Even though he no longer owned the company, Stewart agreed to stay on as President for up to 5 years, but Al Bell ran the company. The handshake deal between Al Bell and Clive Davis, President of Columbia Records called for Columbia to pay Stax for every record it delivered, irrespective of sales, an unheard of agreement. In 1973, Clive Davis was fired and Columbia altered the deal, cutting the payments to Stax by 40%. This led to the financial decline of the label and in January 1975, Stax was unable to meet it's payroll and a bankruptcy judge ordered it's closing on January 12, 1976.
The Stax masters prior to 1968 are owned by Atlantic Records, but the Stax masters produced after the split with Atlantic are now owned by Fantasy Records of San Francisco.

Studio One

Studio One is one of reggae's most renowned record labels, having been described as the "Motown" of Jamaica. It was founded by Clement 'Coxsone' Dodd in 1954, along with a studio by the same name, which was located on Brentford Road in Kingston. Dodd had previously issued music on a series of other labels, including World-Disc, and ran Downbeat one of the three or four largest and most reputable sound systems in the Kingston ghettos. The label and studio were closed when Dodd relocated to New York City in the 1980s.
It has produced records by (and had a large hand in shaping the careers of) such artists as Bob Marley and the Wailers, Lee "Scratch" Perry, Burning Spear, Toots & the Maytals, John Holt, Horace Andy, Ken Boothe, and Alton Ellis. Noted rival Prince Buster began his career working for Dodd's sound system, and noted producer Harry J recorded many of his best-known releases at Studio One.
Studio One had a large hand in shaping most of the major movements in Jamaican music during the 1960s and 70s, including ska, rocksteady (though Duke Reid's rocksteady output at his Treasure Isle label overshadowed Dodd's), reggae, dub and dance-hall. The Skatalites and the Sound Dimension were among several prominent ensembles to record backing tracks and instrumentals at Studio One.

PAMA

The PAMA Records story began in a small office at 16 Peterborough Road in Harrow, London, where the Palmer Brothers (Harry, Jeff and Carl) had been issuing soul music on their Pama label (which may have been lifted from the 1958 version (left)), as well as running their own property business. One of my favourite tracks is one of these soul records released much later, a real stomper from 1970 - Say You Need Me by Barbara Perry (Pama PM 795). The brothers Palmer though, had already decided the Jamaican music scene was far more profitable and so begun part of music history.
Their first signings included Joyce Bond, The Marvels, The Crowns, Betty Lovett, Norman T Washington and The Other Brothers. During the latter part of 1967 they began releasing rock steady, partly in competition to Island/Trojan Records.
Harry was the main driving force and was responsible for licensing the tunes, initially from Clancy Eccles and Alton Ellis, later establishing links with Bunny Lee and Lee Perry. Carl looked after the accountancy side of the biz, and Jeffrey founded the London Apollo Club to showcase up and coming black talent. A young Junior English actually won a Pama talent contest run at their Club 31 in Willesden NW London, and then made his first record with them. It was at Pama where Junior learnt his trade through meeting the aforementioned musical luminaries.
Another aspiring young musician was Delroy Washington, who later went on to be one of the UK's most respected stars of the 1970's. Delroy worked in Pama's record shop in Harlesden, and while employed by Pama, he also sang in a group called The Classics who made a few songs for Pama. Delroy met his biggest influence - Bob Marley (who was on tour at the time with Johnny Nash) while working in the shop.
It became more obvious the more we delved into the history of Pama records that we began to realise that the Pama sound was actually a very indigenous sound. Whereas UK soul was merely imitating an American sound from far away, UK reggae was for the most part played and appreciated by people much closer to the source of the music - Jamaicans living in England.
Though the fanbase was initially limited to these ex-pats and a secret but growing legion of white admirers (who picked up on the music and treated it as the key to a mystery they were pledged never to reveal), the musicians were nearly always Jamaican. This was not true at Pama however, because they did use a range of home-grown talent in their British recordings.
These local fans/musicians brought very different backgrounds and offered different contributions. Of course, the Jamaican musicians were the stars, but due to the fact that a lot of Pama releases were recorded in England, there was a lot of local interest. In fact, Pama signed at least three UK based bands - The Mohawks, led by keyboardist Alan Hawkshaw, Mood Reaction, the first white band to be signed to a reggae label and The Inner Mind, led by Huddersfield based organist Ian Smith.
The Inner Mind, as well as recording much of their own material, also backed such names as Laurel Aitken, Owen Grey, Alton Ellis, and Winston Groovy (who came to Britain in the mid 1960's and formed a band The Ebonites for touring in the UK and Europe, and became one of Pama's top artists from 1968 - 73). The Inner Mind also played at the Santa Rosa in Birmingham, the Club 67 in Wolverhampton, & London's Mr Bees, Colombo's and the Pama-run Apollo Club, who described them at the time as 'The greatest white reggae band on earth'.
In the meantime, Derrick Morgan had introduced his brother-in-law Bunny Lee, to the music business. Lee hadcome to England and forged a deal with Pama to operate the Jamaican end of things. Derrick Morgan soon becameone of Pama's biggest stars and producers and also hit the British charts with Moon Hop.
This skinhead anthem became a hit all over Europe, and would have climbed higher than the number 48 position it achieved in the UK, if Trojan hadn't released Skinhead Moonstomp by Symarip and gazumped Pama. This trick was supposedly in revenge for Lee licensing Derrick's Seven Letters to both Trojan and Pama. Forever to be known as Mr Skinhead Reggae, Derrick left the music business due to his failing eyesight, but made a limited comeback during one of Britain's many ska revivals, and is still seen gigging occasionally.
The Unity, Gas, Crab and Nu-Beat labels were formed in 1968 with 1969 seeing the introduction of Punch and the changing of Nu-Beat to New Beat to emphasize the change in musical styles. The biggest hit to come from the Pama stable has to be Wet Dream by Max Romeo, another huge worldwide hit. Wet Dream got to number 10 in the British charts, and managed to sell 250,000 copies without one single airplay. Later artists who hit with Pama include Derrick Morgan, Pat Kelly and Laurel Aitken.
Further vinyl battles were carried out via Pama's Straighten Up series of albums, a direct copy of, and in direct competition to Trojan's Tighten Up series. Pama tricks didn't stop there however, and the This Is Reggae series of album covers were complete copies of Atlantic's This Is Soul series.
The Pama distribution network is largely in the realms of legend, but the delivery man was seen once, in 1973, outside Pauls For Music record shop in Finsbury Park, London.
The demise of the Pama Records is not at all well documented, but it seems to coincide with a general slump in reggae sales around the late 70's/early 80's. There is also the story that Harry found god on a trip to the USA and quit the music biz to devote his life to Christianity.
The truth is probably less sensational, and Pama just lost their way, with too many below-par releases. Pama finally succumed in 1974, only to be briefly resurrected in 1975 for a few singles and one album. That is not quite the end though, as Pama resurfaced a short time later as Jet Star, one of the biggest distribution networks for Jamaican music.