That record above was my first taste of Duke Reid. I had clue who Duke Reid was at the time. It was in the reggae section and it was cheap, about four bucks, and that was for a new original pressing (this was years ago). I figured it was worth the gamble. After getting home and looking at the back cover more closely I saw that it was a compilation and that none of the artists were named Duke Reid. What the fuck?
A few years later (still pre-internet) I found out that Reid owned the recording studio and label, Treasure Island. In ensuing years I became aware of the significance of Reid. Basically, in the beginning, the big two were Reid's Treasure Isle and Coxsonne Dodd's Studio One studio and label. They were both really active in the ska years, then when ska evolved into rocksteady, Reid had the edge. Ultimately Dodd would come out on top in the reggae years. A bunch of reasons for that, among them is that Reid was an ex-cop and allowed no weed on the premises. Dodd already had the killer studio band, songwriters, talent scouts and roster (almost all of it passing through the hands Leroy Sibbles, who wore all of those hats at different times). Not to mention his records sounded better. By looking the other way when the weed came out, he also had a less uptight environment, enabling more creativity. Blah, blah, blah. Someone should make a movie.
Anyway, there's something about Reid's stuff, particularly the rocksteady era, that makes it perfect for after-beach farting around. Which is why it took three hours to write three paragraphs.
Baba Brooks Orchestra - Watermelon Man mp3 at Internet Archive
The Paragons - On the Beach mp3 at Internet Archive
Alton Ellis and the Flames - Dance Crasher mp3 at Internet Archive
The Techniques - You Don't Care mp3 at Internet Archive
The Jamaicans - Baba Boom mp3 at Internet Archive
The Melodians - Last Train to Expo '67 mp3 at Internet Archive
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